What Matters Most: Recent Episodes

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Welcome to Episode 19 of Season 3 with Michael W. Higgins, who joined me to discuss Pope Francis and our new Pope Leo XIV. We discussed his newest book, a portrait of Pope Francis, titled the Jesuit Disruptor.

Michael W. Higgins is a distinguished educator, media commentator, and author, and he shows no sign of slowing down! In 1999 Dr. Higgins was appointed President and Vice-Chancellor of St. Jerome's University. He served as President until 2006 when he became President and Vice-Chancellor of St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick. While at St. Thomas he also taught English and Religious Studies. He was also President at St. Mark’s College in Vancouver and hired me for my present position, for which I am grateful!

In addition to his academic career, Michael W. Higgins is the author or editor of over a dozen books and has been a regular columnist for the Toronto Star, the Kitchener-Waterloo Record, the Catholic Register and the Canadian Correspondent for The Tablet (London).

I spoke with him on May 9, 2025, from his home in Guelph, Ontario. I wanted to speak to Michael because of his great knowledge of the papacy and of ecclesial politics and I wanted to get some initial thoughts on what it means to have another Pope from the Americas, the US and Peruvian Pope Leo.

Join us as we discuss Pope Francis, Pope Leo, and the nature of the modern papacy.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement

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Welcome to Episode 18 of Season 3 with my colleagues from St. Mark's College: Dr. Fiona Li, inaugural Archbishop Michael Miller Chair in Catholic Studies, Fr. Nick Meisl, Profess at St. Mark's College, and Dr. Nick Olkovich, Marie Anne Blondin Chair in Catholic Theology.

In this episode we talk about a new Pope, Pope Leo XIV, a native of the United States and a naturalized citizen of Peru. It's an exciting time to see a new Pope no matter what, but as the immediate succcessor to Francis and as another Pope from the Americas, this papacy brings a lot of hope and many serious issues to confront within the Church. In the broader world, issues include the degradation of the environment, war in Gaza and Ukraine, rising poverty and wealth concentrated in fewer hands, and the emergence of autocratic nationalism that rejects immigrants.

This is the beginning of the discussion, so join us as we muse, discuss, and speculate!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement

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Welcome to Episode 17 of Season 3 with our friend Steve Millies, a Catholic political theorist and the director of the Bernardin Center at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and Professor of Public Theology. Steve has written numerous books, most recently A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics.

I spoke with Steve on April 25, 2025 from London, England the day before the funeral and requiem Mass of Pope Francis in Rome. I wanted to speak with Steve about the legacy of Pope Francis, a Pope whom you will soon hear was greatly admired by both of us. I also wanted to speak with Steve as a part of the process of mourning and remembering a Pope I really felt was “my” Pope as I say in the podcast.

The legacy of Pope Francis includes his humility, his solidarity with the poor and those who are marginalized, and his focus on mercy. Here is a list of some elements of the Pope's theological and pastoral legacy as outlined by Matthew Furtado of the communications office at the Roman Catholic Diocese of Vancouver:

1. Integral Ecology: His encyclical Laudato Si’ calls for the protection of creation and an ecological conversion.

2. Fraternity and Dialogue: Fratelli Tutti encourages peace, encounter, and solidarity between peoples and religions.

3. Addressing Abuse: Commitment to protecting victims and establishing preventive measures.

4. Synodality: Invitation to a more participatory Church with the Synod on Synodality.

5. Pontifical Diplomacy: Mediation for peace and defense of the rights of migrants and refugees.

6. Pastoral Support: Special attention to young people, families, and those distant from the Church.

7. Importance for the Poor: Pope Francis places the marginalized and excluded at the heart of his ministry.

8. Church Reform: He continues the transformation of the Curia and strengthens financial transparency.

9. Interfaith Dialogue: Strengthening relations with Islam, Judaism, and other spiritual traditions.

10. Commitment to Peace: Constant calls for peaceful conflict resolution, particularly in Ukraine, the Holy Land, and elsewhere.

11. Role of Women in the Church: Appointment of women to leadership positions in the Vatican and encouragement for greater female participation in the Church’s life.

12. Relationship with Canada: Commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, notably through his 2022 visit and his apology for abuses in residential schools.

But Steve and I also touched on especially at the end of the podcast of the joy of the Gospel. Steve said, paraphrasing Francis, that"it’s always a shame when a Christian walks around like a sourpuss." That line emerged from a homily he gave on May 10, 2013, early in Francis's pontificate, when he said "that when Christians have more of a sourpuss than a face that communicates the joy of being loved by God, they harm the witness of the church." He went on to say that "the Christian is a man or woman of joy,” something deeper than happiness and something that ought to identity us as Christians.

We did not discuss all of these themes or aspects of his legacy, but I hope in the next week or so to have an episode that focuses more on the meaning of Pope Francis in Canada with an eminent Canadian guest. Please stay tuned for that. There is so much more to say, but I want to end by saying I miss Francis already, a moral authority promoting peace, love, and acceptance at a time when more and more voices are focused on division, polarization, hatred, and cruelty. Pope Francis was loved by most and hated by some for his very focus on mercy and love. Let’s continue to work for mercy and love.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

Some upcoming events:

The conference is almost upon us! We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America at The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and where you can register at the CCE website. The link is in the show notes to both the conference website and the registration page.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

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Welcome to epsiode sixteen of season three, an episode recorded on April 21, 2025, the day on which Pope Francis died. I talk about Pope Francis in this episode and the first major interview he gave to Jesuit journals around the world including America Magazine in the USA. I have linked to the interview here: A Big Heart Open to God interview. I responded to that interview with a piece I wrote for America called The Pope's Interview and the Bible.

In this episode I read my analysis of the biblical foundations of that interview as I think the passages he referenced remained a guiding light for his papacy and for his encyclicals.

On the CCE Facebook page, I wrote:

The CCE mourns the passing of Pope Francis (1936-2025). Our Centre was established to further his outreach to and engagement with the world. Our website says this about his work: “More than fifty years after the close of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis is leading a renewal of the Church that is deeply embedded within the Catholic Intellectual tradition, which emphasizes that learning means discovering and growing in the truth. It builds on his formation in the Argentinian “Theology of the People”, which understands “the honest and sincere love of God practiced by people at the local level might inform the theological understanding and religious behaviour of the global church.” Released shortly after his election, Francis’ first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium (2013) represents his blueprint for this renewal. It calls for the creation of a “culture of encounter”, and for the Church to become “a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcome, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel.” In 2023 we held our first international conference to reflect upon the theology of Pope Francis. In that same year we offered our first Laudato Si' lecture, a lecture which is offered annually in honour of his 2015 encyclical Laudato Si'. We are thankful for his life dedicated to sharing the Gospel of love with all people. His life challenges us to answer, what matters most to us, the love of power or the power of love? May he rest in peace and may we continue to witness to God’s love, here in Vancouver and throughout the world.

Peace to you all.

There will be further remembrances and reflections on Pope Francis and his papacy to come in the coming week.

John W. Martens,

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement

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Welcome to the fifth episode of Pop Culture Matters, a conversation with my good friend and veteran of radio and television in Vancouver and beyond Martin Strong. In this episode we discussed White Lotus season three. It would not have been on my radar for a Pop Culture Matters episode prior to this season, but then again it had never dealt so overtly with Christian and Buddhist spirituality before. It had in the first two seasons focused on the foibles of the rich and materialistic, but this season it took what I think was a welcome turn to explore the themes of materialism and suffering and loss in the context of religious values. That’s right, it turned to what matters most. Martin and I had been watching the show throughout the season but had not talked about it until a couple of weeks ago and we realized this is peak pop culture for our podcast. I hope you enjoy our discussion, but keep in mind as you begin to listen, there are spoilers galore.

This podcast emerges from the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC, a centre that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, other religious traditions, and those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Apart from our deep dive into White Lotus, we discussed Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, and he did indeed live in the late 2nd century A.D. (121-180 AD).

Martin also mentioned Ron Sexsmith, a Canadian singer-sonwriter and his song If Only Avenue, which I have linked to here. It's a beautiful song. If you have not heard him before, check out his discography, including the lovely and gentle God Loves Everyone.

We both had also read the article by James Martin, S.J. on the White Lotus finale. We both highly recommended it.

On Theravada Buddhism in general, please check out this introductory page.

Upcoming Events

The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and the program on the CCE website. Click here to register.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

Past Events:

Father Andrew Laguna S.J.'s annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment is available on You Tube now.

Dr Ray Aldred's third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, is available on You Tube.

Dr. Michael Higgins lecture on The Monk and the Pope is now on You Tube.

The webinar with Fr. Jim Martin on April 7, Building Bridges: Reaching Out to Those on the Margins, is now available on You Tube.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember pop culture matters.

John W. Martens

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Welcome to the fourth episode of Pop Culture Matters, different in all sorts of ways, mostly because it’s just me John Martens and also because Easter, our topic today, is not exactly a pop culture matter, but one thing that does seem to be a pop culture matter are memes telling us that Easter is a pagan holiday. These memes and claims sprout like spring flowers around, ah, Easter!

Every year as Easter approaches I begin to see a number of Ishtar equals Easter memes roll across my Facebook feed, or other social media, as friends or acquaintances of mine decide to spill the hidden truth on the origins of Easter. Or, Christian friends say, this is nonsense and respond with their own memes, showing how silly these claims are. Ishtar is not Easter. But there are still some good questions to ask, such as , where does the name easter comes from? Is there a little modicum of truth to these claims that easter is a pagan goddess or derived from a pagan celebration? What about Anglo-Saxon “Eostre,” or Babylonian “Ishtar,” Hebrew “Ashtaroth,” and Greek “Astarte"?

As we begin, I want to acknowledge that the land on which St. Mark’s is located is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam) People. I record this podcast from the land of the Tsawwassen people. We are thankful for their welcome to us so that we can live, work, and pray on their land and learn from first nations people themselves.

