The Living Church Podcast

Can you name the five senses? Now for all five of those senses, when's the last time an experience of worship full-throttle delighted you? Was it a special service, like Christmas, a special day, like your wedding day? Was it the first time you experienced the worship tradition you now call home? Has it been awhile?God loves our bodies, and God wants to engage us and delight us, every bit of us, in worship of him. How do we know God loves our bodies? And if Jesus' ministry was so concerned with bodies, why have Christians been so attracted to gnosticism? How can God's nonverbal communication skills help us with conflict? How do our bodies belong in worship, how do we know what to do with them? Where do we get the idea the quiet and stillness always mean reverence, and when might we need to shake that up?We welcome the Rev. Dr. W. David O. Taylor onto the show. David is associate professor of theology and culture at Fuller Theological Seminary, and has been an artist, a pastor, and a pastor to artists. As an Anglican priest, he has lectured on the arts, from Thailand to South Africa. In 2016 he produced a short film on the psalms with Bono and Eugene Peterson. You can find that film, his several books on theology, the arts, and worship, and collaborations with his artist wife, Phaedra, at wdavidotaylor.com. Today we'll be riffing on his work represented in his latest book, A Body of Praise: Understanding the Role of Our Physical Bodies in Worship.And you can find a review of his book in our latest issue of the magazine, August 2023. Subscribe now at livingchurch.org to enjoy that issue digitally today. Register for Preaching in a Post-Christian Age. Learn more about David Taylor's work.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Support the showJoin us in the Holy Land in 2024Today we are headed to the Republic of Texas to talk to the new rector of Church of the Incarnation in Dallas. He shared time with us from his new office to chat about inter-Anglican relationships and what he sees as signs of hope, how bread and butter daily ministry is both the past and future of the Church, and what gifts Anglican spirituality offers particularly to our moment. We also talk about how being influenced by other Christian traditions can shape the way we embrace our own and can help us be present as fruitful, non-anxious presences in the body of Christ.Before becoming rector of Incarnation, the Rev. Dr. Christopher Beeley served as the Director of the Anglican Episcopal House of Studies and the Jack and Barbara Bovender Professor of Theology, Anglican Studies and Ministry at Duke Divinity School. Before joining the Duke faculty, he taught for 16 years at Yale Divinity School. The author of several books, Christopher regularly consults on leadership and program development and speaks nationally and internationally on Christian theology, spirituality, and church leadership. Now find your biggest cowboy hat, and your copy of Julian of Norwich or Jeremy Taylor, and settle in. We hope you enjoy the conversation.Support the showJoin us in the Holy Land in 2024Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Support the showRegister for conference: Preaching in a Post-Christian Age.Join us in the Holy Land in 2024Emails. To-do lists. Doughnuts and coffee. In ministry, there are so many details, ordinary details, to attend to. We know they matter. But when ordinary details pile up, it may be time to step back and say, Something's gotta give. In Acts we have this wonderful story of the apostles realizing there was too much on their plates, and re-organizing the church with a group of deacons. Moral of that story? Delegation, efficiency, and task management can let you do more of the right things in the right way. And they can let the Holy Spirit do more, too.Today's episode is part 2 of an episode we aired last year with Fr. Aaron Zimmerman of St. Alban's Episcopal Church on executive functioning as a pastor. One of our listeners wrote in with some follow-up questions that I thought were great, about emails, time management, delegation, and stress. So I invited Aaron back on the show, along with the Rev. Canon Kimberley Pfeiler, who also knows a lot about keeping it together, staying sane, and trusting God when you're the one in charge. Fr. Aaron Zimmerman is rector at St. Alban's Episcopal Church in Waco, Texas. He is past President of the Board of Directors of Mockingbird Ministries and is currently the Dean for the Northwest Convocation of the Diocese of Texas, and co-hosts the Same Old Song lectionary podcast with the Rev. Jacob Smith.The Rev. Canon Kimberley Pfeiler is a church planter at St. Luke Medical District in Dallas, Texas, and ombudsman for the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others, where she develops training and policies to prevent abuse in the church. She serves as the chairman of the board for the Matthew 25 Inititative for Justice and Mercy, and as a bi-vocational priest, she is also vice president at NowVertical Group, which provides advanced analytics for enterprise clients.Whether you're putting down your to-do list for a moment, kicking up your feet on your desk with a second cup of joe, or multitasking like a boss while you listen, we hope you enjoy the conversation.Explore the Superhuman email training program