Homebrewed Christianity

Latest Episodes:

Anne Rice on Quitting Christianity (in Memoriam) Dec 14, 2021

Show notes

I am sure many of you were saddened by the news of Anne Rice's passing. She visited the podcast in 2010 after publicly 'quitting Christianity' and enough of the long-time listeners asked for the interview we decided to share it.

My buddy Mike occasionally did interviews back then and he is the one asking the questions here. Since it was 2010 the technology was not as good, but I reworked the audio as best as I could.

Here's Mike's reflection on Anne's passing In the wee hours this morning I heard the heartbreaking news that Anne Rice died, surrounded by loved ones, due to complications from a stroke. Anne revolutionized gothic horror writing with her layered, humanizing, and sensuous approach to storytelling, initiating a trend toward more sympathetic portrayals of (say) vampires, telling the story of their eternal power and anguish from *their* point of view, which became the de facto norm for later shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Twilight, and True Blood. The LGBTQ community in particular embraced her supernatural creatures’ ‘outsider’ status as their own, and she embraced them right back, becoming an early safe haven and trusted voice for queer folk. As a young evangelical growing up in the Bible Belt, her writing was *especially* forbidden, and I recall the rushes and flushes I felt as a kid when sneaking some of her fiction in grocery store aisles while my mom was shopping, a world of history, mysticism and sexuality opening up to me. When Anne publicly announced her conversion from atheism to Christianity in 2005, I was among the first journalists to cover the story, in what became an award-winning profile for RELEVANT Magazine. You can read an archive of that story in the link below. When I met Rice at a progressive Baptist church in Birmingham, she was telling her story of coming to faith with nuance and intelligence, in a conversation proctored by a Roman Catholic priest, a rabbi, and a progressive Baptist minister. In our more private conversation that followed, she explained how her deeply-felt faith came from her inner historian’s keen eye for mystery: “Well, [being Christian] certainly has to be personal experience, but I did read myself back into faith. It was history, reading the story of the Jews in time and realizing that there was no rational explanation for the survival of the Jewish people. It was the biggest mystery history ever offered me—how did these people survive? That was the beginning. And then the second big mystery was this: How in the world did Christianity spread the way it did, to become an international religion by A.D. 110? How did that happen? In trying to answer those two questions, I read myself back into belief. And then belief came.” She temporarily abandoned her vampires and fallen angels, saying “the truth is, I’ve found what those characters were looking for. I can’t continue those stories because they don’t work for me anymore. The vampires are not metaphors for the outsider for me, because I don’t feel like an outsider anymore. I feel like I’m included in a great big wonderful family.” She went on to write two better-than-average historical fiction novels about the early life of Jesus, but within a couple years of publishing her spiritual memoir ‘Called out of Darkness,' her sense of belonging in the wider Christian family had strained to its breaking point. In 2010 she wrote: “Today I quit being a Christian. I’m out. I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being “Christian” or to being part of Christianity. It’s simply impossible for me to “belong” to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten years, I’ve tried. I’ve failed. I’m an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else. In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. In the name of Christ, I quit Christianity and being Christian. Amen.” Once again, I was able to talk to Anne about this transition — this time for my friend Tripp Fuller’s podcast, Homebrewed Christianity. We were able to have an extensive conversation in which she was just as incisive and gracious as before. I’m working with Tripp to see if we can bring this conversation back from the archives. To NPR at the time, she elaborated about what this did or didn’t mean: “Certainly I will never go back to being that atheist and that pessimist that I was. I live now in a world that I feel God created, and I feel I live in a world where God witnesses everything that happens. … That’s a huge change from the atheist I was when I wrote the vampire novels... I found what the characters in the vampire novels were looking for. They were groping in the darkness; they lived in a world without God. I found God, but that doesn’t mean that I have to be a supporting member of any organized religion." I wish Anne had been better acquainted with progressive Christianity, where she could have loved Jesus *and* women, science, and the LGBTQ community whole-heartedly. But I know that, regardless of the labels that she rather fluidly adopted and discarded, she remained a consistent advocate of those whose place in society was often in question, while continuing to write her journey in provocative fiction. Anne and I stayed in touch via email intermittently for a while, as she did with countless fans via her prolific Facebook fan page, where she held court with open-ended questions about society, politics, and spirituality. I’m going to miss Anne on this side of the veil. And I pray that she’s feeling, more deeply than ever, her belonging in the great, unbroken cloud of witnesses, that perichoretic dance of God, creation, and the ancestors. A space where doubt is honored for the treasure of conscience it is, and faith becomes expansive sight.

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Adam Clark: Christmas, BLM, Abortion, & the War on White Evangelicalism Dec 11, 2021

Show notes

My friend and most zesty theologian, Adam Clark, is back on the podcast. We discuss questions sent in by the Homebrewed Community and they were spicy. I hope you enjoy it half as much as we did and check out our upcoming online reading group - Upsetting the Powers.

