Crackers and Grape Juice

Rev. Tom Emanuel (he/him/his) was born and raised on sacred Lakota land in the Paha Sapa (Black Hills) of South Dakota, which is where his father first read The Hobbit aloud to him when he was too young to remember it. Tom was trained as a social scientist at the University of South Dakota and as a theologian at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA. He is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and, beginning in Fall 2022, a doctoral student at the University of Glasgow where his research will focus on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, fandom, and post-Christian spiritual community. When he's not reading Tolkien aloud to his two small children, Tom can usually be found hiking, singing, or working away at a fantasy novel of his own.

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Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Pugh joins the podcast to talk about his newest book, Cages: A Tale of Insurrection.

The year is 1533. Elsbeth Joris is about to be executed for witchcraft when Andreas Wagner cuts her loose from the ducking stool. Exiled from family and village, Elsbeth accepts Andreas’s offer to accompany him back to his home in Münster, Germany—a decision that plunges her into a world of unhinged prophets, sassy nuns, and a deranged charlatan king. A disillusioned former monk, Andreas is returning home to confront his past, but the city is on the brink of collapse. Crowds rave hysterically in the streets, churches are ransacked, convents and monasteries empty, sacred texts are burned, and polygamy is instituted as God’s law. To his surprise, Andreas finds that Ulrich Schlatter, a former nemesis, has also returned, seeking revenge on those who exiled him years ago. Stakes are raised for everyone when the Prince-Bishop of Westphalia calls mercenaries to besiege the city. The rebels, however, offer unexpected resistance, thwarting hopes for a quick victory. Finding refuge with one another and new friends in the ensuing struggle, Elsbeth and Andreas discover that love in the reign of a mad king is not impossible, but it does come with scars.

Jeffrey C. Pugh is a published scholar of religious studies and spirituality and the author of six previous academic books on subjects as diverse as theologians under Hitler, religion and science, and the creation of apocalyptic imagination, including Religionless Christianity: Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Troubled Times (2009) and Theology after You've Been Left Behind (2016).

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For today’s episode, we’ve got the first installment of a short-term, crossover project with Tripp Fuller called Tolkien Heads. In anticipation of the new Rings of Power series by Amazon, we’ll be talking all things Middle Earth with a bevy of world class Tolkien scholars.

If you’re interested in joining us, go to www.tolkienheadspod.com and sign up.

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Jennifer Rosner joins the podcast to share her latest book, "Finding A Messiah."

Jesus was Jewish, and his Jewish identity informed every aspect of his work, words, and witness. He came as the Messiah of Israel, God's covenant people, and he spoke the language of God's faithfulness to this people. So why does it seem that Judaism has little to do with our Christian discipleship today?

Jennifer Rosner, a scholar of Jewish-Christian relations, takes us on a personal and corporate journey into the Jewish roots of Christian faith and practice. Understanding Judaism—and the way in which Judaism and Christianity became separate religions—is essential for a rich and holistic Christian identity. As a follower of Jesus who was raised in a Jewish home and who continues to live a Jewish life, Rosner has seen firsthand how a Christian faith can become impoverished when divorced from its Jewish roots. Finding Messiah follows Rosner's own journey in rediscovering the role of Judaism and God's covenant with Israel in Christian life and practice. When we begin to understand Christianity's indelible relationship to Judaism, key aspects of the Christian faith come alive and the wonder of the gospel becomes clear in new and powerful ways.

Jesus' Judaism provides the foundation for the church that is built upon his name. Rediscover the Jewish Jesus, and in so doing, experience a deeper and richer faith than ever before.

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Author and editor Chris Hayes joins the podcast to talk about his latest book, " God and Guns: The Bible Against American Gun Culture."

Using the Bible as the foundational source and guide, while also bringing contemporary sociological data to the conversation, seven biblical scholars and theologians construct a powerful dialogue about gun violence in America, concluding that guns are incompatible with the God of Christian Scripture. God and Guns is the first book to argue against gun culture from a biblical studies perspective. Bringing the Bible into conversation with contemporary sociological data, the volume breaks new exegetical and critical ground and lays the foundations for further theological work. The scholars assembled in this volume construct a powerful argument against gun violence, concluding that a self-identity based on guns is incompatible with Christian identity. Drawing on their expertise in the Bible’s ancient origins and modern usage, they present striking new insights involving psychology, ethics, race, gender, and culture. This collection, carefully edited for clarity and readability, will change conversations—and our culture.

Contributors include T. M. Lemos, David Lincicum, Shelly Matthews, Yolanda Norton, and Brent A. Strawn.


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Brian and Beau are, respectively, the President & Editor-in-Chief and the VP for External Affairs & Editor of Word and Way Magazine. They’re back on the podcast to talk about SCOTUS overturning Roe vs. Wade, the rise of Christian Nationalism in Republican politics, and how Christians should (or should not) celebrate Independence Day.

Don’t forget to head over to https://www.crackersandgrapejuice.com

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Rev. Dr. Kara Slade joined the podcast for the return of our annual live show at the Annual Conference of the Virginia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Kara talked about her new book, "The Fullness of Time: Jesus Christ, Science, and Modernity," science vs. religion, and how we mark time.

Don’t forget to head over to https://www.crackersandgrapejuice.com

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Our guest is professor, ghost writer, and author, Tiffany Brooks, who’s written a new book on reconstructing a disillusioned faith.

We have a right to encounter God where we are. We have a sacred responsibility to experience God authentically."

What happens when the God we’ve been taught to believe in seems powerless to help us in the struggles of life? What do we do when the God we personally encounter no longer resembles the God we’ve been shown in narrow interpretations of the Bible?

Many of those raised in the world of fundamentalist Christianity have been manipulated into accepting a false reality that runs counter to lived experience. The result is confusion, isolation, fear, shame, and trauma, often carried throughout one’s entire life. This book is for the victims of this spiritual abuse—anyone looking to reclaim their faith from legalism, nationalism, sexism, anxiety, intolerance, and other mechanisms of control utilized by God’s self-appointed gatekeepers. It’s for anyone who has learned that the real God is infinitely complex, that authentic faith is perfectly compatible with doubt, and that our suffering is not something we’ve earned.

Gaslighted by God is not a book of easy answers—it’s a companion for those mourning the loss of a belief system who need their pain recognized and legitimized. Tiffany Yecke Brooks shows—through stories from her own life, conversations with Christians from a variety of backgrounds, historical anecdotes, and messy episodes from Scripture—that there can be faith after disillusionment. But it will be a different faith—bruised, battered, nuanced, and real, rather than one wrapped in tissue-thin platitudes and three-point sermons. It will be a faith empowered to see beyond who God “should” be to who God is.

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The one and only Kara Slade will be joining Crackers&Grape Juice for a live pubcast next Wednesday (6/15/22) at 6:30pm in Hampton, VA at the St. George Brewing Company to help kick off Annual Conference. Her book "The Fullness Of Time" is a remarkable witness to the work of Karl Barth for the church today and we can't wait to hear what Kara has to share with us. All are welcome!

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