Church of the Undead

Church of the Undead

Hello, Weirdos – I’m Pastor Darren – welcome to the Church of the Undead. It doesn’t matter if you are a "Weirdo-in-Christ" or just a Weirdo – everyone is welcome here at the Church of the Undead. And I use the word “undead” because here we are DEAD to sin and ALIVE in Christ! If you want to join this Weirdo congregation, just click that SUBSCRIBE or FOLLOW button – and visit us online at WeirdDarkness.com/CHURCH. Full disclosure – I might use the term “pastor” because I’ve branded this podcast as a church – but I do not have a theology degree, nor did I ever go to Bible college. I’m just a guy who gave his life to Christ in 1989 and has tried to “walk the walk” every since – and has stumbled a lot along the way – because, like everybody else, I am an imperfect, heavily-flawed human being. So please don’t take what I say as gospel; dig into God’s word yourself for confirmation, inspiration, and revelation. That being said, welcome to the Church of the Undead!

Episodes

MONSTERS OF OUR OWN MAKING: When Our Golems Turn Against Us

July 13, 2025 • 24 mins
When the clay creatures we mold to protect ourselves grow beyond our control, we discover the terrifying truth that we've become slaves to the very things we created to serve us.

SERMON TRANSCRIPT…https://weirddarkness.com/cotu-makersofmonsters

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own ...
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SCIENTISTS SAY THEY CAN DOWNLOAD YOUR BRAIN: But Can They Download Your Soul?

July 6, 2025 • 19 mins
While scientists race to freeze brains and extract memories by 2125, they've overlooked one terrifying question: what happens when you successfully download everything except the one thing that makes you... YOU?

SERMON TRANSCRIPT…https://weirddarkness.com/cotu-downloadbrain

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church!
Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link...
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WHEN DARKNESS PRESSES DOWN: Sleep Paralysis and Spiritual Warfare

June 29, 2025 • 21 mins
You're trapped in your own body while dark figures watch from the shadows – but what science calls sleep paralysis might be something far more sinister, and in this episode we'll explore how ancient spiritual attack is alive and well just in your nightmares, but in your waking hours as well. But you have a weapon that will conquer it all.

SERMON TRANSCRIPT…
https://weirddarkness.com/cotu-sleepparalysis

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead...
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CARL TANZLER’S OBSESSION: The Grave Consequences of Inauthentic Love #COTU

June 22, 2025 • 15 mins
In 1931, a hospital worker named Carl Tanzler stole the corpse of the woman he loved and lived with her decaying body for seven years, believing he could bring her back to life. In this week’s message, we'll explore how this chilling true story reveals the dangerous difference between God's perfect love and our own twisted obsessions.

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this po...
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THE HIDDEN POISON: A Lesson on Trust and Divine Protection From The Tylenol Murders #COTU

June 15, 2025 • 20 mins
In the autumn of 1982, seven innocent people in Chicago died after taking what they thought was safe medicine — but the poison hidden inside those Tylenol capsules reveals a chilling truth about the spiritual dangers that lurk behind things that appear perfectly normal in our daily lives.

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers...
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THE WENDIGO AND DEVOURING HUNGER: Transforming the Soul from Human to Monster

June 8, 2025 • 24 mins
Native American tribes told of a creature born from cannibalism whose endless hunger mirrors the spiritual appetite that devours souls from within. Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! 
Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bless!
===
Darren Marlar is a licensed minister through the Univ...
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THE BODY THAT DEATH CAN’T HOLD: What Will Your Body Look Like In Heaven?

March 30, 2025 • 9 mins
What if the grave isn’t the end, but the beginning — and your next body is already waiting to rise in glory from the dust?

Hear previous #ChurchOfTheUndead messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bless!
MENTIONS, SOURCES, AND LINKS…
(Over time links can and ma...
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WORKS VS GRACE VS FAITH: The Three Most Important Words in the Bible #ChurchOfTheUndead

February 2, 2025 • 24 mins
Ever felt completely stuck, like there’s no way out? That’s exactly where we were—trapped in sin with no hope of rescue. But God stepped in, not because we earned it, but because of His incredible grace that we receive through faith.

Hear previous messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own soc...
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“FEARING THE FEAR OF DEATH: Why It’s Nothing To Fear” #ChurchOfTheUndead

January 19, 2025 • 22 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: Death is one of life’s greatest mysteries, and even for Christians, it often carries a heavy weight of fear—not because of what comes after, but because of the unknown pain and sorrow in the process. While faith assures us of eternal life with Christ, the sting of death and the finality of goodbyes can still grip the heart. Yet, the Bible reminds us that death is not the end—it’s a doorway to something far greater.

