The Bible For Normal People

Dive into the intriguing layers of the Book of Jonah, exploring its unique narrative style and satirical elements. Discover how Jonah contrasts with the compassionate pagan sailors during a storm, revealing deeper themes of identity and repentance. Unpack the historical context and the complexities of faith showcased in Jonah's journey. Challenge the notion of literal interpretations as you delve into the theological significance and cultural relevance of this timeless tale.

The writings of formerly enslaved people tell us a lot about how they viewed the Bible. We sat down with Professor Emerson Powery to talk about how the Bible was used around the institution of slavery and how it can be both a book of oppression and a book of liberation.  Show Notes →   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On this week's episode, Pete and Jared are talking about the afterlife. What is it and what does the Bible say about it? Show Notes →  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If we look under the surface, we find a fascinating conversation about the Spirit of God in the Bible. Considering the word for Spirit, Wind, and Breath of God is often the same in the Bible, how are we to understand the relationship between them? We talk to Jack Levison about this mysterious and interesting intersection. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Martin Luther King says “All people are caught in an Inescapable network of mutuality.” So what does that mean when it comes to the gospel, the Bible, and how we navigate racial equality? In this episode, we talk to Xavier Ramey about diversity, inclusion, and how our Christian faith impacts how we see community, organizations, and institutions today. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week Pete & Jared talk to Meghan Henning about hell. She shares with us her knowledge of the ancient world Jesus and the New Testament writers were familiar with and how they might have understood hell. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That 50 cent word describes something many Bible readers have noticed: the way the New Testament writers quote the Old often has little to do with what the Old Testament writers were actually trying to say. Jesus was in fact a surprise development in Israel’s story, but the New Testament writers nevertheless believed Jesus to be the true purpose or goal (Greek telos) of God purposes. And that belief led them to some pretty creative interpretive adventures that Christians today are still trying to wrap their heads around. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Translating the Bible is more than just about being woodenly accurate. We’re humans after all. In this episode, Pete and Jared talk to Sarah Ruden, who talks about using our imaginations to put ourselves in the place of the biblical writers, emotions and aesthetics and all. With a background in translating classical literature, she helps us read the Bible within a fuller context, both humanly and literarily. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sometimes it can be easy to forget the psychological ramifications of our faith. The way our faith shapes the language we use to talk about tragedies and sadnesses in our life can be life-giving or it can really mess us up. In this episode we talk to Alison Cook, an expert on the intersection of faith and psychology, about some of the ways, as Christians, our views on our emotions can be harmful and better ways to frame our feelings. Show Notes → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s hard to know where the Bible fits into our political views, our ethical stances, and how we live out life. Pete and Jared point out how many of us might be using the Bible in disrespectful and irresponsible ways as well as parsing out why we even need to bother with the Bible at all in 2020. Show Notes →  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices