Excavate

For our final episode of 2023, we’re compiling a “best of” books and movies by female storytellers from the year. Jamie is an avid reader and Heather is a film enthusiast, so we’re sharing some of our favorite content we read and watched. In light of our recent episodes about Taylor Swift and the value of storytelling and creating by women, we thought we’d give you some next steps for where else t...

For today’s episode we want to focus on the themes of Advent and Christmas by taking some time to look at the story of Mary. The incarnation gives dignity to the human body that God called very good and it also brings a particular honoring to the body of women. We’ll dig into the significance of an embodied spirituality as illustrated by Jesus’s coming, as well as the protections God puts in place...

This week there was just too much to cover in talking about Taylor Swift for only 1 episode, so this is a second release deluxe episode, bonus content, from the vault! In our first episode we didn’t get to dig into the significance of her re-recorded albums and the cultural impact they’ve had, or the phenomenon that has been the Eras Tour. So today we’re digging into all the extra material that di...

Welcome to season 3! We’re starting back by discussing the topic that’s dominated the news cycle and frankly all our personal attention here at Excavate, the year of Taylor Swift. Over the course of the Eras Tour, 2 more re-recorded albums, of course a very high profile break-up and new relationship, Taylor Swift has never been bigger. We have both been fans of hers for a long time, which means a...

This week we’re closing out our Summer Shorts series and Season 2 discussing a significant moment in the early Church that illustrates a profound care for widows. The apostles respond to marginalized women who speak up in a remarkable way that still provides a much-needed model to the modern Church. This story also illustrates the role that conflict and Godly resolution can play for church growth....

In this episode we’re taking on an infamous story about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the fate of Lot’s wife. This is a story that reveals the dangers of not obeying the commands of God and of being overly fixated on the past. Yet we also frequently malign Lot’s wife and reduce the event to her being disobedient and foolish. Today we want to dig into what they were all experiencing th...

Today we’re continuing in our summer shorts and looking at an important matriarch you’ve probably never heard of. We know about Sarah, Leah and Rachel, but we rarely talk about Asenath, the wife of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Their two sons take on a big legacy in the history of Israel, yet her contribution to the people of God has been considered controversial. There’s a lot to uncover about t...

Today we’re continuing in our Summer Shorts series with Job’s daughters. We’ll take a second look at the book of Job overall and perhaps a perspective that puts Job’s daughters in a fuller picture. We’ll also look at how Job names his daughters and what that might say about his encounters with God, our experiences of loss and suffering, and the hope God can give us for new chapters. Read along wit...

Today we’re continuing in our Summer Shorts series and looking at the mention of the servant woman, Rhoda, in the book of Acts. She is mentioned within a bigger story and her role has often been laughed at and she is seen as silly or flighty. But when we take the time to look more closely, there is so much to uncover about equity and discipleship, belief and hope, and the power of overwhelming joy...

We’re kicking off a summer series reflecting on the short phrases that might be easy for modern readers to miss. As all of our routines are changed a bit over the summer, we thought it would be a fun time to dig into a few short mentions of women in Scripture that didn’t make it into full length episodes. We’ll be taking some time to slow down and reflect on the way these women can speak to us eve...

Today we’re so excited to welcome Katelyn Beaty to the podcast, author of Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platforms, and Profits Are Hurting the Church. We’ll be discussing Abigail’s resistance to corrupt power in 1 Samuel 25, and the ways her example can inform the modern Church. Katelyn will help us look at how we can interrogate our own stewardship of power and look with curiosity and hone...

In today’s episode we are tackling a giant topic for women: style, fashion and clothing. Women experience immense pressures from all directions about how we dress and what we wear. We’re expected to keep up with fashion trends while also being modest, to dress professionally but also look cute. Style is such a moving target for women in society and can be a source of fun and creativity, and also a...

