Rector’s Cupboard Podcast

The final episode of Season 7 of Rector's Cupboard. Do you remember Stephen Colbert's This Week in God segment from the early days of The Daily Show? Inspired by that idea, the hosts gather to reflect on a handful of recent stories from the world of religion. What on earth is happening with Christianity right now? And perhaps more importantly, what kind of faith are these stories inviting us towar...

What happens when we look back at the faith communities that shaped us and ask, Where are those people now? Have they remained where they started, or have their experiences led them somewhere unexpected? And what can we learn when we listen to the stories of those whose journeys have unfolded differently than our own? In this episode, we welcome Ken Best, therapist and longtime friend of Todd. The...

In this episode of Rector’s Cupboard, Allison, Amanda, and Ken sit down for a thoughtful and deeply human conversation about MAID — Medical Assistance in Dying in Canada. Drawing on Ken’s work as a Spiritual Health Practitioner at Lions Gate Hospital, we explore what MAID actually is, how the process works, and why it remains such a difficult and emotional topic for many people, especially within...

In this episode, we’re sharing a live recording from one of our Tasting Room Theology gatherings—informal, in-person evenings where we pair something tasty (in this case, doughnuts from Lucky’s Doughnuts ) with thoughtful theological reflection. We welcome you into a conversation exploring a short history of evangelicalism—where it came from, what shaped it, and why it continues to matter today. A...

Faith always has a public facet. It is lived out in the public sphere, in our day-to-day lives, our families and friendships, in those we encounter as we walk down the street, as we think about how the most vulnerable amongst us are treated and valued in society. We see this in the current interactions between religious and political leaders, as we touch on in our introductory conversation, and in...

Good Friday again. Jesus gives his life for the life of the world. The hosts of Rector’s Cupboard sit down to talk about Good Friday in the world today. What does Jesus’ sacrifice mean in the midst of all of this? So much spinning around, so many examples of a quest for power, even within religious circles. Meanwhile Jesus … Meanwhile Jesus gives his life for the life of the world. Relinquishing p...

When you think back on your religious past, are there memories that make you cringe or worse? Perhaps you recall speaking in ways that you now find upsetting or even abhorrent. Maybe it’s a youth group skit that you remember with embarrassment. For many people, there are more troubling aspects of their religious past. Looking back, we might realize that we were part of a high-control religious sys...

In this episode, the phrase “theology matters” is not a slogan but a warning. The ways we imagine God shape the ways we live in the world, how we see the world around, how we see the people around us. At the moment, political leaders are explaining a real military conflict in theological language. One side denounces religious fanaticism while, at the same time, voices within its own ranks speak ab...

If you grew up in the evangelical church you may know that there are particular ways of interpreting history in evangelical culture. That is, like any sub-culture, evangelicals tend to tell one another particular stories about the past. In most of those stories, Christians are cast as the good guys. If you want to grow in faith, in knowledge, it is advisable to consider history with a clear lens....

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. John Martens, Director of the Centre for Christian Engagement at St. Mark’s College at UBC, for a reflective conversation about faith, public life, and hope in a fractured world. Drawing on his Mennonite roots, his journey into the Catholic tradition, and years of teaching and scholarship, John reflects on how theology is shaped through lived experience, relat...

In this episode, we welcome back journalist and author Katherine Stewart, whose work has become a trusted guide for us as we continue to think about the intersection of politics, religion, and public life. Over the years, we’ve often found ourselves returning to her writing and asking, “What would Katherine say about this?” especially as stories emerge around Christian nationalism and the erosion...

The Cupboard is pleased to welcome back longtime friend, mentor, and Orthodox theologian David Goa for a reflective conversation about the recent rise in church attendance among young people, particularly within Orthodox Christian communities. We explore what might be happening beneath the surface of this trend—and why it evokes both hope and caution. David offers historical, theological, and past...

In this annual Christmas episode of Rector’s Cupboard, the cupboard is opened for seasonal tasting, spirited conversation, and a few holy disagreements. Over glasses of wintery mead, the hosts reflect on Christmas songs they love and those they would happily never hear again, exploring how nostalgia, repetition, and theology shape the sounds of the season. What begins lightheartedly soon deepens i...

