Shows / Context Matters
Context Matters
This podcast is for people who are curious about the ancient context that influenced the final shape of the Bible…AND ALSO…how our modern context influences the way we understand the Bible and God and all things spiritual.
Episodes
- Context Matters
The Future is Peace
In this second part of the conversation, Maoz and Aziz go deeper into what it means to have productive conversations with people who have different…
- Context Matters
Peace in the Midst of Conflict
Aziz and Maoz were born and raised in Israel/Palestine. They have both suffered incredible loss of family members because of the conflict. Yet they both strive…
- Context Matters
Holy Land, Hard History
Todd Deatherage who is the Co-Founder of Telos, a Washington D.C. based nonprofit dedicated to the formation of communities of American peacemakers across…
- Context Matters
Beyond Zero-Sum
Todd Deatherage is the Co-Founder of Telos, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit dedicated to the formation of communities of American peacemakers across lines of…
- Context Matters
Burdens of Choice
In today's conversation, Dr. Felicia helps us understand how technology shapes not just what we do, but what we long for. In reality are our devices creating…
- Context Matters
Reimagining Freedom
Dr. Felicia Wu Song is a writer and speaker and cultural sociologist who studies the place of digital technologies in contemporary life. In this episode we…
- Context Matters
Thomas Aquinas and Modern Mental Health
In Part 2 of the conversation Dr. Warren Kinghorn continues his conversation with Cyndi, unpacking the ideas behind his book on mental health in dialogue with…
- Context Matters
Shalom and Mental Health
What does Peacemaking have to do with mental health? Dr. Warren Kinghorn is an excellent guide through the journey of discovery. Dr. Kinghorn challenges modern…
- Context Matters
Living out Hesed
In Part 2 of the conversation ]about her book Hesed, the Seed of the Biblical Story, Dr. Matheny walks through her own working definition of hesed, describing…
- Context Matters
The Story of Hesed
Ever tried explaining a word that shows up 250+ times in the Bible... and still can't quite pin it down? That's exactly the puzzle Old Testament scholar Jenny…
- Context Matters
Healing our Imagination
How does prayer fit into the formation and healing of our imagination? As we continue our conversation with Dr. Justin Bailey, he addresses prayer as…
- Context Matters
Undragoning our Imaginations
In our recent conversations about spiritual formation, the use of the imagination has come up several times. Why is the imagination so significant in spiritual…
- Context Matters
No Discipleship without Justice
This is a re-edited broadcast of a conversation with Dr. Michael Rhodes from 2024. Is it possible that Western Christianity and modern American life is shaping…
- Context Matters
The Soul as Wax
This is a re-edit conversation from 2024 with Dr. Lanta Davis. Her book Becoming by Beholding is a wonderful conversation partner with some of the recent…
- Context Matters
The Winding Road
Today we continue the conversation with Arrabon's founder, David Bailey. We talk about what the "Gospel of the Kingdom" means along with several of Arrabon's…
- Context Matters
Public Theology with David Bailey
David Bailey is the Founder and Chief Vision Officer of Arrabon. As a public theologian, David helps to bring wisdom, theological imagination, and moral…
- Context Matters
Trauma Informed Reading of Isaiah 40-55
When two contradictory commands about remembering past events refused to be reconciled, Dr. Megan Roberts began exploring new theories to help her exegetical…
- Context Matters
Remembering Isaiah 40-55
Biblical texts can be hard to read for several reasons - the poetry or images are challenging, or the emotion is strong, or the text seems to contradict itself…
- Context Matters
Women in the Salvation Story
Last week Dr. Faro introduced us to the significant literary theme of women who advance the story of salvation. Today we hear example of the Matriarch Sarah…
- Context Matters
Redeeming Eden
Dr. Ingrid Faro joins us today to talk about the "highway" that runs through the literary structure of the salvation story. Seeing women as crucial players in…
- Context Matters
Bringing Heaven Here
Brad Nelson and Brad Gray from Walking the Text continue their conversation about the rich theology embedded in every phrase of the Lord's Prayer. How does…
- Context Matters
Our Father in the Heavens
So many of us memorized the Lord's Prayer. Some congregations quote it together every week. It is so familiar that we don’t always stop to think about the…
- Context Matters
Christmas in Jerusalem
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but that is not the only significant location in the Christmas story. Dr. Jack Beck joins us again to talk about how the geography…
- Context Matters
Nazareth's Role in Christmas
It is Christmas time and we are discovering the fullness of the Origin Story of Jesus. Matthew and Luke tell us so much more than the moment of Jesus' birth…
- Context Matters
Jesus, Hillel, and Shammai
Dr. Nicholas Schaser introduces us to the fascinating world of rabbinic interpretation. Today we talk about how similar Jesus is to his contemporary sages like…
- Context Matters
Leading Sages of Jewish Thought
As we set the context for the birth of Jesus, we explore the dominant voices of Jewish thought and practice at the beginning of the 1st Century CE. Dr. Nicolas…
- Context Matters
Roman Republic to Empire
We are in the process of exploring the context of the birth narrative of Jesus, and we have arrived at the time of the rise of Octavian. He will lead the Roman…
- Context Matters
Rome Appears on the Horizon
Dr. Randal Smith is the Director of Christian Travel Study Program and a virtual encyclopedia about biblical context. We are in the process of exploring the…
- Context Matters
Anticipating Advent
As we start to anticipate the time of Advent and ultimately the birth of Jesus, what are some of the contextual things we should be aware of? Each historical…
- Context Matters
Discernment and the Spiritual Realm
Today is part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Melesse Woldetsadik. We are following up on the need for discernment when blaming problems on the spiritual realm…
- Context Matters
The Spiritual Realm and Learning to be a Pastor
Melesse Woldetsadik is the Pastor at Beta Selam Evangelical Church in North Carolina. He has a fascinating context of growing up in Coptic Christianity and…
- Context Matters
The Spiritual World and Spiritual Beings Part 2
We pick up the conversation with Fr. Andrew talking about Demons. Who or what are they? You may be surprised to know that the term 'demon' originally referred…
- Context Matters
The Spiritual World and Spiritual Beings Part 1
Fr. Andrew joins the Context Matters podcast again to talk about his wildly popular podcast series called The Lord of Spirits. We talk about the biblical and…
- Context Matters
Spiritual Cosmology with Dan Darko Part 2
This is part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Dan Darko about his book Against Principalities and Powers.Today we talk about the concept of salvation and…
- Context Matters
Spiritual Cosmology with Dan Darko Part 1
Dr. Dan Darko takes us on a journey from Ghana to post-war Croatia, England, and the United States. Each place adds to his unique questions he asked of the…
- Context Matters
You Cannot Get Away from This Conversation...
