The Eric Metaxas Show - Kirk Cameron (Encore)

Episode Date: October 28, 2021

Kirk Cameron lightens things up a bit with news of his new TBN program, "Takeaways," focusing on how we can affect culture for good. (Encore Presentation) ...

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:10 to the Eric Mettaxas show with your host, Eric Mettaxas. Hey, folks, welcome to hour two. In a couple seconds, we have, you know, I don't know how you describe him. Kirk Cameron is just one of the world's nicest guys. And I love talking to him. This is an encore. You may have heard it before. If you haven't heard it before, you'll want to hear it. And if you've heard it before, you really want to hear it because he's just that nice. I want to read a letter. My book is. atheism dead is out. I'm doing tons of media. I have a piece that I wrote that was published yesterday at FoxNews.com. If you go to FoxNews.com, please do actually and share it, share it if you would.
Starting point is 00:00:56 FoxNews.com, it's called, it's an opinion piece. It's probably a little harder to find because they have so many pieces they published, but it's called, is atheism the enemy of freedom? Is atheism the and FreedomFoxNews.com. So please find it and share it. But I got a letter yesterday from somebody who read it. And I want to read the letter. The guy's name is Jason. I won't give his last name. But here's what he wrote. And I want to respond to it because I think it's important to try to clarify this. There's a lot of misunderstanding, frankly. That's a big problem. It's not just that people disagree. They agree on some things. And then they disagree on things where, actually agree with you, but they've misunderstood what you're saying. And so I want to clear that up.
Starting point is 00:01:45 So here's what Jason wrote yesterday regarding my article at Fox News.com. He says, I read through your article recently posted on Fox News.com and believe you've come to an ill-advised conclusion brought to life through a flawed proposition. You make the accurate representation of our founders using the examples of interdependence between the state and state-sanctioned religion. as in Europe, as a basis of a style of government to avoid. So he agrees with that. From there, you divert from their intention. This is, Jason writes, the founders, the American founders, men of various fates and levels of
Starting point is 00:02:25 adherence to those fates. So the marriage of state and faith as a means of limiting freedom. Freedom of religion is written as the prevention of religious influence in self-government. Jefferson uses the phrase of separation to keep one's personal faith away from the rights and distribution of rights to a citizenry. Now, I have to say, I think this author, Jason, is getting that exactly wrong. I mean, I see his point, but the fear was it cut in both directions. There was a tremendous fear that once the state gets condemned, of faith, yes, it forces it on citizens, but the point is it's because the church is supposed
Starting point is 00:03:18 to let the church be the church and not get involved. Because once the church gets involved, not only does it have the possibility, as he is correctly saying, of coercing citizens, but it also has the ability of perverting and corrupting the church. And that was the real concern. And if the church can be the church and have nothing to do officially with the government, it can thrive. It can be voluntary. So I think he gets that wrong, but his point is taken. But then he writes, additionally, honor, valor, and duty are not virtues born of the faithful. They are virtues inherent in man if one can selflessly give meaning to something other than the self.
Starting point is 00:04:07 Now, that's where this breaks down for me. We're talking about something like virtues, honor, valor, duty. I say they come from some kind of faith. They don't have to come from Christian faith. You can be a Roman citizen who believes in the state of Rome and the virtues of Rome, the classical virtues, but it comes in faith in something larger than yourself. So the idea that these virtues could be somehow inherent in man, I just don't know what that means.
Starting point is 00:04:37 I think what's inherent in man is self-interest. So duty, valor, honor, these are the antitheses of self-interest. So I don't know how he can come to that conclusion. It just doesn't make sense to me. I think self-interest, you see it in a child. What's inherent in man is me, me, me, no, no, no, give me, give me. So I just don't understand that. and I disagree with that. He then says, as a proud atheist, I take great offense to the claims made.
