Hey friends, we got a special Theology in the Raw Conference attendee podcast for you. Preston shares some info about the conference happening next week. If you are attending in person you are going to want to listen to this podcast! At the conference: Pre-Order Newman Family BBQ Follow Newman Family BBQ on Instagram Following the conference Conversations in the Raw Dig deeper into these important conversations with friends and thought leaders from the Exile in Babylon conference. Sign up for on...
Mar 25, 2022•19 min•Ep. 1300
Every Christian believes that orphans should be cared for. But how? Do they belong in orphanages or in families? Are orphanages a necessary way to care for orphans in a broken world? Or are they perpetuating a cycle of harm toward vulnerable and traumatized children? Alycia used to run an orphanage with her husband, but came to believe that they were not actually helping kids, so they developed a different approach to orphan care, one that helps vulnerable kids be placed in healthy families. Aly...
Mar 24, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 9Ep. 957
Carl is a brother from another mother and I want him to adopt me as his kid. I love the way he thinks through tough issues and refuses to be stuffed into some ideological box. In this conversation, we talk about all the hard stuff in the race conversation: critical theory, systemic racism, pros and cons in multiethnic churches, the “Cold Civil War” between achievers and non-achievers in the African American community, the 400 years of collective trauma that black people experience, white privile...
Mar 21, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 9Ep. 956
Alex is Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations at Loughborough University (U.K.) and is the author of Christian Anarchism: A Political Commentary on the Gospel which is the topic of our conversation. Alex is officially French, Greek, and now also British. He grew up in Brussels and has lived in England almost continuously since 1997. He therefore feels like a European foreigner everywhere. He completed his academic studies at the University of Kent, covering disciplines such as ...
Mar 17, 2022•1 hr 18 min•Season 9Ep. 955
Joshua K. Smith is a theologian and pastor researching the ethics of AI and robotics. He is the co-chair of the Kirby Laing Centre's Technology Hub. He is the author of Robot Theology: Old Questions through New Media. Is it okay to punch a robot in the face? Questions like this launch us into a scintillating conversation about a moral theology of robots, including the growing phenomenon of sex robots. Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon At the Theology in the Raw conference, we wi...
Mar 14, 2022•1 hr•Season 9Ep. 954
Dr. Brandon Smith is associate professor of theology at Cedarville University. Previously, he spent the previous four years helping lead the Christian Standard Bible translation and as an elder at a church in the Nashville area. He also helped found the Center for Baptist Renewal and hosts the Church Grammar podcast. His research interests include the Trinity, canonical and theological interpretation, biblical theology, and early church theology (especially AD 100-400). Brandon has a Ph.D. in Th...
Mar 10, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 9Ep. 953
Rasool Berry serves as teaching pastor at The Bridge Church in Brooklyn, New York. He also is the Director of Partnerships & Content Development with Our Daily Bread Ministries. He hosts the Where Ya From? podcast which tells the stories of influencers at the intersection of faith and culture. He lives in Brooklyn, NY. In this episode, Rassol and I talk about a biblical theology of ethnic reconciliation and bring his to bear on the current conversation about race and racism in the church and...
Mar 07, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 9Ep. 952
Going O.G. Theology in the Raw for this one with a Q & A podcast. My patreon supporters sent in a ton of great questions, some of which I address in this podcast (others which I address in a separate Patreon Podcast. Their questions include: how to respond to a spouse that no longer believes, my thoughts on speaking in tongues, is it okay to serve as a chaplain in the military, Christian memes on Instagram, the purpose of church (evangelism or discipleship), violence in the O.T., Christians ...
Mar 03, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Season 9Ep. 951
In this episode, I talk to Karen about all things related to immigration. What does the Bible say? How theologically/ethically important is it? How should the biblical story on immigration shape our current Christian imagination when it comes to current political issues about immigration? How should Christians respond to undocumented immigrants? Karen Gonzalez is a speaker, writer, storyteller, and immigrant advocate, who herself immigrated from Guatemala as a child. Karen is a former public sch...
Feb 28, 2022•1 hr 19 min•Season 9Ep. 950
Tom Wright is Research Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Early Christianity at St Mary’s College in the University of St Andrews and Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Prior to serving at Oxford, Tom has held a variety of both academic and chaplaincy posts at Oxford, Cambridge, and McGill University, Montreal. He was Canon of Westminster in 2000, before serving as Bishop of Durham between 2003-2010. He’s the author of over 10 million books, or something like that. In the epis...
Feb 24, 2022•57 min•Season 9Ep. 949
Complementarians believe that the Bible affirms the full equality of women and men, but that God only allows men to be elders and teachers in local churches. Dr. Tom Schreiner is one of the most well known and widely published (and respected) scholars who holds to this view. In this episode, Tom sums up his position and then responds to several counterarguments I throw at him. Tom is James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation and Professor of Biblical Theology (1997) and A...
