The Reformed Journal Podcast

In this episode of the poetry edition of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma interviews Ryan Keating about his poem “Jesus Heals a Paralytic.” Ryan is a writer, teacher, and pastor on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. His work can be found in publications such as Saint Katherine Review, Ekstasis Magazine, Amethyst Review, Macrina Magazine, Fathom, Fare Forward, Roi Fainéant, and Funicular....

In this episode of the poetry edition, Steven Peterson talks about his poem “Summer Drums.” Steven writes poems and plays in Chicago. A selection of his poems are in the anthology Taking Root in the Heart (Paraclete Press, 2023). His recent poems appear in Alabama Literary Review, The Christian Century, Dappled Things, First Things, Reformed Journal, and elsewhere. His plays have been produced aro...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Haley Hodges Schmid about her poem “Known.” Haley is an MFA (Poetry) candidate at Seattle Pacific University. She holds qualifications from Hope College, Shenandoah Conservatory, and Oxford University. Her work has been published in Cassandra Voices and Ekstasis Magazine. Recent projects also include The Gun Mass, an international colla...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Matthew Pullar about his poem “Vespers.” Matthew is a teacher and writer based in Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of three collections of poetry. You can read “Vespers” on reformedjournal.com.

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Bethany Besteman about her poem “Parable of the Lost.” Bethany works as a worship coordinator and a church administrator for Silver Spring CRC in Maryland. She's also the intake editor for Reformed Worship. You can read “Parable of the Lost” at reformedjournal.com.

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews LC Gutierrez about his poem “A Recovered Alcoholic-Addict Talks of Grace.” LC is a product of many places in the South and the Caribbean, as well as writing and comparative literature programs at Louisiana State and Tulane University. An erstwhile academic, he now writes, teaches and plays trombone in Madrid, Spain. His work is publishe...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Jo Taylor about her poem, “How to Reconcile with a Brother.” Jo is a retired, 35-year English teacher from Georgia. Her favorite genre to teach high school students was poetry, and today she dedicates more time to writing it, her major themes focused on family, place, and faith. She says she writes to give testimony to the past and to h...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Cody Adams on his poem “Be Killing Sin.” Cody is an English teacher from Buffalo, NY. His poetry has appeared in Ekstasis Magazine, Heart of Flesh, Cacti Fur, among others. He received the 2016 Clarence Amann award for his short story Unstuck. He also serves as a Board Member for Forefront Festival.

In this episode of the Poetry Edition of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma interviews Lynn Domina about her poem “Above the Tree Line.” Lynn is the author of 3 collections of poetry and a professor at Northern Michigan University. Her articles have appeared in  Studies in American Indian Literature, a/b: Auto/Biography Studies,  and other academic journals and edited collections. She lives...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews DS Martin about his poem Love Like an Ocean (Metaphysicals XIV) inspired by one of John Donne’s Holy Sonnets. Don is a widely published poet and the Poet-in-Residence at McMaster Divinity College. He's also a series editor for the Poiema Poetry Series. You can listen to other poems in this series in The Reformed Journal Podcast. You...

In this episode of the Poetry Edition, Rose Postma interviews Josiah Cox about his poem “Everything That Rises.” Josiah is a writer, editor, and educator from Kansas City, Missouri. He holds an MAR from Yale Divinity School and an MFA from The Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University, where he currently serves as a junior lecturer. He has served editorial roles with various journals and presse...

In this episode of the Poetry Edition, Rose Postma interviews Paul J. Willis about his poem “Oversight.” Paul is a retired professor of English from Westmont College and the author of several collections of poetry. His most recent poetry collection is Somewhere to Follow . His newest project is entitled A Radiant Birth: Advent Reading for a Bright Season , which he co-edited and is published by In...

On the last episode of the holiday special by James C. Schaap, author and retired English professor, he reads "Somewhere in the Judean Hills." Today, the youngest shepherd in the hills is the one directed to stay behind with the sheep when the others go to Bethlehem.

In this episode of the Poetry Edition, Rose Postma interviews Eric Potter about his poem “Advent: A Crown of Sonnets.” Eric is the author of several chapbooks and poetry collections , including “Things Not Seen.” He is also a professor of English at Grove City College, where he teaches courses in modern poetry, American literature, and creative writing.

On the third episode of the holiday special by James C. Schaap, author and retired English professor, James reads the “Shroud of Turin.” Today, a holiday visit to her daughter’s family— far, far away— stresses a recently-widowed grandma who wants, more than anything, for her beloved family not to forget the child come to earth for those he loves.

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Lory Widmer Hess about her poem "Announcement." Lory is an American currently living with her family in Switzerland. She works with adults with developmental disabilities and is in training as a spiritual director. Her publication credits include  Parabola ,  Amethyst Review , and  Ekstasis,  and her book  When Fragments Make...

On the second episode of the holiday special by James C. Schaap, author and retired English professor, James shares “Testimony.” Today, an arrogant artist who proudly calls himself elitist agrees to narrate the simple holiday program at his church, and is startled to find himself on his knees on Christmas Eve.

This is the first episode of the holiday special by James C. Schaap, author and retired English professor. Today, an eighth grader, fed up with smarmy Sunday School Christmas programs, races home to find a baby Jesus doll, only to discover, slowly, something she had never pondered about the gift in the manger.

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Nathaniel Schmidt about his poem “Anti-Hero,” based on Matthew 26:52. Nathaniel A. Schmidt is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church of North America and serves as a hospice and hospital chaplain. He holds degrees from Calvin Theological Seminary, Calvin University, and The University of Illinois, Springfield. His newest...

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Mary Grace Mangano about her poem “Desert Eyes.” Mary Grace has worked as a middle and high school English teacher in several major cities and has published freelance and creative writing. She received her MFA in Creative Writing at the University of St. Thomas in Houston as an inaugural Gioia Family Fellowship recipient and as a member...

In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma interviews Patricia L. Hamilton about her poem “Sarah, Long Suffering.” Patricia is a professor of English at Union University and the author of The Distance to Nightfall. She won the Rasch Award in Poetry in 2015 and 2017 and has received three Pushcart nominations.

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Rev. Dr. Harold J. Recinos about his poem “Butterfly.” Harold is professor of church and society at the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. A cultural anthropologist, he specializes in work and ethnographic writing dealing with undocumented Central American migrants and the Salvadoran diaspora. He has published...

In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, book review editor Deb Van Duinen interviews Jennifer Holberg, professor of English and department chair at Calvin University, co-director of Calvin's Center for Faith and Writing, and frequent writer for the Reformed Journal. Jennifer discusses her recently published book, Nourishing Narratives: The Power of Story to Shape Our Faith .

In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Bill Stadick about his poem “Nominal APR as Call to Worship, or the Glorious Application of the Immutable Rule of 72 to the Words of the Prophet.” Bill has published poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction in  The Christian Century ,  The Windhover ,  Relief Journal, The Ekphrastic Review ,  First Things  and other publications. His poe...

In this episode of the Poetry Edition, Rose Postma interviews Julie L. Moore about her poem “Harlem Sunday.” A Best of the Net and eight-time Pushcart Prize nominee, Julie is the author of four poetry collections, including, most recently,  Full Worm Moon , which won a 2018 Woodrow Hall Top Shelf Award and received honorable mention for the Conference on Christianity and Literature's 2018 Book...