Cruciform Conversations

In recent years, several T.V. shows have pulled back the curtain on a particular part of the evangelical church, a movement known as “Quiver Full”. This movement to have as many children as possible, to raise an army of culture warriors, was first encountered by many of us through the series 19 Kids and Counting. This series followed the Duggar family and shared their approach to family, marriage, and their faith. More recently, the series Shiny Happy People on Amazon has examined the larger theological movement the Duggars are part of, founded by Bill Gothard. If you have ever encountered this movement, watched the shows, or have questions about how rigid patriarchal theological systems impact sexual ethics, have I got a conversation for you!

I was so thankful to engage in this conversation with writer and scholar Rachel Darnall, who has researched and written extensively about the cultural, philosophical, and theological origins of this culture. We dive into her own background and experience, a theology of modesty (if you ever heard “modest is hottest’ this is your podcast), and gender divisions. How does this system impact sexual ethics? How can this particular Christian subgroup give us a helpful lens for thinking about sexual ethics and gender roles? What is the Biblical concept of modesty really talking about? Beyond the podcast, you can encounter Rachel’s work through her wonderful Substack, new podcast called These Troubled Times, and through the Anastasis Center. We talk in detail about the Anastasis Center’s new course, It’s a Mans’s World: The Genesis 3:16 Effect. I was part of a pilot group for this course and highly recommend it. If you want to join in this new study, there are groups forming right now!

(To stay up to date on the podcast, you can subscribe here on Substack or find us over on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Please subscribe and leave a review!)

“Paul also uses the term ‘be fruitful and increase’ in Colossians 1:6. He’s talking to Gentiles, how they are included in the covenants of grace. And he says, hey, “This is it, you guys, the gospel is bearing fruit and increasing’. So he’s including them in covenant. And part of that is sexual health and safety.

- Glen Maiden

In this episode of the podcast, I am joined by the remarkable Dr. Glen Maiden. Diving into Glen’s remarkable biblical insight and his experience helping people find healing from trauma, we explore Genesis as a helpful text for sexual health and flourishing, and follow the thread of language throughout both the Old and New Testaments that addresses sexual ethics in a world of human trafficking.

Rev. Dr. Glen Maiden is a 40-year ordained pastor, a licensed counselor, and a coach. He holds board certification in sex therapy, using the Bible as a foundational theory in treatment. He earned a PhD in Clinical Sexology, which focuses on the Book of Genesis as a sexual health primer for families. In addition, he holds a Doctor of Ministry in the treatment of addiction, trauma, and anxiety. His certifications include sex addiction/multi addiction therapy and traumatic stress treatment. He also has training in geriatric counseling and Forest Therapy.

Connect with Glen:

Glen’s website

(To stay up to date on the podcast, you can subscribe here on Substack or find us over on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Please subscribe and leave a review!)

In this episode of the podcast, I am joined by Christian ethicist Dr. Hank Spaulding for a conversation about the biggest questions we are asking about Christian Sexual Ethics in this cultural moment. Turns out, we were asking a lot of the same questions!

* How is A.I., especially the introduction of bots as a replacement for relationships, impacting human flourishing and sexuality?

* How is A.I. impacting spiritual and character formation?

* What is a healthy sexual ethic when so much of our sexuality is being commodified and turned into a transaction?

These are some of the big questions that we dig into as part of this pursuit of a Cruciform Sexuality. We would love to hear your feedback, questions, push-back, and whatever else this conversation stirs up.

Make sure to check out Hank’s book Iconclastic Sex

“I’m thinking of a poem by Hafez that says, “How do I listen to others as if everyone were my beloved and speaking to me her cherished last words?”So there’s a sense of sacredness, I think, because listening comes from a place of love. To listen to someone, you at least have to enter into curiosity about the other and a sense of their sacredness, of their belovedness, that there is something always to learn, even if we disagree or if we are in conflict. That’s a very difficult thing to do, but I feel like it’s something that enters into a kind of collaboration with the Holy Spirit. What has not yet been can be possible with listening. - Katerina Gea

In this episode of the Future of Faith podcast, I have a brilliant conversation with guests Sue Park-Hur and Katerina Gea. Together, we explore the sacredness of listening within the context of faith and community. We discuss the importance of listening as a relational practice, its role in reconciliation and peacemaking, and share personal stories and communal practices that enhance the art of listening. The conversation emphasizes the need for intentional listening in a world filled with distractions and divisions, highlighting resources and practices that can help individuals and communities cultivate deeper listening skills.