This podcast emerges from the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC, a centre that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, other religious traditions, and those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Here are some of the sources I used for the podcast:

Bede, De Temporum Ratione: "quondam a Dea illorum quæ Eostre vocabatur, et cui in illo festa celebrabant nomen habuit."

"Easter and its Cycle,” 10-13 in the New Catholic Encyclopedia (E. Johnson, T. Krosnicki, eds.; 2nd ed. Vol. 5. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 2 Apr. 2013)

A. R. C. Leaney, "Easter” in The Oxford Companion to the Bible (Bruce M. Metzger, Michael D. Coogan, Oxford Biblical Studies Online. 02-Apr-2013).

John F. Baldovin, “Easter” in Encyclopedia of Religion, 2579 (Lindsay Jones, ed.. Vol. 4. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005).

Manfred Lurker, "Ostara" in The Routledge Dictionary of Gods and Goddesses, Devils and Demons. (Routledge, 2004. Routledge Religion Online. Taylor & Francis.02 April 2013)

Allen J. Frantzen, Easter" in Anglo-Saxon Keywords (Blackwell Publishing, 2012. Blackwell Reference Online. 02 April 2013), “

Gregory D. Alles and Robert S. Ellwood, "Canaanite religion" in World Religions Online. (Infobase Learning. Web. 2 Apr. 2013).

Upcoming Podcast Epsiodes

Coming up next in some order still to be determined are Dr. Fiona Li, the first Archbishop Ireland Chair in catholic studies at St. Mark’s College, and then Dr. Minelle Mahtani of UBC on growing up in Canada with a Muslim and a Hindu parent, and then Dr Paula Fredriksen, one of the great scholars on early Christianity and Judaism, and Dr. Joan Taylor, another great scholar of early Christianity and Judaism.

Coming out next on Pop Culture Matters will be Martin Strong and me discussing the Season 3 finale and the whole season of White Lotus. Spirituality was a key theme is this season of the television show.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear, or at our new Facebook page Centre for Christian Engagement. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Upcoming Events

The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and the program on the CCE website. Click here to register.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

Past Events:

Father Andrew Laguna S.J.'s annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment is available on You Tube now.

Dr Ray Aldred's third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, is available on You Tube.

Dr. Michael Higgins lecture on The Monk and the Pope is now on You Tube.

The webinar with Fr. Jim Martin on April 7, Building Bridges: Reaching Out to Those on the Margins, is now available on You Tube.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember pop culture matters.

John W. Martens

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This is not as late as the last episode, only a day behind this time, but this might be the new normal until the conference is over. Nevertheless, it is worth the wait as Tim and I talk about the stable disposition necessary to create the habits needed to create virtue.

This is episode fifteen of season three with Dr. Tim Pawl, Professor of Philosophy at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. Tim received his MA and PhD from Saint Louis University and his BA in Philosophy and Theology, BA, magna cum laude from Valparaiso University in Philosophy and Theology.

Tim works on metaphysics, philosophical theology, and moral psychology. He says, “In metaphysics I work on truthmaker theory, modality, and free will. In philosophical theology, I have published on transubstantiation, Christology, and divine immutability. In moral psychology I have worked with psychologists on questions concerning how best to grow in virtue, and whether the traditional wisdom of the Christian moral tradition is conducive to growth in virtue.” Tim’s best-known works are linked here and include his books on the Christology of the early church councils, The Incarnation. Cambridge Elements Series. Cambridge University Press (2020); In Defense of Extended Conciliar Christology: A Philosophical Essay. Oxford Studies in Analytic Theology. Oxford University Press, 2019; and In Defense of Conciliar Christology: A Philosophical Essay. Oxford Studies in Analytic Theology. Oxford University Press, 2016.

When Tim and I discussed this podcast, though, Tim was interested in discussing his work on virtue and especially a series of articles on virtue in light of both ancient Christian moral teachings and modern psychology. There were three articles in particular that Tim sent to me on The Psychology of Habit Formation and Christian Moral Widom on Virtue Formation, Christian Moral Wisdom, Character Formation, and Contemporary Psychology, and What is Virtue? The link above will take you to all of these articles.

Tim is a significant philosopher on matters that for many of us, myself included, are complex and technical, especially his work on the early councils and their Christological definitions. What we discussed is also significant and, in many ways, complex too, but there is something about virtue, habit, and personal psychology that is direct and knowable because most of us struggle to live it out our virtues, and wrestle with habits both good and bad. It’s philosophy and psychology that we confront on a regular if not daily basis. How to be good people. Tim mentioned the litany of humility, which I link to here, as a practice that can be of benefit for, indeed, gaining humility.

Tim Pawl is such a careful thinker and I appreciate the care he brought to discussing virtue, virtue formation, and how we can create the habits that allow virtue to flourish both from ancient Christian and contemporary psychological sources.

Virtue formation is always important and I suspect always a struggle in every age and for every, or the vast majority, of people. Most of us desire to do better, to live out what matters most to us, and to seek the good whenever we can. But it’s tough sometimes to do it. What can aid us in this? What can help us?

But if it is a perennial issue, from a Christian perspective a primal struggle with sin, there are conditions that allow human flourishing more than others. In our own age, one of the major issues that creates the near occasion for sin is social media. One of the bedrock elements of the Christian tradition, emerging from the Jewish tradition, is to tell the truth: Proverbs 12:22: “The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy.” Colossians 3:9 says, “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices.”

We all have to reckon with our own weaknesses. The Rabbis posited that we had a yetzer ha-ra, an evil impulse, and a yetzer ha-tov, a good impulse, something like a light and shadow side. But when disinformation or misinformation have become the mode of communicating it is difficult to determine what is true. Indeed, lies are even in the words. In what way are misinformation disinformation not simply lying?

This is where the ancient Christian tradition and contemporary psychology encourage us to maintain the habit formation that create virtue. We tell the truth. We insist that others tell the truth. We seek the truth and not the lies. We do not promote lies. This is what has troubled me in terms of our shared social world. But virtue is a constant process of growth and it is something that matters not just for individuals but for our shared life in community. Let’s tell the truth. I thank Tim for his conversation and know that there might be other virtues that you are growing in and working on. It’s a worthwhile task. It might not seem it in the craziness of our political climate, but virtue is its own reward.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next in some order still to be determined are Dr. Fiona Li, the first Archbishop Ireland Chair in catholic studies at St. Mark’s College, and then Dr. Minelle Mahtani of UBC on growing up in Canada with a Muslim and a Hindu parent, and then Dr Paula Fredriksen, one of the great scholars on early Christianity and Judaism, and Dr. Joan taylor, another great scholar of early Christianity and Judaism.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear, or at our new Facebook page Centre for Christian Engagement. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and the program on the CCE website. Click here to register.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

Some other upcoming events:

A webinar with Fr. Jim Martin on April 7 at 5 pm PCT. Building Bridges: Reaching Out to Those on the Margins

Is there a place for all people in the Catholic Church? How can everyone feel welcomed and experience God's love in their lives?

Register on Eventbrite now!

Past events:

Father Andrew Laguna S.J.'s annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment is available on You Tube now.

Dr Ray Aldred's third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, is available on You Tube.

Dr. Michael Higgins lecture on The Monk and the Pope is now on You Tube.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

Dr. John W. Martens

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Sorry for the lateness on this incredible episode! The busy-ness of preparing for the conference and working on a few academic papers led to a two day delay. But this is a long episode and Paul and I had a terrific conversation, so I hope that makes up for some of my tardiness!

This is episode fourteen of season three with Dr. Paul Gavrilyuk, Professor and Aquinas Chair in Theology and Philosophy at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. He has been published in nine languages, and his books include The Suffering of the Impassible God (Oxford, 2004), Histoire du catéchuménat dans l’église ancienne(Cerf, 2007), The Spiritual Senses: Perceiving God in Western Christianity (co-edited with Sarah Coakley, Cambridge, 2012) and Georges Florovsky and the Russian Religious Renaissance (Oxford, 2014).

Paul is also a founder of IOTA, the International Orthodox Theological Association, and of Rebuild Ukraine, a humanitarian organization that raises money for Ukraine’s defenders, civilians, and refugees.

Paul is a notable theologian, but as you will hear in this episode he was born in Kiev and educated in the Soviet Union, which was not in the habit of producing a lot of theologians in the 20th century. Paul talks about his conversion experience, his move to the US to study theology, and the realities of authoritarian governments, that he grew up under and which are expanding today. We also discuss his remarkable new Oxford Handbook of Deification, of which he is one of three editors.

Paul Gavrilyuk is an incredible theologian, prolific and learned, and a dear friend. We traveled together through Greece and Turkey teaching early Christianity to 25 undergraduate students many years ago and have shared so many hours at conferences, in classrooms, learning together and simply being together. What a delight to spend this time together again.

For me, the most impressive part of Paul’s story, though, is his incredible journey from the Soviet Union to the Church and to an internationally renowned theologian. His story of conversion and the acts of bravery necessary by him and by others to bring his vocation to fruition are humbling. We are in a time of creeping, perhaps moving faster than that now, authoritarianism, and acts of bravery might be essential for us to continue to build a world of concern for all, but especially for those in the most need of support.

Paul’s work with Rebuild Ukraine does just that – it cares for those impacted by the senseless war of Putin against the people of Ukraine. This is not a distant war to Paul and his family, it is a war against his home.

Why talk about theology during a time of rising autocracy and oligarchy around the world? While it can be misused for bitter an cruel ends, theology is what sustains so many during times of crisis, war, and persecution. It keeps our minds on what matters most. It reminds us that war is a failure brought on by men who seek power, money, and fame. It is not what sustains us, it is what creates hate and begets cruelty.

