In All Things Podcast

LOWERING our Expectations with David Zahl (ep. 29)

On this episode of the podcast, I speak with David Zahl about his new book, Low Anthropology. It’s a conversation about the expectations we set on ourselves and others, and how recognizing and reckoning with human limitation, doubleness, and self-centeredness opens up space for both grace and growth. Among the topics we discuss:

• How burnout, loneliness, and “us vs. them” are signs of a high anthropology
• How low anthropology alleviates "imposter syndrome" and sets us free from the "fantasy self we are failing to become"
• Why communities organized around vulnerability and weakness are healthier and more hopeful than communities organized around strength and success.
• How low anthropology responds to contemporary phenomena like celebrity culture and cancel culture
• How sermons, churches, and discipleship look different when we operate on the priority of the heart rather than the head.

Get the book: http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/low-anthropology/410250

Check out Mockingbird Ministries: https://mbird.com/ 

DEVELOPING a Personality with Marjorie Lindner Gunnoe (ep. 28)

On this episode of the podcast, I’m joined by a guest co-host Dr. Mark Christians, and together we interview Dr. Marjorie Lindner Gunnoe about her new book The Person in Psychology and Christianity: A Faith-Based Critique of Five Theories of Social Development. Among the topics we discuss:

• Why ordinary people might be interested in developmental psychology
• Why these five (Erikson, Bowlby, Skinner, Bandura, and Evolutionary Psychology) were selected for the book.
• Dr. Gunnoe's "faith-based working model of the human person"
• The relationship of psychology and religion and why we should learn from others who do not share our faith
• The implications of things like attachment theory for discipleship

Get the book: https://www.ivpress.com/the-person-in-psychology-and-christianity

Dr. Mark Christians's review: https://inallthings.org/of-psychology-and-christianity-a-review-of-the-person-in-psychology-and-christianity/

DISCERNING Cultural Wisdom & Foolishness with William Dyrness (ep. 27)

On this episode of the podcast, I had the special treat of interviewing my doctoral supervisor, William (Bill) Dyrness about his new book, The Facts on the Ground: A Wisdom Theology of Culture. I tell the story of how I came to study with Bill, and talk shop with him about our shared interest in theology and culture. Among the topics we discuss: 

• Bill's story – which includes work as a missionary, study with Dutch scholar Hans Rookmaaker, theologizing about visual art, and theological reflection on numerous topics – what ties all of these interests together?
• On why it is so important that we deal with "the facts on the ground" and learn to discern "cultural wisdom" as we engage the world in which we live.
• On how we deal with the critique that in our desire to discern God's work within culture, we might be overly optimistic, giving God credit for the wrong things
• On what criteria we might use to discern wisdom from foolishness.
• On how Bill connected with the Kuyperian tradition, what he appreciates about it, and what he thinks we need to critique. 
• The difference between cultural theology and public theology, and what he hopes culturally attuned theologians will give their attention to.

Get Bill Dyrness's new book, The Facts on the Ground: https://www.amazon.com/Facts-Ground-Wisdom-Theology-Culture/dp/1725299631

Get Bill's earlier book, Poetic Theology: https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-Theology-Poetics-Everyday-Life/dp/080286578X 

EQUIPPING for Political Engagement with Stephanie Summers (ep. 26)

On this episode of the podcast I talk with Stephanie Summers, the CEO of the Center for Public Justice about Christian political engagement as love of neighbor, and engagement that goes beyond presidential politics. Among the topics we discuss: 

• Stephanie's story of deepening her youthful activism with theological roots
• What is "public" justice, and what does the Center for Public Justice do?
• How does CPJ approach a problem like poverty?
• How do we move forward in a deeply polarized time?
• What does it mean for ordinary people to be politically engaged beyond just voting every few years?
• How do you find hope amid the political cynicism of our time?

To learn more:

Center for Public Justice: https://www.cpjustice.org/public/page/content/homepage 

Shared Justice: https://www.sharedjustice.org

Unleashing Opportunity book: https://www.sharedjustice.org/unleashing-opportunity 

More about the Hatfield Prize: https://www.sharedjustice.org/apply

Follow CPJ on Twitter: https://twitter.com/cpjustice

 

INTERPRETING Your World with Justin & the hosts of Hallway Conversations (ep. 25)

On this special 25th episode of the podcast, we collaborated with the hosts of Hallway Conversations podcast to produce a joint episode! Our conversation centers on *my* new book, Interpreting Your World: Five Lenses for Engaging Theology and Culture. Among the topics we discuss: 

• What it means to become incisive interpreters, not just of Scripture, but also of culture. 
• What it means to discern cultural idolatries, starting with our own
• How we can empower students to move beyond "reputation management" and "slacktivism" to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly.
• What it might mean to take aesthetics seriously in schools, churches, and society. 
• How we can model "non-reductive curiosity" as we engage culture. 

Get the book: http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/interpreting-your-world/410460 

About Dave, Matt, and Abby at the Hallway Conversations podcast (https://hallwayconvos.podbean.com/): 

"We are three friends who have been teaching for quite a while, but we still have lots of questions about education. This is our place for thinking out loud about topics we think are important for Christian educators to consider. We regularly have face-to-face hallway conversations, and this podcast is our way of inviting you in to our reflections on contemporary education.

Our deep hope is that you would find these conversations an opportunity for your own reflection–that you would be challenged and encouraged in your work as an educator, and that you might even chuckle along as we think on our feet and stumble through trying to answer each others questions about what it means to take our faith seriously as we consider our work as educators.

Feel free to drop us a line at hallwayconvospod@gmail.com."

