Tent Talks with Dr Stephen Backhouse

The fifth of a series on the Sermon on the Mount. Should followers of Jesus swear oaths and pledges of allegiance? What if it is to the Queen or to the bishop as an act of obedience? Stephen weighs in on what Jesus has to say on the matter as we focus on Matthew 5:33-37. Thanks to Jon and the Dig Deeper team of St Luke's Church for allowing us to release these recordings! Has anything we make been...

Chris Marchand is an Anglican priest and church music leader from Peoria, Illinois in the USA. He also teaches history and literature classes at Schole Academy, an online Classical Christian school. He has just released Gentle Spacemakers an album of the music he's written for the Tent Talks podcast (which also includes the theme song for The Hyphen, Stephen's other podcast). You can stream or dow...

The fourth of a series on the Sermon on the Mount. In this episode we focus on Matthew 5:27-32 and Jesus's teachings on lust and adultery. In this passage we see that the heart of Jesus's message was a concern about broken relationships, that sin is always a communal event, and that seemingly harsh teachings like this one were about protecting our own souls as well as the vulnerable among us. Than...

An extra episode offering some reflections on the war in Ukraine and the Way of Jesus in response to listener questions. Gracie and Bob Ekblad's writing and work can be found HERE . Tearfund is HERE . Red Letter Christians are HERE . Christian Peacemaker Teams are HERE .

Dr Selina Stone is Tutor and Lecturer in Theology at St Mellitus College in London. Her doctorate was on ‘Holy Spirit, Holy Bodies?: Pentecostalism, Pneumatology and the Politics of Embodiment’. Dr Stone’s research and teaching focus on the themes of politics, power and social justice, which she began exploring as a practitioner while working as a community organiser and programme director at the...

The third of a series on the Sermon on the Mount. In this episode we focus on Matthew 5:17-26 and discuss how Christ himself fulfills the law, how we can apply the difficult to translate word "raca" to how we treat each other, and what we can learn from Jesus's reference to "Gehenna." Thanks to Jon and the Dig Deeper team of St Luke's Church for allowing us to release these recordings! Has anythin...

Mohammed Girma is a Christian scholar and advocate who works all over the world in peacemaking and leadership development, He is a lecturer at the University of Roehampton in London and international advocacy officer at the International Bible Advocacy Centre. Girma has held visiting research and lecture positions at the London School of Theology, the University of Pretoria and Yale University. He...

The second of a series on the Sermon on the Mount. In this episode we look at The Beatitudes and the beginning of the Sermon from Matthew 5:1-16. Thanks to Jon and the Dig Deeper team of St Luke's Church for allowing us to release these recordings! Has anything we make been interesting, useful or fruitful for you? You can support us by becoming a Fellow Traveller on our Patreon page HERE .

Jared Byas is the co-host of The Bible For Normal People podcast and the author of Love Matters More. But we hardly talk about any of those things and instead get stuck into a conversation about power, authenticity, and staying positive in a toxic world! Nietzsche gets name-dropped and Kierkegaard makes an appearance or three. You can find Jared's podcasts and books HERE . Has anything we make bee...

The first of a series on the Sermon on the Mount. In this episode we look at the beginning and the end of the Sermon, as well as Matthew 4 which sets the context. Thanks to Jon and the Dig Deeper team of St Luke's Church for allowing us to release these recordings! Has anything we make been interesting, useful or fruitful for you? You can support us by becoming a Fellow Traveller on our Patreon pa...

Carolyn Mackie, researcher and academic, is an expert on the connections between Incarnation and anthropology in the writings of Søren Kierkegaard. She joins the Tent to discuss one of her latest published pieces: an exploration of how Kierkegaard's attack on 19th c. Danish Christendom and the post-holocaust writing of the German Hannah Arendt can help us resist the populist enthusiasms of our pre...

Dr Jason Byassee is a wise, funny and kind man who knows a thing or two about a thing or two, especially when it comes to the future of old institutions and being a Follower in this present age. He is a professor at the Vancouver School of Theology, a prolific author and the editor of one of Tent's very favourite books! You can find all you need to know about Jason and his work HERE . Has anything...