Starting point is 00:05:13 My belief in the Constitution allows me to hold my beliefs while making sure you have the right and freedom to hold yours. Believe me, if the day would come where any faith was put on the chopping block, I'd stand with you in solidarity. Now, that's beautiful. And I just want to say, this guy, there's some stuff that he really gets that many Christians don't get. And that is key. to understand that we need to stand up for each other, for the principle of freedom of religion. But then he says, because in the end, the character of a man and the ideals that we hold true
Starting point is 00:05:49 are what define a nation, I think that's right. We are not the United States. If yours, your rights or my rights, smother the ability of another's freedoms, I totally agree with that. I just totally agree with that. He's quite right in saying that. He says, perhaps I'm an outlier, but I don't think that to be the case. In this instance, I believe your overarching proposition is misguided and poorly characterizes the beliefs of those without faith. Be well. God bless this man, Jason, for writing in. I wanted to share this because this is an honest dialogue. He's saying some things. Again, I think we disagree on some things, but he rightly states that to coerce one's faith, in other words, the reason I think it's important,
Starting point is 00:06:36 important for the state to stay out of religion is because they will then try to coerce one version of faith over another. They could coerce atheism. They could coerce liberal Episcopalianism. They could coerce radical Islam. The point is in a free state, in a free nation, we cannot have that. And so I do agree with him on that idea that. in the United States, somebody's religious liberty does not allow them to infringe on someone else's religious liberty. If that happens, then you have no religious liberty. So it's just important we understand that. I hope I've clarified that a little bit. Again, the article that I wrote, if you want to see exactly what I wrote, is at foxnews.com. Foxnews.com. The article I wrote is
Starting point is 00:07:32 called is atheism the enemy of freedom. I'm being a little bit provocative in that title. I don't think atheists per se are the enemy of freedom, but I think the philosophy of atheism can be the enemy of freedom. And I talk about that in the article against at foxeslose.com. Chris Heimes, anything I'm forgetting, probably a thousand things. I don't know. Well, just I think ADF is wrapping up soon, right? And the what? ADF campaign. Oh, oh gosh. Folks, you want to do something good for America? Please, speaking of religious liberty, go to our website metaxis talk.com. Give anything you can give. Folks, I promise you, this is as good as it gets. Money well spent, spent as well as you can spend money.
Starting point is 00:08:26 ADF is just a premier organization in defending religious liberty in America or certainly one of the tiny handful of premier organizations that are doing something for all Americans, not Americans of faith, all Americans. And I want to tell you that the government is working against religious liberty.
Starting point is 00:08:45 It's why I wrote my book and why I write many of my books. If you can keep it, is atheism dead? We need to understand this stuff, but you can give to Alliance Defending Freedom. Please do that. Please give generously. You can give monthly. You can give $20 a month or something, but this is really important. Alliance Defending Freedom, you can see right at our website, Metaxus talk.com.
Starting point is 00:09:10 And by the way, tomorrow we're playing an interview with Tom Gilson. He wrote a book. John Zmirak recommended him very, very highly. It's a book about Jesus. It's called Too Good to Be. be false. It's about the character of Jesus. I am just so impressed with what he's done in this book. You can look forward to that tomorrow. Too good to be false by Tom Gilson. Lots of coming up this week. Please go to my website, Eric Mataxis.com. Sign up for my newsletter so you know where I'm speaking.
Starting point is 00:09:44 I'll be all over the place. God bless you. Hey folks, I've got to tell you a secret about relief factor that the father, son, owners Pete and Seth Talbot have never made a big deal about, but I think it is a big deal. I really do. They sell the three-week quick start pack for just 1995 to anyone struggling from pain like neck, shoulder, back, hip, or knee pain, 1995, about a dollar a day. But what they haven't broadcasted much is that every time they sell a three-week quick start, they lose money.
Starting point is 00:10:25 In fact, they don't even break even until about four to five months after if you keep ordering it. Friends, that's huge. People don't keep ordering Relief Factor month after month if it doesn't work. So, yes, Pete and Seth are literally on a mission to help as many people as possible deal with their pain. They really do put their money where their mouths are. So if you're in pain from exercise or even just getting older, order the three-week quick start for 1995. Let's see if we can get you at a pain too.