...
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(What About ME?) “WHAT WOULD GOD SAY TO A NARCISSIST? FIND OUT!” #WeirdDarkness #COTU

January 12, 2025 • 18 mins
God has the same definition of narcissists as most of us do: “lovers of self.” In this message we unpack how the ancient myth of Narcissus ties into God’s truth about pride and selfishness, and we ask the question, “is there any hope for a narcissist to get into heaven?”

Hear previous messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post ...
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(Bonus Episode!) “BEYOND LIES THE WUB” by Philip K Dick #WeirdDarkness

October 26, 2024 • 18 mins
Donate to our October 2024 OVERCOMING THE DARKNESS campaign at https://weirddarkness.com/over.... Weird Darkness is narrated by professional full-time voice actor Darren Marlar. No A.I. voices are ever used in the show.
IN THIS EPISODE: Originally published in Planet Stories, July 1962 - Beyond Lies the Wub tells the story of a space crew that encounters a massive, pig-like alien creature that they purchase as livestock for their ...
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“WHAT ARE EVIL SPIRITS? WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT THEM?” #ChurchOfTheUndead

September 16, 2024 • 13 mins
In today’s Weird Darkness episode - “PSYCHIATRIST SAYS DEMONIC POSSESSION IS REAL” (https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/5rhcz4pr) we covered the eating of sins and demonic possession in this episode. So this might be a good time to touch on evil spirits in general, and how they are addressed in the bible. Evil spirits are often presented as entertainment for spooky thrills in movies and TV shows. But it’s important to take them seriously...
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“MAKE A COMEBACK – DARE TO DREAM AGAIN!” #ChurchOfTheUndead

July 14, 2024 • 10 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: There are many comeback stories – from Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant, to Kurt Warner and Robert Downey Jr. But when it comes to your own comeback, can you dare to dream again?
Hear previous messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bles...
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“AN ASSASSIN NAMED COMPROMISE” #ChurchOfTheUndead

July 7, 2024 • 41 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: 
This week I’m bringing you a guest-teacher… the pastor of Stateline Church in Rockford, Illinois – Greg Giamalva. This is from Sunday, June 30th where he is starting a new series entitled “ASSASSINS” – and this first message really is powerful and applies to all of us. One particular line in the sermon was especially poignant. Regarding sin, “Compromise will have you feed what you are called to fight.” Greg talks ...
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“The Devil Is a Liar – Here Are Some Lies He Might Be Telling You” #ChurchOfTheUndead

June 29, 2024 • 17 mins
Hear previous messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bless!
MENTIONS, SOURCES, AND LINKS…
https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/how-to-recognize-and-defeat-5-lies-the-enemy-wants-you-to-believe.html
(Over time links can and may become invalid, disapp...
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WAS HELL CREATED BY GOD? #ChurchOfTheUndead

June 23, 2024 • 11 mins
Hear previous messages and find our social media at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bless!
MENTIONS, SOURCES, AND LINKS…
Source: Mike Leake, https://www.crosswalk.com/special-coverage/heaven-hell/did-god-create-hell-bst.html#google_vignette
(Over time links can and may become invalid, disa...
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“I Don’t Think The Bible Says That!” #ChurchOfTheUndead

June 9, 2024 • 17 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: Every culture has certain phrases, repeated like foundational truths. These statements call everyone to a common morality or standard. But what if they’re wrong? For instance, a former generation used to say, “Cleanliness is next to godliness.” Usually, parents say this to get their kids to clean their rooms. And while there’s value to the discipline of keeping things orderly, this statement can’t be found in the B...
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“WHAT IS A CULT?” #ChurchOfTheUndead

June 2, 2024 • 20 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: In the book of Acts Paul speaks to the early church—and to us—about cults. Cults will not only come, they are already here – and have been all along in some way, shape, or form. They existed then, they exit now, they will exist in the future until the Lord does away with evil once and for all… but that’s a topic for another day. The really dangerous part about cults is how attractive they can be to even the most in...
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“TIME ALONE WITH YOU” #ChurchOfTheUndead

June 1, 2024 • 10 mins
“TIME ALONE WITH YOU” #ChurchOfTheUndead
Find us online at https://WeirdDarkness.com/Church! Please share this podcast with your friends, family, and co-workers, and post a link to this episode in your own social media! Thank you, and God bless!
MENTIONS, SOURCES, AND LINKS…
Darren Marlar’s music: https://amzn.to/4bNj0L2
(Over time links can and may become invalid, disappear, or have different content.)
Darren Marlar is a licensed minis...
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“MENTAL HEALTH AND CHRISTIAN CLICHES” #ChurchOfTheUndead

May 26, 2024 • 24 mins
IN THIS EPISODE: When I was in my mid-30s, a well-meaning individual told me my that my depression was just in my head. “If you just stop thinking about it and fill your mind with God’s Truth instead, your problems will disappear.” They meant well, and probably believed what they told me… but they had no idea what they were talking about. Mental health issues can’t be written off with mere Christian cliches. 
Hear previous messages ...
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