Explore every episode of the podcast Currents in Religion

Welcome to Season 12!

In this episode, Claire is speaking with Philip Jenkins about hisnew book through Baylor University Press, American Empire, American Faith: Conquest, Christianity, and the Shaping of a Nation.

The subject of empire and empires is now one of the mostactive fields of historical writing, and that is especially true in the context of religion. Throughout history, religions and religious ideas have contributed powerfully to making successive empires, and in turn, the history of thoseempires is crucial for understanding the development of religious systems worldwide.

In recent years, historians have become increasingly awareof the imperial character of American history, from colonial days through the modern era. Although Americans have often been reluctant to admit the fact of their empire, it has always been a reality, from initial contacts with Native peoples through later expansion into new territories in the Pacific and the Caribbean, and subsequently into the Cold War era. Throughout this imperial history, religion has played an essential role. Religious beliefs originally justified the colonial enterprises into the New World, while later generationsclaimed to trace the divine will in a Manifest Destiny to conquer the whole continent. In turn, missionary dreams provided the justification for overseas expansion and often supplied the practical means for undertaking such ventures.Repeatedly too, imperial confrontations have affected the homeland, and have done much to form American both racial and religious stereotypes and nightmares.

But the relationship between religion and empire in theAmerican context is anything but a story of cynical alliances between church and state, between faith and political power. To the contrary, religious beliefs have often provided the conquered with an essential basis for resistance and have mobilized anti-imperial movements. Without understandingempire, we are missing a vital part of the history of American religion. Empire, in fact, is the missing dimension in that story. Acknowledging that fact is all the more urgent in a United States increasingly populated by the descendants of nations and societies that were themselves the subjects of thatsprawling American empire.

Philip Jenkins was educated at Cambridge University, wherehe received his Ph.D. in History. From 1980 through 2011, he taught at Penn State University, where he holds the rank of Emeritus Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Humanities. In 2012, he became a Distinguished Professor of History at Baylor University.

He has published 35 sole-authored books, which have beentranslated into sixteen languages. These include The Next Christendom: The Coming Of Global Christianity (2002) and The Lost History of Christianity (2008). His most recent works include A Storm of Images: Iconoclasm and Religious Reformation in the Byzantine World and He Will Save You from the Deadly Pestilence: The Many Lives of Psalm 91 (both2023); and also Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith: How Changes in Climate Drive Religious Upheaval (2021).

A historian by training, Jenkins has been active in manydifferent disciplines including sociology, criminology, and religious studies. Indeed, the Economist magazine has called him “one of America’s best scholars of religion.” He has published extensively on global and world Christianity, and on new and emerging religious movements. In teaching and research, he has a special interest in recent US history, from 1975 onwards.

In today’s episode, Claire meets with Angel D. Santiago-Vendrell to talk about his book Justo L. Gonzalez: Missionary of Hispanic Theology in the United States.

Two of celebrated Hispanic theologian Justo L. González’s major works,  The Story of Christianity and  A History of Christian Thought, continue to be used as primary textbooks in undergraduate and seminary programs throughout the United States. But few of his literary students and admirers know the details of his biography, in particular the significance of his contribution to the emergence of Hispanic theology in the United States during the past five decades.

In this biography, Angel Santiago-Vendrell gives fresh attention to González’s role in a rapidly changing theological landscape. Born in Cuba in 1937 and profoundly shaped by the "revolutionary decade" of the 1950s, González studied theology at Yale, Basel, and Strasbourg, where he encountered George Lindbeck, Karl Barth, and Yves Congar. He became good friends with Martin Luther King, Jr., during the 1960s while teaching at the Evangelical Seminary in Puerto Rico. He later went on to serve at Candler School of Theology and then to take various denominational positions in the United Methodist Church. His work for the Fund for Theological Education led to the creation of the Hispanic Theological Initiative in 1998. Although González is best known as a prolific author, Santiago-Vendrell argues that his most enduring contribution to Western Christianity is as a pioneer in Hispanic theology.

González’s story reveals new strategies for the advancement of Hispanic people, the largest ethnic/racial minority in the United States but with the lowest proportion of educated leaders, pastors, and professors. His example of perseverance in Christian vocation calls Hispanic believers to remember and reignite their witness. Santiago-Vendrell presents González’s life and work as embodying a missional passion rooted in the gospel of incarnation, of God’s work in history. This incarnational theology is the center of an unwavering commitment in González’s life to equip and unite Christians in their proclamation of the faith. This painstaking engagement with and for the church—Hispanic and otherwise—continues to bear much fruit.

Dr. Angel D. Santiago-Vendrell is a professor ofworld Christianity and witness. He was born and raised in Puerto Rico and came to faith in Christ at the age of nineteen after hearing a sermon by Rev. Ludy González, a Puerto Rican female Pentecostal pastor. He served as a youth pastorand assistant pastor in Puerto Rico, and as senior pastor of Iglesia Metodista Unida San Andres in Jamaica Plains, MA, for three years.  Before coming to Truett, from 2008 to 2010, he was an assistant professor of mission studies at Memphis Theological Seminary, and from 2010 to 2023, he served as the E. Stanley Jones associate professor of evangelism at Asbury Theological Seminary, Orlando Campus. Dr. Santiago-Vendrell is passionate about missionary historiography, especially biographical studies, and how those stories could shape current Christian practices that aretransforming and liberating. He also enjoys surfing, playing basketball, and building Star Wars Lego. He lives in the Waco area with his wife, Misoon Im, and their two sons.  

In today’s episode, I am speaking to Alicia Myers about herarticle titled “Jesus’ Apotropaic Theophany: Guarding and Sanctifying Believers in John’s Gospel.” It speaks about how Jesus makes God’s presence available in his physical form. While Jesus’ physical protection is apotropaic, there is asuperior protection that comes after Jesus’ death and resurrection through the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit does the same work as that of Jesus and that of the Father through their divine unity. The divine unity is also in itself apotropaic because it protects believers from the evil one. They are protected and guarded for eternal life. Spirit-filled believers who love one another are God’s continued apotropaic presence in the world. Myers says that believers are “assuredof their place in God’s household and their participation in the divine unity regradless of their physical distance from Jesus himself.”

Alicia Myers joined the Department of Religion in fall 2025after teaching at Campbell University (2014-2025) and United Theological Seminary (2011-2014). As a member of the Colloquium Ioanneum (John Colloquy), she is also a Research Fellow in the Department of Old and New Testaments atthe University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa. Her current projects include a book and a commentary on 1-3 John, a short volume on Hebrews, and a collection (co-edited with Catrin H. Williams) on the Johannine writings. She is married and has two sons as well as a large spotted dog whokeep her busy when she’s not writing or teaching. 

In today's episode, Claire meets with Chris Hoklotubbe and Danny Zacharias to discuss their book, Reading the Bible on Turtle Island, and North American Indigenous lenses for interpreting the Bible. In Reading the Bible on Turtle Island, Indigenous scholars Chris Hoklotubbe and Danny Zacharias explore what it means to read the Bible from the lens of Indigenous peoples in North America. Exploring the intersection of Scripture, Cultural Traditions, Hearts and Minds, and Creation, they affirm Creator's presence with Indigenous people since the beginning. By recovering these rich histories, this book offers a fresh reading of Scripture that celebrates the assets, blessings, and insights of Indigenous interpretation. Indigenous culture has often been dismissed or deemed problematic within Western Christian circles, and historical practices have often communicated that Indigenous worldviews have little to offer the church or its understanding of Scripture. Hoklotubbe and Zacharias challenge this perspective, reasserting the dignity of these cultures that were condemned through colonial practices and showing how Indigenous interpretations bring invaluable insights to all of God’s people.