Paul’s research on theosis or deification points us to our true goal: love of neighbour, love of God, and the hope of life in the presence of God, becoming more and more like God. And what it is to become more and more like God says the Apostle Paul is love. And what love creates on earth are the fruits of the Spirit: Galatians 5:22-23 defines the person who is living in accordance with the Holy Spirit as showing these fruits: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. When you are lost in a sea of disinformation and people trying to create hatred against one another, ask yourself this? Where do I see the fruits of the spirit?

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Tim Pawl, a philosopher, on virtue, and then Dr. Minelle Mahtani of UBC on growing up in Canada with a Muslim and a Hindu parent, and then Dr Paula Fredriksen, one of the great scholars on early Christianity and Judaism.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We have a webinar with Fr. Jim Martin on April 7 at 5 pm PCT. Building Bridges: Reaching Out to Those on the Margins.

Is there a place for all people in the Catholic Church? How can everyone feel welcomed and experience God's love in their lives?

Register on Eventbrite now!

The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and the program on the CCE website. Click here to register.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

Past events:

Father Andrew Laguna S.J.'s annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment is available on You Tube now.

Dr Ray Aldred's third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, is available on You Tube.

Dr. Michael Higgins lecture on The Monk and the Pope is now on You Tube.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

Dr. John W. Martens

View Details

This is episode 13 of season 3 of What Matters Most, featuring the Venerable Rev. Dr. Robert James, Associate Professor, Anglican Formation and Studies at VST. Apart from his work in Anglican studies, Rob is a biblical scholar and has written and published a book of stories from the Bible designed for storytellers to use with children in children’s homilies or Sunday School or church camps. The first book is on stories from the NT, but there is a second coming on stories from the OT. The illustrator for both is the Reverend Amanda Ruston. The book is called Fifty New Testament Stories for Storytellers. It was terrific to have on the podcast again my good friend Rob James, a Great Friend of the Podcast, a GFOP as they call it on the Men in Blazers podcast.

He is a master storyteller and you might even be able to find some examples of him teaching, singing, and playing his stories on YouTube from his days as a priest in England if you poke around. Here's a few to get you started! One, Two, Three! I can tell you that his presentation of the story of Jesus teaching how should we pray at the SBL meetings in the Children in the Biblical World session in November 2024 in San Diego had 68 biblical scholars up on their feet doing all of the motions and uttering all of the words as he led us through that story. It was a highlight of the whole conference.

But Rob’s work on telling biblical stories for children allows us to think about what we want children to learn from the Bible, and not just children, but adults. Why are we telling these stories for children? Knowledge of these stories and persons is essential for understanding art, music, culture and their influence on English speaking and other cultures. But there are other more important issues also. Some of it certainly is just to let children know about what the Bible teaches, but is this just an issue of teaching morality? Here’s how you need to behave, or practice your faith, here are good things to do unto others, and here are good things to believe. Certainly, all of these things are worthy. But I wonder if simply letting children know about the people in the Bible and what it teaches goes beyond cultural considerations and even moral considerations and simply allows children to encounter God and the nature of God and to reflect on, think about, and even wrestle with questions of purpose and meaning. This sort of wrestling is not beyond children, they do it naturally and have insights about God that transcend their age and simplicity. Rob’s work lets this happen naturally and gently, allowing the stories to teach the children and to teach us.

Because thinking about Rob’s work in writing a children’s Bible also made me reflect on and work to understand the purpose of the Bible for adults. What do we hope to get from the Bible? What do we expect from it? Whom do we encounter there? Why are we reading the Bible?

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Paul Gavrilyuk on the Oxford Handbook of Deification and Orthodox theology, IOTA, and his organization Rebuild Ukraine. After that will be Dr. Tim Pawl, a philosopher, on virtue, and then Dr. Minelle Mahtani of UBC on growing up in Canada with a Muslim and a Hindu parent.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America at The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and where you can register at the CCE website. The link is in the show notes to both the conference website and the registration page.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

On March 3, 2025, Father Andrew Laguna S.J. will be offering our annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment.

Past events:

On January 27, 2025, Dr Ray Aldred offered the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home. It is available on You Tube.

Dr. Michael Higgins will have already spoken to us on February 10, 2025 on The Monk and the Pope. This lecture is now on You Tube, and you can find all of the links on the CCE website or on St. Mark’s YouTube channel.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

Dr. John W. Martens

View Details

This is episode 12 of season 3 of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Don Baker, Professor of Korean Civilization at UBC in Asian Studies since 1987. The story you will hear him tell about Catholicism in Korea and about the Gwangju democratization movement or resistance in 1980, some of which he was present for, is powerful and moving. It is also a story of the power of moral resistance and the cost of such resistance to many individuals, a cost paid by many with their lives. But the fight for democracy in Korea against military dictatorship is also a story of the worth of such a resistance that included many religious people and many ordinary Koreans.

Don also traces the history of Catholicism in Korea, which arrived with some elite neo-Confucian scholars only in 1784, with the Protestant church arriving a full century later in 1884. It is a story of persecution and martyrdom and Don has written about this in a number of books, including Catholics and Anti-Catholicism in Choson Korea and Persecution and Martyrdoms: Korea. It is a story of suffering, but also of resilience and faithfulness.

This is a powerful episode and it was moving to me to hear it, I suspect it might be for you too, and more significantly it was moving for Don who witnessed the events of the democratization resistance at Gwangju in 1980 to recount the story of suffering.

Dictatorship is never the pathway forward and it took great moral courage, resilience, and many lives to cast off the Korean dictatorship. This is the kind of moral courage needed today to defend democracy all over the world. The nuns and priests, other religious figures, and the ordinary people of Korea showed this great resistance and as a result the Catholic church in Korea is the most respected religion there to this day, a Church without scandal.

But it is a Church that emerged from great suffering too starting soon after its arrival in Korea by Koreans themselves, neo-Confucian scholars who found writings about Catholicism by Matte Ricci in China and brought it back themselves in 1784. There were no priests in Korea when the persecutions against Korean Catholics began. They had brought the religion themselves and made it their own and persevered.

This is truly an episode about what matters most, about the choices people made to accept suffering to remain faithful to their beliefs, and about people in the 1980s, nuns and priests included, who were willing to stand up for democracy against dictatorship. This is something all of us need to keep asking, what matters most to us, what is more important to us than more money or more power? Because these things do not satisfy at the deepest level. Every day one sees political leaders, billionaires, striving for more, and more, more money, more countries, more power, while the many go without enough to eat or a place to live. The Korean Catholic church demonstrates that better than that is a life lived in tune with the truth and in tune with the deepest hopes of human beings, freedom, integrity, and truth. Strongman come and go, but the truth cannot ultimately be buried or persecuted out of existence.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Reverend Dr. Rob James on children's Bibles, Dr. Tim Pawl, a philosopher, on virtue, Dr. Paul Gavrilyuk on orthodox theology, growing up in the Soviet Union, and the new Oxford Handbook on Deification that he co-edited, and Dr. Minelle Mahtahni on her memoir “May It Have a Happy Ending."

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America at The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. You can find all the information on the speakers and where you can register at the CCE website. The link is in the show notes to both the conference website and the registration page.

The cost for the whole conference is minimal and the three keynote speakers are free, but you do need to register for Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo.

Other events:

On January 27, 2025, Dr Ray Aldred offered the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home. It is already available on You Tube.

By the time you hear this podcast, Dr. Michael Higgins will have already spoken to us on February 10, 2025 on The Monk and the Pope. This lecture is now on You Tube, and you can find all of the links on the CCE website or on St. Mark’s YouTube channel.

On March 3, 2025, Father Andrew Laguna S.J. will be offering our annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment.

A few thanks are in order. To Martin Strong, to Kevin Eng, and to Fang Fang Chandra, the team who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

Dr. John W. Martens

View Details

This is Episode Eleven of Season Three, featuring Dr. Gerald Schlabach, an emeritus professor in the Department of Theology at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he taught for twenty years and also served for six years as chair of the Department of Justice and Peace Studies. Previously he taught history at Bluffton College, a Mennonite liberal arts college in Ohio. Gerald received his doctorate from the University of Notre Dame, where he studied ethics in the Department of Theology.

During much of the 1980s, he worked in Central America with Mennonite Central Committee, an organization dedicated to peace, justice, Christ-like service and global education. A Roman Catholic as of Pentecost 2004, Gerald is a Benedictine oblate, is deeply involved in the Bridgefolk movement for grassroots dialogue and unity between Mennonites and Catholics, and continues to call himself a “Mennonite Catholic.”

He is the author of numerous books. Check them all out at his website. I will mention here a few of them, Sharing Peace: Mennonites and Catholics in Conversation, Unlearning Protestantism: Sustaining Christian Community in an Unstable Age, and the book we will focus on here A Pilgrim People: Becoming A Catholic Peace Church

Gerald and I were colleagues for twenty years and you can hear in our conversation what those who have worked alongside him know: he is thoughtful about his faith and he takes seriously the need to live out his faith in community, with care and support for those who have been marginalized, and in tune with the Gospel. His work in Guatemala continues to this day. With author Juan Ajtzip, Gerald is helping to bring to English readers A Mayan Witness to Blessed Stanley Rother. Juan Ajtzip was the first Mayan director of La Voz de Atitlán, a radio station founded by the missionary team from Oklahoma that included Father Stanley Rother, a missionary priest from Oklahoma, who has been declared a martyr for the faith (December 2016) and was beatified by Pope Francis (September 2017). He served and lived with the Tz’utujil Maya people of Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala, from 1968 until his assassination on July 28, 1981.

I really appreciated his book A Pilgrim People: Becoming a Catholic Peace Church, and what it means to be a peace church, Catholic or otherwise, and how to live out non-violence. I asked Gerald about the accusations that non-violence is simply naïve, not attuned to the harsh realities of life, too idealistic, and Gerald movingly spoke of how one has to deal with feelings of anger created by war and conflict, drawing on Bruce Cockburn’s searing song “If I Had a Rocket Launcher.”

But Gerald challenged the assumption that war works, that war is the best way to solve problems, and argued that non-violence works better than we might expect. Does violence really work? It might be more realistic, less naïve, to invest in strategies of non-violence. He cited Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan by Columbia University Press. Non-violence they argue from the data is 4x as likely to succeed, 10x as likely to result in a durable, sustainable democracy 10 years later than violence and war.

For Christians in general, Catholics in particular, we need to recognize that national identity should not trump the Sermon on the Mount. If you want to make an argument for Just War, going back to Augustine, then this requires taking seriously the demands of this late antique theory, which is serious and limited. But we ought to ask ourselves first: how can we avoid violence? How can we work for pacifism instead of Just War? How can we have a proper patriotism but love all of our neighbors? How does violence create and relate to immigration? Gerald recommended Jonathan Blitzer’s book, Everyone Who Has Gone is Here: The United States, Central America, and the Making of a Crisis to understand how violence brought about so many of the issues related to immigration in the USA today.

So, we need to ask, what can we do to build a civilization of love?

The pilgrimage we need to take is one of love, which does not avoid or evade hard questions, and takes seriously the fears and worries of others, and our own sinfulness and anger, but the biblical visions of love need to be our end goal on our journeys, our attempt to help create a new earth. This might seem particularly difficult now in an age when politics seems to be getting uglier and uglier and crueler and crueler. But now is the time to put it into practice. If Christian nationalism is wrong what is right? If Constantinianism is wrong, what is right? For Christians, it has to be love across borders.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Don Baker of UBC on Catholicism in Korea and why Catholicism is such a respected religion there and Dr. Tim Pawl, a philosopher, on virtue and maybe we can get him to talk about the Trinity too.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Upcoming Conference:

You can now register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, only $60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. The link is in the show notes to both the conference website and the registration page.

Three confirmed keynote speakers are Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo. These keynote or plenary sessions are free for all, so look for the registration information on our website now.

Other Events:

On January 27, 2025, Dr Ray Aldred offered the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home. It is already available on YouTube.

On February 10, 2025, Dr. Michael Higgins will be speaking about his new biography of Pope Francis called the Jesuit Disruptor. You can register online at Eventbrite now!

On March 3, 2025, Father Andrew Laguna S.J. will be offering our annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment.

A few thanks are in order. First of all, I am grateful to Martin Strong, who guides me in the podcasting world. Second, the episodes are edited, engineered, and produced by Kevin Eng who is the first listener to all the episodes and helps me pick out those opening snippets which do so much to set the tone for each episode. Thank you, Kevin, for all of your expertise and support. Finally, to the Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is Episode Ten of Season Three, featuring Dr. Ruben Rosario Rodriguez, the Clarence Louis and Helen Steber Professor in Theological Studies at St. Louis University. He holds a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Princeton Theological Seminary (2004). Dr. Rodriguez is also a Presbyterian minister.

Ruben is also an expert in the work of John Calvin, the divisive 16th century reformer from France who became a major figure in Geneva during the Reformation of the 16th century. Today we are discussing his book Calvin for the World: The Enduring Relevance of His Political, Social, and Economic Theology. As I mentioned, Calvin is divisive, for some people a hated figure, often based upon his view of double predestination, that is, God's absolute sovereignty in the salvation or damnation of the human soul and his role in the death of Michael Servetus. Ruben’s book is an attempt to give a fuller representation of who Calvin is and what he actually says.

I invited Ruben on not just because we share a great love for 70s punk rock, the Ramones, Tom Verlaine, and many others, but because I heard he had taped a podcast with a Calvinist leaning podcast that then reneged on posting the podcast, perhaps because of certain theological disagreements. That did sit right with me: this podcast is about asking questions and getting to know people and what matters most to them. We do not have to share all of our beliefs in common to befriend each other or to listen to each other. I enjoyed our conversation and I really enjoy Dr. Rodriguez’s honesty and integrity as a person and as a theologian.

I knew little about John Calvin prior to my conversation with Ruben, but I know a lot more now, even if I am only scratching the surface and though I am no Calvinist. But it is good to get to know people better, especially historical figures who have shaped our world and our thought in ways perhaps even unknown to us, and especially figures who often just function as stereotypes in our thoughts. For me his book fulfilled its major stated goal: “to correct many of the misconceptions about Calvin perpetuated by an inadequate knowledge of his work.”

Others more expert in Calvinism than me will know more about many of the issues Ruben and I discussed, but I appreciated his book and its consideration Calvin’s Theology of Public Life and how his analysis of Psalm 82:3-4 “fits” with a preferential option for the poor and liberation theology; though I’m still not sure why Calvin does not think it proper to topple tyrannical governments, Ruben presented Calvin’s view of “two kingdoms” as an argument for seeing Calvin as a proto-liberationist with respect to illegitimate governments that act contrary to the word of God. I appreciated the connections between liberation theology, Archbishop Romero, and Calvin’s theology of civil governance.

I was also intrigued by Calvin’s desired “egalitarian communal structure” and his rejection of “authoritarian absolutism in either the Church or the State” and Ruben’s argument that Calvin could be seen in favor of religious toleration.

Ruben also offered an interesting comparison between Bartolomeo de Las Casas and Calvin with respect to treatment of indigenous people and others. It’s an interesting point, as later in South Africa Calvinism played a role in the building of the apartheid state of South Africa. Yet, Ruben argues and shows the ways in which Calvin’s thought also inspired resistance to white Christian nationalism. The events in Sharpeville and especially Soweto emerged from African Christians in the movement to take down apartheid. Alan Boesak, the African Calvinist church leader, enlisted Calvin theologically to argue white supremacy in Christianity and the apartheid state. This resulted in the Belhar Confession, linked here, which stood resolutely against apartheid.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Gerald Schlabach on his new book, A Pilgrim People: Becoming a Catholic Peace Church, Dr. Don Baker, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

Three episodes of Pop Culture Matters are out. I hope you enjoyed the conversation Martin and I had on Christmas films. What’s up next for Pop Culture Matters? We are considering the wonderful and recently ended HBO series Somebody Somewhere, a show which perhaps surprisingly has church as an integral part of its world.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

You can now register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America. The webpage for the conference is now available at the CCE website, where you can find information on the speakers and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA.

Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, only $60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. The link takes you to the conference website and you can find a registration link there.

Three confirmed keynote speakers are Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo. These keynote or plenary sessions are free for all, so look for the registration information on our website now.

Some other upcoming events:

On January 27, 2025, we will have an in person and virtual event with Dr Ray Aldred, who will offer the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home. Register here.

On February 10, 2025, Dr. Michael Higgins will be speaking about his new biography of Pope Francis called the Jesuit Disruptor. Register here.

On March 3, 2025, Father Andrew Laguna S.J. will be offering our annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment.

A few thanks are in order. First of all, I am grateful to Martin Strong, who guides me in the podcasting world. Second, the episodes are edited, engineered, and produced by Kevin Eng who is the first listener to all the episodes and helps me pick out those opening snippets which do so much to set the tone for each episode. Thank you, Kevin, for all of your expertise and support. Finally, to the Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is Episode Nine of Season Three, featuring Dr. Megan Fritts. Megan Fritts joined the UA Little Rock philosophy faculty in the School of Human Inquiry in 2022. She received her Ph.D. in 2020 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her work intersects with several subdisciplines, including technology ethics, medical ethics, action theory, 19th century philosophy, and philosophy of religion. Her current projects focus on ways in which emerging technologies threaten to undermine essential conditions for human flourishing.

Dr. Fritts teaches several courses at UA Little Rock, including Ethics and Society, Technology Ethics, Philosophy of Science, and 19th Century Philosophy. She is also the co-host of Philosophy on the Fringes, a podcast that applies rigorous philosophical thinking to unexpected topics.

In this podcast, we discuss the problem of evil, or theodicy. I was led to invite Megan onto the podcast after reading her recent article in Religious Studies called Creation as divine absence: A metaphysical reframing of the problem of evil, an open access article to which I have linked here. This is an ancient and perennial problem in theology and philosophy, dating back to the ancient Greeks and ancient Christianity.

The problem is simply stated: why would, in the Christian understanding, an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good God – omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent – allow evil and suffering to flourish in the world? Megan Fritts looks to Simone Weil, the French Catholic philosopher to help us understand the presence of evil and the absence of God.

There is, however, no easy solution to the problem of theodicy for anyone. It is difficult to make sense of profound evil and suffering regardless of one’s theism or atheism or non-theism.

In this vein, I also want to offer a link to Yujin Nagasawa’s new book The Problem of Evil for Atheists, which is also available as open access online. Although framed as the problem the problem of evil for atheists, Nagasawa also considers the problem of evil for traditional theists, pantheists and axiarchists, as well as atheists and non-theists in both the east and west.

Finally, Megan recommended Simone Weil's works Waiting for God and Gravity and Grace.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Ruben Rosario on Calvin for the World, his new book, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, Dr. Don Baker, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

Three episodes of Pop Culture Matters are out. I hope you enjoyed the conversation Martin and I had on Christmas films. What’s up next for Pop Culture Matters? We are considering the wonderful and recently ended HBO series Somebody Somewhere, a show which perhaps surprisingly has church as an integral part of its world.

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

You can now register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America. The webpage for the conference is now available at the CCE website, where you can find information on the speakers and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA.

Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, only $60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. The link is in the show notes to both the conference website and the registration page.

Three confirmed keynote speakers are Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo. These keynote or plenary sessions are free for all, so look for the registration information on our website now.

Some other upcoming events:

On January 27, 2025, we will have an in person and virtual event with Dr Ray Aldred, who will offer the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home.

On February 10, 2025, Dr. Michael Higgins will be speaking about his new biography of Pope Francis called the Jesuit Disruptor.

On March 3, 2025, Father Andrew Laguna S.J. will be offering our annual Jesuit Lecture on Immigration and Ignatian Spiritual Discernment.

