Professors, In Rooms, Getting Coffee

Professor and Filmmaker Jonathan Vinson joins to discuss his own journey of discovering beauty and how he defines it today. Justin and Stephen ask whether beauty is necessarily good or true. Together, they consider the relationship between aesthetic appeal and truth, and whether something can be both untrue and beautiful, or aesthtically unpleasing and true.

Justin and Stephen also discuss their highlights, lowlights, and insights for the week, and Justin shares his frustration with feeling like there is an absence of "brutal honesty" in Christian writing. 

Jonathan Vinson is a photographer, filmmaker, and assistant professor from Crown College. He has a Masters of Theological Studies from Bethel University and a Masters of Fine Arts in Film and TV Production from Asbury University.

Jonathan's Film Paradise Strong: Surviving California's Deadliest Wildfire is available for streaming from Amazon.

Recommended resources:

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Justin and Stephen consider the implications of Ephesians for how Christians might approach life today, including how hope and despair stemming from contemporary politics may reveal eschatological drift. This episode is the last in the series on Justin's Ph.D. dissertation, which considered anti-imperial readings of Ephesians. 

Justin's dissertation is now available as a book (also at Amazon).

Justin referenced his appearance on The Two Cities podcast.   

Stephen and Justin also discuss their highlights, lowlights, and insights for the week. Justin reflects on the district conference and dealing with abuse in the church, and Stephen reflects on the war and being far from home. 

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Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

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Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

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Justin and Stephen discuss the relationship between truth and humility, and Stephen suggests that encounters with truth should always be humbling. Justin considers the process of doctrinal development, and the guys process the risks involved with fossilization of doctrine. He also asks about what happens when we choosing to make doctrinal statements in areas where they may not be necessary. Stephen also reflects on the arrest of a former pastor the guys had formerly worked with, on charges of criminal sexual misconduct. They conclude the episode considering where they find hope. 

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Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

Exciting news for our listeners: More Bonuses: Explore old favorites and fresh exclusives from all Envision Berlin podcasts.

Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

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Stephen asks Justin about Ephesians 2 and Ephesians 5. Justin suggests that in Ephesians 2, the author contrasts the way in which Jesus brings peace with the way that the Roman Empire brought peace. In a particularly difficult section of Ephesians 5, Justin considers whether the author's household code of ethics is set in contrast with the Roman Empire's code of household ethics. 

In their highlights, lowlights, and insights, Justin and Stephen talk about Stephen's new eBike (it's just like Justin's!). Justin reflects on an encouraging back to school devotional time that his department shared with his colleagues at the College. Stephen shares about the joy of coming back to a familiar patterns of prayer. Justin reflects on engaging difficult passages in scripture, and what happens when engaging with the Bible (as opposed to not engaging with it) leads to difficulties in faith.

Credits: Regular Theme Music “A New Hope” by MeGustaMusic. This episode was partially recorded on the land of the Wahpekute, Anishinabewaki, and the Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux).

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Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

Exciting news for our listeners: More Bonuses: Explore old favorites and fresh exclusives from all Envision Berlin podcasts.

Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

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Stephen asks Justin what happened in Ephesians, as they start into the final series on Justin's dissertation. In today's episode, they talk through Ephesians 1:3-14, and whether this passage is intended to challenge Roman imperial ideology. Along the way, they discuss difficulties around interpretive ideas like supercessionism and predestination.

Justin gives a refresher on the speeach act idea that "x = y in C" and considers the question of whether the author Ephesians intended to confront Roman or other eschatologies by through the discussion of Jesus the Messiah. In particular, Justin considers the possibility that the Christ inaugurated a second exodus.

Justin and Stephen also discuss books they're reading, plumbing problems, carrying sadness, knowing Jesus through his historical context, and the question of what the church should look like.

Credits: Regular Theme Music “A New Hope” by MeGustaMusic. This episode was partially recorded on the land of the Wahpekute, Anishinabewaki, and the Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux).

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Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

Exciting news for our listeners: More Bonuses: Explore old favorites and fresh exclusives from all Envision Berlin podcasts.

Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

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Justin and Stephen conclude the conversation with Marcus Dip Silas about relational knowing and the nature of truth. In today’s episode (pt. 3 of 3), they consider how truth is encountered and shared. Marcus talks about beauty and truth in cooking, and Justin shares about a project in which his students make a soundtrack for the Gospel of John. Marcus and Justin reflect on what Georgia O’Keeffe and Vincent Van Gogh communicate about truth. Stephen asks Marcus about where he finds hope. Justin and Stephen also talk about early morning sports, a recent gallery showing at Sprig, Envision Berlin’s creative space, and polarization in US society after the recent Supreme Court decisions. They will post more of their reflections about that on Patreon, before too long. We’re also inviting listeners to contribute questions on Patreon. Let us know what questions you have for us! Link: from the Gallery Showing at Sprig (on Instagram). We have show notes for you at profsinrooms.com, and bonus material on Patreon!

Find Profs in Rooms mugs and more here. Credits: Regular Theme Music “A New Hope” by MeGustaMusic. This episode was partially recorded on the land of the Wahpekute, Anishinabewaki, and the Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux). We may receive commission from Amazon or Bookshop.org for purchases made through some of our links. Those commissions do not reduce authors’ royalties. Thank you for your support.

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Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

Exciting news for our listeners: More Bonuses: Explore old favorites and fresh exclusives from all Envision Berlin podcasts.

Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

Thank you for being part of our journey!

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Justin and Stephen continue the conversation with Marcus Dip Silas about relational knowing and the nature of truth. In today’s episode (pt. 2 of 3), they consider what truth does. They consider how educational approaches reflect and perpetuate ideas of what truth is, and ask what effective measures of truth are, and what happens when authority interacts with truth selectively. Justin and Stephen also discussed more about the language learning process, and Justin shares about an upcoming episode of another podcast that he’s appearing on soon. We’re also inviting listeners to contribute questions on Patreon. Let us know what questions you have for us! Link: Stephen referenced these episodes of the Unterwegs podcast: • Episode 40: Cultural Transitions - Language Learning - Part 1 of 2 • Episode 41: Cultural Transitions - Language Learning - Part 2 of 2 We have show notes for you at profsinrooms.com, and bonus material on Patreon! Find Profs in Rooms mugs and more here

Credits: Regular Theme Music “A New Hope” by MeGustaMusic. This episode was partially recorded on the land of the Wahpekute, Anishinabewaki, and the Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux). We may receive commission from Amazon or Bookshop.org for purchases made through some of our links. Those commissions do not reduce authors’ royalties. Thank you for your support.

_ _

Important Update: New Patreon Address!

We've moved to https://patreon.com/envisionberlin  

Exciting news for our listeners: More Bonuses: Explore old favorites and fresh exclusives from all Envision Berlin podcasts.

Free Transcripts: We're posting free beta transcripts for all our episodes on our new Patreon page. Dive deeper into our conversations, revisit your favorite moments, and never miss a word of wisdom. Join us at our new home and continue supporting our mission at the intersection of art, faith, and culture.

Thank you for being part of our journey!

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