Starting point is 00:10:48 Go to Relieffactor.com. Relieffactor.com. or call 800, 500, 8384, 800, 500, 8384, Relieffactor.com. I use it. It works. Hey there, folks. I get to talk to a special friend of mine after we wrap up this show. He's waiting outside the door. Actually, just kidding.
Starting point is 00:11:18 I get to talk to a special friend of mine now. He's in California. And I'm going to ask him some hard-hitting journalistic questions. Kirk Cameron, are you ready? Yes. I am ready, Eric Mattaxas. My friend, Kirk Cameron, I recognize you from TV programs. I just realized.
Starting point is 00:11:37 Now, you have a new program coming up on TBN called Takeaways. I want to talk to you about that in a minute. But first I'm going to ask you some hard-hitting journalistic questions. Are you ready, man? Uh-oh. Okay, first question, have you pre-ordered Is Atheism Dead by Eric Metaxus? Quick, yes or no? No, no.
Starting point is 00:11:55 No, just give me a simple answer. Don't beat around the bush. Yes or no? Not yet. Oh, man. Albin, that hurts. I didn't have to because your publisher gave me one. Cut off his mic.
Starting point is 00:12:09 Listen, I, no, you know what? Because I've been so canceled, like on YouTube and all these other places, I'm becoming, I used to be sort of shy about asking people, like, forcefully. But I'm telling people, there's stuff in this book that is, it's going to freak people out. Like, I'm not kidding. I didn't come up with it. It's stuff that I found, and I thought, how is it that we who say we are Christians don't know this evidence for God?
Starting point is 00:12:37 It's some freaky stuff. And I'm just telling you that because I didn't get to talk to you on the phone. I'm telling you now on my own show that there's stuff in here. It's going to freak you out. You're going to say, how did I not know this? Is Eric making this up? No, I'm not. Okay.
Starting point is 00:12:52 You have a new show out. How many shows do you have now, Kirk? What's going on? Well, you mean sort of running concurrently. Yeah, you've got a lot of stuff going on. So there's a really cool show that's coming up on TV and called Takeaways. And it's, it's, the idea is that I get the chance to talk with really cool people like you and like Dennis Prager and like Dinesh D'Souza and Charlie Kirk and my sister, Candace Cameron and, and other people. And I often think to myself, it's great when we talk about stuff.
Starting point is 00:13:25 But what we need is to, is some takeaways of. brilliance, some action points where we can actually do something with all of this knowledge. Just like in your book, Is Atheism Dead? I'm sure that you give people ideas on what we can do, how we can actually utilize the information in there. And so that's what I've tried to do with this new program called Takeaways. In my book, Is Atheism Dead? I don't do anything of the kind, and I apologize. Maybe in the second edition of it, I'll have some, you know, some things like that. But listen, I always joke around, especially with my friends, but what you just said and the idea of this show is really important because I do get that question incessantly. I'll have somebody on this program talking about, you know, everything that's wrong.
Starting point is 00:14:10 And people always say, what can I do specifically? And so that's literally what this new show is about. What's my takeaway? Yeah, what's my takeaways? That's always been my frustration. I talk to really brilliant people. and there's fantastic commentators that can articulate all of the hypocrisy and all of the corruption that we see around us,
Starting point is 00:14:33 and we're all these bobbleheads going, yes, yes, I see exactly what you're talking about. But what do we do? I got an idea. I got an idea for some California evangelicals who might be tuning in. Here's a hot tip for you. You could vote, pregnant pause. There are plenty of people of faith that didn't vote in the last couple of elections, didn't vote to recall Gavin Newsom.
Starting point is 00:14:58 Folks, I think it's your duty as a believer to vote against wicked policies and things. And where do you think that idea comes from, Kirk, that we in America, I mean, you could see the German church bought into this lie in the 30s and it didn't go so well. But there's so many people that, you know, I mean, when we say what you can do, like the most basic thing is vote. Like make sure you vote that you're involved. That to me is like the most basic thing. There's so much else to do. But I know that the numbers of folks that didn't vote in this recall election, I thought, whoa, it would have been so easy to recall this governor who's completely lost touch with what I like to call reality.
