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..

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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

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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)

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Jodie and Matthew watch Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1996), one of Disney’s most explicitly religious movies. Tackling themes of genocide, otherness, lust, and other heavy ideas, this is also one of Disney’s most hard-hitting movies, but it did so in a very tasteful and subtle way. Jodie and Matthew discuss how it portrays religion at its best and as its worst - as a prison and as a sanctuary - and how the religious themes impacted the message The Hunchback of Notre Dame was pushing. Let us know your thoughts, opinions, and disagreements!

Matthew Rating: 4.5/5

Jodie Rating: 5/5

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Jodie and Matthew had such a great time with their first Q&R Episode, that they decided to do it again, addressing the questions below:

1. If you had to recommend one translation for someone who wants to get as close as possible to the original meaning, knowing no translation is perfect, which would it be and why? 

2. What’s a widely-assumed “biblical idea” that’s actually a later theological or cultural addition/contribution, rather than something in the text itself?

3. If you could spend time with any religious community (past or present), to study them in a totally ethical way, which would you choose and why?

4. Is there a working scholarly definition of “religion” at all, or has the field mostly given up on drawing up a boundary? 

5. What’s a scholarly finding you think a general audience would find genuinely destabilizing if it were more widely known?

6. If you could excavate one lost document (like something we know exists but haven't found), what would you choose to dig up?

7. How do you, or do you at all, find your own biases influencing your interpretations of religious content/the selection of content discussed on the podcast, and how do you plan on navigating this/recommending others navigate it as well?

Send us more questions so we can do another episode like this in the future!

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Jodie and Matthew watch Hadestown: The Musical (2026). Recently released in theaters (and at the time of this episode coming out, no longer in theaters), Hadestown is a proshot of the original broadway cast in London’s West End and it is AMAZING. If you haven’t seen Hadestown, go to New York or London, or see it on tour, or see it when it gets released. Jodie, but mainly Matthew, decide to take a break from a religious discussion just so they can nerd out over Hadestown in this episode, highlighting their favorite and least favorite performances and themes presented in the musical. If you have never seen Hadestown, Matthew describes Hadestown as an ecological and existential critique of unfettered capitalism hidden behind the guise of a romantic tragedy. Listen along to and share your thoughts, agreements, disagreements, and comments!

Matthew Rating: 5/5

Jodie Rating: 4/5

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In our first ever Q&R episode, Jodie and Matthew answer a handful of listener questions (after getting distracted by a heated discussion on spiderman…)

1. What have y’all found to be the most difficult topic/concept to discuss or address on the podcast (think either hard to explain/define or emotionally-charged, like SA or violence)?

2. What’s a term or phrase that every major translation gets slightly wrong, in your view, and what does the mistranslation change?

3. Who are your most and least favorite Popes (if you have one) and why?

4. How does religious studies as a field distinguish itself from theology? Where’s the line between studying a tradition and practicing it?

5. If you had infinite money to buy any given religious artifact to have in your possession, what would you want to have? Are we going for a specific text? Piece of art? Relic?

6. Do you find that the footnotes and cross-references in study Bibles function as a second type of translation by shaping interpretation without *technically* changing the text?

7. How do you think religious literacy could change the world (think politics, culture, etc.)?

Send us more questions so we can do another episode like this in the future!

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Jodie and Matthew watch Dreamwork’s “The Road to El Dorado” (2000) and get distracted and forget to discuss much of the religion in this film. But they do touch on it amidst their lively debate on the quality of the movie and its depiction of mesoamerican culture… which admittedly takes up the majority of this episode. Let us know your thoughts on The Road to El Dorado, and any thoughts, opinions, questions, and concerns you may have for this episode or for us!

Matthew Rating: 2/5

Jodie Rating: 5/5

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If you grew up in Sunday School, you’re probably familiar with the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace, but how much of the story did you actually understand? Jodie and Matthew unveil the cultural background and literary styles that make up Daniel and specifically Daniel 3, where this narrative takes place. Jodie and Matthew address questions such as who the fourth figure in the fire may have been, what genre this is, and how the original audience may have appreciated this literature. Let us know your questions, thoughts, and critiques!

Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:

Daniel: a commentary / Carol A. Newsom with Brennan W. Breed (The Old Testament Library)

“Rack, Shack and Benny” episode of Veggietales

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Bluesky: @TheRELTreehouse

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Jodie and Matthew watch Bill Maher’s Religulous (2008). Spoiler: We hated it. Listen along to find out about all the misinformed claims Bill Maher makes about religion, how he belittles religious folks, and how he misrepresents religion. Matthew and Jodie usually take a critical look at the Bible and religion (but hopefully in a way that is generous and kind), but Maher’s critique was rude, disingenuous, and horribly misinformed. Listen along, let us know if you agree or disagree with us, and let us know any of your other thoughts!

Matthew Rating: 0.5/5

Jodie Rating: 2/5

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