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Counterflow with Buck Johnson

Counterflow with Buck Johnson

By: Buck Johnson
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The Counterflow Podcast is a weekly show featuring discussions and interviews with people who are outside of and critical toward mainstream liberal and conservative politics. Counterflow challenges the conventional narratives sold to us as truth. The show features thinkers from all backgrounds, who do not fit into the narrow framework of fashionable opinion. The show addresses cultural, spiritual and lifestyle issues as well as philosophy and geo-politics. Host Buck Johnson (formerly of the Death To Tyrants Podcast) is a musician, firefighter and Orthodox Christian and has always had an interest and drive to go one way while everyone else runs the other direction. Political Science Politics & Government Spirituality
Episodes
  • Ep. 415 - Leaving Evangelicalism for the Ancient Church, with Fr. David Hovik

    Ep. 415 - Leaving Evangelicalism for the Ancient Church, with Fr. David Hovik
    May 26 2026
    What happens when an Evangelical pastor begins seriously studying the early Church — and realizes modern Christianity looks very different from ancient Christianity?

    In this episode, I chat with Father David Hovik to discuss his remarkable journey from Evangelical ministry into the Orthodox Church, and how that journey ultimately brought much of his congregation with him. This story is truly captivating.

    We talk about the spiritual hunger that exists beneath modern life, the limits of contemporary Christianity, and why more people are searching for something ancient, rooted, and sacramental.

    Fr. David reflects on the risks, resistance, and transformation that came with leaving behind familiar forms of Christianity in pursuit of what he became convinced was the historic Church founded by Christ and preserved through the centuries.

    This conversation explores:

    - Fr. David's path from Evangelical pastor to Orthodox priest
    - The role of Church history in his conversion
    - Why modern Christianity can feel spiritually fragmented
    - The difference between "personal faith" and historic Christianity
    - Liturgy, sacraments, and the ancient Christian worldview
    - Bringing an entire congregation into Orthodoxy
    - Spiritual formation in a distracted modern age
    - Why people are increasingly drawn to the ancient faith

    Fr. David brings a calm, pastoral, and deeply grounded perspective to questions many modern Christians are quietly wrestling with. FOLLOW FR. DAVID / ST. ANDREW ORTHODOX CHURCH:
    St. Andrew Orthodox Church

    Donate to the show here: https://www.patreon.com/counterflow

    Visit my website: https://www.counterflowpodcast.com

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    1 hr and 9 mins
  • Ep. 414 - Orthodox Nationalism and the Israel Question, with Benjamin Michael

    Ep. 414 - Orthodox Nationalism and the Israel Question, with Benjamin Michael
    May 19 2026

    Host of "American Orthodoxy" a live Orthodox news show, Benjamin Michael (formerly Orthodox Luigi) is a prior Marine Corps Officer and now Orthodox Christian apologist and Independent Journalist.

    He engages in public debates, and creates educational content on Orthodox theology and various topics related to politics and religion, while also conducting advocacy work in Washington, D.C.

    He is the Director of Public Affairs, Co-Founder, and Chair of Orthodox Worldwide, INC. He also serves as Secretary of the Society of St. John of San Francisco, a nationwide pan-Orthodox fraternity.

    IN THIS EPISODE:

    * Benjamin Michael's journey into Orthodoxy
    * Why he began speaking publicly about Israel and geopolitics
    * What people mean by "the Jewish Question"
    * Orthodox perspectives on nationalism and identity
    * The modern Right and its internal fractures
    * Boomers, Gen X, and the changing political landscape
    * Zionism, empire, and modern power structures
    * The Russian Revolution and ideological upheaval
    * Marxism, globalism, and spiritual dislocation
    * The Third Temple and modern prophetic movements
    * Why many people feel politically betrayed
    * The difference between Orthodox nationalism and secular nationalism

    For Ben's show: https://youtube.com/@realbenmichael
    Donate to the show here: https://www.patreon.com/counterflow

    Visit my website: https://www.counterflowpodcast.com

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    Code: BUCK50 for HALF off your first order!
    Clean up your recordings, sound like a pro, and support the Counterflow Podcast!
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Ep. 413 - Journey to Reality: Sacramental Christianity in a Secular Age, with Dr. Zachary Porcu

    Ep. 413 - Journey to Reality: Sacramental Christianity in a Secular Age, with Dr. Zachary Porcu
    May 12 2026
    What if the biggest obstacle to understanding Christianity is not disbelief—but modernity itself? In this episode, Buck chats with Dr. Zachary Porcu to discuss sacramental Christianity, the modern secular mindset, and why so many people today—even Christians—struggle to see reality the way the ancient Church did. They explore the difference between treating Christianity as a system of ideas versus participating in it as a lived reality. The conversation dives into the nature of truth, the problem of interpretation, the meaning of the Trinity, the Fall of man, suffering, evil, and why the sacramental worldview of historic Christianity feels so foreign to the modern mind. They also discuss the necessity of the Church, the priesthood, the sacraments, and why Christianity cannot be reduced to either "just me and my Bible" or vague spirituality detached from embodied worship and communion. IN THIS EPISODE * Why modern people misunderstand Christianity * The difference between text-based and sacramental Christianity * The meaning of "participatory" truth * The Trinity and the problem of "the one and the many" * Why modern culture struggles to understand love * The deeper meaning of the Fall * The origins of evil and suffering * Problems with modern Christian views of suffering * The necessity of the Church and priesthood * Why sacraments are more than symbols * Where the Bible fits within the life of the Church * Recovering a sacramental view of reality ABOUT DR. ZACHARY PORCU Zachary Porcu is the author of Journey to Reality and the host of the podcast The Roots of Everything. Zachary earned his PhD in Church History at The Catholic University of America under the direction of Robin Darling Young. He holds additional degrees in Philosophy, Classics, and Interdisciplinary Humanities and has taught Greek, Latin, history, philosophy, and theology at private schools and universities on both the East and West coasts. Zachary is a catechist at St. Andrew's Orthodox Church, an editor at St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, and a lecturer at St. Athanasius College. LINKS Journey to Reality by Dr. Zachary Porcu Ancient Faith Publishing

    Donate to the show here: https://www.patreon.com/counterflow

    Visit my website: https://www.counterflowpodcast.com

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    1 hr and 14 mins
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