Regent College Podcast

Today we're talking about outreach and evangelism with Shaila Visser and Peter Lynas. Shaila serves as the National Director of Alpha Canada and Global Senior Vice-President for Alpha International, and Peter is the Evangelical Alliance's UK director (and a Regent alum). Peter and Shaila give us their take on the decline of nominal Christianity in the West, the pandemic's shattering impact on cultural narratives, and the powerful impact of service and relationships. Join us for this challenging and inspiring conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit :www.regent-college.edu.

Do you ever wonder how pain and suffering fit with God's goodness? Dr. Bethany Sollereder has spent her life exploring that question. Today we spoke with Bethany about theodicy––theology that faces the reality of evil and suffering but keeps on affirming that God is good. How do we find meaning in suffering? Should we even try? When there are no easy answers, how do we move forward faithfully? Join us today as Bethany helps us think through an honest response to hard questions. To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

If you're new to Regent and loving what you're hearing on the Podcast, we've got an offer for you! This winter, one lucky podcast listener will win the chance to audit a course at Regent for free from anywhere in the world. If you have never taken a course at Regent send an email to podcast@regent-college.edu with your answers to two questions: (1) What course would you like to take and why? and (2) What topic(s) would you like us to touch on in the podcast? To check out the courses that will be offered in January, go to rgnt.net/winter. The deadline for all submissions is November the 29th. We're looking forward to seeing you in class this winter!

Between her studies in star formation and her work with radio, optical, and infrared telescopes, Dr. Jennifer Wiseman has spent most of her life exploring the farthest reaches of the universe. Today we talked with Dr. Wiseman about what it's like to contemplate the cosmos for a living. How does her work inform her faith? What does astronomy teach us about humanity's place in the universe? And (we couldn't not ask): what's up with aliens?To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

It can be easy to hold a limited view of Christianity––to think that our local expressions of faith are universal. But Christian faith has a powerful presence all around the globe––in Africa, Asia, and South America, as well as in the West. Today we’re talking about global Christianity with Dr. Miriam Adeney, author of Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity and Associate Professor of World Christian Studies at Seattle Pacific University. How is the growth of Christianity in the Majority World transforming the global church? How do different cultural practices impact the communication of the faith? How can we bring together evangelistic practice and healthy cultural humility? And what is the role of the global church in addressing global poverty? Don’t miss this fascinating conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit:www.regent-college.edu.

Scripture encourages us to care for those in prison, but it can be easy to forget about those who are literally locked away and out of sight. Today we're talking about prison ministry with Regent alumnus Dr. William Wan, chair of the board of Prison Fellowship Singapore and General Secretary of the Singapore Kindness Movement. Join us as we hear about the hopeful and challenging work of caring for prisoners and those coping with life post-release––cultivating empathy, building a meaningful ministry, and nurturing faith beyond jailhouse religion.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming Fall courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Money, vocation, and success raise big questions for all of us. Today we dove into these tricky topics with Dr. Rick Goossen, Chairman of the Entrepreneurial Leaders Organization, Director, Entrepreneurial Leaders Institute, Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford, and Strategic Counsel at Nicola Wealth. What does Christian entrepreneurship look like? What is kingdom work? And how do we hold onto faith when businesses fail, finances suffer, and things fall apart? Join us for this grounded and eye-opening conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit:www.regent-college.edu.

The global church has been deeply shaped by elements of Western culture––both good and bad. But as demographics change, the church has an opportunity to shake off cultural assumptions that are inhibiting the growth of God’s kingdom. Dr. Soong-Chan Rah, author of The Next Evangelicalism: Many Colors, argues that the current shifts in the global church are making space for a new movement of the Spirit: we just need to be open to receiving it. Join us for this challenging and hopeful conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Over the next little while, we'll be exploring questions you've always wanted to ask about the Old Testament. We're kicking it off this week with Matthew Lynch, Regent's new Assistant Professor of Old Testament. Is the idea of sin the same in the Old & New Testament? Was Jonah a real person? What's up with the Year of Jubilee––did it ever happen? And what (if anything) does the Old Testament tell us about life after death? Join us to hear Matt's responses to these questions and more.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

We are excited to inform you that we are launching a three-episode series on the podcast called “Questions about the Old Testament”. We feel privileged to have Dr. Ian Provan, Dr. Mathew Lynch and Dr. Mark Glandville, experts on the Old Testament, as part of the Regent family so we felt this series was long overdue. So be on the lookout for the release of each episode.