Writer, Producer, and Filmmaker Nicholas Ma joins us to talk about his latest documentary titled "Leap of Faith". In today's episode we explore the unspoken…
- Context Matters
Disagreeing with Sincerity, Vulnerability, and Discomfort
Writer, Producer, and Filmmaker Nicholas Ma joins us to talk about his latest documentary titled "Leap of Faith". We explore why documentaries captivate him…
- Context Matters
Learning to Disagree Well
Today is Part 2 of the conversation with Dr. John Inazu about his book Learning to Disagree. We live in an increasingly divided world in which we resist nuance…
- Context Matters
Non-toxic Disagreements
Do you feel like it is hard to have proper conversations with people about challenging subjects? It seems to be getting harder! This is why we all need to read…
- Context Matters
Exploring Literary Geography
Join us for part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Jack Beck. Learn how themes like divine identity and historical events are intertwined with specific locations…
- Context Matters
Historical Geography for the Win!
Dr. Jack Beck is biblical geographer, professor, and prolific author. He is also and avid outdoorsman and the first person I have known to build and fly his…
- Context Matters
Music and Emotional Intelligence
Dr. Mia Chung joins us for Part 2 of the conversation about the power of classical music to help with human flourishing. Today we explore the decline of…
- Context Matters
Feeling the Music
Dr. Mia Chung joins us to talk about how classical music is a foundational aspect of human flourishing. Dr. Chung is an internationally renowned pianist…
- Context Matters
Art and Spiritual Growth
Scott Erickson is an artist who uses many mediums to communicate with this audience. Today we talk about his collaborative book project with Justin McRoberts…
- Context Matters
The Power of Art
Scott Erickson joins us to talk about the power of art in our spiritual lives. Scott talks about growing up in a religious family with significant exposure to…
- Context Matters
Healing from Spiritual Abuse, Part 2
Today is part 2 of the conversation with Rachel Clinton Chen about healing from spiritual abuse. Rachel discusses ways our cultural values have influenced…
- Context Matters
Healing from Spiritual Abuse, Part 1
Today we are talking about the sticky subject of spiritual abuse in the church. To lead us on the journey is Rachael Clinton Chen. Rachael is devoted to…
- Context Matters
Presumption of Canaanite Guilt: Valid or Unjust?
In Part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Justin Reed about his new book The Injustice of Noah's Curse, we focus on the "presumption of Canaanite guilt" and what…
- Context Matters
What Curse of Noah?
Dr. Justin Reed teaches at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary and is here to talk about his new book The Injustice of Noah's Curse. Dr. Reed starts…
- Context Matters
The Preacher of Hebrews Teaches Us Today
Dr. Dana Harris joins us for part 2 of our conversation about preaching and the book of Hebrews. We explore the book's theology and its profound connection to…
- Context Matters
Preaching with the Epistle of Hebrews
Dr. Dana Harris joins us to talk about the profound experiences that shaped her outlook on teaching and faith. We discuss God's presence in nature and the…
- Context Matters
Show Me Your Glory, Part 2
This is part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Rebecca Idestrom about her book Show Me Your Glory. Today Dr. Idestrom discusses God's glory in the Temple. This…
- Context Matters
Show Me Your Glory, Part 1
We sit with Dr. Rebecca Idestrom to discuss the themes of her latest book, Show Me Your Glory, which explores the concept of God's glory throughout the Old…
- Context Matters
The Mary to Remember
We start today's episode talking about all the different Marys in the gospels and how that influences the way people interpret Mary Magdalene. Dr. McNutt also…
- Context Matters
Her Faithful Witness: Unveiling Mary's True Story
Rev. Dr. Jennifer Powell McNutt talks about her new book called The Mary We Forgot: What the apostle to the apostles teaches the church today. To be honest…
- Context Matters
Deuteronomy and Advent
Today's episode flips the tables and places me in the hot seat. Wesley Arning and Ryan Presley interviewed me about the book of Deuteronomy for their podcast…
- Context Matters
The Dead Sea Scrolls and Textual Criticism
When scholars examine the writing, copying, and editing of biblical text, they can discern a complexity in the Hebrew Bible. There is scribal activity at the…
- Context Matters
Why Do We Need Textual Criticism?
Textual criticism is about. offering a critique about what the best reading of the biblical text is, because before you can translate it, you need to know that…
- Context Matters
Part 2: No Such Thing as 400 Years of Silence
In today's episode with the Rev. Dr. George Athas, we pick up the historic overview of what is incorrectly called the 400 years of silence. We dive into the…
- Context Matters
Are There 400 Years of Silence?
We casually talk about 400 years of silence between the Old and New Testaments, but why do we say that? Who was the first to coin that phrase? What if that is…