The Two Cities

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Karen Swallow Prior, the 2025–2026 Karlson Scholar at Bethel Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the author of several books, including You Have a Calling: Finding Your Vocation in the True, Good, and Beautiful (Brazos). Over the course of our conversation, we talk about the difference between passion and calling, and how pursuing the transcendentals of the...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Mario Baghos, who is Senior Lecturer in Theology at the University of Notre Dame Australia. He's the owner of the YouTube channel, TERRA SYMBOLICA, and the author of a recent peer-reviewed essay on Orphic legends and Descent into Hades themes in the hit TV show, Twin Peaks. In our conversation, Dr. Baghos brilliantly and breathlessly surveys the full swath of T...

In this episode we're joined by Revd Dr Mike Bird, who is Deputy Principal and academic lecturer in theology at Ridley College, Melbourne. He's also the author of numerous books, including the book we're discussing here, the 10th anniversary edition of What Christians Ought to Believe: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine through the Apostle's Creed (published by Zondervan Academic). In our conve...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Zach Wagner, who recently completed his DPhil at the University of Oxford, to talk about his new book, Men of Virtue: How the Fruit of the Spirit Forms Male Character in the Modern World (published by Brazos). In our conversation we talk about how the Fruit of the Spirit relates to virtues, whether the virtues are gendered, and what the Fruit of the Spirit look...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Elisabeth Lefebvre (associate professor of Education at Bethel University in Saint Paul, MN) and Dr. Kristin VanEyk (assistant professor of English Education at Hope College in Holland, MI). Together, they are the editors of the new book, Purpose & Joy: Pursuing a Meaningful Career in Christian Higher Education (published by Abilene Christian University Pre...

In this episode, we're joined by Haejin and Makoto Fujimura. Together they're the authors of Beauty & Justice: Creating a Life of Abundance and Courage  (published by Brazos). Haejin Shim Fujimura is a lawyer, entrepreneur, speaker, and strategist whose work bridges justice, beauty, and cultural transformation. She is the founding attorney of Shim & Associates, a law firm rooted in cu...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. T. Christopher Hoklotubbe, who is associate professor of indigenous theological studies at Bexley Seabury Seminary in Chicago and NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community, and Dr. H. Daniel Zacharias, who is associate dean and professor of New Testament studies at Acadia Divinity College, and an adjunct faculty for NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community. Toge...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Bo Lim, who is professor of Old Testament at Seattle Pacific University in Seattle, Washington, and the author of Contextual Theological Interpretation: An Integrated Model for Reading the Bible (published by Baker Academic). In the course of our conversation we talk about the value and importance of contextualizing our interpretations of scripture to our theol...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Elizabeth Backfish (PhD, Trinity International University), who is associate professor of biblical studies at William Jessup University, and Dr. Cynthia Shafer-Elliott (PhD, University of Sheffield), who is associate professor of Hebrew Bible / Old Testament at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. And together they're the authors of Grounded Theology in the Hebrew...

In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Jennifer Matheny, who is associate professor of Christian Scriptures at George W. Truett Seminary, Baylor University, in Waco, Texas, and the author of Hesed, the Seed of the Biblical Story: New Life for Old Testament Theology (published by Baker Academic). As we discuss, the term Hesed is notoriously difficult to translate, but by situating its variegated...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Andrew Remington Rillera, who is assistant professor of biblical studies and theology at The King's University in Edmonton, Alberta, in Canada, and the author of Lamb of the Free: Recovering the Varied Sacrificial Understandings of Jesus's Death (Cascade). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss what the sacrificial death of Jesus means in the NT, how i...

In this episode, we’re joined by Professor Andrew Root, who is Professor and Carrie Olson Baalson Chair of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, MN. He’s the author of several books, including: Baal and the gods of More: Rescuing Church Growth from Idolatry (published by Baker Academic). In our conversation, we discuss how capitalism has co-opted church growth discussions and...