Starting point is 00:15:43 But they didn't vote. I mean, that's almost the first thing. And I'm embarrassed even to bring it up, really. And you and I both know that there's another, there's another. there's another option on the table that nobody really wants to talk about and that the other option is maybe they did. Maybe they did. I mean, I know, and I know counties here in California that are so red that supposedly turned out blue, you wonder what the heck is going on? We're not allowed to talk about voter fraud.
Starting point is 00:16:15 Hey, we are not allowed to talk about the stolen election on Fox News. Do you understand that? And here's the good news. we're not on Fox News. So let's talk. Well, so we sense that we're in trouble in our country. And I'm encouraged when I see, you know what I think? I think we serve a God who is sovereign. And with a providential view of history and what's going on, that gives me great hope for the future.
Starting point is 00:16:46 And God is guiding the pressures in our culture, I believe, to cause a lot of all things to work out for good for those who love him. Amen. And so what I'm seeing right now, Eric, is we're whining and we are crying for being deplatformed and canceled and censored. Yeah. But now we're realizing, wait a minute, why are we depending on all of these systems and organizations that hate us anyway? We need to start creating our own alternative channels and platforms and distribution systems. And finally, out of necessity, we're beginning to do that. And I see that is perhaps God pushing us to do the thing we should have been doing for the last hundred years. Listen, there is no question about it. I'm right there with you. That is clearly how I see. I mean, look, we know all things work together for good for those that love the Lord and call the according to purpose. We know that. But sometimes the Lord allows us to glimpse it, actually. And I think that what you're saying right now is our being able to glimpse of one way in which this dark season is working together for good is that there are.
Starting point is 00:17:51 people that have been sleepwalking and they're waking up. And look, I talked about it in my Bonhoffer book. I mean, there were tons of good people who did not really want to deal with the situation. And when they finally did wake up, it was too late. I believe in this country what's going on right now. It's just what you said. There are people waking up right now. And I think if people wake up now, it's just in time, because we do need to create these alternative platforms. And I just, I love that you're talking about that. Eric, let me, if I, you're the expert here. I'm the C-student talking to the, to the professor. But when I look at what's going on in our country, what I think amazes me more than the speed and intensity with which the evil is coming toward us is that these people perpetuating these, the perpetrators of these, of this kind of evil can look straight-faced at us and say, no, this is all for your good.
Starting point is 00:18:48 I'm here to help you. There's nothing wrong. In fact, that's crazy talk, what you guys are saying. I'm here to murder you for the greater good. So many people just go along with it. They're just going, I don't see a problem, or they don't want to see a problem because it's too scary. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:19:02 What is it that finally wakes people up to say, guys, we're talking about people telling you that 2 plus 2 equals 5 or that you don't have freedom of speech or freedom to your own body or anything? I think a dirty bomb snuck across the southern border and detonated someplace, unfortunate, that'll wake people up. Do we need that, folks? Do we need to wait until something horrific happens?
Starting point is 00:19:26 There are so many crazy things happening. And you're right. You know, Kirk, the reason it's hard for us to process what's going on is because we've lived in a free country. We have been able largely to trust the government. We have been the government. We the people elect people and we don't worry that they're stealing elections. You know, these were all distant problems, the size of a, of a government.
Starting point is 00:19:48 a man's hand on the horizon, a cloud the size of a man's hand. They are now here. And we are having to face things that are uncomfortable. People lying to us, people saying preposterous or openly wicked things as though they were normal. And, you know, that's the term people get from that wonderful Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman movie. They're gaslighting us. They say it with a straight face to make us think we're going crazy. And I say it on this program almost every day. If you think the world is going crazy, that is proof that you're sane. Make sure that you understand that there are more of those of us who are sane than not. Don't believe the other lie that we're in the minority. Most Americans see what's going on, and they just need to be encouraged to step up. Eric, I want to just give you an illustration of people waking up. This last weekend, I was in Plymouth, Massachusetts at the most important, I think perhaps for sure,
Starting point is 00:20:50 the most important monument that we have in our country. And I was with my very favorite people, the family of faith. I was at the national monument to the forefathers in Plymouth, Massachusetts. And there were a thousand people gathered around that monument at Sunday. sets with eight bonfires circling that monument and we were worshipping, we were praying. I mean, we had the shofar's going. I can't believe. You know what?
