The Religious Treehouse

Boo! It's (a slightly delayed) spooky season and that means Jodie and Matthew get to review a religious horror movie: Midsommar. Matthew’s advice is to never watch this movie, but that’s mainly because he doesn’t like horror movies. Jodie’s advice is to follow us on social media, but that’s unrelated. But Jodie and Matthew discuss some of the religious themes and tropes that pop up throughout Midsommar and discuss anthropological concerns such as “how should one study communities who practice life in a way that seems so removed from our western values - especially when their way of life costs others theirs?" If you’ve seen the movie, listen along and let us know your thoughts!

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Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

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In our last episode of our 4-part series going through Phyllis Trible’s Texts of Terror, Jodie and Matthew discuss the story of Jephthah’s daughter, as found in Judges 11 in the Bible. Looking literally at the unit, Jephthah irrationally sacrifices his daughter as a burnt offering, presenting yet another tragic story for women in a biblical story. Listen along and tell us what you think!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives by Phyllis Trible (1984)

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Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouse

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

We are continuing a 4-part series, going through Phyllis Trible’s Texts of Terror, where each week, we will discuss a story from the Hebrew Bible from a Literary-Feminist perspective, following Trible’s book. Feel free to follow along and read with us! This week, we talk about the unnamed woman from Judges 19, a concubine who gets used, abused, and dismembered. Let us know your thoughts!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives by Phyllis Trible (1984)

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouse

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

We are continuing a 4-part series, going through Phyllis Trible’s Texts of Terror, where each week, we will discuss a story from the Hebrew Bible from a Literary-Feminist perspective, following Trible’s book. Feel free to follow along and read with us! This week, we talk about Tamar, a daughter of King David who is coveted by her brother Amnon. It’s a tragic story, but an important one in the Bible. Let us know your thoughts!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives by Phyllis Trible (1984)

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouse

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

We are starting a 4-part series, going through Phyllis Trible’s Texts of Terror, where each week, we will discuss a story from the Hebrew Bible from a Literary-Feminist perspective, following Trible’s book. Feel free to follow along and read with us! This week, we talk about Hagar, an enslaved Egyptian woman who conceived a son for Abraham, but is then banished. It’s a tragic story, but an important one in the Bible. Let us know your thoughts!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives by Phyllis Trible (1984)

Spectres of Marx by Jacques Derrida (1993)

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouse

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

It’s our 100th episode! And Jodie and Matthew talk about how to study a new religion. If you are interested in learning more about religions, we hope this is a good resource. By using a tree analogy, Matthew offers steps for how to begin your research into studying a religion. Importantly, create a good foundation by asking good questions, be aware of your biases, and use quality resources. Let us know your thoughts, questions, and opinions!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

“What Do They Hear?: Bridging the Gap Between Pulpit & Pew” by Mark Allan Powell

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Jodie and Matthew watch Good Fortune (2025), written by, directed by, and starring Aziz Ansari, and also starring Seth Rogan, Keke Palmer, and Keanu Reeves. In parallel with the previous episode, Jodie and Matthew discuss the portrayal of angels in modern western media. How do angels, and in particular their wings, differ from other ancient sources and art throughout the past 2000 years? Additionally, Jodie and Matthew think about the movie’s satirical critique on the rich and abuse of the poor and whether it succeeds in its critique and its humor. Listen along and share your thoughts!

Matthew Rating: 3/5

Jodie Rating: 4/5

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

Jodie and Matthew discuss angels in the Bible. No, not the nice, kind, warm, guardian angels that come to mind, nor the many eyed, many wheeled, creepy creatures you sometimes think about when you hear the phrase “biblically accurate angel.” No, it’s so much worse than that. By looking at how angels are depicted throughout the Old and New testaments, Jodie and Matthew unveil the scary and murderous side of angels that often gets left out of the Sunday School conversation. Take a listen and let us know your thoughts, agreements, and disagreements!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

God’s Monsters:Vengeful Spirits, Deadly Angels, Hybrid Creatures, and Divine Hitmen of the Bible - by Esther J. Hamori

Reiterer, F. V., Nicklas, T., & Schöpflin, K. (2006). Angels: The concept of celestial beings - origins, development and reception. De Gruyter, Inc..

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

Jodie and Matthew watch Adam and Eve (1983), originally titled “Adamo ed Eva: la prima storia d'amore,” which is an Italian film that takes influence from the biblical Adam and Eve story. In short, this movie confounded Jodie and Matthew. It was low budget, and perhaps made claims about a lot of things ranging from evolution to the patriarchy, but Jodie and Matthew could not tell where it stood on such concepts. In sum, Adam and Eve is a wild film that doesn’t make a lot of sense, but we can all agree at the very least that the movie exists… I guess. Anyways, send us more movie recommendations, critiques, or send us comments about what this movie is actually about because we need help figuring it out.

Matthew Rating: 2/5

Jodie Rating: 3/5

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]

In this re-release, originally posted on May 3, 2025, Jodie and Matthew briefly introduce what a monster is, where they show up in the Bible, and how modern discussions tend to tame them. Then, they get into it with the leviathan and how it’s the biggest and baddest of monsters, but also maybe God’s BFF? Take a listen and let us know what you think!!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

God’s Monsters:Vengeful Spirits, Deadly Angels, Hybrid Creatures, and Divine Hitmen of the Bible - by Esther J. Hamori

Grafius, B. R. (2017). Text and Terror: Monster Theory and the Hebrew Bible. Currents in Biblical Research, 16(1), 34-49. (Original work published 2017)

Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!

Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouse

Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

Instagram: @TheReligiousTreehouse

TikTok: @thereligioustreehouse 

Facebook: TRT

Email: [email protected]