Real Bible Rob: Affirming Christianity Podcast Real Bible Rob - Inclusive Christianity Discussions Real Bible Rob | PCUSA Ministry Insights

Real Bible Rob: Affirming Christianity Podcast Real Bible Rob - Inclusive Christianity Discussions Real Bible Rob | PCUSA Ministry Insights

By Rob Christ | Inclusive ChristianityReligion & SpiritualityChristianitySpiritualityReligion
Download on the App Store

Real Bible Rob: Affirming Christianity Podcast Real Bible Rob - Inclusive Christianity Discussions Real Bible Rob | PCUSA Ministry Insights episodes

  • Jezebel Spirit and diminishing women, 2 Kings 9:30-37, Esther 1:10-20

    Send us Fan Mail

    There is no more painful label for women than being called a Jezebel. It contains all the condemning, cursing, and slut shaming you can imagine. "Jezebel Spirit" is a frequently used racial slur in some churches. Jezebel was a foreign woman, likely forced into a royal marriage with a weak husband, which was bad enough. Still, she became the scapegoat for a whole nation; everything bad has been laid on her for millennia. Does she deserve it? Queen Vashti has a marginally better reputation, and her legacy didn't turn into a curse of all Israel like Jezebel's, but she was also a strong woman condemned for taking charge. Does she deserve what happened to her? I compare these two women and what it says about weak men looking for a scapegoat. While Jezebel did many evil things, her real sins seem to have been being a foreigner, a strong woman, and being the Queen of Israel instead of Judah. I talk about how these women are a touchstone for Womanist Theology. 

    Reference:
    "Womanist Midrash, Vols 1 & 2" by Wilda C. Gafney, Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School

    Other womanist authors include: Dr. Angela Parker, Dr. Renita Weems, Dr. Mitzi Smith

    #jezebel #jezebelspirit #vashti #womanist #theology #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    35 min
  • Was Jesus Capitalist or Communist? Acts 2:44-45, Leviticus 25

    Send us Fan Mail

    The answer is neither. Economics is all over the Bible, but modern labels have so much historical and cultural meaning that it is dishonest to label anyone in scripture as capitalist or socialist or communist. Instead, we must talk about commerce and the common good. The Bible has a lot to say about fair measures and honest business dealings. It condemns cheating and repression unequivocally. But it also has many passages about social structure and how things must be shared. The ancient practice of gleaning, the Jubilee year, charity to the poor, the tithe, selling goods and sharing are all biblical. When people use the bible to uphold unbridled capitalism, it is a perversion of the gospel. When people use the bible for centralized control and distribution is a perversion of fairness and equity. There has always been a balance. I discuss the bad uses of Marxist and capitalist labels. I discuss how the efficiency of modern economics is what drives goodness for all when applied fairly. I discuss the difference between usury and exploitation and modern interest and credit as prime example of how the Bible shouldn't be taken literally and that the underlying faithfulness, compassion, and fairness need to be highlighted instead. 

    #capitalism #marxism #usury #jubilee #jesus #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    53 min
  • Eating the Big Fish of Resistance, John 21:1-17

    Send us Fan Mail

    Many people, especially in America, are waking up to the fact that our freedom is on the line. While this has been the norm for most people in most of history, it is a surprising development for many privileged white people. Our views often mask how radical the Gospels really are. There was provocative, yet non-violent, resistance throughout Jesus's ministry. Many see the commissioning of Peter in John 21, "Feed my lambs," as being about Peter's evangelism, but it is really an act of resistance. The big fish people they brought out of the Sea of Galilee were illicit. Cooking and eating them was an act of defiance. It is an example of the resistance we should be engaged in today. Indigenous author Kaitlin Curtice shows how resistance is living daily in truth and connection. She quotes psychologist and author Clarissa Pinkola Estes, who said, "Do not lose heart, we were made for these times." I read and discuss excerpts of her article and Curtice's recent book "Living Resistance." 

    Correction: I misprounced θαυμάζων

    References: 
    Kaitlin B. Curtice, "Living Resistance: An Indigenous Vision for Seeking Wholeness Every Day" 
    Clarissa Pinkola Estes, https://www.awakin.org/v2/read/view.php?tid=548 
    Diana Butler Bass and John Dominic Crossan have written extensively on Galilean fish industry and the Romans. 

