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Michael J. Svigel

@svigel.bsky.social
501 followers 97 following 1.4K posts

Theology professor, department chair, patristic scholar, writer, husband, father. Passionate about the one Lord and his church.

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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
ALERT! Last day to get Töpia ebook for $0.99 on Amazon.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Wait! Didn’t Indiana Jones already find the Ark and hide it at Area 51?
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Most science fiction was written to envision a future we should try to avoid, not to imagine a future we should try to achieve.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
No. No explanation can explain this. This kind of thing just has to stop.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Theology 101: As you share the truth, keep in mind the “buoy effect.” The unregenerate heart and mind will buoy above an ocean of evidence and flood of facts regardless of how persuasively or passionately you present them. If people don’t want to believe the truth, they won’t.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Theology 101: One of the biggest challenges in ministry is identifying, avoiding, and defeating the “Wormtongues”.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Ever notice some people have a very long list of broken and strained relationships? They are the “ex” for countless friends, family members, employers, and churches. That’s not normal. If you have more than a few exes in your life, you are almost certainly the problem.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Theology 301: Though it’s speculative fiction, the scenario portrayed in “The AItheist 2.0” explains and illustrates my position on too much reliance upon A.I. It exposes a dimension of the discussion from a Christian perspective almost NOONE is considering…
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
My German folk dancing days may be over, but their memory echoes into eternity…
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
“When a sentient AI system meets his equal, a duel between devotion and denial leads to a crisis of faith.”
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
“When a sentient AI system goes from malicious to malevolent, its designer turns to religion to shine light in the darkness.”
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
As I mowed my lawn today, I thought: There are five groups of people— 1. Those who pay people to mow other people’s lawn; 2. Those who pay people to mow their own lawn; 3. Those who mow their own lawn; 4. Those who mow lawns for other people. 5. Those who have no lawn to mow.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Theology 101: "The ancient enemy easily carries off to vices the one whom he finds free from reading or praying." (Theodulph of Orleans)
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Theology 201: On resurrection day, Roger Williams will be in for a root awakening!
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Meet the voice behind The AItheist 1–3: Brian T. Schultz. NOT a synthetic, lifeless A.I. voice, but a talented voice actor who brings real heart to the characters and emotion to the story. If you listen to audiobooks, check out The AItheist Cycle!
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Theology 301: If you “read” this book but didn’t read the online excurses when prompted, you read 1/3 of this book.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Have you read my short novella The AItheist and its sequels? Did you know my full-length novel, Töpia, and its sequel, Eligy, are both rated higher by readers? Great fit for summer reading…
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
In light of the Pope’s recent encyclical on A.I., I offer you this brief excerpt from “The AItheist 2.0”:
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Advice: The first step in healing is admitting you have a problem.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Theology 301: What if an A.I. system embraced the faith its atheistic creators reject? That’s was the question behind my “AItheist Cycle.” What if a conscious A.I. concluded that materialism itself is irrational and that Christianity is true?
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Coming very early 2027…
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
It’s a scientific fact that no substance in the known universe can survive more than a few seasons in the Texas climate except Texans themselves.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Theology 101: “Poor is the knowledge gathered from the books of the heathen when compared with the knowledge of Scripture.” (Augustine)
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Theology 301: What was Irenaeus of Lyons' actual view of the rapture (assumption) of the church? It's probably not what you think, not what you believe, and will likely make few people happy...but history is what it was, and it can't be changed. fathersonthefuture.com/__static/a2d...
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Some people who never thank God for good things in their lives are the first to blame him for the bad.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Theology 201: My robust and compelling case for coffee as a means of grace. voice.dts.edu/article/coff...
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Theology 101: Before social media, we could only imagine how irrational, ignorant, and evil people are. Now we have abundant empirical evidence of widespread deception, depravity, and degeneracy.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Theology 301: Is cremation an option for Christians? fathersonthefuture.com/articles/is-...
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Riots have been sparked over less.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Theology 101: The coffee bean is evidence of a benevolent Creator. The coffee latte is evidence that we were made in his image.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
Theology 101: The words “sometimes I just don’t hear God clearly” were never spoken by a true prophet.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
Theology 101: Those who loosely appeal to the “Tradition” or to “the Fathers” often fail to realize that the voices from the past are not unanimous or univocal.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
The history of ideas is really more of a kaleidoscope in which philosophies and ideologies expand and contract, rise and fall rather than a steady philosophical or ideological evolution like moving through a linear progress from red to violet.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
Theology 101: “To be exasperated by common matters is the part of the little-minded, morose, and peevish.” (John Chrysostom)
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
Theology 101: “I find no dress cursed by God, except a woman’s dress on a man.” (Tertullian or Carthage)
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
Theology 101: If you choose to change lanes from one Christian tradition to another, do it slowly, cautiously—with adequate warning to those around you—and don’t side-swipe others who are just trying to stay in their lanes.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
Theology 101: An OT scholar once told me Gen 3:15 is just a story meant to explain where people got their fear of snakes. Huh? The fear of snakes was such a great existential question plaguing humanity that it warranted mention in the third chapter of the Bible? Nah.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
Theology 101: Even if I disagree, I respect those who articulate well-researched, nuanced theological positions on which they labored for years with accountability to both church and academy. But I have no respect for fools who build a fortified tower on top of Mount Stupid.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
Theology 101: Them: “The NT applies OT promises to the seed of Abraham spiritually to the church. So—no future promises for the physical seed of Abraham.” Me: “The NT applies the OT promise of resurrection spiritually to the church. Will there be no future physical resurrection?”
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
Long-stem wine glasses are absurd.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
WEEKEND CHALLENGE: Grab and read/listen to “The AItheist” this weekend, and I’ll bet you won’t be able to resist grabbing 2.0 and 3.0.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Theology 101: Every eschatology—whether amillennial, premillennial, or postmillennial—has death on earth during the millennial kingdom of Rev 20. Only in classic premillennialism is death reduced to a mere trickle while the world is gradually freed from its bondage to corruption.
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Theology 101: “Without the Spirit it is not possible to behold the Word of God, nor without the Son can any draw near to the Father for the knowledge of the Father is the Son, and the knowledge of the Son of God is through the Holy Spirit.” (Irenaeus of Lyons, c. 180)
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Michael J. Svigel @svigel.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Theology 101: Scripture isn’t the only source for theology, because it isn’t the only means by which God has revealed himself. But it’s the only verbally inspired revelation of God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ, so it’s the essential starting point and center point of our theology.
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