In this episode we are joined by Dr. Fellipe do Vale, who is Department Chair & Assistant Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, and he’s the author of Gender as Love: A Theological Account of Human Identity, Embodied Desire, and Our Social Worlds (published by Baker Academic). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. do Vale explains how his theological approach to gender studies aims to get past the binary of essentialism and social constructivism to the issue of love, using Augustine as a guide for thinking about how gender stems from our deepest loves. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities includes: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

CW: References to self-harm. In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Isaac T. Soon, who is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Crandall University in New Brunswick, and the author of A Disabled Apostle: Impairment and Disability in the Letters of Paul (published by Oxford University Press). Drawing upon the cultural model of disability, Dr. Soon explains that Paul likely had three kinds of disabilities, in terms of how these conditions were stigmatized in the ancient world, including: demonic oppression, circumcision, and dwarfism. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Grace Emmett, and Dr. Grace Sangalang Ng. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Matthew Thiessen, who is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and he’s the author of the new book that we discuss in this episode, A Jewish Paul: The Messiah’s Herald to the Gentiles (published by Baker). Over the course of our discussion we talk about where the Paul within Judaism reading fits within other readings of Paul, how Acts fits into our understanding of Paul, and why we should aim to make Paul weird again. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Grace Emmett, Jennifer Guo, Dr. Kris Song, and Dr. Logan Williams. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Dr. J. Christopher Edwards, who is Professor of Religious Studies at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, New York, to talk about his new book, Crucified: The Christian Invention of the Jewish Executioners of Jesus (published by Fortress Press). The present conversation addresses a very difficult topic, but an important one, about how early Christians came to blame the execution of Jesus on the Jewish people. Dr. Edwards traces this history, arguing that it is a wrongheaded and lamentable part of the Christian tradition that needs to be understood but also vigorously rejected. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Sean McGever, who is Area Director for Young Life in Arizona and an adjunct professor in theology at Grand Canyon University, to talk about his new book, Evangelism: For the Care of Souls (published by Lexham Press). Over the course of our conversation we talk about what is unique in a “care for souls” approach to evangelism over against other evangelistic methodologies. In particular, Dr. McGever stresses the need to listen to people above and all, and respond to the needs/concerns that come to the fore just like a doctor might. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Rev. Dr. Josh Carroll and Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Tomas Bokedal, who is Lecturer in New Testament at University of Aberdeen (Scotland) and Associate Professor in New Testament at NLA University College (Bergen, Norway), and the author of the book that we discuss in this episode, Christ the Center: How the Rule of Faith, the Nomina Sacra, and Numerical Patterns Shape the Canon (published by Lexham Press). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Bokedal talks with us about how the NT canon was formed and shaped by intriguing patterns that all serve to highlight that Christ is the central focus of the New Testament collection. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Rev. Dr. Josh Carroll and Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re talking about Artemis of the Ephesians with Dr. Sandra Glahn, who is Professor of Media Arts and Worship at Dallas Theological Seminary, and the author of the book that we’re excited to discuss on this episode, Nobody’s Mother: Artemis of the Ephesians in Antiquity and the New Testament (published by IVP). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Glahn talks with us about how scholarship on Artemis of the Ephesians has had a paradigm shift away from viewing her as a fertility deity, which has implications for how we think about the influence of her cult on biblical texts like 1 Timothy, which says that women will be saved through childbearing. The conversation is a fascinating one about the significance of biblical backgrounds in general, and specifically for interpreting one of the most esoteric passages in the Pauline corpus. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Josh Carroll and Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Bryan Dyer, who is senior acquisitions editor at Baker Academic and the co-author with Stanley Porter of the book that we’re excited to discuss today—Origins of New TestamentChristology: An Introduction to the Traditions and Titles Applied to Jesus (published with Baker Academic). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss where this book fits within broaderscholarship of New Testament scholarship. In particular, Dr. Dyer notes how their work extends beyond a “titles approach” that merely identifiesChristological titles as the starting point for Christological treatment. They expand their scope to include various traditions in addition to titles, toprovide a rich and helpful entry point to New Testament Christology. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Professor Joshua Jipp to talk about PaulineTheology as a Way of Life. Professor Jipp is Professor of New Testament and Director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (Deerfield, IL), and the author of the book that we’re excited to talk about in this episode, Pauline Theology as a Way of Life: A Vision of Human Flourishing in Christ (published by BakerAcademic). Over the course of our conversation Professor Jipp talks with us about how his new book is a Pauline Theology, but one that is focused on the practical outworkings of Paul’s thought, which allows him to avoid abstraction and conflation of Paul’s ad hoc pastoral responses to his congregations. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Madison Pierce, and Dr. Logan Williams. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Professor Kevin Hector, who is Naomi Shenstone Donnelley Professor of Theology and of the Philosophy of Religions at the University of Chicago Divinity School, to talk about his new book, Christianity as a Way of Life: A Systematic Theology (published by Yale University Press). Over the course of our conversation, Prof. Hector explains how his systematic theology is fairly unique because it attempts to account for Christianity as it is lived out in the lives of everyday Christians. As such, we talk at length about some of the key practices that are central to understanding Christianity as a way of life, including eating together, singing together, and more. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Rev. Dr. Nathaniel Warne, who is priest-in-charge at St. Paul Episcopal Church in Mishawaka, Indiana, to talk about his new book, Josef Pieper on the Spiritual Life: Creation, Contemplation, and Human Flourishing (published by Notre Dame University Press). Rev. Dr. Warne explains that he came to the work of Pieper, a scholar of Thomas Aquinas, by way of his own research on eudaimonia in Thomistic thought. In the process of gleaning from Pieper for his work on Thomas, he became deeply influenced by Pieper’s reflections on the spiritual life and his approach to spiritual practices as rooted in quite mundane activities. In this book Rev. Dr. Warne draws together various threads in Pieper’s writings into a systematic articulation of his views on spirituality as it pertains to his theology of creation, contemplation, and what it looks like to have a thriving human existence. Team members from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, and Dr. Madison Pierce.If you are interested in purchasing Rev. Dr. Warne’s book, there is a special code from the publisher for 40% off:  14CTSA23 Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we give a joint review of the two Summer movies, Barbie and Oppenheimer. Over the course of our conversation we talk about the themes that emerge when the two ostensibly different films are juxtaposed and interpreted together, including: death, existential angst, technology, feminism, and power, and we have a lot of fun along the way. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Barbie (Dr. Madison Pierce), Ken (Dr. Brandon Hurlbert), and Allan (Dr. John Anthony Dunne). Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re closing out our short mini-series on Children's Bibles and Children's Books by chatting with Natasha Kennedy, who is a freelance designer, graphic novelist, and illustrator of the FatCat Series, and Dr. Todd Hains, who is Associate Publisher of Acquisitions and Development for Lexham Press at Faithlife, andauthor of the books in the FatCat Series. The FatCat Series is an illustrated catechism series for children, published by Lexham Press. The books in the series include a volume on the Apostle's Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and a forthcoming volume on the Ten Commandments. In addition, they've created two short stories, King of Christmas and King of Easter. In this conversation we talk about the goal of the series, the hermeneutical affect of illustration, the challenge of depicting Jesus, and much more! Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk with Dr. Brian Wright about the Children’s Book series on the Minor Prophets that he’s been helping to produce called God’s Daring Dozen (published by Christian Focus). Dr. Wright is a church-planting pastor in Pensacola, Florida of Redeemer Community Church, and he studied under Dr. Mike Bird at Ridley, College in Melbourne, Australia for his PhD in New Testament. In our conversation we talk about the importance of this neglected portion of Scripture in general, and Dr. Wright tells us about the fascinating work that he’s done academically to make sure that the message of each of the minor prophets is communicated clearly and faithfully for children in their series, God’sDaring Dozen. Team members from The Two Cities on the episode include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Dr. Kris Song. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk about why it’s important to teach the Old Testament to children with Dr. Kaz Hayashi, who is Associate Professor of Old Testament at Bethel Seminary (St. Paul, MN) and Shelley Henning, who is the Co-founder and CEO of GrowFamily, which provides family resources for parents and church leaders, the Children’s Ministry Catalyst for the Reformed Church in America, and one of our recent graduates at Bethel Seminary in our Children’s and Family Ministry program. Together Kaz and Shelley co-wrote a recent article, “Teach All Scripture to Children,” in the children’s ministry magazine, Entre Niños. In our conversation we talk about the importance of engaging the OT, and not in a piecemeal way that selectivity skips over stories that make us as adults uncomfortable or even aspects of familiar stories that complicate the story morally or theologically. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, and Dr. Kris Song. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk with Dr. Chris Gooding about the process ofrehabilitating from human trafficking. Dr. Gooding is Assistant TeachingProfessor in the Theology Department at Marquette University, a member of the Mennonite Church USA, and the author of the new book that we discuss in this episode, Beyond Slavery: Christian Theology and Rehabilitation from Human Trafficking (published by Cascade). During our conversation, Dr. Gooding tells us about his firsthand experience working with survivors and social workers in India, pointing out the complexities involved when survivors seek rehabilitation from trafficking, and he offers a theological vision to undergird this important work. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk about the Bible really has to say about “biblical womanhood” with Dr. Philip Payne, who has served as a missionary, pastor, and professor in a number of settings, and is the author of several studies on the Bible’s teaching about women in ministry, including the new book that we discuss in this episode, The Bible vs. Biblical Womanhood: How God's Word Consistently Affirms Gender Equality (published byZondervan). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Payne dives deep into such biblical texts as 1 Corinthians 14, Ephesians 5, 1 Timothy 2, and much more, and offers several of his own reflections on how he came to read scripture differently and what this topic means to him personally. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Madison Pierce, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Zachary Wagner to talk about Non-Toxic Masculinity. Zach is editorial director for the Center for Pastor Theologians, a doctoral candidate in New Testament at the University of Oxford, and the author of the book that we discuss in this episode, Non-Toxic Masculinity: Recovering Healthy Male Sexuality (published byIVP). Over the course of our conversation, Zach explains to us how Toxic Masculinity is dehumanizing, turning women’s bodies into objects of male sexual desire, and turning men’s minds into that of animals. Zach is therefore keen to offer a vision of masculinity that pushes back against the popular Christian vision of masculinity that comes from Purity Culture, which perpetuates Toxic Masculinity within Christian subculture.Zach also powerfully shares his own personal story from which his thoughts and reflections stem. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Grace Emmett, and Dr. Logan Williams. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode some of our team members get together to talk about the new season of one of our favorite TV shows, Black Mirror. The newest season (season 6) of this dystopian anthology just came out on Netflix last month and we discuss it all here. We start with some quick thoughts on the new season as a whole, followed by discussion on each of the five episodes in order. At the very end of the episode, we record an epilogue to add some more of our thoughts and even some clarification on some of the things said in the conversation proper. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Brandon Hurlbert, Dr. Kris Song, and Dr. Logan Williams. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we're talking about Christianity and Conspiracy Theories with Dr. Mike Austin (Professor of Philosophy at Eastern Kentucky University), who is the co-editor (with Dr. Gregory L. Bock) of the new book, QAnon, Chaos, and the Cross: Christianity and Conspiracy Theories (published by Eerdmans). Joining him we also have three of the many contributors who wrote essays for the volume: Dr. Marlena Graves (Assistant Professor of Spiritual Formation at Northeastern Seminary), Dr. Dru Johnson (Visiting Associate Professor at Hope College), and Dr. J. Aaron Simmons (Professor of Philosophy at Furman University). Over the course of our conversation we talk about the shape and purpose of the book, the epistemology ungirding the draw of conspiracies, the relationship between conspiratorial thinking and hermeneutics of suspicion, how cultural background factors in to conspiracy mindsets, and whether or not evangelicalism is too entrenched in conspiracies to salvage. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen and Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk about Faith & Fake News with Rachel Wightman, who is Associate Director of Instruction and Outreach at the Concordia University library in St. Paul (MN) and the author of Faith & Fake News: A Guide to Consuming Information Wisely (published by Eerdmans). Over the course of our conversation, Rachel talks with us about how the media landscape has changed since the 2020 US elections, how algorithmseffect the information we see on social media, what strategies we can deploy for engaging information online, how culture impacts our consumption of information, and whether we might be able to reclaim our witness as Christians in an age when broader culture associates us with the dissemination and indiscriminate consumption of fake news. Team members from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Stanley Ng. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we're joined by Dr. Karen Swallow Prior – writer, literary scholar, and professor – to talk about her new book, The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created A Culture In Crisis (published by Brazos). As Dr. Prior explains, she is engaging the issue of evangelicalism as an insider, highlighting various concerns that she has not with evangelical beliefs but with the application of those beliefs. Over the course of our conversation we talk about the social imaginary that informs and buttresses evangelicalism, what a reformation of evangelicalism might look like, and how we should situate evangelicalism in relation to power in the light of typical evangelical eschatology.Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Madison Pierce, and Dr. Sydney Tooth. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Constantine Campbell, who is Professor and Associate Research Director at the Sydney College of Divinity and the author of a number of works in biblical studies and ancient Greek, as well as the book we’re excited to discuss on this episode, Jesus V. Evangelicals: A Biblical Critique of a Wayward Movement (published by Zondervan Reflective). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss how American Evangelicalism is too politicized and partisan, too keen on power, and too focused on celebrity. We also chat about the difficulty of defining evangelicalism today since Bebbington’s famous quadrilateral fits British Evangelicalism, but has less and less to do with American evangelicalism. Dr. Campbell distinguishes between three types of evangelicals – theological, cultural and political – as an attempt to bring clarity, but suggests that a new term altogether may be preferable to trying to salvage a term that has come to be associated with something far away from the nature of God as revealed in Jesus. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stanley Ng, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re talking about Celebrities for Jesus with Katelyn Beaty, who is the editorial director for Brazos Press and who previously served as print managing editor at Christianity Today. She’s also the cohost of the Saved by the City podcast, and the author of Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platforms, and Profits are Hurting the Church (published by Brazos). In our conversation with Katelyn, we discuss the allure of celebrity in American evangelicalism, the lack of interrogation of whether church growth is an automatic work of the Spirit, whether institutions are irreparably flawed, and how the rise of celebrity inthe church connects with Enneagram personality types, among many other interesting things. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Madison Pierce, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, and Dr. Sydney Tooth. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Sheila Wray Gregoire and Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach to talk about their new book, She Deserves Better (published by Baker). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss the findings of their survey research of over 7,000 women about how experiences and teaching in youth group affect women longterm regarding their self-esteem, marital and sexual satisfaction, etc. Sheila and Rebecca share their interesting findings and articulate their constructive vision for how sex should be discussed in the home and in the church. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are talking about representation of Asian American Christianity in the Netflix and A24 production of the show BEEF starring Steven Yeun and Ali Wong. Joining us for this conversation is Pastor Jason Min, who is lead pastor at Citizens LA in downtown Los Angeles and cohost of the podcast, Off thePulpit, and was a consultant on the show for the worship scenes in the show and also played the electric guitar on stage alongside the character Edwin, the worship leader who was played by Jason’s brother, Justin. This conversation provides a lot of great behind-the-scenes insights into the show BEEF, including Pastor Jason’s reflections on how the show portrays Asian American Christianity. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Brandon Hurlbert, Stanley Ng, Dr. Grace Sangalang Ng, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, Dr. Kris Song, and Dr. Logan Williams. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, which is part two of a two-part conversation, we are joined by Prof. Esther Lightcap Meek to talk about teaching as a celebration of the 20th anniversary of her book, Longing to Know: The Philosophy of Knowledge for Ordinary People (published by Baker). Prof. Meek is Professor of Philosophy emeritus at Geneva College and Senior Scholar at The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. In this conversation we continue our conversation on Prof. Meek’s approach to epistemology as laid out in her classic book, and then we turn to talk about the process of teaching and pedagogy that gets past a “knowledge as information” paradigm. In particular we discuss how the teacher’s job is not strictly to communicate information and force students to memorizeinformation, but rather the teacher has to teach so that students feel it in their bodies. Teachers should strive to make students lovers of the real. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, and Dr. Kris Song. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, which is part one of a two-part conversation, we are joined by Prof. Esther Lightcap Meek to talk about learning as a celebration of the 20th anniversary of her book, Longing to Know: The Philosophy of Knowledge for Ordinary People (published by Baker). Prof. Meek is Professor of Philosophy emeritus at Geneva College and Senior Scholar at The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. In this conversation we talk about Prof. Meek’s approach to epistemology as laid out in her classic book, and then we turn to talk about the process of learning that gets past a “knowledge as information” paradigm. Of special note, we discuss how Chat GPT reinforces the problematic epistemology that Prof. Meek is calling us away from. We conclude by comparing and contrasting Prof. Meek’s description of riding a bike with Chat GPT’s guide for riding a bike. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, and Dr. Kris Song. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final episode in our series on Disability and Theology, we are joined by Rev. Dr. Kirk Patston, who is the Director of the Centre for Preaching and Pastoral Ministry at Sydney Missionary Bible College and the co-founder of Our Place Christian Communities, to talk about the research he did for his doctoral thesis at the University of Sydney, entitled, “Job, Otherness and Christian Theology of Disability.” This conversation pulls on several threads discussed throughout our series as we circle back to discuss a biblical text together. Rev. Dr. Patston draws upon the writings of Bakhtin and Levinas in particular to approach the dialogues that Job has with his friends. The primary emphases that emerge for Rev. Dr. Patston is that stigmas toward those who are “other” to us should be replaced by wonder and play as postures of curiosity. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, which is the penultimate episode in our series on Disability & Theology, we’re talking about Becoming the Baptized Body with Dr. Sarah Jean Barton, who is Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy and Theological Ethics at Duke Divinity School, and the author of Becoming the Baptized Body: Disability and the Practice of Christian Community (published by Baylor University Press). In our conversation, we talk about how baptism is often denied in Christian churches to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and Dr. Barton explains that baptismal denial is not strictly a Credobaptist issue, since Paedobaptists might also deny someone’s baptism, not by withholding an ordinance, but by failing to continue to uphold these individuals in their discipleship and participation in the community. The Christian ritual of baptism makes one an indispensable member of the Body of Christ, so neglecting to co-labor coalitionally alongside people with disabilities in our churches is an abdication of baptismal responsibility to the fullness of Christ’s Body. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, and Rev. Daniel Parham.            Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re talking about Autism and the Church with Professor Grant Macaskill, who is Kirby Laing Chair of New Testament Exegesis and co-director of the Centre for Autism and Theology at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and he is the author of several books, including: Autism and the Church: Bible, Theology, and Community (published by Baylor University Press). In this episode Prof. Macaskill talks about his own experience with Autism and how the book is to provide an approach to Autism that avoids deficiency accounts that assume Autism is a negative thing. Towards that end he aims to explore how the Bible can constructively resource theologies of Autism, and he challenges inappropriate uses of the Bible in relation to Autism. In particular, Prof. Macaskill stresses how neurodiversity challenges the notion of a “neutral” way of reading the Bible, which is really an ableist form of reading. In addition to hermeneutical issues, we also address practical ecclesial matters regarding the environment of the church gathered as it pertains to people with Autism.Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stanley Ng, Dr. Madison Pierce, Dr. Kris Song, and Dr. Sydney Tooth. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we discuss Virtue, Agency, and Christian Caregiving with Dr. Keith Dow, who is the Manager of Organizational and Spiritual Life with Christian Horizons, a nonprofit charitable organization working with people with intellectual disabilities in Canada and around the world. Dr. Dow is also the author of Formed Together: Mystery, Narrative, and Virtue in Christian Caregiving (published by Baylor University Press). In our conversation, Dr. Dow tells us about his background and how he got interested in caregiving for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Given his theological interests in ethics and virtues, he explains what his understanding of a distinctive ethic of Christian care might look like in terms of the agency of those who receive care and the humility of those who provide it. Team Members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Stephanie Kate Judd. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk about mutuality in ministry with friends and nature with Melissa and Ben Conner. Melissa Conner is executive director and certified advanced therapeutic riding instructor at Renew Therapeutic Riding Center in Holland, Michigan. Dr. Benjamin Conner is Professor of Practical Theology and Director of the Graduate Certificate in Disability and Ministry at Western Theological Seminary (Holland, Michigan), and the author of Amplifying Our Witness (published by Eerdmans) and Disabling Mission, Enabling Witness (published by IVP Academic). As they share with us in this episode, both Melissa and Ben are committed to a holistic vision of ministry inclusive of people with disabilities and the broader world of nature. In particular, Ben tells us about how his thinkingshifted away from ministering to people with disabilities towards ministering alongside and with them. Along those lines, he helps to organize a center at the Seminary where he teaches, called Friendship House, where people with intellectual and developmental disabilities can live and be integrated into the life of the Seminary. Melissa similarly tells us about how, within her work as therapeutic riding instructor who offers equine-assisted services (EAS) for people with disabilities, she views the horses at her center as having a vocation and calling to serve alongside her and her colleagues as partners in ministry. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Stephanie Kate Judd, Dr. Grace Sangalang Ng, Rev. Daniel Parham, and Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Professor Brian Brock to reflect on disability from within the Christian theological tradition. Prof. Brock holds the personal chair in moral and practical theology at the University of Aberdeen (in Scotland), and he’s the author of Wondrously Wounded: Theology, Disability, and the Body of Christ (published by Baylor University Press) and Disability: Living into the Diversity of Christ’s Body (published by Baker Academic). Prof. Brock explains how he became interested in Disability Studies by setting out in an education in the field of medical ethics, and as he came to rethink the framework of the field, his first son was born, Adam (featured below), who has Down Syndrome and Autism. Prof. Brock’s chief interest in the space of Disability Studies became the desire to set it into conversation with mainstream Christian theology, since theological work within Disability Studies was almost entirely reserved to liberation theology. One of the key questions that we discuss with Prof. Brock throughout this episode is, given his life lived with his son Adam, who is non-verbal, how do we speak about people who can’t speak for themselves? Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Stephanie Kate Judd and Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode in our Disability & Theology series, we are joined by Dr. Shane Clifton to talk about virtue ethics and what it means to live a good life with a disability. Dr. Clifton is a disability ethicist and theologian, Principal Policy Officer and Director of Respect & Inclusion at the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation against People with Disability, and an Honorary Associate for the Centre of Disability Research and Policy, the University of Sydney. He’s also the author Crippled Grace: Disability, Virtue Ethics, and the Good Life (Published by Baylor University Press). During our conversation, Dr. Clifton shares with us his experience of a spinal cord injury that left him with quadriplegia and the way that experience compelled him to re-explore happiness, or eudaimonia, within the virtue tradition as a pursuit specifically for people with disabilities. This conversation is rich with discussion on virtue ethics and full of raw and honest reflections on pain and pleasure. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Stephanie Kate Judd. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we're joined by Dr. Amy Kenny, a disabled scholar and Shakespeare Lecturer, to talk about her book, My Body Is Not A Prayer Request: Disability Justice in the Church (published by Brazos). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Kenny shares with us her lived experience of disability and marginalization in the church, and the pain of unwanted prayers that essentially want to rid her of her disabled body. Instead of thinking in terms of healing, Dr. Kenny wants Christians to approach disability with the realization that God has always been at work in disability, since many biblical characters had a disability of some kind, and that, at the eschatological banquet in Luke 14, people with all sorts of disabilities will be present with their disabilities. Indeed, as she affirms, there's even something we can learn about disability from the broader community of God's creation, where nature resists the straight and orderly design of ableist structure. This conversation is rich with powerful testimony, witty one-liners, and incisive reflection on some of the problematic aspects of the church's approach to disabilities. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, Dr. Madison Pierce, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, Dr. Kris Song. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Carrying on in our series on Disability & Theology, we turn to think critically about the representation of disabilities in popular culture. In particular, we focus on the representation of Squibs in the Harry Potter series with Emma Brandel and Dr. Julye Bidmead. Emma Brandel is an undergraduate student at Chapman University (Orange, California) majoring in ancient cultures and languages, and Dr. Julye Bidmead is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and the Director of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence at Chapman University. Over the course of our conversation Emma and Dr. Bidmead highlight the ways that Squibs—magical born people in the Harry Potter world who are not able to use a wand to produce magic—function as a metaphor for people with disabilities. What is most problematic about this connection, as we discuss, is that there is no educational accommodation for Squibs at Hogwarts, and further, that they are broadly denigrated within that magical society. This discussion stems from work that Emma did in a course taught by Dr. Bidmead in which she and a few of her fellow classmates produced a reading guide for people coming to the Harry Potter series 30 years later (or more) after readers have grown more sensitive to the unchecked biases in the series against various marginalized groups, including people with disabilities. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, and, introducing for the first time on the podcast, Stanley Ng. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we are joined by Vinh Nguyen to talk about parenting children with Down syndrome. Vinh is a PhD student at McMaster Divinity College, and has served as a pastor in different capacities for over ten years. He is married with three children, one of whom is his daughter, Alli, who has Down syndrome. At the outset of our conversation, Vinh tells us about the circumstances surrounding the news from their OBGYN before Alli was born that she had Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome as well as Down syndrome, and the miraculous story of how the left side of her heart formed despite what doctors told them. Vinh shares with us many things that he has learned from his daughter, including about the nature of prejudice, and he also dispels many myths that people have about Down syndrome. We also discuss the matters of ritual participation in the eucharist and baptism, and the implications of resurrection for how we think about the personhood of people with Down syndrome. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we discuss parenting children on the spectrum with Naomi and Mike Bird. Naomi Bird is Assistant Children’s and Family minister at her local church and a connect leader with MOPS Australia, and Mike Bird is an academic dean and lecturer in theology at Ridley College, Melbourne. Over the course of our conversation Naomi and Mike share their experience of parenting their son, Markus, who is on the Autism spectrum. They address the joys and challenges of parenting Markus, what’s been most helpful and unhelpful in the process of parenting him, and what they have learned about God through Markus. They stress the importance of recognizing that everyone is made in the image of God, and that within the Church we are all members of the Body of Christ with unique giftings and experiences. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, and Dr. Sydney Tooth. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we're joined by Professor Maryanne Wolf to discuss Dyslexia. Prof. Wolf is the Director of the Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, and the author of a number of books, including Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain (published HarperCollins), and Reader, Come Home: The Reading Brain in a Digital World (also published by HarperCollins). In our conversation, Prof. Wolf explains to us that reading is an invention, and that the human brain was never intended to read. We have to build a circuit in the brain in order to read; we don’t enter the world equipped to do so. People with Dyslexia, though, have a differently organized brain, with patterns of organization that pre-date our invention of literacy and numeracy. As Prof. Wolf emphasizes, there are advantages that come with these differently organized brains, such as creativity, entrepreneurship, and non-linear thinking. Thus, Dyslexia is something to be understood, rather than overcome. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, Rev. Daniel Parham, Dr. Madison Pierce. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re talking about Dementia with Prof. John Swinton, who is Chair of Divinity and Religious Studies and Professor of Theology at the University of Aberdeen (in Scotland). Prof. Swinton is also a Registered Mental Nurse (RMN) and a Registered Nurse for People with Learning Disabilities (RNMD), and the author of a number of books, including, Dementia: Living in the Memories of God (published by Eerdmans) and Becoming Friends of Time: Disability, Timefullness, and Gentle Discipleship (published by Baylor University Press). In our conversation we talk about what led Prof. Swinton into theological work on Dementia, and as the discussion unfolds Prof. Swinton addresses models of personhood in relation to memory, overly dualist/rationalist conceptions of who we are as humans, and the importance of relationality and communality as people. Theologically, we talk about what it means to know God, when you’ve forgotten who God is, and the importance of situating personhood in Christ and the importance of being held in God’s memory of us. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing our series on disability and theology, we conclude our look at textual matters within this series by looking at protagonists and their impairments in early Christian literature with Dr. Kylie Crabbe, who is Senior Research Fellow in Biblical and Early Christian Studies, and Director of Graduate Research Programs for the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry, which is part of Australian Catholic University. She holds a current Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) from the Australian Research Council (2022-2024) for her project ‘Inside Others: Early Christian Protagonists and Their Impairments’. Over the course of our conversation, we discuss the function of the impairments of protagonists within early Christian texts. In particular, we look at the infertility of Elizabeth in the Gospel of Luke, the representation of John in the apocryphal Acts of John, and the representation of Peter’s daughter in the apocryphal Acts of Peter. As we do so we juxtapose this discussion with the representation of Paul within the canonical book of Acts relative to his description of himself in his letters. Dr. Crabbe is keen to point out the differences at work when a character with an impairment is the main character in their own story rather than a peripheral character whose purpose is to show us something about the unimpaired protagonist. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing our series on Disability & Theology we are joined by Dr. Meghan Henning to talk about Hell & Disability in Early Christian Literature. Dr. Henning is Associate Professor of Christian Origins and the Director of Undergraduate Programs at the University of Dayton (in Ohio), and the author of Hell Hath No Fury: Gender, Disability, and the Invention of Damned Bodies in Early Christian Literature (published by Yale University Press). At the outset of our conversation, Dr. Henning shares her personal and familial experience with disability and how that led her into disability studies, and from there the bulk of our conversation is focused on the representation of damned bodies in Hell within early Christian literature, particularly apocalyptic texts from the first few centuries of Christianity. Notably, Dr. Henning highlights the way that bodies in Hell are generally depicted as effeminate and disabled, which is a distinct development within Christian texts relative to broader culture, and she explains how/why this link would have been made in the ancient world. This conversation covers a difficult topic, but it highlights the way that ableism and misogyny, among other things, affects early Christian reflection on the afterlife, which ought to challenge our contemporary perspectives on disability, gender, and eschatology. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Stephanie Kate Judd. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we discuss Disability in the Greco-Roman World and the New Testament with Dr. Louise Gosbell, who is Principal of Mary Andrews College in Sydney, Australia, and the author of The Poor, The Crippled, The Blind, and the Lame: Physical and Sensory Disability in the Gospels of the New Testament (published by Mohr Siebeck). At the outset of our conversation, Dr. Gosbell shares her personal story struggling with chronic health issues that have developed into a disability, as well as the way that disability has affected her wider family. Over the course of our conversation, we discuss the Great Banquet of Luke 14, the woman with the issue of blood, and the man born blind in John 9. As Dr. Gosbell emphasizes with us, disability is not a static experience, either in the ancient world or the modern one, and is an inevitable reality rather than a rare experience. Thus, our accommodation and our framework towards disability needs to shift so that we are much more intentional around disability in our churches, including in our teachings and in our practices. Team Members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Grace Emmett, Stephanie Kate Judd, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter.Series Disclaimer: We know that this space is fraught, and we don’t speak for every PWD. We may inevitably get some things wrong in this series, but we ask for your patience in advance since we think it’s more important to have the conversation than shy away from it out of fear of saying the wrong thing. At the same time, this is a learning process for all of us, and we want to maintain a posture of learning throughout the series and beyond. Thanks for listening! Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second episode of our series on disability, we discuss blindness in the Hebrew Bible with Dr. Eric Harvey, who holds a PhD from Brandeis University in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, with a specialization in Bible and the Ancient Near East. Dr. Harvey also recently held a digital humanities post-doctoral fellowship at the center for spatial and textual analysis at Stanford University, and he blogs at blindscholar.com. Throughout our conversation, Dr. Harvey shares his personal story of becoming legally blind during his doctoral studies, and how his experience led him to reassess the construct of blindness in the Hebrew Bible. In particular, he addresses the passages that use the saying “having eyes, but not seeing” in the Psalms, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah, highlighting how the line itself does not pertain to the same reality (sometimes it relates to moral disobedience and idols, and only once does it actually refer to literal blindness). As we continue on, Dr. Harvey explains how he takes a historicist view of disability in biblical texts, as opposed to a redemptionist or a rejectionist approach (drawing upon the taxonomy of the late Prof. Hector Avalos). Dr. Harvey emphasizes how the biblical fascination with healing, and the contemporary hope in it, leaves people with the trauma of not experiencing such healing and also without much reflection on what faithful living looks like with the bodies that one has. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Stephanie Kate Judd and Dr. Madison Pierce.Series Disclaimer: We know that this space is fraught, and we don’t speak for every PWD. We may inevitably get some things wrong in this series, but we ask for your patience in advance since we think it’s more important to have the conversation than shy away from it out of fear of saying the wrong thing. At the same time, this is a learning process for all of us, and we want to maintain a posture of learning throughout the series and beyond. Thanks for listening! Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is the first episode in our series on disability and theology, in which we’re joined by Prof. John Swinton, who is Chair of Divinity and Religious Studies and Professor of Theology at the University of Aberdeen (in Scotland). Prof. Swinton is also a Registered Mental Nurse (RMN) and a Registered Nurse for People with Learning Disabilities (RNMD), and the author of a number of books, including, Dementia: Living in the Memories of God (published by Eerdmans). In this conversation Prof. Swinton provides us with an overview of key terms and methodologies within the field of Disability studies as well as theological conversations around disability to help set up the conversations in our series. In addition to some of those foundational concepts and topics, Prof. Swinton also shares with us some of his insights surrounding the importance of personhood, belonging, dependence, participating in the Body of Christ, our conceptions of time, and the nature of resurrected bodies. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Grace Emmett, Stephanie Kate Judd, Dr. Madison Pierce, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter.Series Disclaimer: We know that this space is fraught, and we don’t speak for every PWD. We may inevitably get some things wrong in this series, but we ask for your patience in advance since we think it’s more important to have the conversation than shy away from it out of fear of saying the wrong thing. At the same time, this is a learning process for all of us, and we want to maintain a posture of learning throughout the series and beyond. Thanks for listening! Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we talk about limits with Dr. Kelly Kapic, who is Professor of Theological Studies at Covenant College (in Lookout Mountain, Georgia), and the author of You’re Only Human: How Our Limits Reflect God’s Design and Why That’s Good News (published by Brazos). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Kapic talks about the importance of human limitation and how it should be considered from within a theology of creation. In particular, he highlights that we should not feel guilty for our lack of productivity at the end of the day, but neither should we give in to a one-sided emphasis on how our identity is unrelated to the work that we do  or the bodies that we have. We want to avoid a hyper self-reliance on the one hand, and Gnosticism on the other. This conversation helpfully sets up the series that we have planned next on Disability and Theology. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Stephanie Kate Judd, Dr. Madison Pierce, Rev. Dr. Chris Porter, and Dr. Sydney Tooth. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Christopher Watkin to talk about Biblical Critical Theory. Dr. Watkin is Senior Lecturer in French Studies at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, and he’s the author of Biblical Critical Theory: How The Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture (published by Zondervan). In our conversation, Dr. Watkin talks about how all critical theories speak out against the status quo, and that the Bible itself offers us a storied version of a critical theory. In particular, Dr. Watkin emphasizes how the story of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, invites Christians to a third way to approach culture that is neither simply demolitional nor straightforwardly affirming. It does so, he contends, not as a metanarrative, but as a mesonarrative, a story that unfolds in the midst of history rather than standing over and above it. As he explains, all critical theories make life viable, visible, valuable, and the Bible’s own critical theory does so as well. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. Amber Bowen, Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Stephanie Kate Judd, Rev. Daniel Parham, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.