Join the dance of North American Indigenousinterpretations of Christian Scripture

Danny Zacharias grew up in Winnipeg (Treaty 1 territory),with his maternal ancestors (Cree/Anishinaabe) inhabiting the areas of Treaty 1 and Treaty 5 territory for many generations. After completing his Bachelor of Arts at Providence College, he and his wife Maria moved to Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia) to complete his Master of Divinity and Master of Arts (Theology) at Acadia Divinity College. While working part-time at ADC, Danny completed his PhD in New Testament studies through Highland Theological College (University of Aberdeen). During his time serving at ADC, Danny also completed the processof ordination with the Canadian Baptists of Atlantic Canada and serves regularly in his local church. Danny also carries administrative responsibilities as Associate Dean and Director of the Hayward Lectures. In addition to his role at ADC, Danny is a faculty member of NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community. More than any of these achievements, Danny is most proud to call Maria his wife, Lex, Jack, and Hudson his sons, and Ella-Rose his daughter.

Christopher Hoklotubbe (ThD, Harvard) is a proud member ofthe Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. He is the director of graduate studies of NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community, the first accredited Indigenous designed, developed, delivered, and governed theological institute. He is also assistant professor of classics at Cornell College (Mount Vernon, Iowa). He is the author of Civilized Piety: The Rhetoric of Pietas in the Pastoral Epistles and the Roman Empire, which was awarded the Manfred Lautenschläger Award for Theological Promise. He and his wife, Stephanie, have two daughters and live near Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

In today’s episode, Claire is speaking with Dr. Ashley Moyseabout his book Resourcing Hope for Ageing and Dying in a Broken World Wayfaring Through Despair which came out in 2024.

 For those captive to the broken world of late modernity,wherein ageing and dying persons become vulnerable to despair, this book offers a diagnostic of such despair. It also resources the practices of a realistic, humanising hope that might enable a strength for person to journey with and forothers, together, through such despair. Thus, by addressing the aetiology of despair experienced by people confronting ageing, frailty and dying, and drawing upon the writings of Gabriel Marcel, among others, Ashley Moyse reveals the problematic life of a broken world with its functionalising metaphors, instrumentalising reasoning and objectifying desires that offer no hope at all. It is a broken world where despair generates behaviours that anticipate harm or other, often tragic, outcomes that impede or greatly curtail or even completely inhibit human flourishing. Resisting despair, but living through it, Moyse presents the activity of the moral life, demonstrating a way persons might be resourced through an intersubjective and reflective pedagogy, with its habits or practices that enable a humanising hope, liberating human beings to become those readied to confront the actualities of human living and dying, and encouraged to grow and develop as 'wayfarers', hopefully.

Dr. Ashley Moyse is a Canadian (born and raised in Estevan, Saskatchewan) whose scholarly work tends to be found at the intersections of theology, philosophy, and medicine/health care. At present, he is the Associate Professorof Bioethics in the Department of Religion at Baylor University. Dr. Moyse is concurrently a Research Fellow at Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford, a Research Associate at Vancouver School of Theology, and a Fellow withthe James M Houston Centre for Humanity & the Common Good at Regent College. Previously, he was the Assistant Professor of Medical Ethics and McDonald Scholar in the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics (directed by DrLydia Dugdale) at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons in NYC. At Columbia Dr. Moyse was the intellectual curator and director of the Columbia Character Cooperatives (medical students) and the co-director with Dr Beatriz Desanti de Oliveira of the Character and Clinical Ethics Pathway (internal medicine residents), which were both novel educational programming in ethics education and professional/ moral formation. He also had the privilege of serve as the McDonald Postdoctoral Fellow in Christian Ethics and Public Life with the McDonald Centre for Theology, Ethics and Public Life at the University of Oxford, where he was also a senior member of Christ Church College. Dr. Moyse was alsoappointed a humanities and healthcare fellow with a Wellcome Trust ISSF funded project, 'Advancing medical professionalism: integrating humanities teaching inthe University of Oxford's medical school'. In addition to these recent roles, his academic background includes training in theology, bioethics and health policy, and applied physiology.

In today's episode, Claire is joined by Dr. Briana Wong Smoak to discuss the “civilizing mission” associated with French Catholic missionary activity in West Africa through the often-obscured experiences of Indigenous midwives who worked within, alongside, and sometimes beyond the mission of Francis Aupiais.

Briana Wong Smoak started at Baylor as a Lecturer in the World Religions area in August 2025, after having previously worked at Phillips Theological Seminary and Wake Forest University School of Divinity. She takes great delight in her role as a teacher, seeking to help students grow as they continue to discern their callings. Briana is passionate about the biblical mandate for justice and encourages her students to live into God’s heart for those on the margins. Briana’s academic work centers on Christianity in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and how Christians in the West might be able to learn more about following Jesus by listening to the voices of those from other parts of the world.

Today, we are bringing you a rerun from our very first season. Dr. Chaves' research is a strong reminder of the migration experience and how it shapes religious life.

In this episode, Dr. João Chaves discusses what he learned from years of research on Brazuca Baptist churches, that is, Brazilian American Baptist churches. These congregations reveal the way the experience of migration shapes theology and religious life and raise questions for what the landscape of religious life in America might look going forward. This research is the topic of João's 2021 book with Baylor University Press, ⁠Migrational Religion: Context and Creativity in the Latinx Diaspora⁠

⁠João Chaves⁠ is Assistant Professor of Evangelism and Mission at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He earned his PhD from Baylor University's Department of Religion in 2017. Follow João on Twitter, @JoaoB_Chaves.

Enjoy this rerun from the Fall 2023 season! What an excellent episode.-------------------------

Welcome to our Fall 2023 season!

In this episode, Zen speaks with Amy Carr and Christine Helmer about their brand new Baylor University Press book ⁠Ordinary Faith in Polarized Times: Justification and the Pursuit of Justice.⁠

Amy Carr is Professor of Religious Studies at Western Illinois University.

Christine Helmer is Peter B. Ritzma Professor of Humanities at Northwestern University.

Here's some of the book's blurb:

Christians in the United States and around the world are politically polarized today, unable to speak to one another across deep divisions regarding urgent social issues. Ordinary Faith in Polarized Times: Justification and the Pursuit of Justice addresses this dire reality by offering a theological framework for Christian justice-seeking. Amy Carr and Christine Helmer draw on Paul’s theology to center the idea of justification by faith in Christ as the primary ground of Christian belonging and community.

This approach yields a theology of ordinary faith that resists the temptation to equate Christian identity with the performance of a heroic "here I stand" posture against moral and political positions felt to be inimical to a properly Christian life...

Carr and Helmer articulate ways that justification by faith grounds Christian practices of affective listening and storytelling, even on the most contentious ethical questions today, with the hope that mutual conversation in and through the Beloved Community can get Christians who disagree oriented towards each other again for the good of the world.

Today's guest host is Joao Chavez and he speaks with BSIR scholars Paul Fiddes and Raimundo Baarreto on everyday christianity with global voices.

João B. Chaves joined the Department of Religion at Baylor University in the fall semester of 2023. His research focuses on the history of religion in the Américas, the influence of U.S. Protestantism in Latin America, and the development of Latin American/Latinx religious networks in the United States. Dr. Chaves is an award-winning author whose books include The Global Mission of the Jim Crow South: Southern Baptist Missionaries and the Shaping of Latin American Evangelicalism (Mercer University Press, 2022), and Remembering Antônia Teixeira: A Story of Missions, Violence, and Institutional Hypocrisy (Eerdmans, 2023), co-authored with Dr. Mikeal Parsons. Dr. Chaves also co-edited a book with Dr. T. Laine Scales, titled Baptists and the Kingdom of God: Global Perspectives (Baylor University Press, 2023).