In this episode, we're joined by Prof. Cor Bennema, Professor of New Testament at London School of Theology and the author of Imitation in Early Christianity: Mimesis and Religious-Ethical Formation (published by Eerdmans). Prof. Bennema talks about the distinctives of mimesis relative to other kinds of ethical formation/development, and where early Christianity is situated relative to mimesis in...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Max Botner, associate professor of New Testament at Jessup University, host of the On the Way podcast, and the author of How Then Shall We Read? A Student's Guide to Interpreting the New Testament (published by Eerdmans). Over the course of our conversation, we talk about how Dr. Botner's book compares to other primers on interpretation and how his book emphasi...

In this episode, we indulge in a little April Fool's fun by discussing the best worst movies we've ever seen, and why we absolutely love to watch them ironically and in some cases even unironically. Team members on the episode from The Two Cities include: Dr. John Anthony Dunne, Dr. Brandon Hurlbert, and Rev. Dr. Chris Porter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we're joined by Professor, James F. McGrath, who is Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, and the author of the book that we're discussing in this episode, Beyond Deconstruction: Building a More Expansive Faith (published by Eerdmans). In our conversation, Prof. McGrath says about his own journey of deconstruction and how he wanted...

In this episode, we're joined by Prof. Kelly M. Kapic (PhD, King's College, University of London), who is Professor of Theological Studies at Covenant College, and the author of several books, including the book that we're discussing in this episode, Christian Life (as part of the New Studies in Dogmatics series published by Zondervan Academic). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss Kell...

In this episode we're joined by Dr. Preston Sprinkle, who hosts the Theology in the Raw podcast and is the author of From Genesis to Junia: An Honest Search for What the Bible Really Says About Women in Leadership (published by David Cook). In our conversation we talk about what caused Dr. Sprinkle to change his mind on this topic, and we discuss several key issues and passages related to the topi...

In this episode we're joined by Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Dr. Jeannine Brown, New Testament professors at Bethel Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, to talk about their new book, The Greatest Story Ever Retold: Jesus Narratives From Gospels to Film (with Baker Academic). As we discuss, Drs. Dunne and Brown share how Jesus films provide an external vantage point for thinking about the hermeneutical...

In this episode, we're joined by Prof. Andrew Crislip, who is Blake Chair in the History of Christianity at Virginia Commonwealth University, and the author of Emotion in Early Christianity (published by Eerdmans). In our conversation, Prof. Crislip talks with us about what emotions really are, what early Christians thought about five key emotions, and how that thinking evolved within the first fi...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Ryan Collman, who is Associate Supervisor at Westcott House, Cambridge, and tutor in New Testament at the University of London, as well as the author of The Apostle to the Foreskin: Circumcision in the Letters of Paul (De Gruyter), which won the Lautenschlaeger Award in 2023. In our conversation, we talk about circumcision in the letters of Paul with reference...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Ruben Bühner, who is a postdoctoral researcher for New Testament Studies at the University of Zurich and the University of Bonn, and the author of Negotiating Jewishness: Paul’s Ethnicity Between Continuity and Discontinuity (Baylor University Press). Over the course of our conversation, we talk about key passages in the interpretation of Paul that relate to ma...

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Ian Mills, who is Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics and Religious Studies at Hamilton College and the author of The Hypothesis of the Gospels: Narrative Traditions in Hellenistic Reading Culture (Fortress Press). Over the course of our conversation, we talk about how ancient readers understood the variation in Gospel production as writing on a common hyp...

In this episode, we're joined by Pastor Stephanie Williams O'Brien to talk about the realities of what's happening in Minnesota with the immigration enforcement agency known as I.C.E., and how Christians should respond to the situation. Pastor Steph is Lead Pastor of Mill City Church in Northeast Minneapolis, the co-host with Jo Saxton of the Lead Stories podcast, and author of two books, Stay Cur...

In this episode, Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Dr. Kris Song of The Two Cities team introduce their new book for the pop culture and theology series published by Bloomsbury on the TV show, Twin Peaks. The volume is called Theology, Religion, and Twin Peaks (w/ Bloomsbury). In the episode, we're joined by five of the contributors to the volume, and we each talk about our respective essays. The guests...