A few thanks are in order. First of all, I am grateful to Martin Strong, who guides me in the podcasting world. Second, the episodes are edited, engineered, and produced by Kevin Eng who is the first listener to all the episodes and helps me pick out those opening snippets which do so much to set the tone for each episode. Thank you, Kevin, for all of your expertise and support. Finally, to the Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. It’s the free gift that you can give to all of your friends! And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. And subscribe to the podcast. If you are listening, please subscribe. It’s free!

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Welcome to the third episode of Pop Culture Matters, a conversation with my good friend and yours Martin Strong. Today we’re talking about Christmas movies, our favorite Christmas movies, and what we think makes for a good Christmas movie. We asked a lot of people on campus at UBC and St. Mark’s and on social media, what their favorite Christmas movies are. Here’s a list of a bunch of them, in no particular order that people mentioned to us:

Love, Actually; White Christmas; It’s a Wonderful Life; Elf; While You Were Sleeping;-Miracle on 34th Street; Muppets Christmas Carol; The Shop Around the Corner; Christmas with the Kranks; Rudolph; A Christmas Story; The Ref; Home Alone; The original Grinch; The Bishop’s Wife, Christmas in Connecticut, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Holiday Inn, Alistair Sim’s Scrooge; Fred Claus, The Holdovers, Tokyo Godfathers, Batman Returns, A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas, About a Boy, Scrooged, Die Hard, The Santa Clause, The Nativity Story, and Bad Santa.

Why are these are favorites and what do we think is need to be a Christmas favorite? Get comfortable and cozy with your loved ones and settle in with a cup of hot cocoa and a Christmas cookie. If this podcast hits some of the right Christmas notes, you’re going to change your selfish ways and be transformed by the warmth of Christmas.

Christmas movies are fun, but I think Martin hit it on the head when he said the best ones are also earnest. Not saccharine, not too sweet, but warm, uplifting, and hopeful. They encourage us to be better. They point us away from commercialization to what really matters in life.

They often call us to transformation, often through the use of angels or spirits, who show us the better path and how to embrace the joy of the life through Christmas time.

And sometimes they do indeed move into the Christmas story, the nativity of Jesus, as with Linus reciting the story of Jesus’ birth from Luke as he explains the true meaning of Christmas to Charlie Brown and the whole Peanuts gang. Or in the Bishop’s Wife, when David Niven’s Bishop says the gifts to give Jesus are lovingkindness, warm hearts, and a stretched out hand of tolerance.

Merry Christmas from all of us at the Centre for Christian Engagement and St. Mark’s College.

Merry Christmas to Martin Strong for joining me in this venture!

Merry Christmas to Kevin Eng for editing and engineering this episode and integrating all the wonderful music in the podcast.

Merry Christmas to Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

Merry Christmas to Kenton McDonald-Lin for the interviews on the UBC campus that spiced up this Christmas episode.

Merry Christmas to all of our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know and give the gift of What Matters Most by also rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform.

Thanks again for listening and remember Merry Christmas.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post there with a question as to what you are most interested in. I will also post the question on Facebook @biblejunkies. We will be moving to a CCE Facebook page, but in the meantime, feel free to check us out @biblejunkies. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

John W. Martens

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This is Episode Eight of Season Three, featuring Fr. Ryan Duns, S.J., Department Chair and Associate Professor of Systematic Theology in the Theology Department at Marquette University. He received his Ph.D. from Boston College in 2018. Reading from his Marquette web page, I can tell you that “Ryan Duns, SJ works at the intersection of philosophy and systematic theology. He has published on Karl Rahner, Jean-Luc Marion, René Girard, and his most recent work has involved a sustained engagement with William Desmond’s metaphysics. His dissertation, “Spiritual Exercises for a Secular Age? William Desmond’s Theological Achievement” argued that, when read as a form of spiritual exercise (Pierre Hadot), Desmond’s philosophy can re-awaken a sense of the Transcendent.” Today we will discuss his new book Theology of Horror: The Hidden Depths of Popular Films.

We discuss what horror is, how it makes us feel, what it can teach us, and what is the dark transcendent. Is Advent and Christmas the time to discuss horror and its meaning? I suspect Halloween might be more traditional, but Ryan Duns argues that in the incarnation the divine breaks through to show us our world is shot through with sin. Jesus is the light that reveals the dark transcendent. To get a taste of it, please watch the short film Lights Out on YouTube. It’s less than 3 minutes long, then come back.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Christine Evans on Pop Culture Matters and the movie The Night of the Hunter, Fr. Ryan Duns on the theology of horror, Dr. Megan Fritts Cabrera, Dr. Ruben Rosario, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

Dr. Christine Evans and I have already recorded the next Pop Culture Matters episode, inspired by a recent viewing of The Night of the Hunter and and excellent lecture by Christine at VIFF. We discuss Robert Mitchum's creepy and dreadful film.

Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Megan Fritts Cabrera, Dr. Ruben Rosario, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, Dr. Don Baker, and Dr. Tim Pawl. What a lineup!

Two episodes of Pop Culture Matters are out. I hope you have listened to them. Martin and I are ready for more and we are going to talk about Christmas films. What makes a film a Christmas film? What is your favorite Christmas film? Why is it your favorite?

Let us know what you want to discuss next on Pop Culture Matters. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post there with a question as to what you are most interested in. I will also post the question on Facebook @biblejunkies. We will be moving to a CCE Facebook page, but in the meantime, feel free to check us out @biblejunkies. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

You can now register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will have over 40 presenters from Asia, Africa, and North America. The webpage for the conference is now available at the CCE website, where you can find information on the speakers and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA.

Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, only $60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. Details are now on the website.

Three confirmed keynote speakers are Dr. Margaret MacDonald, Dr. Samuel Rocha, and Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo. These keynote or plenary sessions are free for all, so look for the registration information on our website now.

Some other upcoming events:

On January 27, 2025 we will have an in person and virtual event with Dr Ray Aldred, who will offer the third annual Laudato Si’ lecture, bringing together Indigenous and Christian thought on how to care for creation, our common home.

A few thanks are in order. First of all, I am grateful to Martin Strong, who guides me in the podcasting world. Second, the episodes are edited, engineered, and produced by Kevin Eng who is the first listener to all the episodes and helps me pick out those opening snippets which do so much to set the tone for each episode. Thank you, Kevin, for all of your expertise and support. Finally, to the Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform.

Thanks again for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the second episode of Pop Culture Matters, a discussion with Dr. Christine Evans of UBC on the 1955 movie, The Night of the Hunter. She is Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre and Film at UBC.

Christine Evans brings a wealth of knowledge about film and is a captivating speaker. How did we come to speak about The Night of the Hunter and not a more recent film? Martin Strong invited me to see the film in the VIFF Pantheon series and I went along with him one Sunday to watch it. Prior to the film, there was a short lecture scheduled, and I groaned a little inside. A lecture before the film? But it was Christine Evans and she is a master teacher. I was enthralled by how she placed the film in its historical context, explained its use of cameras and light and shadow, and how she prepared us to watch the film. This is the only film directed by Charles Laughton, and it stars the great Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, and Lillian Gish, and while it did not do well at the box office, it is now seen as a great American films, one of the Pantheon. Martin and I will soon discuss more recent films, but it was essential I thought that we discussed this film in all of its fogginess, vulnerability, and tension.

Once the film started that day, I was surprised to find that it began with passages from the Sermon on the Mount and that the biblical themes and passages ran throughout the film. Not only that, but the biblical themes were related to my own area of research: children in the Bible. We talk about these biblical passages in our conversation, but I also return to some of these passages at the end of the podcast as not all of them fit in the context of our conversation.

If you haven’t watched the film yet, track it down. I watched the film two more times on the streamer Kanopy after viewing it at VIFF, a free streaming service which I have through my local library, but I am sure it is available in other places too. You can listen to the podcast before watching the film, just as I heard Christine speak about it before I saw it, and you will gain a lot from listening. 70 years on, as Christine said at VIFF, there are no real spoilers, but if you can see it before you hear this discussion that could help you understand our conversation more fully. On the other hand, even after watching the film three times, you will hear Christine explain elements of the film that I completely missed – she is the expert – as well as hear me mispronounce Zizek, which might lead me to hand in my academic card.

So, thanks to Martin for making this conversation happen and to Christine Evans for helping us make sense of the movie The Night of the Hunter.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post there with a question as to what you are most interested in. I will also post the question on Facebook @biblejunkies. We will be moving to a CCE Facebook page, but in the meantime, feel free to check us out @biblejunkies. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Thanks to Kevin Eng for editing and engineering this episode.

Thanks to Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform.

John W. Martens

View Details

This is Episode Seven of Season Three, featuring Dr. Ross Lockhart, who is Professor of Mission Studies at Vancouver School of Theology and Dean of St. Andrew’s Hall. Ross is also an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church in Canada. His main areas of research are in Missiology and Homiletics. He is the author of numerous books, including Lessons from Laodicea: Missional Leadership in a Culture of Affluence; Beyond Snakes and Shamrocks: St. Patrick’s Missional Leadership Lessons for Today; co-author of Better Than Brunch: Missional Churches in Cascadia as well as Christianity: An Asian Religion in Vancouver and editor of Christian Witness in Cascadian Soil. His newest book is West Coast Mission: The Changing Nature of Christianity in Vancouver and it formed the basis of our conversation. We discuss what it means to be a Christian in Vancouver, a place where, honestly, there’s not a lot of hostility to Christianity, but maybe more a bit of disinterest or bemused curiosity for this minority religion.