Starting point is 00:21:17 I had actually written down. I had hoped to get up there for that because thanks to you, I did visit that monument. When we come back, I want to talk more about this. But I just love the fact that you put that on the map, not literally, but you woke a lot of people up to what that is in your film monuments. And I met those people. We're going to be right back. folks. I'm talking to my friend Kirk Cameron. There's a new show on TBN called Takeaways. Check it out.
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Starting point is 00:23:28 So this is a monument that was the cornerstone was laid by the people of Massachusetts, and it was finished in 1889, and President Abraham Lincoln was one of the original contributors to the building of this monument. And it was made to be the monument that told us everything that we needed to know about what made this, the pinnacle nation of the world, the beacon of freedom and justice for all. And it's what we need to get back to if we want to maintain it. It's called the National Monument to the Forefathers. And this last weekend was the very first of seven nights of revival under the stars that I'm hosting.
Starting point is 00:24:10 It's called the American Camp Fire Revival. And it really is sort of springboarded out of that first hundred days during the new administration's run of executive orders. And I thought, rather than us just being on the defense, why don't we download the executive orders from heaven, the mandates from above and start running those plays and see what happens. And I made a campfire in my backyard for 100 nights in a row. It's called the American Campfire Revival. There it is. Oh, my gosh.
Starting point is 00:24:40 There are sweatshirts. I love this. And so people would gather online in my backyard around a campfire, and we would begin learning the history of our America, not the 1619 version, but the actual true untold story of our forefathers who covenanted with their creator and applied his word to subdue tyranny and build institutions that would create blessing. So Sunday, we had a thousand people gathered around the monument. They were praying. They were repenting of their sins. They were calling out to God.
Starting point is 00:25:15 People are saying, I'm running for office. I'm voting for people who will run for office. We're showing up at our city council meetings and our school board meetings. I'm telling you the mama bears are waking up all over the country. They are fiercely protective of their children. And this is what we need. We're going to have six more nights, one in Washington, D.C. We're going to be in North Carolina. We're going to be in Texas and Tennessee and California.
Starting point is 00:25:43 And these are largely outside under the stars. So it's not a church service as much as it is in a farm on a ranch, on a shoreline. It's just like let us worship with Sean Foyt, except without Sean Foyt, and with a campfire. Isn't that it? And with you. There you go. And we're going to be talking about the cure to Christian pietism. And you know what I mean by that, Eric.
Starting point is 00:26:13 Oh, boy, do I? The power to, the power of liberty has largely been confined to the liberty in my heart. God set me free from my sin. The problem is, I think the gospel is meant to expand much further than just you and your sin problem. It's designed to bring heaven to your marriage and to your home and to your community. And as families of faith, we're to bring liberating principles that defeat tyrants in the nation and all over the world. So that the knowledge of the glory of God covers the land, the whole earth like the waters fill the seas. It doesn't just get me to heaven.
Starting point is 00:26:52 We need revival to break out everywhere. It's just so beautiful to hear you say this because, look, first of all, folks, this is biblical. This is not Kirk's opinion. This is not a philosophy. This is biblical. And shame on us in the church who have allowed the church to become pietistic, inward-focused, ultimately selfish. Here, explain what pietistic means for people? I have no idea.
