Let's Talk About the Bible

Rachel and Ben talk about different places of worship throughout the Bible. They start by exploring altars in the Old Testament before moving on to synagogues and other worship communities in the Gospels and Acts. Finally, they discuss Revelation's depiction of worship in the throne room. Throughout they talk about the purpose of worship, how it empowers us to know God, and how the places we worship can shape the way we understand who God is.

This week Rachel and Ben talk to author Jordan Ritter Conn and chef Riyad Alkasem about Jordan's new book The Road from Raqqa which tells the true story of Riyad and his brother Bashar. It's a story filled with the hard truths of war, struggle, and the pain of leaving home, but also one with hopes, dreams, and the power of hospitality.

This week, Rachel and Ben explore four stories about making covenants. They talk about the importance of symbolism and ceremony when it comes to making covenants, how memorials and reminders play a role in helping us a keep our covenants, and what it means to re-establish a covenant once it's been broken.

This week, Rachel and Ben talk with Hannah Adair Bonner about advocating for justice, learning how to change your mind and how to better listen to unheard voices. Hannah is a speaker, member of the UMC clergy, and the author of The Shout: Finding the Prophetic Voice in Unexpected Places.

This week on Let's Talk About the Bible, Rachel and Ben explore the conversion story of Paul in Acts, Paul's theology of salvation in his letter to the Romans, and why Paul's writing can be really, really confusing sometimes.

Jorge Acevedo is the lead pastor of Grace United Methodist Church in Florida. Jorge is also the author of Holy Living: Neighboring. He recently co-authored a book called The Field Guide to Methodist Fresh Expressions. Join us for this conversation with Jorge.

In this episode Rachel and Ben discuss what it means to be a neighbor by looking at five stories from Jesus' ministry. They'll explore some of these familiar stories in unique ways as they look to unpack what it means to be a neighbor and what it means to care for those around us.

This week Rachel and Ben sit down with Rev. Megan Castellan to talk about her time studying in Jerusalem, the state of Israeli/Palestinian relations, and how our faith can guide us as we seek to understand and navigate this complicated and contentious topic.