Everyday Theology

For many Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians in the west, Lent is a Catholic tradition. . . one that is not heeded or participated in. Yet, Lent is practiced widely and by many various traditions. In this Episode, Chris Green discusses his new book "Being Transfigured: Lenten Homilies" and why Lent is important for Christians everywhere.  Aaron and Chris go on to discuss the Asbury Revival...

It sounds like the start of a joke, an evangelical, a charismatic, and a liturgical church goer walk into a bar. . . except only one of those would even go to a bar! In this episode, Aaron speaks with Bishop Page Brooks, a Bishop in the Anglican Mission International, about "three streams Christianity" - those who attempt to inhabit being a liturgical, charismatic, and evangelical. Is this possibl...

You might have seen that Gen Z is missing from the church, or that leadership is increasingly looking more trendy. Does correlation equal causation or is there something else happening? In this episode, Aaron chats with Dr. Mario Hood about leadership within the church, how it has been needing to be reevaluated, and what this means for future generations of the church. 

There seems to be three camps of Christians when it comes to the "gender of God" - those who believe that God is male, or at least masculine, those that make the claim that God is female, and the third way, those who work to not disavow the language of scripture, but find the ways in which scripture fully affirms women made in the image of God - recognizing God has no gender. Dr. Amy Peeler joins...

Pastors wants their congregants back, those who have deconstructed away from the faith encourage others to do the same. Sure, we have talked about what deconstruction is before on the podcast, but how do you deconstruct well, and how do you support your friends or family who may be deconstructing? Brad Jersak is back on the podcast to discuss with Aaron how deconstruction can be healthy and how to...

What does culture have to provide solid answers, what even are the solid answers needed? Many often joke that Jesus is the answer to everything, but when it comes to disillusionment, Dr. Brandon Rickabaugh argues that Jesus is the answer to a culture that is disillusioned with everything. Truth, according to Rickabaugh, is a needed antidote. But what is truth? Truth is a big word with a blurry mea...

Christian nationalism. . . again. You may be surprised that the Old Testament, and in particular the book of Daniel, has a lot to say about subverting kingdoms and why Christian nationalism is, well, not Christian. Friend of the show Rick Wadholm Jr stops in to school Aaron on the book of Daniel.

Christian Mysticism. . . again? It seems that the idea of Christian Mysticism resonated deeply with may who listened to the recent podcast on the topic with Dr. Dale Coulter. So Aaron invited Dr. Daniel Castelo, the William Kellon Quick Professor of Theology and Methodist Studies at Duke Divinity School, to join him along with friend of the podcast insanely talented music producer, Marc Byrd, to t...

You would think the humanity of Christ has been talked about to no end. Sure, many Christians claim that they follow the person of Jesus, but do they really know what it means to say Jesus was fully human, while also being fully God? In this episode, Aaron and Chris discuss the humanity of Christ, why it matters, what it means, and how we can often fall into ancient Christian heresies when it come...

Understanding the Trinity is tough and trying to understand the Trinity in ways that go beyond the typical descriptions of the Trinity are even tougher. In this episode, Aaron speak with Steven Studebaker, Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology, Howard and Shirley Bentall Chair in Evangelical Thought at McMaster Divinity College, about his work in yet again thinking about the Trinity part...

Mysticism, mystical, mystics, these terms often come with a negative connotation for those in the church. Christians who lived through the 90's often think about "new ageism" and worry that mysticism is going to lead Christians down a "secular" path. In this podcast, Aaron speaks with Dale Coulter about the Mystic Tradition of Christianity, what it is, how it is helpful, and how much of theology t...

. . . and we are back! After summer hiatus, Everyday Theology is back with Season 4, a great line up of new guest, and some familiar voices / faces.  It is incredible to kick Season 4 of with Dr. Chris Tilling. Chris and Aaron take time to discuss Paul's view of Jesus. Who did Paul think Jesus was and what did that mean for him, the church, and for us today? From his bio located on St. Mellit...

Is faith just belief, is it allegiance, is it something else? Dr. Teresa Morgan, who holds the McDonald Agape Professorship in New Testament and Early Christianity at Yale University, joins Aaron to take a deep dive into what pistis and fides (the Greek and Latin for faith or trust) meant for those who used those words within the first century. Most importantly, Dr. Morgan and Aaron talk about why...

Pentecostalism has been in the news as of late. With more scandals within larger Pentecostal affiliated churches happening, there seems to be more discussion, good and bad, about this group. But who are Pentecostals and what makes them unique as a Christian stream? In this episode, Aaron and Chris get to chat with Bishop Ed Gungor. Bishop Ed's works has taken him deep into Pentecostal thought and...

We apologize upfront. We had some internet issues at the beginning of recording, but It gets better as the podcast goes on, and it is one you do not want to miss. Joy Qualls joins Aaron to talk about the narratives the church uses and the language we employ. If you have seen the news about Hillsong, Brian Houston, and more, you might see how the language employed by churches has effected the way t...

Where is theology’s place in corporate worship? Are we supposed to prioritize trendy, catchy songs over those that theologically teach? What do we do with suffering and emotion in music? Aaron caught up with his good friend, Evan Craft, a dove award winning worship artist, to talk about all of these questions and more.

Deconstruction has become a buzzword within Christian circles. Some use it as a word to declare heresy, while others proclaim that it is necessary. What is often lost in the discussion are those who have deconstructed, to various degrees, and what what means for them. In this episode, Aaron chats with Landon Pontius from the Meaning in the Middle podcast about Landon's story of deconstruction, wha...

It seems that Christianity is stuck in a loop, coming back to the same issues, over and over. In this episode, Chris and Aaron discuss (again!) women in ministry in light of Christian news that men are (again) trying to teach women, how to be women. But that is not all! The pair also discuss the news of the removal of the Passion Translation from Bible Gateway and how to be Christians on the inter...

In this (shorter) episode, Aaron spoke with Ron Dart, Associate Professor of Political Science and prolific writer, about two things that should never be discussed, or at least what people say shouldn't be discussed, religion and politics. Ron provides valuable insight into a perplexing problem, how do Christian faithfully engage (or not) in politics. Ron's approach through his eclectic study and...

The Western Evangelical and Pentecostal churches have some problems with Christmas, and they need to be discussed. Now that Christmas is  over, and life is beginning to settle into 2022, Chris and Aaron discuss some ways that the their Christian traditions have failed to really know the story of the birth of Christ and why deeply knowing the story changes the way Christians engage in the worl...

For many Christian, especially those within Evangelical and Pentecostal traditions, the Church calendar in a mystery. Advent, Lent, Epiphany all become old traditions that many do not understand. In this episode, Chris and Aaron dissect Advent, what it means, why it is important, and how Christians from non-liturgical spaces can practice the incredible season of Advent. 

This is a special episode, because Aaron and Chris welcome Father Kenneth Tanner to discuss Chris Green's new book, All Things Beautiful: An Aesthetic Christology . Most of Christianity attempts to view Christ through the lens of truth, often paired with certain interpretations of Scripture, but what happens when we take a look at the person of Christ through aesthetics: art, movies, music, and mo...

Dr. Kelly Kapic, author of numerous books and Professor of Theological Studies at Covenant College is back to discuss with Aaron his new book coming out in January, You are Only Human. Kelly's new book takes a hard look at our humanness and what it means to have limits and to be finite. Surprisingly, when we begin to really focus on what it means to be human, through looking at creation and the hu...

Is T.D. Jakes a Monist? Is God really just one known as Jesus? In this episode, Aaron and Chris discuss why some might call Jakes a Monist, but then move beyond just Jakes. Has the church overtime failed at discussing the Trinity? Is the White Evangelical church in America oneness in their practices?  Theology is often taught not from a place logical coherence, but rather of taking control th...

Marcia Clarke, pastor and adjunct professor at Fuller Seminary, joins Aaron and Chris to talk about both the need to talk about diversity and why we keep talking about it. Too often in the church we just blindly move past our faults and errors, or worse, ask for forgiveness and act like nothing happened. Discussions about diversity are often too quick to solve an issue without spending the time to...