Paul S. Fiddes took first class degrees in English Language and Literature (1968) and in Theology (1970) at the University of Oxford (St. Peter’s College), followed by a D.Phil from Oxford (1975), and was awarded the D.D. of the University of Oxford for published work in 2004. At Regent’s Park College, Oxford, he was successively Research Fellow in Old Testament and Hebrew (1972–75), Fellow in Christian Doctrine (1975–89), Principal (1989–2007), Professorial Research Fellow and Director of Research (2007–2018) and Senior Research Fellow (2018 to the present). He was also Lecturer in Theology at St. Peter’s College, Oxford (1979-85). He was Chairman of the Board of Faculty of Theology of the University of Oxford from 1996–98, and received the title of Professor of Systematic Theology from the University of Oxford in 2002. He is Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Bucharest, and Honorary Fellow of St. Peter’s College, Oxford. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2020. He was ordained as a minister in the Baptist Union of Great Britain in 1972, and has extensive ecumenical concerns, including being a Canon Emeritus of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford and Prebendary of St Endellion in North Cornwall.  Raimundo C. Barreto is an associate professor of World Christianity at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he has been teaching since 2014. He holds a bachelor’s degree in theology from Seminário Teológico Batista do Norte do Brasil, an MDiv degree from McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University, and a PhD in religion and society from Princeton Theological Seminary. Before coming to Princeton, he taught at various institutions in Brazil and was the director of the Division on Freedom and Justice at the Baptist World Alliance. Barreto is the author of Protesting Poverty: Protestants, Social Ethics, and the Poor in Brazil (Baylor University Press, 2023) and Base Ecumenism: A Latin American Contribution to Ecumenical Praxis and Theology (Augsburg Fortress, 2025). He is working on a new book titled Christians in the City of São Paulo: The Shaping of World Christianity in a Brazilian Megacity (Bloomsbury). He is also the co-editor of the Journal of World Christianity, the general editor of the World Christianity and Public Religion Series published by Fortress Press (2017–24), and a convener of the World Christianity Conference since 2018. In addition to his publications, which include numerous journal articles and book chapters, he has served on boards and committees of various organizations, including the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CoNGO), Hispanic Theological Initiative (HTI), Overseas Ministries Study Center (OMSC), Baptist World Alliance (BWA), Aliança de Batistas do Brasil, American Baptist Churches (ABCUSA), the Alliance of Baptists, the National Council of Churches USA, and the World Council of Churches (WCC).

In today’s episode, Claire is joined by Bruce Chilton to discuss his book Aramaic Jesus with Baylor University Press. Bruce Chilton’s Aramaic Jesus is a groundbreaking study in pursuit of this "Aramaic Jesus," a pursuit that requires awareness of the kind of Aramaic in play. In the past, sorting out dialects and types of Aramaic relied on sources composed well after the time of the New Testament; this work factors in analysis of the Dead Sea Scrolls and related materials to access forms of Aramaic current during the first century CE. Since the depiction of Jesus in the Gospels involves various intersections with Aramaic, tracing the impact of Aramaic in the depiction of Jesus within the New Testament entails several investigative categories: specific cases in which Aramaic is identifiably transliterated within the Greek Gospels; analysis that accounts for the cultural settings of Aramaic through the technique of retroversion (involving translation back into Aramaic); and assessment of noticeable overlaps between the New Testament and contemporaneous Aramaic literature, where thematic emphases emerge that relate Jesus’ movement to Second Temple Judaism.

The writings we call the Gospels involved transitions from the au/orality of Jesus and his movement to reliance upon writing, and from their language(s) to written Koine Greek. Those shifts involved an increasing resort to narrative and literary conventions. The extent to which Aramaic is a factor within this process is uncharted, and this volume clarifies the issues that are in play. Chilton’s analysis illuminates the Aramaic Jesus and the people and processes that conveyed his memory.

Bruce Chilton is Bell Professor of Religion at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson and priest at the Free Church of St. John the Evangelist in Barrytown, New York. He is the author of many scholarly articles and books.

In today’s episode, I am joined by Eric H. Cline, an archaeologist and ancient historian at George Washington University. He speaks about the time of innovation and change that comes as the Bronze Age collapses and the Iron Age emerges in his book After 1177BC: The Survival of Civilizations.

At the end of the acclaimed history 1177 B.C., many of the Late Bronze Age civilizations of the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean lay in ruins, undone by invasion, revolt, natural disasters, famine, and the demise of international trade. An interconnected world that had boasted major empires and societies, relative peace, robust commerce, and monumental architecture was lost and the so-called First Dark Age had begun.Now, in After 1177 B.C., Eric Cline tells the compelling story ofwhat happened next, over four centuries, across the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean world. It is a story of resilience, transformation, and success, as well as failures, in an age of chaos and reconfiguration. After 1177 B.C. tells how the collapse of powerful Late Bronze Age civilizations created new circumstances to which people and societies had to adapt. Those that failed to adjust disappeared from the world stage, while others transformed themselves, resulting in a new world order that included Phoenicians, Philistines, Israelites, Neo-Hittites, Neo-Assyrians, and Neo-Babylonians. Taking the story up to the resurgence of Greece marked by the first Olympic Games in 776 B.C., the book also describes how world-changing innovations such as the use of iron and the alphabet emerged amid the chaos.

Dr. Eric H. Cline is Professor of Classical and Ancient NearEastern Studies and Anthropology, the former Chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, and the current Director of the GWUCapitol Archaeological Institute. He is a National Geographic Explorer, a two-time Fulbright scholar, an NEH Public Scholar, a Getty Scholar, and an award-winning teacher andauthor. In May 2015, he was awarded an honorary doctoral degree (honoris causa) from Muhlenberg College.

An archaeologist and ancient historian by training, Dr.Cline’s primary fields of study are biblical archaeology, the military history of the Mediterranean world from antiquity to present, and the international connections between Greece, Egypt, and the Near East during the Late Bronze Age (1700-1100 BCE). He is an experienced and active field archaeologist, with more than 30 seasons of excavation and survey to his credit since 1980 in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, Greece, Crete, and the United States. He is perhaps best known for his work on collapse and resilience in the ancient world, specifically at the end of the second millennium BCE and the early first millennium BCE in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, epitomized by the best-selling 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton 2014; revised edition 2021).

In today’s episode, Claire is joined by Ruben Buhner to talkabout his book Negotiating Jewishness: Paul's Ethnicity Between Continuity and Discontinuity.

The assertion that Paul remained a Jew throughout his liferequires little further justification. However, questions remain, including: How can his relationship with Judaism be positively articulated? How was that relationship influenced by Paul’s belief in Jesus as the Messiah? A particular difficulty arises here: reconciling the sometimes contradictory statements in Paul’s epistles concerning his connection to the Jewish people and their beliefs and behavior. A lively discussion surrounding the Jewishness of Paul in the last fifteen years has yielded the "radical new perspectiveon Paul," or "Paul Within Judaism" perspective. Dismissing older conceptions that contrast the Christ-believing Paul with a monolithic and negatively characterized ancient Judaism, new approaches focus on the extent to which we should depict Paul as "within Judaism" or still torah observant.

With Negotiating Jewishness, Ruben Bühner addresses these issues and offers a different, more balanced approach byconsidering three key aspects: ancient ethnicity, neglected sources, and scholarly debates. Drawing from studies in cultural science and ethnology, Bühner shows that ancient Jewish identity can be characterized as "mesomorphic" as it integrated diverse—even divergent—parameters in ethnic construction. With a focus on passages from the Pauline Epistles crucial for understanding Paul’s Jewishness, alongside a thorough excavation of the realities of Jewish life in the Greco-Roman diaspora, the book aims to bridge the gap between English-speaking and continental European scholarship, with a particular emphasis on underrepresented German perspectives.

Paul navigated his Jewish identity within the myriad cultural landscapes of the first-century Mediterranean world and in constant dialogue with his missional calling and interactions with other Jews. Traces of this process emerge from his writings amidst their diverse historical, social, and rhetorical contexts. Negotiating Jewishness probes these scattered glimpses into Paul’s self-understanding to demonstrate that Paul’s relationship to Judaism can be best understood as a reflection of ancient Jewish ethnic negotiation. Bühner contributes to the scholarly conversation with a new definition of what it means to read Paul (or any New Testament text) "within Judaism."

