Will Lane, Director of the Writing Center, Gettysburg College and former Chair, Adams-Hanover Health Care for All discusses the current status of healthcare in America with host Dr. Christianson.  Mr. Lane says the health care is slowly improving under The Affordable Care Act, but the goal is still to cover everyone with affordable health care. The obstacles today are political and not value or workable solutions.   Two models to meet the goal are regulated private companies and the expansion of Medicare for everyone.

Dr. Christianson and John Spangler, Executive Assistant to the President for Communication and Planning and former President of the Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation, explore what we can learn from a small school on a large campus on how to realize a commitment to preserving the environment by “going green:” using new technologies, such as geothermal wells, measuring the “carbon footprint,” recycling, and planting.  The Historic Walking Pathway and campus renewal with new parking and tree planting are prime examples at Gettysburg Seminary.

English at Gettysburg College, about his new book, Psalms for Skeptics, a series of sonnets based on one phrase from

each of the Psalms 101-150.

In this episode, a theologian, Dr. Largen, and a historian, Rev. Dr. Maria Erling, talk about the construction of Lutheran identity, and how it relates both to theological doctrines and also social, historical context.  The issue of slavery is discussed as one example of such identity construction.

The Rev. Dr. Mark Oldenburg shares with Dr. Largen two “horror stories” involving 4th of July Sunday morning worship services as a way to talk more constructively about how to balance “secular religion” and Sunday worship services. The goal is to both recognize and celebrate the things that matter in our daily lives—like our country, but also honor and worship God as the absolute center of our life. Public ministers, you don’t want to miss this one!

In this episode Dr. Largen speaks with Katy Giebenhain about why poetry is such a great resource for preachers.  In particular they talk about the language and beauty of poems, and how reading poetry can help preachers bring evocative imagery and beautiful language into sermons.  

Katy also shares some of her favorite poems with us in this episode of The Seminary Explores.  

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Dr. Largen speaks with The Rev. Dr. Martin Zimmann, Pastor, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Mechanicsburg, PA,  about the importance of talking about issues of race and culture in the church. Pastor Zimmann offers some helpful strategies for beginning the conversation.

President of Seminary Advancement, Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary, and author, In it for the Long Haul: Building Effective

Long-term Pastorates (Alban Institute, 2011) about long term

pastorates.  Rev. Ludwig observes that we

have changed our minds about long-term pastorates.  Where once three years was thought to be a

good average, we now think that one doesn’t really develop a foundation until

the seventh or eighth years. He describes five pillars for building a healthy

congregation and a long-term pastorate, including how to create a climate of

trust.

Dr. Tom Deloe, Retired Health Researcher, Department of Health and Human Services talks to Dr. Christianson about Marijuana.  With the number of states approving medical or even recreational use of marijuana increasing, several questions arise. How extensive is the use among teens and what do we know about its effects?  What are the chances that teens or adults will move on to harder drugs? Has legalization reduced the prison population?  Has marijuana helped cure any diseases? If not, what are the positives and negatives of medical use?

contemporary society with Pastor Fritz Foltz. Pastor Foltz discussed the

changing nature of friendship from the biblical texts to the Church Fathers to

the present technology of Facebook. He also shared his introduction to

“professional” friendship roles in the professional sports and gambling

industries.