The Ad Fontes Podcast

Latest Episodes:

John Calvin: Crypto-Anglican? Apr 12, 2022

Show notes

John Calvin, father of Presbyterianism thought Anglicanism was a wishy-washy compromise, right? Wrong - dead wrong. This week, Rev. Steven Wedgeworth joins the hosts to discuss his recent writing on Calvin's surprisingly positive appraisal of the Church of England, and what contemporary Reformed Christians can learn from Calvin's approach. They also discuss Steven's own move into Anglicanism, and what ministry looks like in a Reformed Anglican church.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Invectivesby Petrach
Colin: Lives by Plutarch
Rhys: "The Discourse on Language" by Michel Foucault
Steven: Grace and Conformity by Stephen Hampton and England's Second Reformationby Anthony Milton
Texts Discussed
"Calvin on the Church of England" by Steven Wedgeworth
Spotlight
The Irenic Protestant Podcast (ft. Steven Wedgeworth)

Psalmchair Experts Apr 04, 2022

Show notes

This week, our hosts are talking about the Psalms. What role have they played in Christian piety and worship over the centuries? Why did the Reformers place such importance on them? And why have they lost their spiritual primacy today?
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Deep Workby Cal Newport and The Intellectual Life by A.G.
Colin: Surprised By Joyby Colin Redemer
Rhys: Metamodernism: The Future of Theory byJason Josephson Storm
Texts Discussed
"They Even Let The Heretics Keep the Psalms" by Rhys Laverty
"The Desert Island Book of the Massachusetts Colony" by Rhys Laverty
"Why Lewis and Keller Are Wrong About The Imprecatory Psalms" by Rhys Laverty
"Don't Keep The Imprecatory Psalms At Arm's Length" by Rhys Laverty
"The Return of the King? A Canonical Reading of Psalm 137" by Rhys Laverty
The Art of Biblical Poetryby Robert Alter
Interpreting Hebrew Poetryby David Peterson and Kent Harold Richards
"Why Even Non-Christians Lose From Growing Ignorance About The Bible" by Colin Redemer
Spotlight
A Learned Discourse on Justificationby Richard Hooker

Saving The World, One Dinner At A Time (LIVE from the Bay Area Fundraiser!) Mar 28, 2022

Show notes

In a LIVE special Colin is the sole regular host, and is joined (again!) by Justin Redemer, and Davenant's new Research Fellow, Paul Shakeshaft. This motley crew debrief on our First Annual Bay Area Fundraiser, and how Davenant is supporting Christian witness in a hostile culture.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Colin: The Age of Anxietyby W.H. Auden
Justin: T.S Eliot Selected Poems by T.S Eliot
Paul: The Collected Essays of George Orwell by George Orwell/Boomers by Helen Andrews
Texts Discussed
N/A
Spotlight
N/A

Is It Ever Just War? Mar 21, 2022

Show notes

With a ground war in Europe filling the news once again, this week Onsi, Colin, and Rhys discuss the long Christian tradition of "Just War" theory. Rather than discussing current events specifically, they take a step back to consider what the tradition has to say, and discuss whether just war theory is actually of any practical use to political leaders.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Arabic Thought in the Liberal Age: 1798-1939by Albert Hourani
Colin: A Grief Observed and The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis
Rhys: Cezanneby Ulrike Becks-Malorny
Texts Discussed
"Just War In Ukraine?" by Colin Redemer
Contra Faustum Book XXII by Augustine
City of God Book XIX by Augustine
Laws Book Iby Plato
Summa Theologiae II.II.40 by Thomas Aquinas
Contra Celsum by Origen
"The Justice of the Present War Examined" by G.E.M. Anscombe
Battling to the End: Conversations With Benoit Chantreby Rene Girard
"Jesus and Pacifism: A Correspondence" by Myles Werntz and Andrew Fulford
Spotlight
Jesus and Pacifism: An Exegetical and Historical Investigation by Andrew Fulford

Tolkien Heads Mar 14, 2022

Show notes

Is there more to Tolkien than The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings? You betcha. This week, Colin and Rhys are joined by Dr. Jason Lepojärvi to discuss Tolkien's intellect and imagination, and to preview Jason's upcoming course on the subject next term at Davenant Hall (register by March 25th!)
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
N/A
Texts Discussed
"On Fairy-Stories" byJ.R.R Tolkien
Leaf By Niggle by J.R.R Tolkien
Smith of Wootton Majorby J.R.R Tolkien
The Hobbitby J.R.R Tolkien
Tolkien in Oxford
Spotlight
Discovering J.R.R Tolkien: Intellect and Imagination (Spring Term Davenant Hall Course - regsiter by March 25th!)