Feb 21, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 9Ep. 948
Dr. Vincent Bacote is an Associate Professor of Theology and the Director of the Center for Applied Christian Ethics at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL. He is the author of the The Political Disciple: A Theology of Public Life (2015), The Spirit in Public Theology: Appropriating the Legacy of Abraham Kuyper (2005), and has contributed to books including On Kuyper (2013), Aliens in the Promised Land (2013), Keep Your Head Up (2012) and Prophetic Evangelicals (2012). He is a regular columnist for C...
Feb 17, 2022•54 min•Season 9Ep. 947
Dr. Gregory Coles is senior research fellow at The Center for Faith, Sexuality & Gender , and is the author of Single, Gay, Christian: A Personal Journey of Faith and Sexual Identity (IVP, 2017) and No Longer Strangers: Finding Belonging in a World of Alienation (IVP, 2021). He holds a PhD in English from Penn State and works as a writer, speaker, and worship leader. His fiction and expository writing have been published by Penguin Random House and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; his academic res...
Feb 14, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Season 9Ep. 946
In this podcast, Mark gives a different perspective about the “discovery” of America and some of the profound problems when Christians go to be with the Empire. Mark Charles is a speaker, writer, and consultant. The son of an American woman (of Dutch heritage) and a Navajo man, Mark teaches the complexities of American history regarding race, culture, and Christendom in order to help forge a path of healing and conciliation for the nation. He is the co-author of the book, Unsettling Truths: The ...
Feb 10, 2022•1 hr 17 min•Season 9Ep. 945
Mark is a Born and bred Texan. He came to Jesus at age 22 and will celebrate his 50th anniversary of being “in Christ” on February 17, 2022. He’s been married to Vicki for 47 years, 2 children, 6 grandchildren, and he practiced oil and gas law for 45 years and retired in December of 2020. Mark’s daughter came out as a lesbian over a decade ago and they’ve maintained a wonderful, loving relationship through it all. Mark has gleaned a wealth of experiential knowledge about how to love, even in the...
Feb 07, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Season 9Ep. 944
Myles Werntz (PhD, Baylor University) is associate professor of theology and director of Baptist studies at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas. He is the author or editor of several books, including Bodies of Peace and A Field Guide to Christian Nonviolence . David C. Cramer (PhD, Baylor University) is managing editor at the Institute of Mennonite Studies, sessional lecturer at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and teaching pastor at Keller Park Church in South Bend, Indiana. D...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 9Ep. 943
I received a ton of questions from my Patreon supporters, many of which I answered through Patreon, but some of which I address out loud in this podcast. Questions addressed on this episode: How do you know if you’re called to marriage? What does the Bible say about masculinity and femininity? How will I handle my growing platform? Is it wrong to smoke weed? Drink alcohol? Should Christians have a problem with a public school teacher displaying a pride flag? Why do so many smart Spirit-filled Ch...
Jan 31, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Season 9Ep. 942
Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov has been hailed as one of the greatest novels of all time. I just got done reading the book and have been mulling over its multilayered meaning ever since. So I invited my friend Tom Velasco to come on the show to talk about. Tom has read the book at least 10 times (which, at 776 pages is not an easy feat) and has been teaching the book to highschool students at The Ambrose School where he’s been teaching for the last 22 years. In this lengthy podcast, ...
Jan 27, 2022•2 hr 21 min•Season 9Ep. 941
Hannah Barefoot is a theatrically trained actress, singer, and dancer originally from Cody, Wyoming. Her first leading role role in the cult favorite, 'The Falls: Testament of Love,' earned her a reputation as a raw and vulnerable dramatic actress early on, while her work in improv developed her comedic chops. She has since starred in many movies and TV shows including King Richard, CSI, Chicago Med, Creepshow, LA’s Finest, Criminal Minds, Good Girls Revolt, and many others. As a singer, Hannah ...
Jan 24, 2022•58 min•Season 9Ep. 940
Kristin Kobes Du Mez is a New York Times bestselling author and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Calvin University. She holds a PhD from the University of Notre Dame and her research focuses on the intersection of gender, religion, and politics. She has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Religion News Service , and Christianity Today , and has been interviewed on NPR, CBS, and the BBC, among other outlets. Her most recent book, Jesus and John Wayne: How Whit...
Jan 20, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Season 9Ep. 939
David is from Sydney, Australia where he studied journalism and then international relations. He moved to Oxford to pursue his studies in theology and train as an apologist from a skeptical, atheist background as an anti-Christian gay activist. David now holds undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in theology from Oxford, a master’s degree in theology from the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and is now completing his doctorate (DPhil) in theology at Oxford. He specialises in the relationshi...
