We mentioned in our last episode description that we'd get to the Scriptural texts on this episode. However, I (Conor) derailed us with a question that was prompted by an article I read by Stanley Hauerwas. We discuss a bit about what comes to mind when we think of Jesus and combat. We then dug into the moral "pull" of the military, war, and some oft-forgotten folks whose lives are drastically altered by the military: military families and veterans. 

Part 2 of our discussion on war and violence. We use a very brief overview of Just War Theory as a launchpad for discussion on intentions in war, justifications for actions, how we measure success, and how we (re)narrate wars to ourselves to preserve something (among other things). As we end our conversation, we set up our next discussion which will be digging into Scripture and taking a theological approach to war and violence. 

Once we got talking about this we realized it's gonna take a couple episodes. How have and should Christians think about war and violence? How do followers of Jesus navigate this? And perhaps surprisingly, what can the church learn from the military about forming people? All this and more as we begin a trek through discussing Christians and war with good friend of the podcast and now co-host Catherine Lee. Catherine is a public history museum studies graduate student and Specialist in the Army National Guard. Her time as a UW-Whitewater undergrad challenged her to take ownership of her faith in Jesus and build her identity in Christ. Catherine is an avid tea lover and has a deep appreciation for literature. 

(Note: This episode is technically labeled 'explicit' because I (Conor) said 'damn.' Gotta stick with the podcast-uploading rules and label it appropriately. So when you see that little 'E' just know it's not because we went wild with swearing even though this episode is about the military in which they use...language).

This week we're talking with the Rev. Amanda Holm Rosengren about her journey to live into her Spirit-given calling, which has led to being ordained as a priest in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) in the diocese Churches for the Sake of Others (C4SO). She is currently Associate Pastor at Church of the Redeemer in Highwood, IL. We cover her story, faith background, coming to terms with entering into concrete leadership roles as a woman in the church, and some scriptural and theological arguments about women in leadership. This was a fantastic conversation, and we hope this leads all of us Christians to greater humility and respect towards one another as we work through these things.

Rev. Amanda's full bio:

Amanda Holm Rosengren serves as Associate Pastor at Church of the Redeemer. After serving on staff at Redeemer as a Music Minister for two and a half years, she transitioned to a full time role in 2009, continuing to lead the music ministry as well as preaching, facilitating in areas such as congregational care and spiritual formation, and (in her words) “whatever else needs doing.”

Born and raised in southern California, Amanda first came to the Chicago area as a student at Wheaton College, graduating with a BA in English. In 2009 she graduated from Trinity International University, earning a Master of Divinity degree with a Pastoral Care focus. She and her husband, Erik, were married at Redeemer in 2010. The following year she was ordained as a Deacon in the Anglican Province of Rwanda, joining Canon Jay as clergy serving the church in worship and service. Following ten years of diaconal ministry, Amanda was ‘priested’ by Archbishop Laurent Mbanda of the Anglican Church of Rwanda in 2021.

In addition to her work with Redeemer, Amanda and Erik keep busy caring for their two young children, Ruth and Junia, and their neurotic border collie, Benji.

We're beginning season 2 with an easy disagreement: women in ministry/women's ordination. We are fully cognizant that we are two men talking about this, which is why we bring on two women who occupy different positions on this to share how they are serving in their local church contexts.

This episode we have Lauren Osborne, friend of Noah and Virginia Tech student. Lauren recently came back to her Roman Catholic faith and has been serving in a number of ways. She also solves our ecumenical woes! But seriously she brings some good wisdom that we pray the Holy Spirit uses to make us a little more united in our life in Christ. We hope you enjoy it.

We are now a podcast with multiple seasons! We feel like real podcasters.

Season 2 is going to be all about disagreement among Christians. What are some topics we disagree about and why? We are not going to solve the disagreements. That is not our purpose with this season. The purpose is to examine disagreement itself, how we disagree, and why matters. So come along as we enter into disagreement on a wide range of topics/questions, seeking to work out our salvation in the midst of it all because even in disagreement God is still at work in us.

Also Noah likes ceilings. 

Thanks to those who take the time to listen along on this podcast with us. We're grateful.

What could an ancient 5th century Christian theologian and philosopher have to say about modern mental health issues? Perhaps the answer may surprise you. Join Noah and Conor as they discuss Saint Augustine, a north African theologian and bishop, and how he offers encouragement that we can fully explore our emotions and trust God's presence in the tumult of the trouble of the mind.

What does mental health have to do with a 5th century Christian theologian and philosopher? How could a guy from way back then teach us something about modern mental health struggles? Drawing from his two most famous works ("Confessions" and "City of God") Conor presents some passages that show how Augustine knew and understood, as much as he could in his day, the troubles of the mind, and how God sees and meets us in it all. We hope you find this encouraging.

Join us as we talk with Cpl. Michael Hughes, a friend of Noah's, as he shares with us his experience seeing a friend suffer from mental health issues. This perspective is sorely needed: what it's like to see someone you love and care for suffering so much from mental anguish, as well as thinking how to best walk with them through it. Mike's background is as a Seventh Day Adventist, a Marine, and a student of Medical Laboratory Sciences. 

A friend and parishioner of our church (Immanuel Whitewater) joins us to talk about her experience with mental health while following Jesus. We discuss the connection between emotions and our relationship with God, the effect Sin has had on them, how different they can be, and more. Plus, we learn that phenology is the study of the seasons.