Dr. Ruben Bühner is a postdoctoral researcher for New Testament Studies at the University of Zurich and the University of Bonn.

In today’s episode, I am speaking with James "Jim" Nogalski and Mark Biddle about their book Murder in the Tidwell Building. This is a rare treat for us as one of our very own Baylor Religion professors has written a crime novel set in the Religion Department’s building.

A skeleton is found in 2020 in Waco, Texas, on the campus ofBaylor University during the renovation of the Tidwell Bible Building, which houses Baylor's Department of Religion. During demolition, workers uncover the skeleton of a man who had been murdered fifteen years earlier. Suspicionquickly falls on three members of the Department of Religion, including two who are now high-level administrators of the university. All three have something to hide. Two detectives meticulously and creatively pursue the killer, despite encountering bureaucratic resistance from the higher echelons of administrators in the Waco Police Department and Baylor University.

Jim Nogalski joined the faculty of the Religion Departmentat Baylor in the fall of 2007 after teaching at institutions in South Carolina, Kentucky, Illinois, and North Carolina. Nogalski is best known for his ongoing work in prophetic literature of the Hebrew Bible, and especially in the Book of the Twelve (Hosea through Malachi). Nogalski grew up in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kentucky. After graduating Samford University he completed a Master of Divinity degree at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentuckybefore completing a Master of Theology in Old Testament at the Baptist Theological Seminary in Rüschlikon (a suburb of Zurich), and his doctoral degree at the University of Zurich. He publishes regularly on prophetic literature, especially the Book of the Twelve.

Dr. Biddle received his early education in the publicschools of Orlando, FL and Ft. Payne, AL. He holds a BAH from Samford University (Birmingham, AL), an MDiv from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY), a ThM from Rueschlikon Baptist Theological Seminary (Rueschlikon, Switzerland), and a DrTheol from the University of Zurich(Zurich, Switzerland). Dr. Biddle began his teaching career at Carson Newman College (now University), where he also directed the Honors Program. After almost a decade, he joined the faculty of the Baptist Theological Seminary atRichmond as Professor of Old Testament, soon to become the Russell T. Cherry Professor there and to continue until the unfortunate closing of the school.Along the way, Biddle has taught adjunctively for SBTS, the Polish Baptist Theological Seminary in Warsaw-Radosc, and, currently, Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond.

Dr. Biddle has published seven books, over forty articles, eleven translated volumes (from German to English), and scores of book reviews. He serves on the editorial board ofthe Review & Expositor, having served for two years as Associate Editor and seven as Managing Editor. He also serves on the editorial board of the Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary and is General Editor of the Reading the Old Testament series. He served for five years on the advisory board of Interpretation and as Issue Editor for R&E’s volumes on “Genesis,” “Song of Songs,” “Apocalyptic Literature,”“Transitions,”and “Esther” (forthcoming).  

According to some of the most influential thinkers of the modern era, it is madness to subordinate all one’s aims to one end. Such thinkers believe that the church in particular should limit itself to matters of religion, spirituality, and moral values, but in other areas of life submit itself to modern society. Madness, Theocracy, and Anarchism contends instead that the church should refuse to mind its assigned place or restrict its attention to a delimited sphere of activity.

The mission, calling, and purpose of the church cannot rightly be thought of or treated as a function of any other social grouping, be it family, region, state, culture, race, or class. Its mission is to cultivate a new and distinct society to act both amidst the old and as a contrast to it, displaying the form of social life intended for all humankind in Christ. The church is thus called to a different understanding of politics having to do with the practices that order the common life and relations of a people, forming the members of this community to live according to this order and to embody these relations for the whole world.

Barry Harvey examines those points where the church’s practice of politics directly challenges the many ways Christians have put national and tribal loyalties ahead of our inclusion in the pilgrim people of God, and those places where the social activities, structures, and imaginative tales animating the Western world in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries challenge the faithfulness of the Christian community. The analysis of the dominant social order is not to understand it for its own sake, but to spell out the context of the church’s worship, collective life, and testimony.

Dr. Barry Harvey has been a professor of theology with Baylor’s Department of Religion and the Honors College since 2007 and has been working at Baylor since 1988. He has an MDiv from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY and a PHD from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. He has written multiple books and articles including Taking Hold of the Real: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Profound Worldliness of Christianity. He is an ordained Baptist minister and a native of Denver, Colorado.

In this week's episode, Claire is joined by Elizabeth Backfish and Cynthia Shafer-Elliott to discuss their book Grounded Theology in the Hebrew Bible: Exploring the Cultural Context That Formed Ancient Israel. This book combines archaeology and theology to better understand the everyday life of ancient Israelites and how it shaped their relationship with God. Congratulations Dr. Shafer-Elliott, Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible in Baylor's Religion Department, on her new book.

In this conversation, Gillian Chu, an assistant professor at Hong Kong Baptist University, shares her journey from a career in accounting to academia, focusing on Hong Kong Christianity. She discusses her experiences at the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable, the global perspective of Hong Kong Christianity, and her research on migration and family dynamics. GIllian emphasizes the role of technology in community building and the importance of qualitative research in understanding faith identity. She also reflects on her future goals in scholarship and her engagement with students.

What if our well-intentioned efforts to promote mental health inadvertently perpetuate systems that cause mental unwellness? What if the resilience we encourage only equips individuals to endure rather than challenge structures detrimental to their well-being? Why do mental health experiences vary so drastically across cultures, with Western societies seemingly posing the greatest challenges for certain conditions? Against the backdrop of escalating ecological dramas that devastate our world and its climate, do we ever wonder what ecological suffering might imply for our mental health? With this poignant, impassioned book Seeking Sanctuary, Finding Shalom, John Swinton invites us to begin exploring avenues toward addressing these daunting and interrelated issues.

John Swinton is a consulting faculty member at Duke Divinity and professor in practical theology and pastoral care and chair in divinity and religious studies at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. For more than a decade he worked as a registered mental health nurse. He also worked for a number of years as a hospital and community mental health chaplain alongside of people with severe mental health challenges who were moving from the hospital into the community. In 2004, he founded the University of Aberdeen's Centre for Spirituality, Health, and Disability. He has published widely within the area of mental health, dementia, disability theology, spirituality and healthcare, end-of-life care, qualitative research, and pastoral care. Swinton is the author of a number of monographs including a previous book, Finding Jesus in the Storm: The Spiritual Lives of People With Mental Health Challenges (Eerdmans 2020), which won the Aldersgate book price for interdisciplinary theological research, and his book Dementia: Living in the Memories of God, which won the Archbishop of Canterbury's Ramsey Prize for excellence in theological writing. Swinton is a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and was recently elected as a fellow of the British Academy.

In today's episode, Philip Ziegler joins the podcast to talk about his new Baylor Press book God's Adversary and Ours. Ziegler leads us on a cautious but determined biblical-theological exploration of the identity, ontology, and agency of "that old serpent," the Enemy, whose image becomes most discernible and salient in direct contact with the person and work of the Savior. Fixing attention upon the figure of the devil in a soteriological context confronts us with what the devil does; what the devil might be trails behind. Treating diabolical temptation, demonic possession, and devilish falsehood in turn, Ziegler demonstrates what resistance to—and faithful disbelief of—these three aspects of the devil’s business might mean for the shape of a Christian life.Professor Philip G. Ziegler is a theologian specializing in systematic theology, historical theology, and ethics. He holds the personal chair of Professor of Christian Dogmatics at the University of Aberdeen's School of Divinity, History, Philosophy & Art History. Previously, he taught at the Atlantic School of Theology in Canada and held postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton University. Ordained in the United Church of Canada since 1996, he also serves as an associated elder at St Machar Cathedral and Trustee of the Church of Scotland's General Assembly. His research focuses on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Karl Barth, and apocalyptic theology, with recent work exploring Christology, ethical responsibility, and divine freedom.

