The Two Cities

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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