Starting point is 00:27:17 I throw words around. I'm a writer. I can do that. Pietistic. Well, I mean, when we say pietistic, there are. folks in the in the church through history who tend to overfocus on their own piety, on their own holiness. They focus on that at the expense of actions toward others, at the expense of, you know, it's kind of like in Germany in the 30s. You had a lot of people talking about, well, we,
Starting point is 00:27:49 it's almost like an overfocus on salvation and evangelism, forgetting that if you're doing those things right, they inevitably lead to everything else. And if you only do those things, you're not really even doing those things. So you have to live out your faith. So of course, you want to be personally holy. But if it ends there, and if it ends with, I'm saved. And so let's go, Lord, translate me to heaven now. The Lord says, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I will take you here when it's my time to take you here. But right now, you're there and you're to do my work. You now have the Holy Spirit living inside you, and you're to live it out in every conceivable sphere. And if you're not doing that, then I think we all have to say, well, are you really a Christian?
Starting point is 00:28:34 Because if you are, your faith, as it says in the book of James, will be evident in your works, in your love and healing of your community and in all these kinds of things. So that's exactly what you are talking about, and you know how happy it makes me. Eric, in your book, Bonhoeff, right, and I know you quoted it, I can't remember his name, is it, um, uh, knee muller, knee muller. Neemolar. What's the famous quote? He says, you know, they came for the, for the trade unionist, but, but I wasn't a trade unionist, so I didn't say anything. Well, this is, it's an amazing thing. It's a crummy poem, but it's sort of a poem. And he says, but the, but the content of it, uh, actually, you know, we're going to go to a break. But when, when I come, when we come back, we're going to talk about it. Because ultimately, It's where we are today. Niemaller woke up when it was too late.
Starting point is 00:29:26 He really woke up and it was too late. If he'd woken up a couple of years before, Germany probably wouldn't have gone down that path. I think we're there in America. So we'll be right back and we'll talk about that. And other things with our friend Kirk Cameron. Hey, folks, you've all helped build my pillow into the amazing company it is today. Mike Lundell has an amazing offer for my listeners on his standard my pillows.
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Starting point is 00:30:46 Use promo code Eric to take advantage of Mike's special offer on his standard MyPillow. That's MyPillow.com promo code Eric or 1-800-978-3057. Mypillow.com promo code Eric. I'm talking to Kirk Cameron. Kirk, I hear a distant dog. It's so beautiful, so bucolic. You're obviously not in Manhattan. Let me ask you a question.
Starting point is 00:31:18 Well, you asked me about the Martin Neumull, I quote. And of course it's in my Bonhoeffer book, but it's everywhere. Martin Niemuller was a hero, a German hero. He fought in World War I. He got into the ministry, and he was just an incredible guy. But he was slow to wake up to the Nazi threat. He thought, like a lot of people do, like, well, we can work with them, or they're not so bad or something, right? Well, when he finally woke up, it was too late.
Starting point is 00:31:48 And he wrote a poem, and you were talking about it. It's a famous quote where he says, when they came for the trade unionists, I was not a trade unionist, so I didn't speak up. When they came for the communists, I was not a communist, so I didn't say anything. I didn't speak up. When they came for the Jews, I was not a Jew, so I didn't say anything. I didn't speak up. And then when they came for me, there was no one left to speak up for me. And that's the idea is that we need to stand with others.
Starting point is 00:32:19 when they say, I'm going to cancel so-and-so. I'm going to cancel. I'm going to come after so-and-so. If we don't all stand for those people, I say this about Mike Lindell. I tell people, buy pillows you don't need. Use the code, Eric. Because if we don't support this guy who's been attacked like crazy, what's going to happen when he's gone, and then they're coming for you?
Starting point is 00:32:41 There will be no Mike Lindell to stand up for you. We stand with ADF, lines defending freedom. They are unbelievable heroes. in the fight for religious liberty. I tell people, give money to Alliance Defending Freedom. Go to Metaxistock.com. Be generous because if you help them now, we may live another day.
Starting point is 00:33:00 But if you don't help them now, we may lose religious liberty and the government's going to come for your money and you won't even be able to give them any money. If we don't all stand now with each other and understand we're in a war now, what will happen to us is what happened to Martin Lee Muller. He was busy praying and thinking the government's fine
Starting point is 00:33:18 by the time he really woke up, they arrested him. He was in a concentration camp for eight years. He was completely muzzled. So the church in America today, it's almost like we've muzzled ourselves. And then when we finally realize, oh, we better speak up, it's going to be too late. So that's, you know, you and I obviously understand these things, and we do all we can because we don't want the American church to go the way of the German church. But we will if we don't stand up and speak up.
