Queer Theology Podcast

Finding a community or creating new friendships can be hard and it can be actual work to move out of your comfort zone or into a new zone. But the benefit of finding or creating a community with people who support you, cheer for you, lift you up, listen to you, and care for you is so rewarding. We talk in this episode about the people in our lives who have made us feel that more was possible, that...

We talk alot about the importance of community. Like, a. lot. And we do that because we both have benefited from the support a strong community can bring during times of questioning, transition, deconstruction, reconstruction, and evolving faith. It's why we created our community, Sanctuary Collective. And we're so amazed by what the folks inside Sanctuary Collective bring to the discussion and co...

We're at the final episode of our eight part series on Matthew! And here is where we come to crucifixion and resurrection.. The End… but really, the Beginning. It's important for us to call out and recognize in these texts the significant polemic against the Jewish leaders, even if most of Matthew's audience still considered themselves to be Jewish. The context is crucial here for us to not contin...

We are on part 6 of our series on Matthew and here is where Jesus finally goes to Jerusalem! But first we get the Transfiguration, a bunch of familiar sayings, and questions from Pharisees. We have healing stories, references to children, temple tax, and some harsh words from Jesus. For the Disciples to say at that time that 'I want to be at the side of Jesus,' means in Rome that 'you are going to...

For part 5 of our series on Matthew, we look at the death of John the Baptist, some miracle stories, and Jesus' call to treason. We see Jesus in these chapters take a political and active stance against Rome. Here is where the Disciples are tested and called to really follow the teachings of this new community. There is so much in these passages that relate to the time, to previous stories of the...

We are on part 4 of our series on Matthew and these chapters include ministry stories of Jesus and parables. Something we keep talking about is context. And it is so important to reiterate that context really matters to the richness and density of these texts, that this message was written to a community who were trying to learn how to live under empire. So the world coming to an end, apocalyptic...

We are on the 3rd episode in our series on Matthew, and here is where we get a long sermon followed by some healing stories! These are well-known and well-used passages; there is so much to uncover here. We have the Sermon on the Mount, one of the longest recorded speeches by Jesus, and it is so rich in nuance when you look at the carefully composed discourse and deliberate structure that will bec...

In the second episode of our series on Matthew we cover chapters 3 and 4 and there is so much richness and goodness here. We really see Jesus as intentionally political and there is a theme of politics throughout these texts. We dig into what it means to follow the Kingdom of Heaven/God when you are living under empire, what discipleship and following the teachings of Jesus looked like in the time...

We're back in the studio and recording an 8 week series on the Gospel of Matthew! Prepping for this series reminded both of us how much we love diving into scripture and pulling out those beautiful, sacred nuances that make it so wholly (holy?) fascinating across generations. In this episode, we start with chapters 1 and 2. Yes, that genealogy that you might have skipped over in anticipation of th...

We close out this guest series with the incredibly talented Mary Lambert. She is not your typical triple-platinum-selling artist. She had never recorded music formally when she received a call from Macklemore and Ryan Lewis to collaborate on their marriage equality anthem, "Same Love." Lambert has a successful solo career, stars in an animated series, co-hosts a podcast, is an author, and facilita...

Cole Arthur-Riley joins us on the podcast for an inspiring and insightful conversation about her work as a writer and poet. Cole is the creator and writer of Black Liturgies, a project that integrates spiritual practice with Black emotion, Black literature, and the Black body. She is also author of the NYT bestseller, This Here Flesh: Spirituality, Liberation, and the Stories that Make Us. As a st...

Jonathan Merker joins us for this episode of our guest series to offer his thoughtful insight on some pretty heavy topics. Jonathan is not only one of Brian's good friends but a licensed therapist whose counseling style is rooted in relationally analytic psychodynamic psychotherapy. This style of counseling is indicated for issues around relationships, families, identity, sexuality, grief, trauma,...