Lisa Sharon Harper is an activist, speaker and prolific, award winning author who joins the Tent to talk about her latest, Fortune: How Race Broke My Family and the World and How to Repair It All. You can find out more about Lisa and her work, and more about how to order "Fortune" HERE . Has anything we make been interesting, useful or fruitful for you? You can support us by becoming a Fellow Trav...

Mark Charles is the son of a Navajo father and a Dutch-American mother. He is an activist, speaker, and author on Native American issues. In 2019, Mark published "Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery" with co-author Prof. Soong-Chan Rah. In 2020 he was an independent candidate for President of the United States.  If everyone in America who called themsel...

You can stream or purchase  a high quality version of the song at Chris's Bandcamp page or purchase his Christmas EP from 2020 (which also includes the song).  Has anything we make been interesting, useful or fruitful for you? You can support us by becoming a Fellow Traveller on our Patreon page HERE .

The full video for "I moved from one South Africa to another" can be found HERE Common Hymnal is HERE More about Naomi Tutu HERE Has anything we make been interesting, useful or fruitful for you? You can support us by becoming a Fellow Traveller on our Patreon page HERE .

The video for the song "215" can be found here , which features numerous Canadian musicians, including Steve Bell, a former guest on the podcast. You can discover Brian's music through any streaming platform or purchase it directly through his website . You can find out more info about Cheryl Bear, who co-wrote the song with Brian, on her website . Has anything we make been interesting, useful or...

Chris's talk is in part based on his book Celebrating the 12 Days of Christmas: A guide for churches and families, which can be purchased through most book outlets . Chris has also released a couple of albums of Christmas music, one electronic instrumental and one more traditional .  This is the first of two episodes on resting at Christmas, The second will be made available to Patreon subscribers...

Magical thinking has not disappeared from the modern political imagination. Politics is not called the ‘dark arts’ for nothing. Wherever one finds groups and individuals intent on forcing their agenda through the system, silencing their opponents, or decimating their foes with lethal violence, one finds shades of black magic. In service of getting what they want, who among us is not averse to mani...

Danielle Strickland is well known to many listeners of Tent and friend to many friends of the show. We talk about building tiny homes, dealing with the principality of the nuclear family, bursting celebrity bubbles, and how the politics of power affects men and women differently. Lots of Good stuff here for people learning to live well in a world that has lost its tiny mind! Danielle is an author,...

We interrupt regular programming while Stephen responds to listener questions about Remembrance Day, Veterans Day, Poppies, and memorialising war.  Most of the Tent theology and bible teaching will touch on matters of war, violence and peace in some way. Most of the guests on the programme are also committed to non-violence as a way of life and thought. The following episodes are particularly rele...

"Love in action is listening to understand, not to react." Long time listeners to Tent will know Sean McCoy as a friend, inspiration and occasional co-host of the show. His daughters can be heard beginning and ending every episode. Sean hails from Texas, has served time in the armed services and the oil and gas industry, has been a proud patriot and gun-owner and an enthusiastic American nationali...

New Testament scholar Scot McKnight and his daughter Laura Barringer join the Tent to discuss their book A Church Called Tov. Though it initially focuses on toxic church environments, abusive church leaders, and the people who enable them, the book is primarily a call for our communities to be transformed into families devoted to goodness as we seek—to use McKnight's word—Christoformity together....

Dr. Chris Green thinks more deeply and more wonderfully on race, justice and pentecostalism than anyone you know. He is a prolific author and professor of Public Theology at Southeastern University. Rev. Kenneth Tanner is a priest, theologian, wise guide and kind colleague to many friends of Tent (including amongst others Brad Jersak and Brian Zahnd). Kenneth and Chris meet regularly for theologic...

Terry M. Wildman (Ojibwe and Yaqui) is the lead translator, general editor, and project manager of the brilliant First Nations Version of the New Testament.  He serves as the director of spiritual growth and leadership development for Native InterVarsity. He is also the founder of Rain Ministries and has previously served as a pastor and worship leader. He and his wife, Darlene, live in Arizona. M...