Ross also gave us numerous excellent resources for understanding religion in post-Christendom Vancouver, which really, as Ross explains, was never a part of broader Christendom as in the rest of Canada. Ross mentioned the work of Lynn Marx, whose book Infidels and the Damn Churches Irreligion and Religion in Settler British Columbia examines the religious history of the Canadian European wild west. Tina Block continues that work in her book The Secular Northwest Religion and Irreligion in Everyday Postwar Life that "debunks the myth of a godless frontier, revealing a Pacific Northwest that was serious about its secularity, consciously rejecting the trappings of organized religion but not necessarily spirituality – and not necessarily God." He mentioned many other scholars, but I will highlight here the work of Paul Bramadat, also from Winnipeg, who among other writings co-edited Religion at the Edge: Nature, Spirituality, and Secularity in the Pacific Northwest, which examines religion in all of its varieties in Cascadia.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Christine Evans on Pop Culture Matters and the movie The Night of the Hunter, Fr. Ryan Duns on the theology of horror, Dr. Megan Fritts Cabrera, Dr. Ruben Rosario, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

Dr. Christine Evans and I have already recorded the next Pop Culture Matters episode, inspired by a recent viewing of The Night of the Hunter and and excellent lecture by Christine at VIFF. We discuss Robert Mitchum's creepy and dreadful film.

Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We are now setting the program for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will update the website soon with information on the program and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, around $50-60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. Details are coming soon.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay! You can now register for the event on Eventbrite.

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out as it continues to be updated by Fang Fang and Kevin on a regular basis!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences, and now in their donation of money for the purchase of new podcast equipment.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is Season Three, Episode Six is here, featuring Dr. Adele Reinhartz,Professor in the Department of Classics and Religious Studies at the University of Ottawa, in Canada. Her main areas of research are New Testament, early Jewish-Christian relations, the Bible and Film, and feminist biblical criticism. She is the author of numerous articles and books, including Befriending the Beloved Disciple: A Jewish Reading of the Gospel of John (2001), Scripture on the Silver Screen (Westminster John Knox, 2003), Jesus of Hollywood (Oxford, 2007), Caiaphas the High Priest (2011), and Bible and Cinema: An Introduction (Routledge, 2013). In this episode we spent a lot of time discussing her timely new book Cast Out of the Covenant: Jews and Anti-Judaism in the Gospel of John. The title of this epsiode, however, is taken from her forthcoming book, Jousting with John.

Adele has been a Member of the Institutes of Advanced Studies in Princeton and in Jerusalem and has been a visiting professor at Harvard Divinity School (1999), Yale Divinity School (2010), and Boston College (2015-17). She was inducted into the Royal Society of Canada in 2005 and into the Academy for Jewish Research in 2014. Adele has been the General Editor of the Journal of Biblical Literature, and President of the Society of Biblical Literature.

She is a significant figure in NT studies and in my own life as I studied with Adele both as an undergrad and a grad student at University of St. Michael's College and McMaster University respectively. Adele tells me that I should not think about her as my teacher, as it was many decades ago, but as colleagues. I know we are colleagues and she is a wonderful and supportive colleague, but it is hard not to think about the person who introduced me to Judaism in the Second Temple period, the love of my academic life and vocation, as my teacher. With her I read books for the first time by Victor Tcherikover, Ellis Rivkin, Jacob Neusner, Elias Bickerman, and Saul Lieberman. If you do not know those names, you are a part of the 99.9%. if you know those names, you too are a Second Temple Judaism nerd and might have studied Judaism in its Hellenistic environment.

Another reason it sticks with me is that I went to study in Toronto due to Fr. Jim Roberts, with whom I studied at Vancouver Community College Langara and took a course on the history of Christianity. It was here as a naïve 19- or 20-year-old I learned about antisemitism in Christianity. I was shocked and I asked Fr. Roberts, where should I go study to learn more about this? He directed me to St Michael’s College at U of T and Gregory Baum, whom I would find out later had a significant role in drafting Nostra Aetate, the Vatican II document that categorically separated the Church from earlier teachings and practices regarding the Jews. Adele too studied with Baum earlier.

So here we are in 2024 and it is essential for us as Christians to continue to combat antisemitic readings of the Bible, which have too often in the past and even today led to antisemitic language and behaviours. This can be tough going for Christians to repudiate beloved passages or books of the Bible such as the Gospel of John. But it can and it must be done. There is no option but to stand against it, whether intentional or unintentional. Biblical scholars, teachers of the Bible in churches and schools, must carefully explain the historical settings and origins of these texts, but also simply say no to passages that lead to hatred and cruelty of Jews. Even simple things like the God of the OT is cruel and vindictive, but the God of the NT is loving and kind. I encourage everyone to read the Bible and see that the presentation of God in both the Hebrew Bible and the NT encompasses elements of judgment and mercy.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Ross Lockhart on Christianity in Vancouver, Dr. Christine Evans on Pop Culture Matters and the movie The Night of the Hunter, Fr. Ryan Duns, Dr. Ruben Rosario, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

The first episode of Pop Culture Matters is out. I hope you have listened to it. As mentioned above, inspired by a recent viewing of The Night of the Hunter and and excellent lecture by UBC film prof Christine Evans, we are going to discuss Robert Mitchum's creepy and dreadful film. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We are now setting the program for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will update the website soon with information on the program and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, around $50-60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. Details are coming soon.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay! You can now register for the event on Eventbrite.

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out as it continues to be updated by Fang Fang and Kevin on a regular basis!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences, and now in their donation of money for the purchase of new podcast equipment.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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This is Season Three, Episode Five is here, featuring Dr. Bill Cavanaugh, professor of Catholic studies at De Paul University in Chicago and director of the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology, a research center housed in the Department of Catholic Studies and focusing on the Catholic Church in the global South—Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Bill is one of the most significant Catholic theologians of the 21st century, having written numerous important books in the past 25 years, such as Torture and the Eucharist, Being Consumed: Economics and Christian Desire, and The Myth of Religious Violence. Today we are focusing on his new book from Oxford University Press, The Uses of Idolatry, where the gods of consumerism and nationalism are discussed.

It was a delight to speak with an old friend, but it’s even more delightful when an old friend happens to be a great theologian, who is funny and warm. Lucky me to have this conversation with Bill and lucky us to be able to listen to this conversation. Bill says early on in the podcast, “I mean, in some ways, the thesis of the book is really simple. And it's not terribly original, right? It's the idea that we don't live in a secular world where worship has waned. We live in an enchanted world, you know, an idolatrous world where people still worship lots of things but not God.” It might not be original, but it is provocative, and I know not everyone agrees with it, such as perhaps Charles Taylor. One of the things I love about Bill’s work is that he takes on big questions and is not afraid to offer big answers.

I loved talking about and subsequently thinking about disenchantment and enchantment, especially regarding the claim that modernity is disenchanted. I think Bill is right to push back on that and part of it emerges for me and my understanding of the world as an historian of antiquity. I think there is a portrayal of the ancient world as fundamentally more enchanted than people of the ancient world described it. That is, the portrayal of ancient people tends to romanticize them in comparison to modern people. Bill wrote in the The Uses of Idolatry, “there is no “race” of humans who experience the world entirely as immanent; there is rather a set of people in the West who have learned— for various reasons having to do with how power is distributed in Western societies— to describe their world as immanent and disenchanted, while they are still involved in all sorts of worship.” (9) In the same way, the ancients were not all walking around enchanted while their children died and while they tried to afford food or the rent.

I loved talking about and thinking about what constitutes religion, and the difference between magic and religion, if there is one, and how nationalism and consumerism might fill the God gap for us. These ultimately Bill says are simply idols, splendid or unsplendid.

Bill spoke about and wrote about how the Incarnation of God in Jesus Christ as an antidote to idolatry. I wondered whether there are such antidotes in other religious traditions. Among indigenous peoples for instance? How do people who are not Christian counter idolatries like nationalism and consumerism? Must one be a Christian/catholic to worship a/the true God? That’s not Bill’s argument and we discussed how this is the book as a Christian theologian he can write, but I raised the possibility of bringing together scholars of other religions to discuss the questions of idolatry, especially of nationalism and consumerism, which seem like universal gods, from the point of view of other religion standpoints and traditions.

Bill has a clear audience in mind of course, “The first audience is those who claim to believe in God, primarily but not exclusively the Christian community. To claim to believe in God is not necessarily to worship God in reality. I hope that this book will help Christians and others to think more deeply about our own practical idolatries and to seek God’s help in remedying them and healing a broken world. The second audience is those who claim not to believe in God. I hope that the theoretical and empirical work of this book might demonstrate that the supposed divide between “believers” and “nonbelievers” is perhaps not so wide as is often assumed" (6). I think he’s right, but I see that third audience, those who follow other religious traditions and how they might respond and do in practice respond to realities of nationalism and consumerism.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Adele Reinhartz of U of Ottawa on the Gospel of John and antisemitism in the NT and in Christianity, and on the horizon are Dr. Ross Lockhart, Fr. Ryan Duns, S.J., Dr. Ruben Rosario, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, and Dr. Tim Pawl.

The first episode of Pop Culture Matters is out. I hope you have listened to it. Martin and I are ready for more and we are definitely thinking about a movie: the Matrix? The Big Lebowski? Philomena? The Meaning of Life? Let us know what you want to discuss. At this point, inspired by a recent viewing of The Night of the Hunter and and excellent lecture by UBC film prof Christine Evans, we are thinking of a discussion of Robert Mitchum's creepy and dreadful film. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post there with a question as to what you are most interested in. I will also post the question on Facebook @biblejunkies. We will be moving to a CCE Facebook page, but in the meantime, feel free to check us out @biblejunkies. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Some upcoming events:

We are now setting the program for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. We will update the website soon with information on the program and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal to attend the concurrent sessions of the conference itself, around $50-60 and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. Details are coming soon.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory. You can register for the webinar now at Eventbrite.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out as it continues to be updated by Fang Fang and Kevin on a regular basis!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences, and now in their donation of money for the purchase of new podcast equipment.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Season Three, Episode Four is here, featuring Dr. Daisy Vargas, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at the U of Arizona (Ph.D. in History, University of California, Riverside; M.A. in Religious Studies, University of Denver), who specializes in Catholicism in the Americas, especially in the borderlands of the American Southwest. She examines race, ethnicity, and religion in the United States, Latina/o religion, and material religion. Please go to her web page to check out her publications, including some that are available online.

