Delgado Podcast

We continue our conversation with N.T. Wright about his book "Broken Signposts." This episode is focused on understanding the benefits of working with a spiritual director -- and ways they can assist us in understanding how God may be working in our lives. Spiritual directors can track your spiritual seasons and assist during dark nights of the soul and periods when you are feeling broken or distraught. Dr. Wright also shares why daily Psalm reading is a helpful practice to see the spiritual highs and lows that are part of the Christian life.

In this episode, N.T. Wright discusses his motivations for writing his new book "Broken Signposts: How Christianity Makes Sense of the World" and shares insights into ways spirituality has become fractured in society, along with a rise in gnosticism and narcissism. He also discusses ways to practice healthy forms of spirituality -- and the importance of regular prayer. At the end of the episode, Wright provides insights into ways to understand our Bible and the need for prayer and guidance from the Holy Spirit. Video available here: http://www.mikedelgado.org/podcast/nt-wright/

We're continuing our conversation with Dr. Walter Moberly about ways to read the Bible critically and devotionally. Dr. Moberly is an Old Testament theologian and professor of theology and Biblical interpretation at Durham University. He’s also the author of the brand new book called “The God of the Old Testament: Encountering the Divine in Christian Scripture.”

In this episode, Dr. Moberly talks with us about the importance of grief and laments in the Old Testament -- and how these passages can speak to us during our own grieving processes. He also shares why Scripture reading should be an adventure and how the Bible expresses truth in a variety of ways: poetry, narrative, stories, humor and even through intentional contradictions.

Toward the end of our conversation, Dr. Moberly gives advice for some favorite Old Testament books to read first -- as well as some encouraging words about returning to a second simplicity.

This is an episode that will give you encouragement and permission to read the Bible with more curiosity and adventure. It’s also a subtle reminder that the Bible is not a fortress to be defended, but a mansion to explore, to live in and invite others into.

Video and blog here:

We're honored to learn from Dr. Walter Moberly about ways to understand the Old Testament -- and to learn about his latest book: The God of the Old Testament: Encountering the Divine in Christian Scripture, wherein he writes about eight key Old Testament passages that give us insights into the nature of God in Christian Scriptures.

In this episode, we chat with Dr. Moberly about his spiritual journey -- and what led him from studying the classics and ancient languages to pursue Biblical studies and ordination in the Church of England. He also talks with us about how he applies critical analysis to the Bible -- while also understanding the Bible spiritually.

He then shares with us examples of how he applies his academic and spiritual insights to Old Testament stories like the Conquest of Canaan, The Story of Rahab, The Book of Jeremiah and the Laments in the Psalms. It’s a blessing to hear how he has prayerfully read and applied scholarly analysis to these popular Biblical passages.

Walter Moberly is an English theologian and professor of theology and Biblical interpretation at Durham University. He earned his M.A. at Oxford University and an M.A. and Ph.D. at Cambridge University. He is also an ordained priest in the Church of England. He is known for his creative, accessible, and provocative writing. Some of his books include: The God of the Old Testament, Old Testament Theology, The Bible in a Disenchanted Age, and The Theology of the Book of Genesis.

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This is part two of our discussion with Dr. Jeremy Wade Barrier about his twelve-year journey researching ancient manuscripts and writing his latest book “Witch Hunt in Galatia,” a book providing a new perspective on ways to understand Paul’s letter to the Galatians.

Dr. Jeremy Wade Barrier is the Assistant Professor of Biblical Literature at Heritage Christian University and also did postdoctoral work as a Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow under Tobias Nicklas at the Universitat Regensburg, Germany. His last book "The Acts of Paul and Thecla: A Critical Introduction and Commentary" was written in 2009. He earned his PhD in Biblical Interpretations at the Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University.

Check out his latest Book:

Approximately 2,000 years ago, some Jewish communities of Galatia in central Asia Minor believed they had fallen under a curse, argues Jeremy Wade Barrier. A fellow Jew named Paul wrote the letter we call Galatians to help them escape its effects. In the letter, Barrier argues, Paul called for the Jews in Galatia to stop practicing circumcision. The rite had fallen into disuse within many Jewish communities in the Roman Empire, but Barrier argues the Galatian Jews believed it was a talisman that would protect them from harm.

As a further precaution, they needed to deal with the person who had brought this evil to their community. A witch hunt was underway, and some had concluded that the witch was none other than Paul. Barrier provides a reconstruction of the original occasion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians and shows how Paul defended himself from accusations of witchcraft by countering that the ritual that would protect them from the “Evil Eye” was not circumcision, but rather baptism. Through the ritual of baptism, they could receive healing from a material, yet divine, “breath” of God. Barrier also reconstructs an earlier understanding of this pneuma that was lost to subsequent Christianity under the influence of Neoplatonism.

Blog post:

A discussion with Dr. Jeremy Wade Barrier about his twelve-year journey researching ancient manuscripts and writing his latest book “Witch Hunt in Galatia,” a book providing a new perspective on ways to understand Paul’s letter to the Galatians.

Dr. Barrier also challenges us to read the Bible with a critical eye -- and to question those passages that trouble us. He also shares reasons why some Christians are resistant to new scholarship on Scripture -- and why it’s important to consider the latest research to get a better understanding into the culture and meaning behind Biblical texts.

Dr. Jeremy Wade Barrier is the Assistant Professor of Biblical Literature at Heritage Christian University and also did postdoctoral work as a Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow under Tobias Nicklas at the Universitat Regensburg, Germany. His last book "The Acts of Paul and Thecla: A Critical Introduction and Commentary" was written in 2009. He earned his PhD in Biblical Interpretations at the Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University.

Check out his latest Book:

Approximately 2,000 years ago, some Jewish communities of Galatia in central Asia Minor believed they had fallen under a curse, argues Jeremy Wade Barrier. A fellow Jew named Paul wrote the letter we call Galatians to help them escape its effects. In the letter, Barrier argues, Paul called for the Jews in Galatia to stop practicing circumcision. The rite had fallen into disuse within many Jewish communities in the Roman Empire, but Barrier argues the Galatian Jews believed it was a talisman that would protect them from harm.

As a further precaution, they needed to deal with the person who had brought this evil to their community. A witch hunt was underway, and some had concluded that the witch was none other than Paul. Barrier provides a reconstruction of the original occasion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians and shows how Paul defended himself from accusations of witchcraft by countering that the ritual that would protect them from the “Evil Eye” was not circumcision, but rather baptism. Through the ritual of baptism, they could receive healing from a material, yet divine, “breath” of God. Barrier also reconstructs an earlier understanding of this pneuma that was lost to subsequent Christianity under the influence of Neoplatonism.

This is part two of our conversation with Dr. John Barton about his latest book "A History of the Bible: The Story of the World's Most Influential Book."

In "A History of the Bible," John Barton argues that the Bible is not a prescription to a complete, fixed religious system, but rather a product of a long and intriguing process, which has inspired Judaism and Christianity, but still does not describe the whole of either religion.

Barton shows how the Bible is indeed an important source of religious insight for Jews and Christians alike, yet argues that it must be read in its historical context--from its beginnings in myth and folklore to its many interpretations throughout the centuries.

Dr. John Barton is a British Anglican priest and biblical scholar. From 1991 to 2014, he was the Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Oriel College. In addition to his academic career, he has been an ordained and serving priest in the Church of England since 1973.

In this episode, we chat with Dr. John Barton about his latest book "A History of the Bible: The Story of the World's Most Influential Book."

In "A History of the Bible," John Barton argues that the Bible is not a prescription to a complete, fixed religious system, but rather a product of a long and intriguing process, which has inspired Judaism and Christianity, but still does not describe the whole of either religion.

Barton shows how the Bible is indeed an important source of religious insight for Jews and Christians alike, yet argues that it must be read in its historical context--from its beginnings in myth and folklore to its many interpretations throughout the centuries.

Dr. John Barton is a British Anglican priest and biblical scholar. From 1991 to 2014, he was the Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Oriel College. In addition to his academic career, he has been an ordained and serving priest in the Church of England since 1973.