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Seven Heads, Ten Horns: The History of the Devil — History
Seven Heads, Ten Horns: The History of the Devil

A history podcast that explores the origins, development, and continuing influence of the Devil in Western cultures.

Copyright: © All rights reserved.

Latest Episodes:

Season 2, Episode 3: The Secret Pod of Yaldabaoth Mar 31, 2021

Show notes

This week Travis and Klaus discuss Gnosticism and try to make sense of the confusing religious landscape of the 2nd century CE. In the course of their conversation, they explore yet another re-imagining of the book of Genesis, the role of demons in the creation of the world & humanity, and consider how Gnostic demonology helps us think about the problem of evil in Christianity.

Sources:

The Gnostic Bible (ed. Barnstone & Meyer)

-The Secret Book of John

-The Reality of the Rulers

David Brakke, The Gnostics: Myth, Ritual, and Diversity in Early Christianity

Bart D. Ehrman, Lost Christianities

Karen King, What is Gnosticism?

Adam Kotsko, The Prince of this World

Season 2, Episode 2: Irenaeus Mar 14, 2021

Show notes

This week we return to the scene of the crime from our first episode—the Garden of Eden—to make sense of why Christian theologians got so obsessed with Adam and Eve and why this matters for understanding the Devil. Our main source is Irenaeus, a 2nd century theologian who wrote a very long book about why everyone else was wrong, Against Heresies.

Our intro music is by Yung Koolade

Our transition music is "Vater Lee" by Black Ant from here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Black_Ant/Free_Beats_Sel_3/Fater_Lee

license link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/legalcode

A translation of Against Heresies: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103.htm

Other things we read:

Gustaf Aulèn, Christus Victor

Gerald Hiestand, The Bishop, Beelzebub, and the Blessings of Materiality: How Irenaeus’ Account of the Devil Reshapes the Christian Narrative in a Pro-Terrestrial Direction

Denis Minns, OP, Irenaeus: An Introduction

Neil Forsyth, The Old Enemy: Satan and the Combat Myth

J.B. Russell, Satan: The Early Christian Tradition

Season 2, Episode 1: Justin Martyr Mar 01, 2021

Show notes

Back in action with Season 2, Klaus and Travis discuss the mysterious and often acerbic Justin Martyr, the 2nd century philosopher and Christian apologist, whose understanding of devils and demons fits in with a larger project of differentiating Christians from Romans and Jews. What could go wrong?

Sources discussed:

Justin Martyr's writings: https://archive.org/details/writingsofjustin00justuoft

Annette Yoshiko Reed, "The Trickery of Fallen Angels and the Demonic Mimesis of the Divine" https://muse.jhu.edu/article/169408/summary

Jennifer Knust, "Enslaved to Demons: Sex, Violence, and the Apologies of Justin Martyr": https://brill.com/view/book/9789047411260/Bej.9789004154476.i-582_015.xml

Episode 16: Jesus Goes to Hell Jan 26, 2021

Show notes

Travis takes us to Hell for the first time since we discussed Milton's Paradise Lost in episode 5. He discusses the Gospel of Nicodemus B, another apocryphal gospel, in which Jesus leads a prison break out of Hell and we get a bizarre dialogue between Satan and Hades, the personification of Hell.

Remember to rate, review, & subscribe and we'll be back before too long to begin our second season.

Chapter 15: Cannibal City Jan 20, 2021

Show notes

Statues gone wild! Sinister, nameless old men! The Devil's favor shown toward a city of cannibals! This episode focuses an example of New Testament apocrypha, AKA, scripture that didn't make the final draft of the Bible, called The Acts of Andrew and Matthias in the City of the Cannibals. You can read a translation of that text here: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0820.htm

Episode 14: Revelation Recap--The Millennium, as told by the Millennials Jan 11, 2021

Show notes

This week Klaus and Travis discuss the experience of trying to make sense of the Book of Revelation over the past 2 episodes, its links to modern apocalyptic Christian Fundamentalism, and Revelation- reverberations in the January 6 MAGA coup.

Episode 13: Revelation Pt. 2 Jan 04, 2021

Show notes

This week Travis guides us to safety through the second half of the Book of Revelation. We meet various monsters and learn the diabolical secret of the "mark of the Beast." Travis delves into the misogynistic language of sexual impurity that appears throughout Revelation and determines its biblical sources and rhetorical purposes. Finally, he poses the important question of why things are so boring at the end when the monsters exit the stage.

Email us at 7h10hpod@gmail.com and follow us on social media @heads_ten [Twitter] and @7heads10hornspod [Instagram.]

For works cited, check out: https://7h10hpod.blogspot.com/2020/11/works-consulted.html

Episode 12: The Seven-Eyed Lamb (Revelation pt. 1) Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

This is part 1 of 3 projected episodes on the Book of Revelation. This week we skip to the end of the New Testament to see what the end of the world is like and the role the Devil plays in it. We meet the prophet/seer John and hear about his very strange trip to the heavenly throne room. Along the way we encounter all kinds of monsters including a monstrous lamb, scorpion-tailed locusts, and a certain pale rider.

New Twitter handle: @heads_ten

Instragram: @7heads10hornspod

Email: 7h10hpod@gmail.com

Citations: https://7h10hpod.blogspot.com/2020/11/works-consulted.html

Episode 11: The Prince of this World vs. The King of the Jews Dec 14, 2020

Show notes

This week we look at the gospel that is different from all the rest, especially when it comes to the Devil: The Gospel of John. We discuss the way the Devil appears in this text, its demonization of Jews or "Judaeans," whether or not John was part of a sectarian community, the possible influence of the Dead Sea Scrolls on John, and Pontius Pilate as the personification of Christian ambivalence about political power. And how he might be infested with demons.

Email us with comments and controversies at 7h10hpod@gmail.com

Check out our bibliography: https://7h10hpod.blogspot.com/2020/11/works-consulted.html

Find us on social: @7heads10hornspod on Instagram

and: @klaus_yoder on Twitter

Episode 10: Saint Paul's Demons Dec 07, 2020

Show notes

This week we slide head-first into the New Testament (AKA "the Christian Bible") and puzzle over its oldest sources, the letters of St. Paul. Travis and Klaus discuss the myriad ways Paul thinks about evil: powers & principalities, sin, death, fallen angels, and Satan himself.

Find us on Twitter: @klaus_yoder & @realtravis_tea

Check out the sources we use to make the pod: https://7h10hpod.blogspot.com/2020/11/works-consulted.html

Email us feedback at 7h10hpod@gmail.com

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