Explore CalendlyExplore Brenee Brown's work on leadershipExplore the Calm app, Headspace app, or Tapping app Check out The One Thing: Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Support the showRegister for conference: Preaching in a Post-Christian Age.Join us in the Holy Land in 2024It is a delight to be with you in the first week of Pentecost.Many of you are artists, musicians, writers, lovers of beauty, literature, good poetry, a good pint or pipe. The combination of art, beauty, and Christian life is a fascinating and life-giving one, and one that's closely related to the work of Pentecost: the renewal of creation, and the bringing of everything good into God's own eternity.Today's guest is poet, priest, musician and motocyclist, Malcolm Guite. Though we had him on to talk about the threads of relationship between poetry and Pentecost, our conversation took us to many unplanned places, while still returning, interestingly, to the themes of Pentecost: language and breath, moving from isolation to integration, and how the creation itself, "undersprung" with music, longs to be tuned back to the note that Jesus played perfectly, once for all. The Rev. Dr. Malcolm Guite is an English poet, singer-songwriter, Anglican priest, and scholar. His research interests include the intersection of religion and the arts, the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Owen Barfield, and British poets such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was a Bye-Fellow and chaplain of Girton College, Cambridge, and associate chaplain of St. Edward King and Martyr, Cambridge. Please check out his books of poetry, they are rich mines of devotion and enjoyment, as well as his books on faith and theology (see the link below).As we go from the Tower of Babel to Beowulf, from Keats and Shelley to singing in tongues, we hope you enjoy the conversation.Check out books by Malcolm GuiteSupport the showAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Jonathan and David Beadle, brothers and Anglican priests, share their unique perspectives on church unity amid notable differences. They reflect on their charismatic upbringing and divergent paths into Anglicanism, emphasizing how structure and liturgy shape their ministries. The conversation dives into the implications of communion with Canterbury and the fragile nature of Anglican unity. With an eye on the future, they explore the hope for a renewed, peaceful American Anglicanism, urging patience and prayer during these complex times.

Support the showRegister for conference: Preaching in a Post-Christian Age. If you're new to the podcast, welcome, we are glad you're here at the Living Church Podcast, the only one of its kind created for pastors, teachers, interested lay people in the Episcopal Church, Anglican Communion, and beyond to equip, encourage, and entertain you so that your calling in God's Church feels a little easier, a little braver, a little more companioned.Today we are kicking off the month of May, traditionally known as Mary's month, with a trip to Kenya. Specifically, we are going to the office of Dr. Esther Mombo at St. Paul's University in Limuru, where she hosted us, along with one of her dissertation advisees, for a conversation on women in ministry in Kenya, and what their journeys have looked like.The struggles women in ministry have are common are remarkably similar across cultural contexts. We will talk about finding a call to church leadership, taking the bold step of telling others you've got a call, and then going through training, discernment, money questions and job openings, all while wondering how to balance dating, friendships, marriage, and motherhood. We will also discover just how important grandmas really are.Esther Mombo is associate professor in theology at St. Paul's University in Limuru, Kenya, with a specialty in church history, theologies from women’s perspectives, and interfaith relations. She works closely with the Programme for Christian and Muslim relations in Africa and is a member of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians. She has previously served on the Inter-Anglican Doctrinal and Theological Commission.Joining Esther is Makena Jackline. Makena is a doctoral student in the department of religious studies at St. Paul's University, in African theology and philosophy, with a concentration on gender and theology. She also serves as a youth minister and mentor in the Methodist Church.Now buckle up for a ride down the still-pretty-bumpy path of women's discernment and ministry calling. As we will see, where God calls, he always shows the way. We hope you enjoy the conversation. Support the showRegister for conference: Preaching in a Post-Christian Age. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

In this engaging discussion, Amy Peeler, a New Testament scholar and ordained priest, dives into her book, *Women and the Gender of God*. She explores how gender shapes our relationship with the divine, particularly through the lens of the Virgin Mary's significance. Amy shares insights on her interdisciplinary class about Mary, the importance of inclusive language relating to God, and the need for ecumenical dialogue. The conversation highlights how these themes can enrich worship and foster a deeper sense of belonging for women in faith communities.