Ye Olde England Mar 07, 2022

Show notes

Medieval England - a land of tyrannical kings and popish superstitions, right? Maybe not. This week, Onsi and Rhys are joined by Matthew Hoskin, Visting Fellow at Davenant Hall, to discuss the Church in medieval England, stretching from Anglo-Saxon times to the Reformation. Matthew is teaching an upcoming course on this topic for Davenant Hall next term, and you can register now.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Selected Discourses of Shenoute the Great
Rhys: Real England: The Battle Against the Blandby Paul Kingsnorth
Matthew: Pendragonby Stephen R. Lawhead
Texts Discussed
A whole lot of medieval stuff
Spotlight
The Church in Medieval England: 597-1485 (Davenant Hall Spring Term Course - register by March 25th!)

Cold Hard Cash Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

What's the role of financial generosity as the Church moves into an increasingly hostile culture? To mark the first annual Davenant Dinner Bay Area fundraiser (March 11th), Colin and Rhys are joined by Justin Redemer, Davenant's Chief Development Officer, to talk about generosity and magnificence from a philosophical and church historical perspective.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Colin: Battling to the End: Conversations with Benoit ChantrebyRene Girard
Rhys: Real England: The Battle Against the Bland by Paul Kingsnorth
Justin: Human Forever: The Digital Politics of Spiritual WarbyJames Poulos
Texts Discussed
"The Three Worlds of Evangelicalism" by Aaron Renn
"The Power of the Catholic Intellectual Ecosystem" by Onsi Kamel
Spotlight
Christian Witness in a Hostile Culture - 2022 Davenant Bay Area Dinner Fundraiser

A Fair Copt Feb 21, 2022

Show notes

What on earth is the Coptic Church? Most of us only know about the 21 Coptic martyrs of 2015, or about the Coptic Church rejecting the Council of Chalcedon in 451. But who are the Copts? Why did they part ways with the rest of the Church? And has persecution prompted us to reconsider if we're closer to them than we think? This week, Onsi (our resident Copt!) gets quizzed by Rhys and Colin.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Three Arabaic Treatises on Aristotle's Rhetoric: The Commentaries of Al-Farabi, Avicenna, and Averroes
Colin: his own tweets
Rhys: The Warden by Anthony Trollope
Texts Discussed
"Unity Across the Chalcedonian Divide" by Lukas Stock
The 21: A Journey Into the Land of Coptic Martyrsby Martin Mosebach
"Cyril of Alexandria, letter to John of Antioch (Formula of Reunion)" by Cyril of Alexandria
Spotlight
Subscribe to read the Winter 2022 edition of Ad Fontes

Brooks No Argument Feb 14, 2022

Show notes

David Brooks recently gave evangelicals some advice in the New York Times about how to do evangelism. But should the Church take advice from the World about how to reach the World? Onsi, Colin, and Rhys discuss whether, biblically and historically, we should listen to the unbaptized about how we should do things.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: What Makes A Church Sacred?by Mary K. Farag
Colin: "Why Your Friends Have More Friends Than You Do"
Rhys: "The Impercipient" by Thomas Hardy
Texts Discussed
"The Dissenters Trying to Save Evangelicalism from Itself" by David Brooks
Review of Silenceby Colin Redemer
Confessionsby Augustine
Spotlight
Descartes in Context - Spring Term 2022 Davenant Hall Class with Onsi Kamel
The Aristotle Seminar II: Phenomenology and Psychology with Colin Redemer

Supernatural Family Planning Feb 07, 2022

Show notes

Family devotions can, for many, feel like a continuous struggle. Is there anything historically minded Protestants can bring to the table to help? Onsi, Rhys, and Colin get real about family life this week.
NOTE: most books below are linked via Bookshop.org. Any purchases you make via these links give The Davenant Institute a 10% commission, and support local bookshops against chainstores/Amazon.
Currently Reading
Onsi: Billy Budd, Bartleby, and Other Storiesby Herman Melville
Colin: Ressentiment byMax Sheler
Rhys: The One and the Many: A Contemporary Thomistic Metaphysicsby W. Norris Clarke
Texts Discussed
Luther's Small Catechism
Alastair Roberts on Small Groups
Spotlight
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