Follow Dr. Dave Mulder's substack: https://drdave.substack.com/ 

Follow Dr. Matthew Beimers: https://twitter.com/beim_m 

Follow Abby DeGroot: https://twitter.com/DeGrootAbby 

RESISTING Celebrity Culture with Katelyn Beaty (ep. 24)

On this episode of the podcast, Ruth Clark and I chat with Katelyn Beaty about her new book, Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platforms, and Profits are Hurting the Church. Among the topics we discuss: 

• Why celebrity culture is a uniquely modern phenomenon.
• What it means to say that celebrity is a "feature, not a bug" of the evangelical movement, and the spiritual implications
• What it might mean to resist the values of celebrity culture in the church and in the Christian publishing industry
• Why obscurity and ordinary faithfulness are so important for followers of Christ

Get Katelyn's book: http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/celebrities-for-jesus/406890 

To read Ruth Clark's review: https://inallthings.org/reckoning-with-status-and-realigning-our-hearts-a-review-of-celebrities-for-jesus/ 

REDESIGNING Towards Flourishing with Ethan Brue (ep. 23)

On this episode of the podcast, I am joined by returning guest co-host Kayt Frisch, and together we chat with Dr. Ethan Brue about his new co-authored book, A Christian Field Guide to Technology for Engineers and Designers. Among the topics we discuss: 

- How we can place technology, engineering, and design in the wider Christian story

- How technology tends to make itself "invisible" and the implications of that?

- What it might look like to design a home thermostat with more than just temperature in mind

- How we can move towards a definition of "flourishing" the goal of good design

- A fascinating case study about the rise and fall of the electric vehicle in the late 1800s/early 1900s.

- How we can navigate between technological optimism and pessimism, and what every Christian engineering student should know.

Get the book: https://www.ivpress.com/a-christian-field-guide-to-technology-for-engineers-and-designers

To read Dr. Kayt Frisch's review: https://inallthings.org/how-is-your-technology-use-shaping-you-today-a-review-of-a-christian-field-guide-to-technology-for-engineers-and-designers/

RECKONING with Race with Vince Bacote (ep. 22)

On this episode of the podcast, I am joined by Dr. Vince Bacote, a professor of theology and author. The conversation focuses on two recent pieces by Dr. Bacote: a chapter on Kuyper and Race in Calvinism for a Secular Age and a short book entitled Reckoning with Race and Performing the Good News. Among the topics we discuss:

• Dr. Bacote's testimony of his encounter with Abraham Kuyper's theology and racism, marked by delight, dissonance, distress, and decision.
• Why it is so important to listen to the testimonies of those who have struggled to reconcile evangelicalism's promise with its failures
• Why Dr. Bacote has decided to stay within the evangelical movement and what resources are available for reckoning with race and renewing the movement
• Why we must take culture seriously as we interpret Scripture
• The most important resources from Kuyper and what other thinker Kuyperians should get to know.

Resources mentioned in this podcast:

Dr. Bacote's article, "Gifts from Father Abraham": https://comment.org/gifts-from-father-abraham/

Learning from a Legend by Jared Alcantara: https://wipfandstock.com/9781498226097/learning-from-a-legend/ 

Follow Dr. Bacote: https://twitter.com/vbacote 

RENEWING Our Imaginations with Jessica Hooten Wilson (ep. 21)

On this episode of the podcast we are joined by professor and author Dr. Jessica Hooten Wilson, to talk about her new book, The Scandal of Holiness. Together we discuss how reading good books can renew our imagination, allowing us to keep company with "literary saints." Among the questions we discuss:

• What makes a character a literary saint, and why should we spend time in their company?
• Why do we have such a hard time trusting holiness, and what do we miss if we lose sight of it?
• Should we seek suffering? How do we distinguish between asceticism and masochism?
• How do various means of engagement (literature, art, contemplation) shape our imagination?
• Who are some lesser known authors that Christians should read?

Books mentioned in our conversation:

Moses, Man of the Mountain by Zora Neale Hurston 

Silence by Shūsaku Endō

On Reading Well by Karen Swallow Prior

Book of the Dun Cow by Walter Wangerin Jr.

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset

A Lesson Before Dying   A Gathering for Old Men by Ernest J. Gaines

Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos

 

Other authors mentioned in our conversation:

C.S. Lewis

George MacDonald

Randy Boyagoda

Walker Percy

Flannery O'Connor

 

Get the book: http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/the-scandal-of-holiness/407181 

Dr. Wilson's website: https://jessicahootenwilson.com/ 

Follow Jessica Hooten Wilson on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HootenWilson 

Kelly Latimore 's "literary icons": https://kellylatimoreicons.com/ 

 

REDEEMING Power with Diane Langberg (ep. 20)

On this episode of the podcast, I am joined by guest co-host Dr. Tara Boer (professor of social work). Together we interview Dr. Diane Langberg, an internationally recognized psychologist, counselor, and speaker, who is also the author of the book Redeeming Power: Understanding Authority and Abuse in the Church (Brazos, 2020). Among the topics we discuss:

• How do we define power, vulnerability, and abuse? How can we identify "spiritual abuse" in a church context?
• Why have some Christians been resistant to the #metoo or #churchtoo movements? Are false accusations a legitimate threat?
• What does it mean to redeem power? What safeguards can be put in place, especially in male-dominated settings?
• How do we support victims and help them heal?
• How have you, during a 50+ year career dealing with these difficult issues, found the courage and hope to continue?

Dr. Tara Boer's review at In All Things: https://inallthings.org/the-power-within-us-a-review-of-redeeming-power/

Dr. Langberg's website (lots of resources): https://www.dianelangberg.com/

American Bible Society: Trauma Healing: https://ministry.americanbible.org/trauma-healing/about-trauma-healing