We recently had a storytelling evening in our garage studio. In this episode, we share a recording from this event featuring writer and lawyer Jonathan Wright, host of the podcast Hello Unknown , which has just released its second season. Jonathan invites us into the hidden layers of the human experience through stories that blend history, imagination, and spiritual reflection. We heard two (and a...

In this episode, we’re joined by Tara Boothby, a registered clinical psychologist, working in BC and Alberta for nearly 20 years. She is an Experiential Attachment Focused Therapist and a certified Emotionally Focused Couples, Family, and Individual Therapist and Supervisor. She is also currently doing a second Master's degree at St. Stephen's University, where she is studying themes of theology,...

We are very happy to welcome back returning guest and friend of the podcast, Julian Davis Reid. Julian is a gifted writer, musician, speaker, theologian, and pastor and spoke with us about his new album, Vocation, in particular the song Moan: For Hearts of Flesh. Julian’s work is deep and thought provoking. It often walks a line between joy and pain, mixing the two together, demonstrating how one...

For the final instalment of our Alberta mini-series we visit Happiness by the Acre a regenerative farm run by Marcus and Sarah Reidner. Rector’s Cupboard met Marcus and Sarah three years ago and things were tough then in the farming world. We hear about what has changed since and about what the future might look like. You might not be a farmer, but you are likely familiar with the count-the-cost t...

You have likely noticed that hope is apparently in short supply these days. Talk of politics, rising authoritarianism, and political unrest reveals a present despair felt individually and collectively. Stories of effective hope can change the world. Land of Dreams  is changing the world for many people. Hearing the stories of this place might well inspire hope for you. Because someone had hope, th...

Rector’s Cupboard in Alberta, Canada. We set out on a road trip to visit some regenerative farmers we first met three years ago. In this episode, Todd and Allison and Amanda speak about the trip and about a visit to the Pine Haven Hutterite colony. It is the season of harvest, the autumn. Winter is coming. Looking at the skies and reading the news can bring about the feeling that an apocalypse is...

Welcome to season 7 of Rector’s Cupboard! Do you sometimes feel like all we do is talk about America? While many Canadians would see Canada as distinct from the States, we are influenced by our neighbours to the south. In Alberta, the provincial government is supporting the banning of books. Some of the political and religious currents in Canada look very similar to those in the United States. In...

In our final episode of season 6, we are pleased to speak with Angela Reitsma Bick , editor of Christian Courier and co-author of the newly released book Blessed Are the Undone, which explores faith deconstruction in the Canadian context. Angela joined us while in Vancouver on the national tour for the book, and we talked about why so many people in Canada are stepping away from church—and how we...

This is our third and final instalment of our series with Orthodox theologian and friend of the Cupboard, David Goa . This series has focused on the topic of fundamentalism, how it is expressed within the church, from several sides. If you haven’t listened to the first two episodes in this series, we’d encourage you to go back and take a listen to them before diving into this conversation. In toda...

This is the second of three conversations we had with friend of the Cupboard, David Goa , on the topic of fundamentalism. If you haven’t listened to part one, we’d encourage you to do so before diving into this conversation. In this conversation, Todd and David consider the question, If not fundamentalism, than what? David observes that our capacity for conversation, particularly with those with w...

You have likely heard, and perhaps said, that we live in a world that is very polarized. Too often, communities of faith have contributed to this polarization rather than offered help or healing to a divided world. David Goa has been, and continues to be, a formational voice for Rector’s Cupboard and for the work of Reflector Project. David has been running Philosopher Cafés in his home province o...

Those in Christian circles have likely spent many a Sunday morning sitting in a pew (or, perhaps, a more comfortable seat) listening to someone preach. While the length of sermon or its place in a service may vary from denomination to denomination, or pastor to pastor, the act of hearing the Word of God preached regularly is part of the Christian tradition. We were please to speak to Mark Glanvill...