    #resistance #indigenous #civildisobedience #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    32 min
  • Martha, Mary & Audacious Women, Luke 10:38-42 & John 12:1-8

    Send us Fan Mail

    If you are a woman, you have likely heard the story of Martha and Mary. Martha is hurried and busy in the kitchen at the big party she threw for Jesus. But Mary sits down at Jesus's feet, anointing him with ointment. Martha complains to Jesus, saying that he should tell Mary to get busy and help her sister. But Jesus says Mary chose the better way. This is usually told to shame busy body women. But this is totally wrong. Instead, it is an invitation into a man's world that they had been excluded from. This story is coupled with Judas rebuking the extravagant use of ointment. And Jesus says that the poor will always be with us, which is also poorly used to remove the shame of not supporting the poor. The common theme is misusing this story to uphold patriarchy and male dominance. They couldn't be more wrong. I describe the audacity of Mary and Martha, and the corruption of Judas in context. text. 

    #marthaandmary #lazarus #judas #passion #Jesus #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    The word for "sat" is παρακαθεσθεῖσα which is a reflexive word, which in context literally means "one who sat herself down alongside at Jesus's feet." To sit at his feet is to be his disciple.

    24 min
  • Going to the wall with Hosannas

    Send us Fan Mail

    Have you been puzzled by the dissonance of Palm Sunday? How can people seem so happy at the start of the worst week of Jesus's life? Why do we think Hosanna is offering praise? What made the people throw their cloaks down and wave branches? These are pivotal questions. Looking at the volatile political and cultural dynamics at play, you can see the astonishing insight and bravery of Jesus. Whether you believe his actions were divinely guided or not, I get a glimpse how this amazing story shows us the Jesus that I love. From the triumphal entry to Jesus weeping over Jerusalem to Jesus's audacious cleansing to the temple, Jesus went to the wall, through the gate, and put himself in the hands of the authorities leading to his crucifixion and resurrection. I describe what it looked like for Jesus to ride from the Mount of Olives to the eastern wall of Jerusalem. I describe the political dynamics and the astonishing bravery of Jesus in Luke 19:28-39.

    #palmsunday #jesus #jerusalem #cleansingthetemple #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    30 min
  • "Woke" Amos might change your life: The wealth of Jezreel Valley and Samaria

    Send us Fan Mail

    Correction! Jezreel Valley goes from Haifa to the Jordan River. Kidron Valley is next to Jerusalem. I am sorry for the error!

    No word is more polarizing than "woke" but the people who get really angry about usually can't define it. To them, it just means anything liberal they don't like. Instead, the term arose in the black community in the mid-20th century and it simply means becoming aware of the systemic injustice in American society. It was used against Jim Crow and racism and the institutions that kept and still keep people of color down. I argue that Amos is the most woke book of the Hebrew Bible because it is a shock to the self-righteous. Old Testament Survey classes are usually the weeder classes in seminaries, in a similar way that Calculus is in universities. Why? I explore how many Christians when faced with a deeper understanding of the Old Testament encounter a crisis of faith. Amos is one of those books for Americans and all western societies. Amos has long been used as a critique by civil rights advocates and liberation theologians. If you don't see yourself in Amos, you just aren't paying attention.  

    Reference: Gören Eidevall "Amos: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (The Anchor Yale Bible Commentaries)

    #oldtestament #amos #woke #capitalism #liberationtheology #selfrighteousness #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    47 min
  • Pastors and Fascism, Romans 13:1-7 & Jeremiah

    Send us Fan Mail

    Pastors always walk a fine line when it comes to politics and current events. Healthy congregations have people with a variety of political persuasions. Being a true pastor means you should never abuse the privilege of power to push partisan political positions. But we are also compelled to preach the gospel, so we should not be complicit or quiet in the face of political cruelty and injustice nor in the face of anything-goes immorality. So how can you be faithful and non-partisan at the same time? There are two ways to look at it. One is to understand Romans 13:1-7 in context and how it is used. The other is to know about the political backdrop for the book of Jeremiah. I also mention Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Karl Barth and the Confession Church when they were facing the massive takeover of fascism in Germany. 