In this conversation, Beverly and Jamie discuss their new books, exploring themes of Pauline theology, the concept of 'theology on the run', and the interplay between apocalyptic and pastoral elements in Paul's letters. They delve into the cosmic implications of sin, death, and God's glory, emphasizing the transformative power of the gospel and its relevance to contemporary issues.

Jamie Davies (PhD, St Andrews) is Tutor of New Testament and Director of Postgraduate Research at Trinity College, Bristol (UK). His research largely concerns apocalyptic thought in the New Testament and other Second Temple Jewish and Christian literature, with a focus on the letters of Paul and the book of Revelation.

Dr. Beverly Roberts Gaventa is Distinguished Professor of Religion in Baylor University’s College of Arts and Sciences. She is a graduate of Phillips University (BA), Union Theological Seminary (MDiv) and Duke University (PhD). Dr. Gaventa is one of the leading New Testament scholars in the world who engage in theological and historical interpretation of the Christian Scriptures, particularly the letters of Paul, and has lectured on university and seminary campuses around the world. The author or editor of 14 books, including Our Mother Saint Paul and When in Romans, she also has published more than 70 articles and essays and is currently writing a commentary on Paul’s Epistle to the Romans for the New Testament Library Series.

In this episode of Currents in Religion, a panel of graduate students from Baylor University shares their experiences and insights on applying to PhD programs and navigating graduate school. They discuss the importance of organization, seeking advice, handling rejections, and the emotional support needed throughout the process. The conversation also highlights the excitement of interviews, the challenges of the first year, and the impact of faculty relationships and classes on their academic journeys.

When applying to different PhD programs, prospectivestudents will hopefully make it to the interview process at multiple schools. While each school has its own procedure, Baylor’s Religion Graduate School hosts Preview Weekend. In today’s episode, Michelle Hunt and Madde Ely join me to talk about Preview Weekend, what to expect, and more.

Michelle Hunt is a doctoral candidate in the Religion Department, with a concentration in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible. She has a B.A. in Christian Ministry (University of Mary Hardin-Baylor), an M.A. in Biblical History and Geography (Jerusalem University College), and an M.A. in Theological Studies (Houston Christian University). Michelle’s research focuses on the compositional development of Joshua 18–19 and how later scribal initiatives may have been motivated by other literature in the Hebrew Bible, such as Numbers, Judges, and Chronicles. Before coming to Baylor, Michelle taught Bible and biblical language classes at a Christian high school in Houston.Madde Ely is a PhD student in Religion with a concentration in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible. She has a B.A. in Biblical Languages and a M.Div. from Truett Theological Seminary. Madde's research focuses on the intersection of food, politics, and justice throughout the Hebrew Bible.

Are you applying to PhD programs but not sure where to start? In today's episode, Susan Benton joins Claire to talk about choosing schools, the statement of purpose, and more to help you prepare for the PhD process.

Susan E. Benton joined the faculty in Religion in Fall 2023 as a Lecturer and member of the Ministry Guidance team. Susan’s recent research focuses on examining inscriptions featuring women in leadership roles in ancient Greco-Roman associations and pointing to how those roles can allow us to reimagine the activities of women in early Christ groups. Her first book, Women Patrons and Mothers in Associations and the New Testament (Mohr Siebeck), presents a profile of responsibilities and influence for envisioning the work of Phoebe as a deacon and a patron, and of Prisca as a leader of a local ekklesia. 

In this episode we are featuring more work from participantsof the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable which you will hear often as BSIR for short. We’ve had some episodes highlighting BSIR before and you can find links to some of those in the episode description. Joao Chavez will be ourguest host for this episode.

Dr. Chavez is a professor is an Assistant Professor of the History of Religions in the Americans at Baylor University. He specializes in the history of religion in the Americas, US Protestantism’s impact in Latin America, and Latin American/Latinx religious networks in the U.S. He has authored several books, including Migrational Religion and many others. He’s also a co-director of BSIR. He speaks with a researcher with BSIR, Grace Vargas.

Dr. Grace Vargas is currently an Assistant Professor of Latinx Religious Traditions at Texas Christian University. Inspired by Rubem Alves, Dr. Vargas sees the task of history as one of recovery and sacramental dissemination. Her work centers on the history of Christianity in Latin America, particularly the Protestant Church.

In this episode, Zen speaks with Katherine Ellis about gettinga PhD in Baylor's Religion Department. We talk about the various stages of the program, from course work to dissertation. We talk about funding and what it's like to be at an R1 institution in Waco. Katherine also confirms that I am the most fun person in the Department. This episode will be of interest to prospective students who would like to know more about our doctoral program. If you still have questions, you can email the new host at claire_mummert1@baylor.edu.

Katherine Ellis is an alumni from Baylor University's Religion Department. She has a Ph.D. in theology.

Are you applying to PhD programs in religion? Or thinking about it? This episode is for you.

In this episode, Zen shares about the process for applying to Baylor's graduate program in religion. He speaks with current students, Lanie Walkup and Tyler Fulcher, and Carlos Cardoza-Orlandi, a graduate faculty member. They discuss how to write a strong application and how to survive the process.

The episode also includes a promo for "The End of Civility" by Ryan Andrew Newson, a new book from Baylor University Press. Learn more here.

In today’s episode, Claire is joined by Baylor faculty member and GPD Deirdre Fulton. She is a zooarchaeologist that specializes in animal bones in the Southern Levant. Her excavations in Ashkelon, Tel Shimron and as part of the Jezreel Valley Regional Project help inform questions related to diet, sacrifice, and economy. Learn more about this branch of study and how “man’s best friend” shows up in ancient Near Eastern archaeology.

Deirdre Fulton joined the Department of Religion at BaylorUniversity in the fall semester 2013. Her area of research focuses on the Persian Period, specifically the books of Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Fulton is also interested in zooarchaeological related research, connecting text and artifact. She is involved in several ongoing excavations in Israel, including the Leon Levy Ashkelon Excavations, Tel Shimron Excavations, and also the Jezreel Valley Regional Project. Her interest in archaeology helps inform questions related to diet, sacrifice, and economy.

Deirdre is a member of the Steering committees on Literature and History of the Persian period for the Society of Biblical Literature and the Feasting and Foodways for the American Schools of Oriental Research. She is also a member of the Catholic Biblical Association and American Institute ofArchaeology. 

Have you ever wondered what happened between the time of the early church and figures like Paul and later Christianity as represented by Augustine? Second-Century Christianity is an often-neglected time period but full of exciting changes in biblical theology, heresiology, and more. Ignatius, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and Polycarp are just a few of the prominenttheologians of this time period. In this episode, Claire is joined by Mike Bird and Scott Harrower editors of A Handbook to Second-Century Christianity a forthcoming book from Baylor University Press.

Michael Bird is an Australian biblical scholar and Anglicanpriest who writes about the history of early Christianity, theology, and contemporary issues. He is Deputy Principal and Lecturer in Theology at Ridley College in Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of over thirty books including Evangelical Theology, Seven Things I Wish Christians Knew About the Bible, Romans (SGBC), The Gospel of the Lord: How the Early Church Wrote the Story of Jesus, What Christians Ought To Believe, and with N.T. Wright, The NewTestament in its World.

Scott Harrower is a lecturer in Christian Thought at RidleyCollege in Melbourne, Australia and an ordained Anglican minister. He was brought up by missionary parents in Argentina and has wide-ranging ministry experience in several countries. He has published articles on SyrianChristianity, comparative hagiography, and Augustine of Hippo, as well as books on women in the early church and the Trinity. Scott is also a former nurse and has written extensively on how we can relate psychological science and theology for the sake of human flourishing in our churches, including Dawn of Sunday: The Trinity and Trauma-Safe Churches, and God of All Comfort: A Trinitarian Response to the Horrors of this World.

In a previous episode, Cynthia Shafer-Elliott, a field archaeologist and professor in Baylor’s Department of Religion, discussed household archaeology and household religion. In this episode, she discusses household worship and figurines in more detail. She further illuminates the place of women within the household structure and how they held a prominent place in subsistence living households. While some only see women as oppressed figures in this society, women had a vital role.