She describes her current project as tracing the history of Mexican religion, race, and the law from the nineteenth century into the contemporary moment, positioning current legal debates about Mexican religion within a larger history of anti-Mexican and anti-Catholic attitudes in the United States. In that context we talked about “crimmigration” and how US law enforcement sometimes determines who is a good or bad Catholic on the basis of material artifacts like prayer cards and rosaries.

I found this a challenging and stimulating conversation on a topic I knew little about, but the major question - who decides on whether one's religion is good or bad? - is a perennial one. And the addition of race and ethnicity in the calculation of who is a good or bad Catholic, for instance, especially in the USA, points to the ongoing power of white supremacy at the American borderlands.

Some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

In the coming weeks we will be hearing from Dr. Bill Cavanaugh of DePaul University on his new book The Uses of Idolatry, Dr. Adele Reinhartz of University of Ottawa on hher work on the Gospel of John, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, Dr. Tim Pawl, and many more excellent scholars and thinkers.

The first episode of Pop Culture Matters is out. I hope you have listened to it. Martin and I are ready for more and we are definitely thinking about a movie: the Matrix? The Big Lebowski? Philomena? The Meaning of Life? Let us know what you want to discuss. Follow us at our social media pages, linked below, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post on our socials with a question as to what you are most interested in seeing. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Upcoming Events:

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory. You can register for the webinar now at Eventbrite.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Paper proposals for the upcoming conference are closed and we are going through amazing abstracts right now from Asia, Africa, and North America. We will update the website soon with information on the program and where you can register for The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025 for the conference. The cost will be minimal for the conference itself and I think you will find it stimulating and challenging. It will be exciting. Details are coming soon.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences, and now in their donation of money for the purchase of new podcast equipment.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Season Three, Episode Three is a banger! Do the kids still say that? Dr. Jennifer Newsome Martin, the director of the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame, and the John J. Cavanaugh Associate Professor of the Program of Liberal Studies and Associate Professor, Department of Theology, brings incredible joy to theology and that joy is infectious.

She will make you fall in love with ideas, of the true, the good, and the beautiful. Listen to her talk about theology, soil, seeds, gardening, John Henry Newman, Josef Pieper, and why it is wonderful that you exist.

You can find the full range of her publications at her website, linked above, but here are a few pieces that might interest you:

On liberal education;

On Jenny's conversion to Catholicism.

Some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

In the coming weeks we will be hearing from Dr. Daisy Vargas of the University of Arizona, speaking on Latinx theology and "crimmigration," Dr. Adele Reinhartz of University of Ottawa, Dr. Bill Cavanaugh of De Paul University, Dr. Gerald Schlabach, and many more excellent scholars and thinkers.

The first episode of Pop Culture Matters is out. I hope you have listened to it. Martin and I are ready for more and we are definitely thinking about a movie: the Matrix? The Big Lebowski? Philomena? The Meaning of Life? Let us know what you want to discuss. Follow us at our social media pages, linked below, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post on our socials with a question as to what you are most interested in seeing. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Upcoming Events:

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory. You can register for the webinar now at Eventbrite.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

If you are interested in presenting a paper at the conference please go to the link above. The deadline for proposals is fast approaching, October 1, 2024. All the information for how to propose a paper is on the website linked above.

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences, and now in their donation of money for the purchase of new podcast equipment.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Welcome to the first episode of Pop Culture Matters, a discussion with Martin Strong and me regarding Gospel music and the song "Straight Street," written by J.W. Alexander and Jesse Whitaker in the 1950s and first recorded by The Pilgrim Travelers in 1955. Today we are especially looking at Ry Cooder’s version of the song "Straight Street" and the biblical and other spiritual themes that suffuse this song, Cooder’s 2018 album Prodigal Son from this song is taken, and Gospel music in general. We also spend a little time discussing "Wade in the Water" by the Staples Singers. We have links to both songs on You Tube below, and also the lyrics. So, please, if you have not already, listen to the songs, read the lyrics, and then come back and join us for our conversation.

We also discussed why What Matters Most is introducing this new podcast format, what we are getting at, and why we think pop culture matters as a spiritual force. Honestly, it was about a lot more than "Straight Street," it was also about why we think these conversations are important and the spirituality that underlies how we share our cultural touchstones as well as the spirituality within the songs, movies, books, and other forms of art that we love. And we managed to touch on a lot more pop culture, like Fargo, No Country for Old Men, the Coen Brothers, Bruce Springsteen, Ricky Gervais, Jim Carrey, The Verdict, and much more.

Martin and I will be back, and we have a lot of ideas for things to discuss, but we hope that you will make some suggestions for us too. What should we talk about next? We’re thinking of Godland, or Life of Brian, or the last season of Fargo, or some other movie or tv show, but why not let us know what you want to discuss.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Follow us at our Instagram page, @stmarkscce, newly revived, and drop us a line as to what you want to see or hear. We’ll post there with a question as to what you are most interested in. I will also post the question on Facebook @biblejunkies. We will be moving to a CCE Facebook page, but in the meantime, feel free to check us out @biblejunkies. When we decide what’s next, we’ll let you know and then we can all make sure to watch it or listen to it or read it before the next episode of Pop Culture Matters. Or email us with your suggestions to jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca or cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca.

Thanks to Martin Strong for joining me in this venture!

Thanks to Kevin Eng for editing and engineering this episode.

Thanks to Fang Fang Chandra, the CCE assistant, who helps me bring this podcast to you, but also makes the CCE run so much more smoothly.

I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. We are thankful to their commitment to the life of the academic world and of the work of the Church in the world by funding the work of the CCE. I am also thankful to the Cullen family, Mark and Barbara, for their support of the ongoing work of the CCE through financial donations that allow us to bring speakers to the local and international arenas.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. And also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform.

The Songs:

The Pilgrim Travelers, Straight Street

Staple Singers, Wade in the Water

Ry Cooder, Straight Street

The Lyrics:

Straight Street

[Verse 1] Well I used to live on Broadway, right next to the liar's house My number was self-righteousness and a very little guide of mouth [Chorus] So I moved, I moved and I'm living on Straight Street now I moved, I had to move, I'm living on Straight Street now [Verse 2] Before I moved over, let me tell you how it was with me Old Satan had me bound in chains and I had no liberty One day my heart got troubled all about my dwelling place I heard the Lord when He spoke to me, and he told me to leave that place [Chorus] So I moved, I moved and I'm living on Straight Street now Yes I moved, I move, well I'm living on Straight Street now [Bridge] Since I moved, I'm really living, I've got peace within I thank the Lord for everything, so glad I found new friends [Chorus] So I moved, I moved and I'm living on Straight Street now I moved, I had to move, and I'm living on Straight Street now

[Outro] I'm living on Straight Street now Yes I moved, I had to move, I'm living on Straight Street now Yes I moved, I had to move, yes I'm living on Straight Street now Well I moved, yes had to move, and I'm living on Straight Street now (Move, move, living on Straight Street now) (Move, move, living on Straight Street now) (Move, move, living on Straight Street now)

Written by J.W. Alexander and Jesse Whitaker

Wade in the Water:

[Chorus:] Wade in the water Wade in the water children Wade in the water Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water I stepped in water and the water is cold Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water Said it chilled my body but not my soul Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water [Chorus] Well I went to the water one day to pray Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water And my soul got happy and I stayed all day Don't you know that God's gonna trouble the water [Chorus] There is love (In the water) In the water (In the water) There is joy yeah (In the water) In your water yeah (In the water) Your peace (In the water) Is in the water (In the water) Your deliverance (In the water) Is in the water yeah (In the water) Oh step in, step in (In the water) Joy is in the water In the water yeah (In the water) Oh step in, step in (In the water) Love is in the water (In the water) Oh step in yeah (In the water) For deliverance (In the water) Everything (In the water) In the water yeah

Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) Everything you need (In the water) God's gonna trouble the water God's gonna trouble the water (Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah) God's gonna trouble the water (Ooh) God's gonna trouble the water Oh wade in the water

Written by Ramsey Lewis

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Welcome to the second episode of the third season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Lynn Huber. Dr. Lynn Huber is Maude Sharpe Powell Professor, Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University in North Carolina and author of the new Wisdom Commentary on Revelation, published by Liturgical Press. Apart from her Wisdom Commentary, co-written with her late mentor Gail O’Day, Lynn has written:

Thinking and Seeing with Women in Revelation. London: Bloomsbury T and T Clark, 2013;

“Like a Bride Adorned”: Reading Metaphor in John’s Apocalypse. New York: T and T Clark, 2007.

She has also written numerous articles and encyclopedia entries which you can find on her website at Elon University.

Lynn is a true expert on the text. She takes the polyvalent images and language of the text and reads it through a feminist and queer lens. This might challenge people, but it also opens up new horizons and new ways to understand Revelation. This episode is in many ways about reading gender in Revelation. Lynn refers to her work as idiosyncratic, in that she references and engages with reality TV, the Olympics, including the great Simone Biles, current music and concerts, as well as all the ancient context and history.

We also discuss at the end of the podcast how much power Revelation has been assigned in our culture, but Lynn also turns that discussion of power upside down, as does Revelation itself: what does it mean to see victory based upon the lamb who was slain? Why are male virgins seen as the ideal in Revelation 14 when in Roman culture, as Christian Laes says, they were basically unknown and certainly not acclaimed. This positive role of male virgins though is coupled with a presentation of sex with women as inherently defiling. This sort of misogynistic portrayal renders women as separated from salvation. In addition, there is a lot of sexual violence portrayed in the text, such as with Jezebel and with the portrayal of the whore of Babylon, language which Lynn says is a correct translation but troubling too.

But there is also the presentation of the woman in chapter 12 who is pursued by the Dragon and hides her child away. There is also the fascinating image that Lynn describes of girls as the victors, of the image of conquering basically being an image of female conquering. The lamb who was slain is both victim and victor. Finally, there is the image of the male virgins as the bride of Christ. Does this only include men? Or are these only those who are presented in revelation 14 as part of the redeemed and righteous community?