Become a special monthly podcast supporter! Click here to support the show.Meditating on the Passion, on the Lord's suffering for us, we often recall times and places of other suffering -- in our own hearts, our lives, the lives of others. Several weeks ago, I was introduced to a woman who has seen what it's like for God to bear witness to himself in the life and sufferings of his people in profound ways across borders: borders of nationality and religious tradition; across the lines of sinner and saint, priest and prostitute. These stories are about some of God's people living at the border of Mexico and the U.S., and how a New Mexico photographer and writer found herself, over and over, involved in the work, the suffering, the questions and prayers of folks in a small town called Palomas. These stories are also about how God works in and through the wounds of our lives as we meet very similar wounds in our neighbors. How do the marks of violence and pain become doors to grace?My guest is Victoria Tester. Victoria is a Third Order Franciscan and a member of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Coleman, Texas. She is a poet and playwright and a recipient of awards that include an Academy of American Poets prize and a Willa Cather Literary Award. She has also worked as a photographer and founded the San Isidro Bean Project which, in a time of famine, made over a million meals possible in cooperation with a family farm.We hope you enjoy the conversation.--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/living-church/supportAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Become a special monthly podcast supporter! Click here and then click Support.Welcome to the final episode of Lent in 2023. We are going to hear from 7 guests about their take on some aspect of the words of Our Lord's prayer: forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. The forgiveness of debts -- especially as it applies to the lives of Christian leaders -- how do we make forgiveness a habit? Call for forgiveness in communities after atrocity and hurt? Cultivate forgiveness from the heart? Know when we need to offer it, especially among the daily slings and arrows of church administration, expectations, and daily drama. We'll talk about the forgiveness of ancestral wrongs, and how forgiveness is possible in the midst of social injustice. And how about forgiving literal debt? Anyone up for that? How might Jesus' shepherding of us, his gentle call to forgiveness, pervade all these areas of our lives, and gain ground for grace, and for his glory?I had the joy of speaking to each of these guests:Dr. Nigel Biggar, theologian, ethicist, and author of Colonialism: A Moral Reckoning; regius professor of moral and pastoral theology at the University of Oxford; and director of the McDonald Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Life. The Rev. Dr. Cheryl Bridges Johns, visiting professor at United Theological Seminary and director of their global Pentecostal House of Studies.The Rt. Rev. Dhiloraj Canagasabey, Bishop of Colombo in Sri Lanka and former Presiding Bishop of the Church of Ceylon.The Rev. Stephen Crawford, rector of St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Franklin, Louisiana.The Rt. Rev. Todd Hunter, church planter and Bishop of the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others in the Anglican Church in North America.The Rev. David Sibley, rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Walla Walla, Washington, and -- I'm sorry David I had to add -- four-time Jeopardy champion.And the Rev. Rachel Taber-Hamilton, Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Everett, Washington, and Vice President of the House of Deputies of the Episcopal Church.Hold on tight to your purple stoles. Forgiveness can be a bumpy ride. But it's one the Lord promises to bless us and help us on.--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/living-church/supportAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Become a special monthly podcast supporter! Click here and then click Support.I was never very good at limbo. I remember repeated forced limbo games in school, on spirit days or athletics days, or the occasional picnic. The attempt to sincerely try to get as low as you could go, in front of everybody -- well, the chances of failure seemed too high for my pride. I was gangly, averse to physical embarrassment. So instead of really trying, I made a goofy show of failing. If I couldn't win, I'd make people laugh. I'd flail my arms and knock down the pole. They couldn't make me go low. My little form of protest. My little version of perfectionism.Mockingbird Ministries director, David Zahl, has just released a book called Low Anthropology, in hopes of reaching a perfectionism-saturated Western culture with the grace and love of God. The life God has for us -- of joy, peace, and yes, righteousness, becoming better at being human, begin and subsist, first and always, in humility and a realistic view of ourselves and others. If that book could have spoken to my limbo-evading self, it might say, "Enough with the pretense dear, goofy, misguided child of God. You're going to fail. You're going to look stupid and be ridiculous. You're going to do it wrong. It's not about how low you can go. You're human -- you're already pretty low. The difference is, do you want to go through this with grace? And have some genuine laughs along the way?"David Zahl is founder and director of Mockingbird Ministries and editor-in-chief of the Mockingbird website. David also serves on the staff of Christ Episcopal Church, Charlottesville, Virginia, as college and adult education minister. He is the author of A Mess of Help: From the Crucified Soul of Rock N’ Roll; Seculosity: How Career, Parenting, Technlogy, Food, Politics, and Romance Became Our New Religion and What To Do About It; and his newest book is, of course, Low Anthropology: The Unlikely Key to a Gracious View of Others (and Yourself).Our interviewer is the Rev. Zac Koons, rector of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Austin, Texas.A word about our human plight is, through Jesus, always a word of hope. And we hope you enjoy the conversation.Check out Low Anthropology: The Unlikely Key to a Gracious View of Others (and Yourself).--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/living-church/supportAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands