Our Church Speaks

To celebrate All Saints' Day, we're releasing a bonus episode of Our Church Speaks, introducing one of church history's most inspiring early saints, Margaret of Antioch.NEW: Preorder our new book ("Our Church Year"), due for release in 2027. Art by Ben Lansing. Order art prints and learn more about Our Church Speaks at www.ourchurchspeaks.com.

In our final episode of Church History 101, we discuss the dynamics of the global church in the 21st century and the direction that global Christianity may take in the future.NEW: Preorder our new book ("Our Church Year"), due for release in 2027. Art by Ben Lansing. Order art prints and learn more about Our Church Speaks at www.ourchurchspeaks.com.

Ben and Dan trace church history through recent centuries, discussing how the rise of secularism led to both challenges and opportunities for the Christian church. NEW: Preorder our new book ("Our Church Year"), due for release in 2027. Art by Ben Lansing. Order art prints and learn more about Our Church Speaks at www.ourchurchspeaks.com.

A lively survey of 18th–20th century revivals and the movements they sparked. Stories of Wesley, Whitefield, and Moravians highlight shifts in preaching and practice. Discussion covers evangelical convictions, camp meetings, altar calls, and how revival energy fueled abolition, temperance, missions, and civil rights. The conversation closes with reflection on repentance and spiritual preparation.

A lively tour of the Reformation era and its major players. They recount Tetzel’s indulgence controversy and Luther’s 95 theses leading to excommunication. Printing press technology and vernacular Bibles transforming lay access to scripture. How religious reform morphed into political conflict and wars. Catholic counter-reforms, global missions, and the long cultural shift toward personal religious choice.

A lively tour of 11th–16th century Western Christianity and the forces that fueled reform. They unpack scholasticism, monastic renewal, and the 1054 East–West split. Topics include papal claims, crusades, Latin liturgy exclusion, the Black Death's upheaval, and early calls for vernacular scripture and reform. Printing and political corruption round out the medieval crisis narrative.

A lively tour of how Christian unity splintered into Eastern and Western communions, zeroing in on the pivotal year 1054. They trace political shifts, papal power, and the controversial filioque addition to the creed. The conversation highlights authority disputes, mutual excommunications, and modern gestures toward reconciliation.

Ben and Dan discuss the importance of the monastic movement to the course of church history and to their own lives and devotional practices. | More about the Our Church Speaks book and the Our Church Speaks project at ourchurchspeaks.com. Please rate, review, and share our podcast - it means a lot to us!

Continuing their survey of church history, Ben and Dan discuss the ecumenical church councils, what they accomplished, and which myths and urban legends about them need to be corrected. More about the Our Church Speaks book and the Our Church Speaks project at ourchurchspeaks.com. Please rate, review, and share our podcast - it means a lot to us!

A lively tour of early Christian persecution from Nero's scapegoating to Diocletian's 303 crackdown. They unpack rumors that fueled violence, the shift from apostolic to episcopal leadership, and how martyrdom shaped worship and memory. Stories like the 40 Martyrs of Sebaste illustrate courage. The conversation closes by connecting ancient witness to modern acts of sacrificial faith.