Starting point is 00:33:48 Yeah, it's chilling, all the things that you're saying. And then again, people are saying, what can I do? What do I do? And so, you know, Eric, you're doing such great work. And I know people who are doctors, who are lawyers, who are teachers, just everyday people out there, moms, dads, they're pulling their children out of government schools. And they recognize education is important that getting involved in civil government voting, running for office is critically important. And these are things that we've, like you've said, we've just sort of neglected, right? Somebody else will take care of that stuff.
Starting point is 00:34:24 Who wants to hang out with politicians? You know, they're corrupt. And so, but by our neglect, it ends up becoming more and more corrupt. And so this is a good thing. I think that we are finally being forced to do what we should have been doing all along. And I see my role, right now at least, is to use whatever opportunities God gives me to help people understand what the mandates from heaven are, contra the mandates from the White House, and they can recognize that one produces bondage and slavery, the other produces blessing and
Starting point is 00:35:03 freedom. And if we can educate one another on the right principles, then when this whole thing goes down, we can actually build it back beautifully and biblically. That's what we need to get back to. and I'm trying to help reinforce that knowledge base of the covenant ideas our founders made with God and how to apply the instruction manual to everything because we need to. Isn't it? It's just so beautiful that God is forcing us to, you know, get out of our own little world and into the culture and to bring the gifts of heaven, the principles, the ideas, the joy, the faith, to bring it out into our communities. That's why it was given to us.
Starting point is 00:35:51 And it is funny, Kirk, because you're right. It's like things sometimes have to get really bad before we wake up. And I think that that is happening now. When Lincoln talked about a new birth of freedom, I really believe he was speaking prophetically and that that was a prophecy. It was not fulfilled in the 19th century. But I really believe we're on the verge of that being fulfilled. Because we have had, let's face it, we're, we're, we're, we're, we're, we're, we're, we're, we're,
Starting point is 00:36:16 having a reckoning right now. I mean, until an election is stolen, you don't get serious about election integrity, about making sure that every vote counts. You just don't, you don't, we kind of think everything's fine, it's okay. When you realize it's not okay, when things go really bad, when the government is telling you what to do with your body, when the government is telling you where you can eat and suddenly people wake up and I just think that this is, ultimately it's going to be a time of blessing. If people want to participate, in these campfire events you're talking about. Where can they go?
Starting point is 00:36:50 Where can they go? So you can just go to my website and there's the tour dates. What's the website? Kirk Cameron.com. Oh. I figured I could send them to Eric Mataxis.com, but they'd probably get all mixed up and confused. And they start wearing bow ties and double-breasted jackets and all kinds of things. You know what?
Starting point is 00:37:11 That's like a bad sign. Everyone says that to me. Like, you always bow ties. I literally never, ever wear bow ties. But I think maybe my glasses throw people off. They imply bow tie. You know, that's right. That's Orville Redenbacher I'm thinking of.
Starting point is 00:37:26 You look nothing like him. Thank you so much. I died inside just now. I died inside. You look like the brawny paper towel guy. That's a compliment, by the way. That's a compliment. But seriously, people can go to Kirk Cameron.org.
Starting point is 00:37:42 I'm trying to look like the brawny paper towel guy. I'm trying to grow my beard back. So this isn't just me being lazy and not shaving. Yeah. I actually had to shave it for some filming I did. And now I'm trying to grow it back. So I'm in that starter kit phase where I just look like, you know, I'm 19 and I'm trying to grow a beard. Do you – so it's Kirk Cameron.com?
Starting point is 00:38:03 Yes. Okay, folks, kirkcamerin.com. Those states you mentioned, I know that a lot of people are going to want to go to those events. I really wish I could. I just love being with you. And I love what you're doing. congratulations on the new show. Do we know when it's going to be on the air?