Dr. Adam Clark is Associate Professor of Theology at Xavier University. He is committed to the idea that theological education in the twenty-first century must function as a counter-story. One that equips us to read against the grain of the dominant culture and inspires one to live into the Ignatian dictum of going forth “to set the world on fire.” To this end, Dr. Clark is intentional about pedagogical practices that raise critical consciousness by going beneath surface meanings, unmasking conventional wisdoms and reimagining the good. He currently serves as co-chair of Black Theology Group at the American Academy of Religion, actively publishes in the area of black theology and black religion and participates in social justice groups at Xavier and in the Cincinnati area. He earned his PhD at Union Theological Seminary in New York where he was mentored by James Cone.

Previous Episodes w/ Adam: Jan 6th Theological Debrief: Adam Clark and Jeffrey Pugh Adam Clark: What is Black Theology? From Lebron James to the Black Panther: Black Theology QnA w/ Adam Clark Adam Clark: James Cone was right Follow the podcast, drop a review, or become a member of the HBC Community.

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Mark Scandrette: Religion & Spirituality in the Way of Jesus Dec 01, 2021

Show notes

I absolutely love Mark Scandrette. Not only do I find his invitation to life in the way of Jesus personally compelling in deep ways, but he is a friend, mentor, and

the new generation of 'deconstructors'
thoughts on the emerging church movement
his neighborhood experience of police violence
the way the Beatitudes of Jesus invite us to a vision of reality
adult confirmation
online spiritual formation
the 'Great Resignation'
pandemic spirituality
learning to love the enemies that are close to you
karaoke discipleship

Mark Scandrette is an internationally recognized expert in practical Christian spirituality. He is the founding director of ReIMAGINE: A Center for Integral Christian Practice, where he leads an annual series of retreats, workshops and projects designed to help participants apply spiritual wisdom to everyday life. His multidisciplinary studies in applied psychology, family health and theology have shaped his approach to learning and transformation. He is on the creative team for NINE BEATS collective, a project exploring the beatitudes as a 21st vocabulary for the living way of Jesus. A sought after voice for creative, radical and embodied faith practices, he frequently speaks at universities, churches and conferences nationally and internationally and also serves as adjunct faculty in the doctoral program at Fuller Theological Seminary. His most recent books include The Ninefold Path of Jesus, FREE, Practicing the Way of Jesus and Belonging and Becoming (with Lisa Scandrette).

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Chase Tibbs: Christian Communism, Revolutionary Violence & other Lite Topics Nov 30, 2021

Show notes

This is a special crossover episode with Chase Tibbs from the Faith and Capital podcast. In our conversation, Chase gives 5 reasons to go ‘Christian Socialist.’ Most theology nerds know that the overwhelming majority of theologians in the 2oth century were socialists. Barth, Tillich, Niebuhr, Guiterrez and more were all committed Christian socialists, and yet today, many Christians wrongly assume the two are incompatible. I doubt everyone is going to be persuaded, but I hope more people will come to see how Chase’s faith deeply informs his politics.

You can check out our previous episode over here.

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A Deacon's Meeting with Tony Jones Nov 16, 2021

Show notes

Deacon Tony Jones is back on the podcast for a Deacon's Meeting of sorts. He joins me in answering questions from the Homebrewed Community and we have ourselves a bunch of fun.

The questions for the fun came from the people. Topics we discuss include...

hunting, fishing, and the land (our catch-up and outdoor stories occupy the first 25 minutes)
Tony's return to ministry
the changing shape of the local congregation
Ground of Being &/or Personal Theism
Scottish hoppy beer & the Herods... the book on the family
Schleiermacher VS Kierkegaard
the struggle to pray

A Few Previous Podcast Visits with Tony

Tony Jones is the author of Did God Kill Jesus? (HarperOne, 2015) and contributing writer to several outdoors periodicals. He’s written a dozen books, including The New Christians: Dispatches from the Emergent Frontier and The Sacred Way: Spiritual Practices for Everyday Life, developed the iPhone app, hosts the Reverend Hunter Podcast, and teaches at Fuller Theological Seminary.

Tony is a sought after speaker and consultant in the areas of emerging church, postmodernism, and Christian spirituality, writing, and the outdoors. He served as a consultant on the television show, The Path, and he owns an event planning company, Crucible Creative.

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Getting Lost & Finding Faith w/ Kierkegaard Nov 14, 2021

Show notes

Aaron Simmons is back on the podcast to give you a tasty preview reading group – Walking with Kierkegaard. In this episode, you get to listen in to the first session.

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Rolf Jacobson: The Five Most Offensive Things... you learn in Seminary Nov 02, 2021

Show notes

Dr. Rolf A. Jacobson is the Professor of Old Testament and the Alvin N. Rogness Chair of Scripture, Theology, and Ministry at Luther Seminary.

Known for his humor and faithful biblical interpretation, Jacobson is an in-demand preacher and teacher. With Craig Koester, he developed and supports the Narrative Lectionary. He enjoys collaborating with other teachers and pastors. His collaborative projects include The Book of Psalms (NICOT; with Beth Tanner and Nancy deClaissé-Walford), Invitation to the Psalms (with Karl Jacobson), Crazy Talk: A Not-So-Stuffy Dictionary of Theological Terms (with five fellow Luther Seminary graduates), and Crazy Book: A Not-So-Stuffy Dictionary of Biblical Terms(with Hans Wiersma and Karl Jacobon). He is also the author of The Homebrewed Christianity Guide to the Old Testament: Israel’s In-Your-Face, Holy God. His scholarly interests include the Psalms, prophets, biblical theology, biblical narrative, and preaching the Old Testament.