In this episode I am joined by Bruce Longenecker to discuss his upcoming Baylor University Press book, The Materiality of Early Christ Devotion: Artistic Innovation at Four Archaeological Sites. He explains how the sites of Ostia,  Dura-Europos, Smyrna, and Pompeii offer an exciting glimpse into the creativity and imagination that these Christfollowers used to express their devotion. They are clever, creative, and at times cryptic with how they convey this devotion.

Our Guest:

Dr. Bruce Longenecker specializes in the origins of Christianity, including the following emphases: Early Christianity in its Greco-Roman context; Pauline theology and chronology; women in early Christianity and the Greco-Roman world.

He joined the Baylor faculty in August 2009, having taught previously at St Andrews University (Scotland, 1999-2009), Cambridge University (England, 1995-1999) and Durham University (England, 1991-1995). 

In this episode, Claire speaks with Christina Olson about archaeology and its importance when studying the Hebrew Bible. She helps listeners who may not be familiar with archaeology understand the terminology and demonstrates the significance of studying broad cultural contexts to understand the Hebrew Bible. She also shares some of her personal experiences and exciting discoveries.

Christina Olson is a recent graduate from the Baylor Religion Department, receiving her Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. She is interested in the use of social memory studies to explore death and burial practices in both the biblical text and the archaeological data. Her dissertation focuses on how burial practices and memory of the dead contributed to the developing national identity in Persian period Jerusalem. Christina has been actively involved in archaeological projects for over a decade, primarily at Tell Es-Safi/Gath, Israel and most recently at Baylor’s 2022 San Guiliano Archaeological Research Project in Italy.

In this episode, Zen speaks with Claire Mummert, the incoming host and producer of Currents in Religion.

Our Guest

Claire is a second year PhD student at Baylor University, specializing in the Hebrew Bible.

Show Summary

In this episode, I am joined by Michelle Knight, author of The Prophet’s Anthem: The Song of Deborah and Barak in the Narrative of Judges, which was recently published by Baylor University Press (link below). We talk about how the story of Deborah in Judges 4 relates to the song of Deborah in Judges 5, and how both function as a critical interpretive key to the whole narrative of Judges. We also talk a little about the way Deborah, as a judge, stands out among the others—as an exemplary leader in the history of Israel.

Our Guest

Michelle Knight is Associate Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. She also serves as Senior Reviewer for the Historical Books for the New Living Translation.

Find her book here: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481321594/the-prophets-anthem/

Other Relevant Episodes

• The book of...Judges? with Julian Chike: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6oKFIaMTUGBmFW7kQWZ5bl?si=CzqDe3WzQ8WfpqhtnD04Ew
• Trauma, Resilience, and the Psalms with Rebecca Poe Hays: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0B475O1XqN0hA0795xWCWL?si=gQ4idTWeQqCx9VRP9d316Q
• Climate Change, Preaching, and the Apocalypse of Place with Jerusha Neal: https://open.spotify.com/episode/79uXLCcysx7MHR4DpyIQUR?si=mN8wEoN2QQOe6czbVMMqdQ

In this episode, I speak with Blake Burleson about his long career of studying and teaching world religions at Baylor University. He tells the story of how he became a scholar of world religions and how studying world religion has shaped his own spiritual practices. He also shares why he thinks studying world religions is critical for the present moment. I especially enjoyed hearing Blake talk about how meditative learning activities can equip students to listen well in this age of distraction and contention. I think you’ll find this conversation insightful and challenging, sobering and encouraging and, perhaps, a little provocative.

Blake Burleson has been at Baylor for more than forty years. Among other roles and accomplishments, Blake has served as a senior lecturer and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies. He contributes regularly to the Waco Tribune. The Spring of 2024 will be his final semester at Baylor as he enters retirement.

Relevant Episodes

• Black Contemplative Preaching with E. Trey Clark: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Nf1w59GeWEtLstDRerk9t?si=xvCcecIqTM-9SJDEgGQudA
• Theology, Ethics, and a Church in Conflict: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7DXKtwkSWGOMhkLQKuMqUp?si=KWvca3c-TVG_KelW8KLlHg
• Interdisciplining Theology: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1F7vdM2k59iVygibvhWQq4?si=FQc75otnRKmoT67ojZBHpQ

In this episode, we feature the work of three scholars affiliated with the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable (BSIR). They discuss the collegial process of BSIR and their research on northern Baptist women and their missions.

Our Guests

Dr. Laine Scales is the guest host for this episode. Laine is a professor and the PhD program director in the Diane R. Garland School of Social Work here at Baylor. She is also a co-director of BSIR.

Nadia Andrilenas is a PhD candidate in the Department of Religion in Historical Studies at Baylor University. Her research examines women’s experiences in Christianity, especially in East and Southeast Asia, and draws from World Christianity methodologies. Her dissertation will investigate how women and gender shaped early 20th century Vietnamese evangelicalism.

Dr. Laura Rodgers Levens. Laura is the Associate Professor of Christian Mission and the Director of the Master of Arts in Ministry Studies Program at BSK Theological Seminary. She specializes in interdisciplinary courses that integrate multiple academic disciplines for practical theological inquiry and training. In addition to teaching, Laura has written for numerous publications, serves on various academic and ecclesial committees, and regularly guest preaches in local churches.

Other Episodes Featuring BSIR

• João Chaves and Ronilso Pacheco: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5w8Py2063b3uYrRXBEaw9D?si=twyX2DkjS5icXL4sVCUlhg
• Laine Scales, David Goatley, and Brad Creed: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Ix2UztGrdZXAs5xspNfSs?si=TgdbDgq_RWqUR_T8hmCkJg
• João Chaves, Felipe Hinojosa, and Stephen Di Trolio: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Zg9lJjGr2sA581pfQosv5?si=tk9LFYZERRawusevrWFxtQ
• Laine Scales and João Chaves: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0qABw70AEevYv9OwXDtDMY?si=CDVwcFIGQ5S3X4kYHhBkjw

In this episode, Zen speaks with several people who contributed to a new Baylor University Press book called God of the Whirlwind. The book collects stories and reflections from the Black Waco community that revolve around the Black storytelling tradition in Waco related to two significant events: a lynching and a deadly tornado.

Guests

Linda Jann Lewis describes herself as a 1960's Baby Boomer who worships at the altar of Voting Rights and Civil Rights. She is a writer, having contributed to the Austin Villager, Nokoa, and multiple books. She has been featured in a film about Molly Ivins. And she helped found and remains involved with Austin Community Radio’s kazifm.org.

George Oliver is the Assistant Director of Huntsville Hornet Drama, a 1998 graduate of Huntsville High School, received his BFA in Theatre from Sam Houston, and earned a MDiv from Andover Newton Seminary (at Yale Divinity School). George is Co-Producer on the short film Ado, starring Jennifer Lewis, which was just invited to both the Florida Film Festival and the Cleveland International Film Festival, and made its Festival debut at the Flickfest Short Film Festival in Australia. He plans to begin studying Commercial Real Estate Development in the year to come.

Tyler B. Davis is a Research Administrator, Adjunct Professor in the Mexican American Studies Program and Department of Theology, and Affiliate Faculty in the Center for Catholic Studies at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. He is also a graduate of Baylor University’s Religion Department.

Links

Buy God of the Whirlwind: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481322560/god-of-the-whirlwind/

Was the Apostle Paul a Stoic? Mm, probably not. But some people in Corinth who Paul taught about Christ may have appropriated Stoicism, subordinating it to flesh out their understanding of their new faith. That is what Timothy Brookins joins us to talk about today.

This Episode's Guest

Timothy earned his PhD from Baylor University, working on First Corinthians, Stoic philosophy, and economics. He’s gone on to publish several books, including recently Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Corinthians (Eerdmans, 2024). Timothy taught at Houston Christian University for more than a decade before making a move to University of St. Thomas and St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston, Texas.