Starting point is 00:38:17 Takeaways with Kirk Cameron? I believe it's going to be starting sometime in November. I don't have the exact date, but it's coming up soon. It's coming up on this very network, isn't it? Just remember, you can talk about anything you want on TBN. God bless Matt Crouch, because we're living in a time where a lot of these, you know, a lot of these networks are just, they're scared. We want to live free.
Starting point is 00:38:45 I thank you, my friend, Kirk Cameron. God bless you. Congratulations on the new show. God bless you, too. Great to talk to Eric. Holy cow. Chris, what do you make of Curtis Slewa? He's like a made-up, he's like a cartoon character, but he's real.
Starting point is 00:39:23 Yeah, I mean, he is like an action figure, superhero come to life. I will never forget the story he told about almost getting murdered in a taxi cab in the city. He got shot. I want to help him write his story because the fact that he hasn't written a book, I want to publish his story. Is there anybody out there who wants to help fund a publishing company? I'm not even kidding. I'm going to do this because there's so many stories like his that are just crazy, amazing, inspiring stories. His story, it just doesn't get crazier.
Starting point is 00:39:57 And we didn't even get to touch on it, really. But if he is an elected mayor of New York, it will be a tragedy. If he is elected mayor, it will be a comedy and a joy that you won't even believe. There's nobody like this guy. He's amazing. I just got word. The wig maker is alive. He's very, very dramatic.
Starting point is 00:40:24 You know, he's been in the theater world for a long time. He was, you know, he was with cats. So nobody applies false hair, you know, like he does. He's got a reputation in the industry. So I think he's very, very fussy. He can't take criticism. So he left the suicide note. And it just got weird, but it turns out I think we're going to be okay.
Starting point is 00:40:48 I think we're going to be here. I just want everybody to know I think it's going to be okay. And he will live to make more wigs for me. And Jimmy, if I ever, you know, if I got out of the line, I just want to say, you know, know my wigs are important to me, but you're also important to me. Well, I really would like one as well, but I can't afford him. He's kind of a diva.
Starting point is 00:41:10 Oh, he's a diva. Oh, he invented the word. But listen, he's just that good. He can get away with it. Now, listen, we need to say that an hour two, we, I'm going to read in the next segment, I'm going to read a letter because, as you know, I wrote a book called Is Atheism Dead? And I've been doing tons of media, tons of media. And yesterday, I've been on Newsmax a bunch of times.
Starting point is 00:41:33 I don't know. I'm just doing all kinds of stuff. But yesterday I got a letter slightly angry correcting me. An atheist took issue with the article. I have an article at foxnews.com called Is atheism the enemy of freedom? And so in the next segment, before we go to Kirk Cameron, I'm going to read the letter and respond to it. because I really think it's important that we try to respond to some of these questions and concerns and considerations people have.
Starting point is 00:42:07 I think that the person wrote the letter is misunderstanding me in some ways and is misunderstanding some other things, but I want to do that. So in the next segment, I'm going to read the letter. My book is called Is Atheism Dead? And I'm doing a lot of speaking. Go to my website, Eric Mataxis.com. Folks, I keep saying this, sign up for the newsletter. You just can't believe.
Starting point is 00:42:27 We're sending stuff out, excerpts from the book, all kinds of stuff. Sign up for the newsletter, please tell your friends. It's hard for us to get the word out. We want to get you these interviews on Rumble. All that stuff is sent out if you go to Eric Mataxis.com. And also don't forget, the Bonhoffer posters are going like hotcakes. People seem to need inspiration. The quote is, silence in the face of evil is itself evil.
Starting point is 00:42:52 Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act. God will not hold us guiltless with a beautiful picture. Hoffert's the picture from my biography of him from the cover. So you have to go to my store.com, use the code, Eric. Almost all of my books are there, not the new one, but I want to encourage you to do that. And of course, do all your shopping at my pillow.com and use the code Eric. And of course, nutrometics.com. These folks are heroes. We'll devote more time in the future to talking about why some companies are willing to stand up for what is right and true and why we need
Starting point is 00:43:30 to support them and why we need not to support the companies that are using their profits to work against most of our value.

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