Robert F. Cochran Jr. is Brandeis Professor of Law at Pepperdine University and the Director of the Nootbaar Institute on Law, Religion, and Ethics. We asked him some of the questions we've been wondering about for a while: Should judges make decisions based on their personal morality? How do ethics play into the practice of law? What's the goal of the legal system––justice, efficiency, morality? And how can law be based on love? Don't miss out on this timely conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

On average, we spend at least 25% of our lives over the age of 60––and yet we often treat this time of life as a postscript. Today we sat down with Professor Emerita Dr. Maxine Hancock to talk about cultivating a life––and faith––that just gets richer with age. How do we nurture a personal faith marked by continual renewal? What do intergenerational friendships bring to the church? And what particular blessings can be given––or received––only by those in the later years of life? Join us for this rich and important conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Singer & songwriter Cheryl Bear has spent decades reflecting on the intersection of Christian faith and First Nation culture. How does the indigenous understanding of the Creator overlap with the Christian understanding of God? Is indigenous spirituality monotheistic? How has the historical treatment of indigenous people impacted the gospel today? And how does Jesus enter into and redeem cultural narratives––indigenous, western, or otherwise? Don't miss this thought-provoking conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Today we spoke with Rev. Eric O. Jacobsen, author of The Space Between: A Christian Engagement with the Built Environment and Sidewalks in the Kingdom: New Urbanism and the Christian Faith. Eric has spent years offering a theological perspective on the ins and outs of urban and suburban life. We had plenty of questions: What makes for a good city––and why should we care? What does suburbia have to do with the kingdom of God? Should police be in charge of bringing safety into neighbourhoods?Join us for this eye-opening conversation.

Today we get into the nitty-gritty of Bible translation with renowned scholar Douglas Moo. As a member of the committee that oversees the New International Version of the Bible, Dr. Moo has plenty of insight into the quirks and challenges of Bible translation. What goes into a good translation? What happens when translators disagree? How do translators' theological leanings impact the final product? And what's it like to know that your work will shape the reading of Scripture for decades to come? Don't miss this compelling conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Today we spoke with alumna and pediatrics specialist Dr. Jennie McLaurin. The practice of medicine today poses all kinds of challenges: the pressure to prioritize efficiency, the tension between specialization and whole-person care, and the challenge to maintain a patient-centered approach. Can these problems be fixed? How does the understanding of medicine as a moral art-–not just a scientific one––impact patient care? And what does Christian theology contribute to our understanding of the doctor-patient relationship? Join us for this practical and important conversation about medicine today.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Today we spoke with alumnus Matt Humphrey. As Director of Theological Education for A Rocha Canada, Matt is a passionate advocate for a Christian vision of creation care. How do environmental issues fit into Christian discipleship? How do we cultivate a right relationship to place and space in a mobile society? And is it possible to engage with these issues without getting political? Join us for this challenging and thought-provoking conversation. To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit:www.regent-college.edu

Today, alumni René and Sarah Breuel fill us in on their church-planting and evangelism work in the historical heart of the church––Rome. How did these two Brazilians end up in Italy? What does fruitful evangelism look like in the 21st century? Is a European revival even possible? And how does prayer shape our preaching of the gospel? Join us for this exciting (and encouraging) conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

Today we talked with John and Jonathan Walton about something we've always found confusing: demons and the devil. What is Satan's backstory? Why does the New Testament talk about demons so much more frequently than the Old Testament? Are we missing part of the picture? This conversation is a bit of a ride. Don't miss it! John H. Walton is a Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. He specializes in Ancient Near Eastern backgrounds of the Old Testament. Jonathan Walton is pursuing a Ph.D. in analytic and exegetical theology at St Andrews University. John and Jonathan co-authored The Lost World of the Torah and The Lost World of the Israelite Conquest. Don't miss this illuminating conversation.To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.

On today's podcast, we spoke with alumnus David Nacho, a theologian from Bolivia who served as Academic Dean at one of Latin America's most renowned theological institutions—the Centre for Interdisciplinary Theological Studies (CETI). Our conversation touched on several themes within the Latin American church: What, for example, is the value of "contextual" theology, and how did this approach come about? (Or to put it more provocatively: What hath liberation theology to do with Martin Luther?) How does one read the Bible "in community"? And what do western missionary legacies and Neo-Pentecostal growth mean for those engaged in theological formation? Don't miss this illuminating conversation (or Octavio's delight at having a fellow Bolivian on the show). To learn more about Regent College and our upcoming courses, visit: www.regent-college.edu.