Links

Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Corinthians: https://www.eerdmans.com/9780802883230/rediscovering-the-wisdom-of-the-corinthians/

Other Relevant Episodes

• A Bigger Gospel with Beverly Gaventa: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0B1vRGZZRDIczqb87pR7vl?si=XOISyBiPSfWxTBI0yHH_Fg
• Mike Bird on Jesus among the Gods: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0cNAJcGfBtf4QFVJTyqSXI?si=HBhS3gf9QnaT1qSNBuJlWQ
• Women in the New Testament with Susan Benton: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4zSCCtXkiPjolc1L7VfQ2o?si=qXAQkZv6TpyUj-Wwcqe-fw

In this episode, guest host João Chaves speaks with Ronilso Pacheco about Samuel Sharpe's libertarian and anti-slavery preaching.

Ronilso Pacheco is the Jackson Scholar of Latin American Studies, director of programming at the Instituto de Estudos da Religião (Brazil). He is also a Ford Global Fellow.

João Chaves is the Assistant Professor of the History of Religion in the Américas at Baylor University and one of the Co-Directors of the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable.

Previous BSIR-related Episodes

• Around the Table: David Goatley and Brad Creed – https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Ix2UztGrdZXAs5xspNfSs?si=aPtZDaSuS5eHPLgvet3Hkw
• Christian Nationalism in the Americas – https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Zg9lJjGr2sA581pfQosv5?si=a2PoaTJXQ3WPIkjO7lmqeg
• Baptists, Scholarship, and God's Kingdom: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0qABw70AEevYv9OwXDtDMY?si=HpDDb9FUSxqWtePU5p0Y6A

Other Relevant Episodes

• A Study in How Migration Shapes Religion: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5jU3HPamZEcFvHRq0Wq4TV?si=TZn61_d2R-6CbtpbclDDmQ
• Black Baptist Leaders, Race Literature, and the Salvation of America: https://open.spotify.com/episode/53a29CcqwmRtcCupJlduvW?si=7wRPvIIgRb-55l9WKJDIWA
• Black Contemplative Preaching: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Nf1w59GeWEtLstDRerk9t?si=SLj07DpjSrSfydaOXUxX7A

Episode Summary

In this episode, Zen speaks with Rachel Toombs about her Baylor University Press book, Good News Resounding, which is available to pre-order now. This book includes contributions from an wonderful group of scholars and artists, including works of academic prose, poetry, creative nonfiction, and visual art. It offers the reader glimpses of the beautiful world of theology and literature.

But the book tells a story, a story about a scholarly life well lived. One that included not only careful reading and thinking, but careful mentoring. The book is a festschrift honoring the career of Ralph Wood, the Baylor University Emeritus Professor of Theology and Literature. In our conversation, Rachel reflects on her experience as one of Ralph’s students. It made me once again grateful for mentors in my own life—and led me to reflect on what it means to be both a good student and a good teacher.

Guest Bio

Rachel Toombs earned her PhD from Baylor University. She has written on Flannery O’Connor and Hebrew narrative and has a recently published book with Baker Academic called Reading the First Five Books: The Invitation of the Pentateuch’s Stories (https://bakeracademic.com/p/Reading-the-First-Five-Books-Rachel-Toombs/579875). Rachel has recently been called to serve as assistant professor of Old Testament at Church Divinity School of the Pacific.

Related Episodes

• Natalie Carnes on feminist theology and the arts: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0lJKY9SBaJBWZZuAurvGAm?si=bW5TRgafTVuEFDMzygomOg
• Picturing Ecclesiastes with Menachem Fisch and Debra Band: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6B0Z4z3RrEpzD6mNeXFwUj?si=R8yF8K8fQJ-4TRp-k-9V2Q
• Disaster and Desire with Micheal O'Siadhail: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5CMlCkpKw7PhIoSGQEsUKs?si=r5j9NeBuSySMRxKOkIHyHA

Links

Good News Resounding: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481322539/good-news-resounding/

Reading the First Five Books: https://bakeracademic.com/p/Reading-the-First-Five-Books-Rachel-Toombs/579875

Episode Intro

In today’s episode, the Rev. Dr. Malcolm Foley joins us again to discuss his recently published book, The Anti-Greed Gospel: Why the Love of Money is the Root of Racism and How the Church Can Create a New Way Forward (Brazos Press 2025). I can’t imagine a more relevant book for the church, given the intense economic anxiety that is so pervasive in America and beyond. I’m excited for you to hear from Malcolm about greed, racism, and how Christians might bear witness to the gospel economically.

About the Guest

The Rev. Dr. Malcolm earned his PhD from Baylor University’s Department of Religion. He serves as the Special Advisor to the President for Equity and Campus Engagement. He is also a pastor at Mosaic Waco, a gospel-centered, Spirit led, multicultural church in Waco, Texas.

Related Episodes & Links

1) Black Contemplative Preaching: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Nf1w59GeWEtLstDRerk9t?si=B8jYkt3cTqCzQeBiJdsgRA

2) Theology, Ethics, and a Church in Conflict: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7DXKtwkSWGOMhkLQKuMqUp?si=agjg4IPGTCuNhiEBUzzxUA

3) The Cross and the Lynching Tree: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3BVgyMhmm49BhRWLh3HoYt?si=rUno3OOzQlO_LKqBalMFhA

Malcolm's book: https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/the-anti-greed-gospel/419161

Rebecca "Becky" Copeland's book: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481321426/entangled-being/

In this episode, Zen speaks with Melody Escobar about her new book Revelations of Divine Care (Baylor University Press: 2024). You can learn more about the book at this link: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481320559/revelations-of-divine-care/

Melody Escobar is a research associate with the Collaborative on Faith and Disability in the Baylor Center for Developmental Disabilities at Baylor University.

Other Episodes You Might Like

• Autism and Worship with Léon von Ommen: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2RWXSNpgDHR4bd5UfMLiDj?si=OtB2a6X-RPWOkZ2K99M6kQ
• Inclusion, Justice, and Disability in the Church with Erin Raffety: https://open.spotify.com/episode/76ivqvdHBVoM0XBI32uGZw?si=s5lmHcSWT96tVIDpZ69wrg
• An Era of Soft Eugenics? with Devan Stahl: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1ukJKPza94WEu0MVAPzv9P?si=Hg6XEPQvSc2E5JcmcvE51g

In this episode, Laine Scales guest hosts a conversation with David Goatley and Brad Creed about the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable. They discuss recent research emerging from the Roundtable as well as how the Roundtable cultivates an international, intergenerational, and interdisciplinary community of scholarship through intentional mentoring.

David Goatley is the sixth president of Fuller Theological Seminary. He is a constructive theologian and globally recognized missiologist with a background in pastoral counseling.

J. Bradley Creed is the fifth president of Campbell University. He is an accomplished leader of mission-driven institutions and a scholar and historian of religion.

Laine Scales is Professor of Social Work at Baylor University and a co-director of the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable.

In this episode, Zen speaks with Leah Lomotey-Nakon, one of the newest faculty members in Baylor's Religion Department. Leah shares some of her story and discusses her research on religion and reproductive health.

Learn more about Dr. Lomotey-Nakon here: https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/leah-lomotey-nakon-phd

Other Episodes You Might Like

• An era of soft eugenics with Devan Stahl: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1ukJKPza94WEu0MVAPzv9P?si=x2YRVkmdS5yT33Wtg0K0Fw
• Interdisciplining theology with Natalie Carnes, Devan Stahl, and others: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1F7vdM2k59iVygibvhWQq4?si=UwO76n1CTcqXNc0OjJBvjw
• Imagining motherhood with Amy Marga: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1OgGe29lfyEzvrNGtpppBL?si=nWk_uaVTQIihzvwYLi9GBg

In this episode, Zen speaks with Christopher Seitz about his new book The Heights of the Hills are His Also.