Sue Park-Hur Bio:

Sue is a Korean American born in Seoul, but raised in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley in southern California since she was eight. A former church-planter and local pastor with her spouse, Sue has continued to believe churches can be agents of reconciliation in their communities. She currently serves as the director of racial/ethnic engagement for Mennonite Church USA and co-directs a peace center, ReconciliAsian. Her specialization includes intercultural competency, anti- racism, trauma and resilience, restorative justice, conflict transformation, mentorship, and women in leadership.

Katerina Gea Bio:

Katerina Gea (pronounced “Hey-ya”) is the lead pastor of Pasadena Mennonite Church and lives in Pasadena, CA. She is a gardener, aspiring poet, and a new mom to a 7-month-old who keeps her on her toes! Before pastoring, she worked alongside incarcerated people to grow healing gardens behind bars and planted “Wild Church, Fresno,” a church that gathers outdoors to reconnect with God and creation. Katerina serves as an adjunct professor with Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, where she received her M.Div. in Theology and Peace Studies. She is part of the Mennonite Church USA’s Women in Leadership team along with Sue Park-Hur.

Pasadena Mennonite Church

This is the conclusion of my four-part series exploring Dr. Frank Woggon's book The Empathic God. In parts 1, 2 , and 3 ,of this series, I dove into the need to discover a Gospel that addresses pain and suffering, and the good news for not only guilt but also for shame. This book, as an exploration of a clinical pastoral search for good news, is an incredibly helpful guide for discovering God’s empathic presence in our pain. It is challenging and beautiful!In this conversation, Frank and I explore how his work as a pastor and chaplain inspired this book. We explore the themes of empathy in relation to the life and death of Jesus, emphasizing the therapeutic aspects of the Jesus event. Frank discusses the prevalence of violence in society and his struggle to reconcile the concept of a violent God with the idea of redemption.

If you want to interact with Frank’s work, you can connect with him through his website.

In this episode of the Future of Faith podcast, host Greg Arthur engages with Nick Benoit, the creative director of Wonderhunt, a nonprofit dedicated to storytelling in faith. They explore Nick's journey from a creative child to a professional in ministry, emphasizing the importance of storytelling, listening, and creativity in faith practices. The conversation explores how stories can cultivate empathy, understanding, and a deeper connection to God, while also examining the role of music and cultural engagement in shaping one's faith journey. Nick shares insights on how Wonderhunt aims to resource churches with creative storytelling tools, ultimately inviting individuals to experience God through narrative.

This month, we are focused on the future of faith —and the Future of Faith is listening! Religious communities have a tremendous role to play in the formation of the next generation, and the transformation of their communities, simply through learning to listen to their neighbors well. Josh Packard, in his new book Faithful Futures, describes it this way.

Historically, the relationship between connectedness and spirituality has run in both directions. Loneliness affects the ability of people to be spiritually and religious connected, but it can be mitigated by a strong religious community, especially for young people who often lack stability in their lives just due to the chaotic nature of being a teenager.

Religious communities have traditionally served as one of the primary points of connection for people, what sociologists refer to as “agents of socialization.” In this way, they provide not only guidance for how to act and behave in social situations but also critical training grounds and safe spaces for young people to learn social skills inside a community.

When it comes to loneliness, the role of spiritual and religious well-being cannot be overlooked. Individuals who have a strong sense of spirituality or engage in religious practices tend to experience lower levels of loneliness because these communities provide a sense of meaning, purpose, and belonging in life, which acts as a powerful buffer against feelings of isolation.

In a special bonus episode of Cruciform Conversations, I talk with Dr. Jonny Morrison, who is a pastor in Salt Lake City, UT. Jonny offers a helpful perspective on shaping a listening community that seeks to understand its neighbors and intentionally shapes its life, language, and practice to best embody good news for them. Jonny offers a helpful example of how we might approach this work in our own context.

One particular statement from Jonny about listening to and responding to your neighbors really stood out.

Two things that come to mind when you say that. The first one is that you can’t make any assumptions about faith, theology, or the language that you use in a place like Utah or Salt Lake City because the dominant religious community is LDS and certain things are very shared about the way, like you and I would talk about the gospel and the way that Mormons would, but there is also some very key distinctions and we may use the same words, but we will not have the same definitions for those words.

And that’s actually, I think, kind of a beautiful gift if you’re willing to think then about what words you’re using and what they mean. And so I think if you want to do ministry here, if you want to just be a Christian here, you’re kind of constantly having to set aside Christianese and be like, what is this thing? Like, what does it mean? Like when I say salvation, what do I mean? When I say atonement, what do I mean?

When I say reconciliation or restoration, what do I mean? And I think as a leader, you’re constantly having to do contextual theology to say, can I explain this without using theological and religious words, which I think is really formative to my own heart, sense of good news and the community around me. So that’s the first answer is doing ministry in a context like Utah means you are constantly having to re-encounter what you believe so that you can communicate it to others. But in the process, you are changed and formed by doing it.

