The Reluctant Theologian Podcast

Today I am joined by Dr. Kimberly Kroll. We are talking about the Christian doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Christian theology claims that the Holy Spirit indwells believers, but the history of Christian thought has not made it clear what that actually means. Kim recently finished her PhD dissertation at the University of St Andrews on the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. In today’s episode, we will discuss some of the key claims of the doctrine, and explore some different models of indwelling that have been developed by William Alston. In the next episode, Kim and I will chat about the work of Eleonor Stump, as well as Kim’s own model of indwelling. You can find out more about Kim's work on the Holy Spirit here.  Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium  for Advanced Studies. Guest: Kim Kroll (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a lecturer in literature at the Stony Brook School.  Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

Today I am joined by Dr. Scott Williams from the University of North Carolina. We are talking about a new book he edited called Disability in Medieval Christian Philosophy and Theology. Scott gives us an overview of the book, and some of the motivations for putting together this volume. Then we chat about a series of questions related to personhood and disability. What are some different conceptions of personhood? Do certain conceptions of personhood lead towards ablism? Can medieval understandings of personhood help us better promote the moral status of disabled individuals? Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium  for Advanced Studies.  Guest: Scott Williams (PhD, Oxford University), is assistant professor of philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Ashville.  Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

In today’s episode, Dr. Ema Sani and I finish the chat about my brand new book God and Emotion through Cambridge University Press. In this episode, we discuss the final chapter of the book, which covers passibility and the problem of creepy emotions. Given omnisubjectivity, God feels everything that you feel. Do you really want God feeling absolutely everything that you feel? That might be kind of creepy. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium for Advanced Studies. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

In today’s episode, Dr. Ema Sani and I continue the chat about my brand new book God and Emotion through Cambridge University Press. In this episode, we discuss chapters 4 and 5 of the book, which covers the divine emotions of love and wrath. Ema and I ask a series of questions and consider several objections to both impassibility and passibility. We look at objections which say that the God of classical theism cannot satisfy its own understanding of divine love and wrath. We also consider objections against passibility which claim that an empathetic God cannot be a perfect moral judge. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium for Advanced Studies. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

In today’s episode, Dr. Ema Sani and I continue the chat about my brand new book God and Emotion through Cambridge University Press. In this episode, we discuss chapters 2 and 3 of the book, which covers classical theism and neoclassical theism. We get into all sorts of material that didn’t get into the book, so you will definitely want to hear this. Ema and I discuss the general idea of models of God and their relation to philosophy and theology.  We also talk about the role of empathy in the debate over impassibility vs passibility. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium for Advanced Studies. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

In today’s episode, Dr. Ema Sani and I chat about my brand new book God and Emotion through Cambridge University Press. In this episode, we discuss the first two chapters of the book, which cover the history of the debate over impassibility, and an introduction to the philosophy of emotions. In the next three episodes, we discuss the arguments of the remaining chapters.  Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a senior research fellow at the University of Helsinki's Collegium for Advanced Studies. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

On a very special episode of The Reluctant Theologian Podcast, I share some different stories that compelled me to write my new book, "God and Emotion." In future episodes, I will go through some of the arguments of the book, but in this episode I explain how deeply personal this topic is to everyone. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a research fellow at the University of Edinburgh's Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

Aseity is one of those words that theologians love to throw around, but what does it mean? Is aseity the same thing as necessary existence? And what are the reasons for thinking that an a se being exists? In today’s episode, I sit down with Chad McIntosh to discuss the doctrine of aseity in all its glorious detail. We get into the principle of sufficient reason and cosmological arguments. We also chat about the implications of aseity for debates over the Trinity and divine simplicity. Chad gives us some spicy takes on simplicity that I am sure you won’t want to miss. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a research fellow at the University of Edinburgh's Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities. Guest: Chad McIntosh (PhD, Cornell University). Check out his blog.  Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

If you were listening to the last episode, you heard my conversation with Aku Visala on the imago dei, cognitive science, and free will. In today’s episode, we pick up the conversation on free will. We ask if free will is compatible with divine determinism, and consider some different debates in theology between Martin Luther and Erasmus. We also look at some of the evidence from cognitive science about the role of belief in free will in our moral and social behavior. This episode also contains the ever popular popcorn round. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a research fellow at the University of Edinburgh's Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities. Guest: Aku Visala (PhD, University of Helsinki) is a research fellow at the Finnish Academy, the University of Helsinki. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com

Christian theology says that humans are made in the image of God. But what does that mean? Does it mean that we are rational beings with free will? And what is free will anyway? In today’s episode, I sit down with Aku Visala to chat about human nature and free will. Aku tells us about different understandings of the image of God and human freedom. He also tells us what recent proposals in cognitive science have to say about human freedom and rationality. Credits: Host: R.T. Mullins (PhD, University of St Andrews) is a research fellow at the University of Edinburgh's Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities. Guest: Aku Visala (PhD, University of Helsinki) is a research fellow at the Finnish Academy, the University of Helsinki. Scientific Adviser and Show Manager: Ema Sani (PhD, University of Glasgow) is a postdoctoral fellow in biology at the University of Edinburgh. Music by Rockandmetal_domination – Raising-questions rtmullins.com