Learn more about the book here: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481322454/the-heights-of-the-hills-are-his-also/

Other Episodes You Might Like

• Bill Bellinger on the psalms and faith: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3MEUD4045KXTY3GtNhXRNy?si=HbVy3bRkTWqwdAmMYvIQCw
• Rebecca Poe Hays on the Psalms, trauma, and resilience: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0B475O1XqN0hA0795xWCWL?si=JiNq0nB2TKG5rQFQBFonlA
• Micheal O'Siadhail's Testament (with poems reflecting on the psalms): https://open.spotify.com/episode/3AOdcGFqsZiBEB7b4XQiAp?si=8zJLgOA1T96NipPAviw1ZQ

In this episode, Zen speaks with Sameer Yadav, one of Baylor's newest religion faculty. The son of Indian immigrants, Sameer was raised in a Hindu home in rural Idaho. His childhood experiences of religion are the beginning of Sameer's story of becoming a theologian. Hear more about his journey in this episode. Listen until the end to hear Sameer discuss whether mysticism has a place in Christian higher education today.

Learn more about Sameer at his faculty page: https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/sameer-yadav-phd

Other episodes you might like:

• Black Contemplative Preaching with E. Trey Clark: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Nf1w59GeWEtLstDRerk9t?si=LA-u_s9VQDmFq9XFFG8Reg

• Amy Carr and Christine Helmer on theology, ethics, and the church in conflict: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7DXKtwkSWGOMhkLQKuMqUp?si=awXNtHr9RlK8jZlz-DkI7A

• Malcolm Foley on James Cone’s The Cross and the Lynching Tree: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3BVgyMhmm49BhRWLh3HoYt?si=too2D28bSa2sRMHL5IN9Aw

In this episode, Zen speaks with John Duncan about teaching introductory courses on the Bible and church history. The discussion includes reflections on the challenges of teaching courses like these, such as navigating issues raised by having students of various faith backgrounds in the room. John also offers strategies and examples of in-class activities he uses to teach the class.

Learn more about John by visiting his Baylor faculty profile: https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/john-duncan-phd

Other Episodes You Might Like

• Digital Religious Studies: AI, digitial humanities, and teaching online with Tyler Mowry: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1p9ONnGMPnlaLyh1fcm8oh?si=IzLyXjRcThODc5hmof-GEQ
• Publishing academic journal articles with Jeff Hubbard: https://open.spotify.com/episode/54Gt5E6ewVPkDyJaCjAavS?si=6VhNWHptRdiAPVuSdjl72A
• Networking at AARSBL with Dave Nelson: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2DHAP5p0rjD4C3G5i1dcMZ?si=pmz_QJrNQt-lE39qzhV68g

In this episode, João Chaves joins as guest host, facilitating a conversation with guests Felipe Hinojosa and Stephen Di Trolio. They discuss Christian nationalism, the colonial history of Christian nationalism, and the impact histories of Christian nationalism have on the church today.

This episode is a special collaboration with the Baptist Scholars International Roundtable. Learn more about the Roundtable here: https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/affiliated-programs/baptist-studies-center-research/baptist-scholars-international-roundtable-4

Learn more about the guests at their respective academic pages:

João Chaves: https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/joao-chaves-phd

Felipe Hinojosa: https://history.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/felipe-hinojosa

Stephen Di Trolio: https://ptsem.edu/profiles/stephen-r-di-trolio/

Other Episodes You Might Like:

• Studying Evangelicalism with Leslie Garrote: https://open.spotify.com/episode/61dadOXmU40hMxjljYYDfp?si=Kn_DELYsTRiZDq6p-q7OZg
• Baptists, Scholarship, and God's Kingdom with Laine Scales and João Chaves: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0qABw70AEevYv9OwXDtDMY?si=rjZO682BRCyHK-hAPvFSNw
• Hearing History with Mandy McMichael: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3mg7ciIUc4RjPnWxqhhmGr?si=8k_zbv_pSH2aL6tHxVvcew

In this episode, Zen speaks with Jerusha Neal (Duke Divinity School) about her new book Holy Ground: Climate Change, Preaching, and the Apocalypse of Place. How might our discourse, teaching, and preaching about climate change differ if we listened more carefully to the voices of displaced people? Listen to hear what Jerusha Neal thinks.

Holy Ground is available November 2024 from Baylor University Press: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481319072/holy-ground/

• Other Episodes You Might Like: Micheal O’Siadhail on disaster and desire: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5CMlCkpKw7PhIoSGQEsUKs?si=kR95eMYaRBeg1pnGbOhRMw
• Rebecca Poe Hays on the Psalms, trauma, and resilience: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0B475O1XqN0hA0795xWCWL?si=ZlEkaiNKTHyEwxcbpty9yg
• Paul and the Good Green Life with Cherryl Hunt and Julien Smith: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1pMbiRmH6sjP2XI2f1IuBB?si=ypv-dtpZTTejuXkHQvI-Cw

In this episode, guest host Natalie Carnes (Baylor University) speaks with Kutter Callaway (Fuller Theological Seminary) about the past, present, and future of theology and the arts.

Other Currents Episodes You Might Like:

• Mikeal Parsons and Robin Jensen on early Christians and their arts: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6yQRLp1wcReeYgd5X8rdtL?si=HShgW_EqSECM-CAL-LzHfw
• Elise Edwards on architecture, theology, and ethics. https://open.spotify.com/episode/6fvfwLeXZYKTMoNYpoeFjL?si=DC84TaWeSuazDU42MjoIKw
• Menachem Fisch and Debra Band on illuminating Ecclesiastes. https://open.spotify.com/episode/6B0Z4z3RrEpzD6mNeXFwUj?si=gIW0UhQfQX2sn0-xpUIixA
• Interdisciplining Theology: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1F7vdM2k59iVygibvhWQq4?si=luH0bOHsTMiRD_Wzssv3Yg
• Natalie Carnes on Feminist Theology and the Arts: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0lJKY9SBaJBWZZuAurvGAm?si=Gvqrcv9WQcOB9TtFu0Ci1A

Links to books, initiatives, and grants mentioned:

• Natalie's new book: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/attunement-9780197765623
• Baylor Initiative in Christianity and the Arts: https://bica.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/
• Illuminating Theological Inquiry Grant: https://ethics.web.baylor.edu/special-programs-and-projects/project-overview
• Measuring the Immeasurable Grant: https://templetonreligiontrust.org/explore/measuring-transcendence-irl/

Summary

In this episode, Deirdre Fulton joins us to share about the process of updating the NRSV, and to tell us a little about her role in that process. Deirdre Fulton is Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament here at Baylor University.

Themes

Bible translation, text criticism, NRSVue

Relevant Baylor Press Books

• Baylor handbooks on original languages (NT Greek, Hebrew Bible, Septuagint): https://www.baylorpress.com/books/series/
• Book previewed by Cade: Katherine Dell, The Lord By Wisdom Founded the Earth, https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481317047/the-lord-by-wisdom-founded-the-earth/

Additional Resources

• For more about the NRSVue (https://www.friendshippress.org/pages/about-the-nrsvue)
• For Deirdre Fulton's faculty profile (https://religion.artsandsciences.baylor.edu/person/deirdre-fulton-phd)

In this episode, Zen speaks with Tyler Mowry about teaching religious studies in online settings, using digital humanities, and assigning AI.

Tyler is a Hebrew Bible PhD student and Learning Management System Content Specialist at Baylor University.

Links to the digital humanities tools Tyler mentions in the interview will be posted in due course.

The essay on assigning AI (written by Ethan and Lilach Mollick) is available here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4475995

Relevant Episodes:

• Publishing academic articles with Jeff Hubbard: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/publishing-academic-journal-articles-with-jeff-hubbard/id1648052085?i=1000637176857
• Networking at AAR/SBL with Dave Nelson: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/publishing-academic-journal-articles-with-jeff-hubbard/id1648052085?i=1000637176857