    I mention the historian with the tag of @oh_mellnawww on TikTok and Instagram. She has a very important perspective. 

    #fascism #pastor #confessingchurch #politics #christiannationalism #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    35 min
  • Newton, Darwin, and God - Ephesians 1:11 & Jeremiah 10:23

    Send us Fan Mail

    What does Newton and Darwin have to do with God? A whole lot. Newton represents the height and triumph of determinism, the idea that all things have a cause and effect. If you know all the inputs and processes of a system, you can determine every outcome. Calvin's writings underpinned this by saying that God has absolute control of the entire universe, which Newton used to generalize from earth to the cosmos. Newton was a very religious man. Darwin who was also religious, created a major fissure in determinism by describing how random events and natural selection are the basis for evolution. The rise of quantum mechanics and chaos in the following century obliterated any scientific foundation for determinism. For the believer, the argument isn't so much whether God is in control, but whether God plays by God's own rules. I touch on the leap of imagination that Newton and Darwin had to make to have the astounding insights they developed. I also mention Einstein's lifelong struggle with determinism. And how religious people have such a hard time giving up the control that determinism gives them. 

    #newton #darwin #einstein #determinism #faith #predestination #freewill #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    Eph 1:11 In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will,

    Jer 10:23 
    I know, O Lord, that the way of humans is not in their control,
        that mortals as they walk cannot direct their steps.

    34 min
  • Biblical Marriage from Ephesians 5:21-33 & Matthew 19:3-12

    Send us Fan Mail

    What is Biblical Marriage? That is a hard question to answer because there are many biblical marriages. There is Israelite marriage in the time of the Patriarchs, there is Judean marriage in the Second Temple period, there is New Testament Jewish marriage, there is New Testament gentile marriage, there is sacramental marriage as the Catholic Church defines it and there is Protestant marriage. Then all of this is applied to modern American notions of marriage and the nuclear family. I describe what the true purpose of marriage was in the Old Testament and New Testament. I also describe why no modern couple would want to have a biblical marriage. Then I show how modern Christians project our ideas of marriage on the two most commonly quoted passages in the New Testament and how they do and do not apply to us. 

    For this I refer to David A. de Silva's "Honor, Patronage, Kinship and Purity" and Carolyn Osiek's "Early Christian Families in Context"

    #marriage #biblicalmarriage #onemanonewoman #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    44 min
  • Recovering Fundamentalist with Author Gabe Gordon

    Send us Fan Mail

    I welcome special guest Gabe Gordon who is the author of his recent book "The Fundamentals of a Recovering Fundamentalist." We went to seminary together and he was my TA for a historical theology class. Now he is a grad student at Marquette University specializing in historical theology. His interests are early Greek and Syriac speaking Christianity and post-supersessionist Jewish Christian theology. He is a very deep thinker and I've always admired his thoughtful approach to theology. Gabe will give us a little autobiography that is central to his book. I ask Gabe about two major topics in his book. The idea that fundamentalism is just as dependent on modernism as liberal theology and what that means for us today. And how today's fundamentalists rely heavily on Gnosticism, much more than they realize. Finally, we talk about some of the paths that young people like him can take out of fundamentalism to develop a more sustainable and heartfelt faith.

     

    Gabriel Gordon, "The Fundamentals of a Recovering Fundamentalist" available at https://wipfandstock.com/9781666785685/the-fundamentals-of-a-recovering-fundamentalist/ and at https://a.co/d/fvidbCO

     

    #fundamentalism #exvangelical #postcolonialism #judaism #gnosticism #postmodernism #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa

    41 min

About Real Bible Rob: Affirming Christianity Podcast Real Bible Rob - Inclusive Christianity Discussions Real Bible Rob | PCUSA Ministry Insights

From the publisher's feed

Exploring Bible interpretation and modern Christian faith, I am a Presbyterian USA minister who interprets the Bible in all of its messy and varied voices. I teach and preach spiritual growth to…