All Episodes
Let My People Go
This week, Fr. Paul explains that the turning of the Nile into blood in Exodus is figurative, denoting destruction. (Episode 247)
Which Spirit?
When biblical interpreters decide on capitalization when translating Greek or Hebrew to a modern language, they impose two layers of subjectivity. First, they impose t...
Listen, Don’t Read
This week, Fr. Paul observes that the best audience for the book of Exodus is made up of children, because they appreciate and are able to follow a good story. (Episod...
Tender Mercies
What do you get when you combine a cloud service provider outage, one co-host recovering from illness, and the other recording from a parked car somewhere with only t...
Speak My Word
This week, Fr. Paul explains the irresistibility of the Scriptural God, who executes his will despite the stand of Pharaoh, unlike the other gods, who disappear with t...
Amnesty and Accountability
In the Gospel of Luke, the news of the forgiveness of sins is the knowledge that John the Baptist was born and commissioned to share with absolute urgency. It is the d...
God From God
This week, Fr. Paul reminds us, once again, that unless you hear the original consonantal text, you are hearing not Scripture but your own narrative. (Episode 244)
Be Neighborly
Throughout the story of Scripture, it is the Lord who delivers his people from their enemies. This deliverance is not about victory in the conventional sense, where on...
God Speaks Biblical Hebrew
This week Fr. Paul explains that even if God understands your language he will only answer you in the Biblical Hebrew he wrote. (Episode 243)
The Command of God
This week Fr. Paul explains that the command of God in Genesis is interconnected with his command to Moses in Exodus and, ultimately, his command in the letter to the ...
Romulus Was a Thug and a Criminal
In tribal experience, as in American mythology, life originates with the forefather. How often on this program have we mentioned the blasphemous depiction of George Wa...
You Should Not Enjoy Scripture
This week, Fr. Paul explains that you should not enjoy scripture but rather hear it and obey. (Episode 241)
Quiet, Zacharias is Speaking
Self-styled students of the Bible often impose personal arguments on their study of the text. In some cases, this problem is obvious, for example, when religious think...
Dabar, Voice, Staff
This week, Fr. Paul relies on grammatical functionality to explain how the shepherd leads his flock in Scripture with the biblical dabar. (Episode 240)
It Was Zacharias
Zacharias was silenced for speaking his own words. Words that build defend and secure the things that serve Herod’s agenda: a thriving community centered by a bountifu...
The Wilderness
This week, Fr. Paul reminds us that the wilderness in Scripture is like a visit from God, it can be good news, or it can be bad news. (Episode 239)
Fierce Loyalty
Institutional thinking has no comprehension of personal loyalty. Fierce loyalty. The kind you don’t get to choose. The kind you are born under. Like someone in Luke bo...
The Domain of God
This week, Fr. Paul explains the technical link between the blood of birth-giving and the blood of circumcision in the story of the Bible. (Episode (238)
Just Burp, Again
Regurgitate. To throw up or vomit; to eject what has previously been swallowed. To repeat verbatim. ([https://www.synonyms.com/synonym/Regurgitate]) Unless you happen ...
Immerse Yourself
This week, Fr. Paul explains that zera’ is the same, whether it’s a plant, or a tree, or a fish, or an animal, or a human being. (Episode 237)
Neighbors and Relatives
When Americans think of a “neighborhood,” the first thing that comes to mind is “value.” What type of homes are in the area? What size? How old? What amenities? What f...
Midian
This week Fr. Paul explains that Midian is practically the Arabian desert, highlighting the importance of shepherdism as the setting for the biblical storyline. (Episo...
Don’t Be Lame
When Mary proclaims the Lord’s help toward his servant Israel, it’s easy to reduce her prayer to yet another platitude about mercy from our perspective, elevating Isra...
Just Burp
This week, Fr. Paul continues his discussion of Exodus, stressing the importance of submitting to and not circumscribing the biblical text. (Episode 235)
It’s Just News
The difficult teaching of Ecclesiastes warns us that all people share the same fate. This wisdom is pervasive in Scripture, from the violent imagery found in Deuterono...
Either/Or
This week, Fr. Paul stresses that in Hebrew and Greek the word house reflects the meaning of both house and household. (Episode 234)
Mercy and Fear
Having established that God—not herself—is her only reference, Mary moves to the next logical step from Scripture’s perspective: the proclamation of the fear of God. ...
Like a Woman in Travail
This week, Fr. Paul explains that God is in travail in Scripture and gives birth to children through his teaching. (Episode 233)