We're so excited to bring you a joyously enthusiastic interview with Rev. Micah Bucey for this episode of our guest series. Micah is a radically progressive faith leader who writes, speaks, and extravagantly celebrates the intersections between expansive spirituality, radical social justice, and unfettered creativity. He currently serves as Minister at Judson Memorial Church and has a book availab...

For this episode, we had the pleasure of talking with Rev. Angela Tyler-Williams about her work as an organizer, the overarching importance of Reproductive Justice, and a little history of how we even came to this place of arguing for or against the morality of abortion. Angela is Co-Director for Movement Building at SACRED, an alliance of religious leaders, organizers, academics, and congregation...

We have the authors of You Mean It Or Don't: James Baldwin's Radical Challenge , Jamie McGhee and Adam Hollowell on for our guest series this week. Jamie is a novelist, playwright, and essayist and Adam is an author, ethicist, and facilitator whose work addresses social inequality and promotes collective efforts for a more just world. We talk with them about their inspiration for this project duri...

For this episode in our guest series, we have a fantastic conversation with Rev. Nikia Smith Robert Ph. D about her transformative work as an abolitionist. Dr. Robert founded Abolitionist Sanctuary, a nonprofit organization and faith-based abolitionist movement committed to helping churches use public policy and transformative justice strategies to advocate for a more just and equitable society be...

We're so excited to welcome back Kaya Oakes to the podcast to talk with us about gender expectations, feminism, her choice to remain Catholic, and why we need to cast off harmful but accepted societal expectations. Oakes is the author of five books, most recently including The Defiant Middle: How Women Claim Life's In Betweens to Remake the World . Tune in as we talk about the women of her book, ...

It was a real treat for us to sit down with the Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Ph. D - she just radiates love and we know you'll be inspired by this episode! Rev. Jacqui is the senior minister of Middle Church, the oldest Collegiate Church in the US (and also the place where Brian met his partner 14 years ago!). She uses her gifts as author, activist, preacher, and public theologian toward creating an antirac...

Taj M. Smith sat down with us for an uplifting conversation on deconstruction, redefining leadership, and how the storytelling of science fiction can give us hope for a better future. Smith is a writer, coach, preacher and speaker and also a transgender Christian whose theology has been heavily influenced by liberation theology, queer theology, and science fiction. Tune in as we dive into what cha...

It was so great to chat with Bishop David C. Strong in this episode of our Winter Guest series about building affirming communities and integrating spiritual practices to create a life-giving faith. Bishop Strong has served as pastor of Sojourner Truth Christian United Church since 2008. He was ordained to the Independent Catholic priesthood in 1992, and was consecrated a bishop in 1996 (he is Fr....

For this episode of our guest series, we're honored and humbled to sit down with Rabbi Denise L. Eger. Rabbi Eger is the founding Sr. Rabbi of the Congregation Kol Ami, West Hollywood's Reform Synagogue and is extra special to Brian since it is the congregation where he is exploring Judaism. Rabbi Eger was the first openly gay president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and has won nume...

We're so excited to kick off a winter guest series with an amazing line up of insightful and inspiring interviews. For our first episode in this series, we have a conversation with the remarkable Dr. Christena Cleveland. Dr. Cleveland is an author, activist and a founder and director of the Center for Justice + Renewal as well as its sister organization, Sacred Folk. Tune in as Fr. Shay talks with...

Welcome to another Q&A episode for the third quarter of 2022! Tune in as we answer a selection of questions submitted by folks that include where to find examples of bi people in scripture, resources for learning more about the historical context of the Bible, and how to help kids deal with public displays of affection between their poly parents. If you have a question you'd like us to feature on...

For this episode, we are going to turn the interview mic on each other to share a little bit more about ourselves! We also discuss our shared desire to bring community to LGBTQ+ folks and help them integrate their queerness and Christianity. Tune in as Shay talks about his ordination and following his calling and as Brian shares about the impact film had on him growing up and exploring his sexuali...