His voice can be heard on two weekly preaching podcasts, “Sermon Brainwave” and “The Narrative Lectionary,” as well as singing the high lonesome with a Lutheran bluegrass band, “The Fleshpots of Egypt.”

A survivor of childhood cancer, he is a double, above-the-knee amputee, who generally wears a bicycle and a smile. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, with his beloved wife Amy, their children Ingrid and Gunnar, and a cat who thinks he is a dog. He is a loyal friend, lifelong sufferer of Minnesota sports, and committed board-game geek.

The Five Most Offensive Things... you learn in Seminary

Nobody wrote anything (in the Bible)
There are two—no, make that three, four, five, six,—seven creation stories in the Old Testament
There are no “Jews” in the Old Testament
Nobody agrees on how many books are in the Old Testament
The metaphor that God is a husband and the people of God are God’s wife is really offensive and yucky

Other things we discuss in the conversation:

a hot take on the 10 Commandments
the task of teaching the Old Testament to future ministers
the deep joy of ruining everyone's favorite Bible verses...'i knew the plans I have for you' - 'this is the day the Lord has made'
the Lutheran & Process connection
Biblical authorship and source criticism
Bluegrass Hymn Sing with Richard Rohr
the Biblical Creation stories and the divine hermeneutic Leviathan love
the holy ghost resurrection NFT
where the canon comes from
how wild Ezekiel gets and the day Tripp wore an Ezekiel shirt
how Biblical translations hide the Bible's rough side
election as synchronicity not selectivity
way too many Tripp stories...the last one is about Demons

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Matthew Novenson: Messiah, Lord, Logos, & Other Titles Oct 19, 2021

Show notes

Are you ready for some New Testament hype? My friend and colleague Dr. Matt Novenson is on the podcast. We have a bunch of fun.

Matthew Novenson is Senior Lecturer in New Testament and Christian Origins at the University of Edinburgh, where he is also director of the Centre for the Study of Christian Origins. Check out his books:

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5 Reasons the Church Needs Kierkegaard Oct 12, 2021

Show notes

Aaron Simmons is back on the podcast to preview our upcoming reading group - Walking with Kierkegaard. In this conversation we give 5 reasons the church needs Kierkegaard today.

5 Reasons the Church needs Kierkegaard today 1. Kierkegaard reminds us that faith is about lived commitment, not simply about right belief. 2. Kierkegaard helps us see that Christian Nationalism is anti-Christ. 3. Kierkegaard shows what it means to seek faithfulness, rather than success. 4. Kierkegaard stresses the radical inclusivity of the call: "Come all who are heavy burdened." 5. Kierkegaard models what it looks like to see humility as the condition of confidence.

J. Aaron Simmons holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from Vanderbilt University and is currently a Professor of philosophy at Furman University in Greenville, SC (USA). He is the President of the Søren Kierkegaard Society (USA) and has published widely in philosophy of religion, phenomenology, and existentialism. Among his authored and edited books are God and the Other: Ethics and Politics After the Theological Turn; The New Phenomenology: A Philosophical Introduction; Kierkegaard’s God and the Good Life; and Kierkegaard and Levinas: Ethics, Politics, and Religion. He and his wife, Vanessa, have been married 20 years and have an 11 year old son, Atticus. Although Aaron loves doing philosophy, he would almost always rather be fishing. Check out Aaron’s youtube channel: “Philosophy for Where We Find Ourselves,” and his TedX talk (also on youtube): “The Failure of Success.”

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Dustin Kensrue: Thrice & the #ProcessParty Oct 08, 2021

Show notes

My buddy Dustin Kensrue is back on the podcast. We discuss his band Thrice's newest album - horizons/east. On top of being a rock star, Dustin is a member of the #ProcessParty and in our conversation, we discuss how his views of faith, politics, and more have changed and are expressed in the album. Enjoy :)

This episode is sponsored by:

When Amy-Jill Levine, University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Vanderbilt Divinity School, looked at the gospels, when she read them, every once in a while Jesus would say something that would take her aback.

Sell all you have and give to the poor.
Comments about a fiery hell.
Hate your mother and your father.
You Jews are children of the devil.

She would read these versus, and I think Jesus what were you thinking? What did you mean?

Find answers and meaning to these perplexing teachings with Amy-Jill Levine and her new study The Difficult Words of Jesus: A Beginner’s Guide to His Most Perplexing Teachings. The study includes a book, leader guide, and video sessions.

With this study come learn, come be challenged, come be inspired, come be provoked, come be comforted, and come find even more of the Good News.

The Difficult Words of Jesus book and Bible study components are available wherever you buy books. Explore the study at AbingdonPress.com/DifficultWords.

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