Today we’re in part 2 of our 2-part series on the Trinity. Last week we discussed the nature of and relationship between Jesus and God, and today we’re digging deeper into the nature of the Holy Spirit. This is the most mysterious and neglected part of the Trinity, and one that holds a lot of questions about femininity within the Triune God. We’re hoping to offer ideas, food for thought, and ultim...

Today we’re digging into a topic that we’ve referenced quite a bit in Season 1 and it’s finally time! We’re talking about the Trinity and how understanding of God has informed a view of gender and submission. The Trinity and our theology of God being three-in-one is complex and full of mystery. But for some, a heretical understanding of God has led to a permission and support for subordination of...

In today’s episode we’re uncovering an often ignored story about a wise and courageous woman in the Old Testament, Abigail. Abigail becomes a wife of King David, but their meet cute has higher stakes than most first encounters. Her story has a great deal to show us about the legacy of wise women in scripture, the character of David, and a Godly process for confronting those in authority. Read alon...

Today we’re talking about a central woman of the church who was the first to declare the good news of the Risen Christ to the other disciples. We’re digging into the story of Mary Magdalene and her faithful devotion to Jesus. We’ll be living into our goal of excavating, brushing away what might have been added into the text by pop culture narratives, conspiracy theories, and early scholars. We’ll...

On today’s episode we are so excited to have Sheila Gregoire join us. Sheila is the author of the upcoming book She Deserves Better: Raising girls to resist toxic teaching on sex, self & speaking up. In our episodes about purity culture we started a conversation about the way purity culture modesty codes created contempt of women’s bodies and harmful messages for young women and girls. This week w...

We are recording this episode during Holy Week, the week leading up to Easter when the Church traditionally focuses on the events in the ministry of Jesus leading up to the cross in preparation for observing the crucifixion and celebrating the resurrection. So to honor the themes of this week in the Church calendar we’ll have a shorter episode discussion on the role of women surrounding the end of...

In this episode we’re talking about a complex and often controversial issue in American society, our culture’s relationship with guns. This is a conversation that has become so muddied by political ideology and Christian nationalism that it can be difficult to have any kind of healthy dialogue. But it remains an urgent concern for our country. So we are trying to step back from the rhetoric and lo...

As we continue in women’s history month we want to highlight the area of women’s health advocacy. There is still a great need for growth in research, taking women’s concerns seriously, and women having the tools we need to advocate for our health and care. When we contrast the continued minimizing of women’s health concerns with the life of Jesus, we see how radical He really is in demystifying an...

Today we’re digging into a topic that we are both passionate about personally. We’re talking about mental health, the unique ways this relates to the lived experience of women, and how to navigate this as people of faith. We recognize that for some people the Church may have minimized or even demonized mental health care. So our hope is to discuss that stigma and how God meets us in our seasons of...

In this episode we’re doing our very first recording with a live audience at the Jubilee Conference! We’re joined by Dr. Carmen Imes, author of Bearing God’s Name: Why Sinai Still Matters and Associate Professor of Old Testament at Biola University. Dr. Imes is an expert on the book of Exodus so we are thrilled to hear her expertise on the many women who played a role in the story of deliverance i...

This episode is part 2 of digging into the impact of purity culture and God’s actual plan for human relationships. In episode 1 we discussed the shortcomings and harmful effects of the purity movement, as well as God’s call to fidelity and obedience that transcends misrepresentation and bad messaging. So we recommend that if you haven’t listened to part 1 yet, pause and go listen to that first. No...

For the next 2 episodes we’re going to be digging into the topic of purity culture and sexuality. Anyone who grew up in the 90s and 2000s heard about purity culture in evangelicalism, and even pop culture with plenty of pop stars wearing purity rings. Adult Christians in the last few years have begun deconstructing and reexamining the motivations and impact of purity culture. Today we’ll begin sif...

In this episode we are digging into the parables of Jesus that center the experiences of women. Part of what makes Jesus such a profound teacher is his ability to connect with every one of his listeners and to make us feel like the Word is for us. Jesus rejects the assumption that women are folded into narratives for men by teaching distinct parables that are about women and for everyone. Not only...