Jan 17, 2022•59 min•Season 9Ep. 938
Sheila has written seven books including award-winning book The Good Girl’s Guide to Great Sex and the forthcoming The Great Sex Rescue , which she coauthored with her daughter, Rebecca Lindenbach. Both Sheila and Rebecca speak and write about a Christian view of sex, often correcting problems created by a purity culture approach to sex. The Great Sex Rescue https://amzn.to/3zvrYda Sheila’s blog: https://tolovehonorandvacuum.com Bare Marriage podcast (wherever you listen to podcasts) https://twi...
Jan 13, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Season 9Ep. 937
Aimee Byrd is a speaker, author, blogger, wife, and mom. She’s the author of several books including Why Can’t We Be Friends , No Little Women , her most recent book Recovering from Biblical Manhood and Womanhood , and the forthcoming The Sexual Reformation . Learn more about Aimee on her website: https://aimeebyrd.com Theology in the Raw Conference - Exiles in Babylon At the Theology in the Raw conference, we will be challenged to think like exiles about race, sexuality, gender, critical race t...
Jan 10, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 9Ep. 936
Len is a true Renaissance man. Author of more than seventy books and 1500+ published sermons, Leonard Sweet’s recent publications include groundbreaking textbooks on preaching (Giving Blood), evangelism (Nudge), ecclesiology (So Beautiful) and discipleship (I Am A Follower). The second volume in his Christmas trilogy with Lisa Samson is just out ( St.As ). Len and co-author Lisa Samson are working on volume four (for Dementia and Alzheimers patients) of their “Songs of Light” series. Len often a...
Jan 06, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 9Ep. 935
Peter McGowan is one of the founders of PlainJoe and Storyland Studios. He is a champion of bringing clients’ unique stories to life by broadening their visual vocabulary beyond words and helping shape the cultural influence of their organizations. Having worked with large-scale corporate clients such as Infinity, Nissan, IBM and Johnson & Johnson, as well as creative pioneers including Disney, Universal and Lego – Peter has a robust background in technology, art, and architecture which has ...
Jan 03, 2022•57 min•Season 9Ep. 934
Happy new year! In this episode, I talk about the analytics of the podcast, which has grown like crazy over the years, my heart behind the podcast, its history and future, how I handle criticism, some of the most popular episodes, and I walk through the TITR mission, which is: “To help believers think Christianly about theological and cultural issues by engaging in curious conversations with a diverse range of thoughtful people.” Oh, and I read through several 1 star reviews. Theology in the Raw...
Jan 01, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 9Ep. 933
Jeremy is the founding pastor of Commons Church in Calgary, BC--a rather unique church that prioritizes intellectual honesty and the centrality of Jesus above tight-knit doctrinal statements. I found Jeremy on Twitter and was fascinated by his ecclesiology, so I invited him to come talk about it on the show. We ended up talking quite a bit about belonging, sexual ethics, polyamory, LGBTQ inclusion, and how the philosophy/theology of Rene Girard informs and shapes much of the ecclesiological visi...
Dec 30, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 9Ep. 932
Dr. Russell Moore is Public Theologian at Christianity Today and Director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project. Dr. Moore is the author of several books, including The Courage to Stand: Facing Your Fear Without Losing Your Soul , Onward: Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel and The Storm-Tossed Family: How the Cross Reshapes the Home . A native Mississippian, he and his wife Maria are the parents of five sons. Russ has been very public about addressing the crisis of sexual a...
Dec 28, 2021•57 min•Season 9Ep. 931
In this fourth and final episode in our “scandal of Christmas” series, New Testament scholar Dr. Joey Dodosn walks us through parallel birth narratives in the Greco-Roman and Jewish environment of the New Testament. Reading the biblical birth narratives in these contexts helps us read the story in HD, or through a 3D lens, so that we can better understand the author’s intention in how he’s telling the story. Dr. Joseph (Joey) Dodson is associate professor of New Testament. He studied at the Univ...
Dec 28, 2021•47 min•Season 9Ep. 930
In this third part of our four part series, New Testament scholar Dr. Lynn Cohick walks us through the significance of women in the birth narratives. We talk a lot about Mary, Elizabeth, Jesus’s genealogy (which contains 5 women), how the appearance of women in the genealogy has been misunderstood, and we also discuss the woman at the well in John 4 and how she was not a sexually promiscuous woman. Lynn currently serves as as Provost and Dean of Academic Affairs of Northern Seminary in Lisle, Il...
Dec 20, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 9Ep. 929
