In the Shift

Episode 34: This episode of In the Shift explores the related themes of human vulnerability and divine presence. We are often tempted to use God - and the idea of God's intervention - to cover over the awareness of our own vulnerability. But if we are able to come face-to-face with it, perhaps there are important insights to be gained, not only about ourselves but also about God. This episode also tackles the notion of divine presence - which can be understandably thrown into question when we face something like Covid-19. Is God really present, and if so, what does it even mean to say that? And what about the feelings of absence and loneliness that can be so potently known, regardless of our faith constructs?

Episode 33: In this episode I'm joined by theologian and philosopher Dr Thomas Jay Oord for a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation on the themes of his work especially in relation to his latest book, "God Can’t: How to believe in God and love after tragedy, abuse, and other evils". We discuss what it means to say that God's nature is uncontrolling love, how this impacts on the way we understand God’s presence and activity in the world, and why it might mean that there are many things that God simply "cannot", rather than "will not", do. We cover all sorts of terrain including different views of God, why "intervention" is not a helpful word, whether or not miracles and healings are possible, the responsiveness of fundamental reality itself, the origins of the universe, and then what all of this might mean for personal faith, prayer and spirituality.

Thomas Jay Oord is a theologian, philosopher, and scholar of multi-disciplinary studies. Oord is a best-selling and award-winning author, having written or edited more than twenty-five books. A twelve-time Faculty Award-winning professor, Oord teaches at institutions around the globe. He is the director of the Center for Open and Relational Theology. Oord is known for his contributions to research on love, open and relational theology, science and religion, and the implications of freedom and relationships for transformation. You can find out more about his work by visiting www.thomasjayoord.com 

Episode 32: In this episode we explore the challenges that arise when we consider the "sovereignty of God". In the Christian tradition God is typically understood as the one who is all powerful (omnipotent) and under whose domain and dominion all things take place. But this gives way to questions of what we do with suffering and pain. If God is in charge then what is going on here? In this episode we unpack three traditional theological responses to the problem of suffering and evil, why they're inadequate, and what questions and alternatives might begin to emerge in response.

Episode 31: We're back with a new series exploring the question of divine intervention! In Christian faith, many people are introduced to the idea of a God who is actively responsive, in 'control' and who answers prayer. But when crisis hits or some kind of disruption to our beliefs takes place we can start to question these assumptions (and with good reason). So what do we do with this and how do we move forward?

Is the idea of God still possible or meaningful, and if so what can authentic and honest spirituality look like? This episode introduces some of the big questions, and briefly unpacks three different frameworks for understanding the God-world relationship: classical theism, panentheism and pantheism, and how they impact the way we think about the possibility of divine intervention.

Episode 30: This is the final episode of the In the Flesh series, and we talk about where and how we store memory, what it means to 'know' something, how our bodies can surprise us about what we believe, and about the intersections between mysticism and revolution.

Episode 29: In this episode I talk with massage therapist Cheri Inoue about her experience growing up as Japanese-Canadian, the challenge of race, identity, Christianity as whiteness, the journey of learning to embrace difference, and how this story intersects with her work as a clinician. It is a wide-ranging conversation that explores working with people's bodies and particularly their pain, approaching both of these with a posture of non-judgement, and how we can discover acceptance for the difference and uniqueness of our own bodies in the midst of a life that demands so much from us.

Cheri has an Auckland-based practice, Well Within: Posture and Movement Care

Episode 28: This episode explores some of what evolution tells us about what makes human beings distinct, the embodiedness of our existence, the emergence of consciousness and why this might be connected to the universe becoming self-aware. And then we ask what insights and resources faith and spirituality might provide us in navigating this experience of humanness, and what kind of meaningful life this could invite us into. 

Episode 27: Are there things in scripture that don’t allow Christians to accept evolutionary theory? In order for Christians to have "faith" do they have to resist the claim that we have a common ancestor with apes? And if not, then what insight does evolutionary theory actually give us into what it means to be human, and how can this help us to understand faith, spirituality and some of our fundamental struggles as human creatures?

Episode 26: To understand what it means to be embodied humans, we need to grapple with evolution. But this also means unpacking the apparent conflict between science and religion that often plagues certain streams of Christianity. Many people assume that the claims of science go against the claims of religion, and vice versa. But the reality is, it is only some versions of religion that have a problem with science, and only some scientists who have a problem with religion. The conflict between these two worlds is entirely unnecessary... and a religious or spiritual tradition that means anything to us simply must be open to truth and knowledge wherever it is found. This episode asks why this conflict exists, and suggests some ways of thinking about God and spirituality that can help us to move forward in this conversation.

Episode 25: This episode explores a dynamic of spirituality that does more than just overturn exclusion, but moves intentionally toward inclusion. For some of the early Christians, their experience of the divine Spirit served to break down the barriers that excluded people based on ethnicity, gender, social class and even religious identity. This appears to have taken place, not by eliminating diversity, but by the Spirit-led affirmation of multiple identities and therefore the inclusion of diverse peoples. In this context, the activity of the Spirit is not just about individual mystical experiences, but about the disruption of oppressive systems, exclusive in-out groups, and the movement of people toward justice and compassion.