Connect with the Cruciform Conversations on other platforms:

Connect with Jonny Morrison

Follow Jonny’s SubstackBuy Jonny’s book Prodigal Gospel!

(To stay up to date on the podcast, you can subscribe here on Substack or find us over on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Please subscribe and leave a review!)

In this episode of the podcast (in partnership with Future of Faith), I engage in a deep conversation with Dr. Andy Fitzgerald, co-founder of Imagine Life Ministries. Our discussion focuses on listening to the Spirit, and Andy’s experience living in one of the most well-known and influential neo-charismatic churches in America, Bethel Church in Redding, California. Exploring Andy’s embedded research within Bethel, we discuss the importance of listening to God, the role of the Holy Spirit, and the challenges of experiencing the supernatural in a modern context.

Andy shares his journey of discovery, emphasizing the need for an incarnational presence in ministry and the transformative power of community and coaching in revitalizing faith. The conversation highlights practical insights for cultivating a deeper connection with God and each other.

Andy Fitzgerald Bio - Dr. Andy Fitzgerald is the Co-Founder and Co-Director of Imagine Life Ministries. Imagine Life Ministries is a Leadership and Coaching ministry that brings vibrant spiritual life to the Church by renewing our minds and exchanging beliefs. Previously, he was a lead pastor and church planter in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has a doctorate degree in Contextual Theology from Northern Seminary. He is married to his wife, Jenny, for 25 years. Together they have four children, and they live in Redding, CA.

Find Imagine Life Ministries on socials:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ImagineLifeMinistries

Instagram: @imaginelifeministriesTiktok: @imaginelifeministries

(To stay up to date on the podcast, subscribe here on Substack or find us over on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Please subscribe and leave a review!)

“A lot of counterterrorism studies now will say, very few people are actually committing acts based on alignment with some kind of ideology alone. That is not the primary driver. It’d be really bad strategy to try to prevent violent extremism just based off of that. And so it’s a lot of other social factors as well.” - Ray Kim

It is hard to make sense of the continuous onslaught of bad news filling our media feeds. Escalating violence, political assassinations, genocidal conflicts, and religious and political extremism are inescapable parts of our daily news. Within this chaos, perspective and wisdom are difficult to come by. In this conversation, I speak with Dr. Ray Kim, from the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, about the rise of political and religious violence, the ways we construct and shape truth, the power of dialogue, and what it looks like to foster inclusive communities that counter extremism.

Dr. Ray Kim’s Bio - As the Director of US Programs & Partnerships at the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy (ICRD), Ray Kim leads efforts to counteract toxic polarization and rebuild social cohesion by working with faith leaders and communities across the United States. Ray brings extensive expertise in conflict transformation, mediation, and depolarization, designing and facilitating workshops, trainings, and resources that empower communities to prevent violent extremism and promote inclusive dialogue. Ray earned his Ph.D. in Theology and Religious Studies from Georgetown University, specializing in the sociology of religion. His academic and professional pursuits have included research on Islamophobia in Korea, religious soft-power influences in global contexts, and the experiences of religious minorities in the Levant.

(To stay up to date on the podcast, you can subscribe here on Substack or find us over on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Please subscribe and leave a review!)

“What we find as we dive in is that Jesus valued and cared for women deeply. He befriended women, he had disciples who were women, he listened to women, he sent women out to declare good news, and he even debated and was corrected by women. The numerous stories of how Jesus related to women give us insight into God’s desire for women to be leaders in the world.”

In this episode of the podcast (in partnership with Future of Faith), I engage in a deep conversation with Pastor Robbie Cansler about her journey in ministry, the importance of storytelling, and the challenges faced by women in church leadership. Robbie shares her experiences of navigating barriers, the significance of creating space for women’s voices, and the power of community and hospitality in fostering a supportive church environment. The discussion also highlights the need for diverse perspectives in biblical scholarship and the role of storytelling in understanding scripture. Robbie’s book, ‘She Leads,’ serves as a resource for exploring women’s roles in faith and encourages communal engagement with scripture.

Rev. Robbie Cansler’s Bio: Ordained elder in the church of the Nazarene, and is the senior pastor of the Mission Church of the Nazarene in Hammond, IN. Married to Mac, and mother of 4 kids, Robbie is also the Conference director for Wesleyan Holiness Women Clergy. Currently, Robbie is a DMin student at Northern Seminary, studying Women, Theology, and Leadership. She is the author of She Leads: God’s Intent for Women in the Church. In her spare time, she likes to read and be outdoors as much as possible.