Lynn finally discussed an image of inclusivity that she sees as a positive message of Revelation. What does full inclusivity in the people of God mean? When we are inclusive of some who have been marginalized does that inherently exclude others?

Some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Jenny Martin of Notre Dame discussing theology and gardening.

In the coming weeks we will be hearing from Dr. Adele Reinhartz of U of Ottawa, Dr. Daisy Vargas of the University of Arizona, and many more excellent scholars and thinkers.

Also, and this is big news for us, we are expanding the sorts of podcasts we do under the umbrella of What Matters Most. We are not changing the bi-weekly format of what you have just heard here today with Margaret MacDonald, but we are adding more. We are adding a Pop Culture Matters podcast, in which music, movies, novels, etc. with religious themes are added to the mix. Martin Strong and I will start off the series by discussing Ry Cooder’s Straight Street – go out and listen to it now; I dare you to listen to it just once – and the Danish/Icelandic movie Godland. Please send in your suggestions for Pop Culture that Matters. Don’t be afraid, suggest away. Maybe you could join us as a co-host for an episode. The wonder of Zoom makes this is a possibility wherever you are! Martin also suggested a podcast on religious sites, local and international, which we call Places that Matter. What’s a place that matters to you? St. Peter’s in Rome? Some obscure shrine? Pacific Spirit forest? Let us know.

Finally, I am encouraging my colleagues at St. Mark’s to join me as guest hosts this year, so I hope you will soon hear from Kevin Eng, Fang Fang Chandra, Nick Olkovich, Fr. Nick Meisl and more. More What Matters Most.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. This event is now sold out, but pay attention for news of a livestream and join the waitlist in case a ticket comes open.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent who I can now tell you is Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the first episode of the third season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Margaret MacDonald. Margaret MacDonald is Professor of Religion at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Margaret MacDonald is a prominent and preeminent scholar in the fields of New Testament and early Christianity. We discuss Margaret’s excellent book The Power of Children: The Construction of Christian Families in the Greco-Roman World, but much more, as you will soon hear, including her forthcoming lecture at the Promise of Christian Education conference in Vancouver in May 2025 on ancient Christian learning circles, which forms part of her forthcoming book on Christian education in antiquity. In the course of doing that, we talk about household codes, house churches, families, girls, boys, enslaved children, Dead Sea Scrolls, Pauline letters, the Pastoral epistles, Deutero-Pauline epistles, Paul and Thecla, and a lot more.

She offers an integrated picture of early Christian families, fathers, mothers, children, and enslaved people and their roles in the family, in the Church, and the broader world in this book and in her other, extensive research. In addition to numerous essays and journal articles, her publications include four other books: Carolyn Osiek and Margaret Y. MacDonald (with Janet Tulloch), A Woman’s Place: House Churches in Earliest Christianity (2006); Colossians and Ephesians (Sacra Pagina; 2000); Early Christian Women and Pagan Opinion: The Power of the Hysterical Woman (1996); The Pauline Churches: A socio-historical study of institutionalization in the Pauline and Deutero-Pauline Writings (1988).

Enjoy this deep dive into the world and lives of ancient children!

Some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Coming up next is Dr. Lynn Huber discussing her new commentary on Revelation for the Wisdom Commentary series. You will not want to miss this revelatory podcast, I make no apologies for my pun, and Lynn’s feminist and queer readings of John’s Apocalypse. If you wonder, what does it even mean to read Revelation in this way? Stay tuned.

In the coming weeks we will be hearing from Dr. Jenny Martin of Notre Dame, Dr. Adele Reinhartz of U of Ottawa, Dr. Daisy Vargas of the University of Arizona, and many more excellent scholars and thinkers.

Also, and this is big news for us, we are expanding the sorts of podcasts we do under the umbrella of What Matters Most. We are not changing the bi-weekly format of what you have just heard here today with Margaret MacDonald, but we are adding more. We are adding a Pop Culture Matters podcast, in which music, movies, novels, etc. with religious themes are added to the mix. Martin Strong and I will start off the series by discussing Ry Cooder’s Straight Street – go out and listen to it now; I dare you to listen to it just once – and the Danish/Icelandic movie Godland. Please send in your suggestions for Pop Culture that Matters. Don’t be afraid, suggest away. Maybe you could join us as a co-host for an episode. The wonder of Zoom makes this is a possibility wherever you are! Martin also suggested a podcast on religious sites, local and international, which we call Places that Matter. What’s a place that matters to you? St. Peter’s in Rome? Some obscure shrine? Pacific Spirit forest? Let us know.

Finally, I am encouraging my colleagues at St. Mark’s to join me as guest hosts this year, so I hope you will soon hear from Kevin Eng, Fang Fang Chandra, Nick Olkovich, Fr. Nick Meisl and more. More What Matters Most.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. This event is now sold out, but pay attention for news of a livestream and join the waitlist in case a ticket comes open.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent who I can now tell you is Dr. Jane Barter, professor of religion and culture at the U of Winnipeg. She teaches and does research on Christianity, Religion and Gender, and Religion and Political Theory.

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

The CCE website is now up and running. I am so excited that we now have one stop for all of our events, the podcast, our YouTube videos, and everything else, including upcoming events. Check it out!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the twenty-sixth and final episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Massimo Faggioli.

Today’s episode is the keynote lecture Massimo gave on May 4, 2023 at the Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal conference held at St. Mark’s College on May 4-6, 2023. His lecture was titled, “Laudato Si' in a Time of Global Disruption: Francis and Politics," the inaugural Annual Laudato Si' Lecture. You can also find the video for this lecture on our You Tube channel.

Laudato Si’ is the document of Pope Francis that has captured more attention from non-Catholics and young people, and, at the same time, has inspired opposition and dismissal. Dr. Faggioli’s lecture addressed Pope Francis’s interpretation of the situation of global disruption during his magisterium. A special focus of the lecture was Laudato Si’s focus on the relationship between the Church and politics in the context of the rapidly changing patterns of influence on both the Church and politics of the sciences, economics and information systems. Massimo remarks in his comments at the end of the lecture on the strange situation of the Church today being the defender of democracy.

The Annual Laudato Si’ Endowment Lecture was established by local donors to plant seeds and raise awareness to encourage change in the way we consider and treat the environment. Laudato Si’ calls upon all the people of the world to take seriously the needs of the environment and climate change, including economic and political systems and the needs of our poorest citizens. Laudato Si’ calls us to learn what we can all do locally and globally for the environment.

Massimo is one of the most prominent Catholic theologians working today in North America and Europe. Massimo is a friend and was a colleague of mine at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota between 2009 to 2016, where we both worked together in the Department of Theology. He studied in Ferrara, Bologna, Tübingen, and Turin, where he got his PhD in 2002. He taught at the University of Bologna, at the Free University of Bolzano and at the University of Modena-Reggio Emilia. He worked at the John XXIII Foundation for Religious Studies in Bologna between 1996 and 2008 under the mentorship of the founder of the Bologna School Giuseppe Alberigo.

He was the founding co-chair of the study-group “Vatican II Studies” for the American Academy of Religion between 2012 and 2017. He has a column in La Croix International and is a contributing writer for Commonweal magazine and the Italian magazine Il Regno. He is co-editor with Bryan Froehle of the new series “Studies in Global Catholicism” for Brill Publishers (first volume scheduled 2023). His books and articles have been published in more than ten languages. His latest books are Catholicism and Citizenship: Political Cultures of the Church in the Twenty-First Century (Liturgical Press 2017), and The Liminal Papacy of Pope Francis. Moving Toward Global Catholicity (Orbis Books, 2020), and Joe Biden and Catholicism in the United States (Bayard 2021). He is the co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Vatican II (Oxford University Press, 2023) with Catherine Clifford, who has also been a guest on this podcast. He is under contract with Oxford University Press for a book on the history of the Roman Curia. He lives in the Philadelphia area with his wife and their two children.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. This event is now sold out, but pay attention for news of a livestream and join the waitlist in case a ticket comes open.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public,

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the twenty-fifth episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Emilce Cuda.

Today’s episode is the keynote lecture Emilce gave on May 5, 2023 at the Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal conference held at St. Mark’s College on May 4-6, 2023. Her paper was titled, “The Reform of the Church is Not a Change but a Commitment.”

Emilce Cuda asks people who want to understand Pope Francis in North America to read the encyclicals, read Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti, read Praedicate Evangelium on the Roman Curia, where the mission of the Church and the Christian is described as in the Gospels to touch the suffering flesh of humanity.

I am so happy to bring this lecture to all of you who were unable to be at the conference. In the coming weeks, we will bring you the keynote lecture of Dr. Massimo Faggioli also.

Dr. Emilce Cuda is an Argentinian theologian, university professor, and Roman Curia official. In 2021, Pope Francis appointed her to serve the Holy See as an official in the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, first as head of the office and then as Secretary. In the spring of 2022, Francis appointed her to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and to the Pontifical Academy for Life. She views her mission as assisting the Holy Father in preaching the gospel by building bridges that are about the peripheries.

Born in Buenos Aires, Emilce completed a cycle of studies at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina that resulted in Bachelor, Master, Licentiate, and Ph.D./STD degrees. She also studied philosophy at the University of Buenos Aires. She has an MBA from the Commercial and Economic Sciences University. In December 2022 the National University of Rosario in Argentina bestowed upon her a Doctorate of Humane Letters in honoris causa.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen a film called The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. This event is now sold out, but pay attention for news of a livestream.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public,

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter, Threads, or BlueSky @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the twenty-fourth episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Cathy Clifford.

Today’s episode is the keynote lecture Cathy gave to bring to an end the Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal conference held at St. Mark’s College on May 4-6, 2023. Her paper was delivered on May 6, 2023 and was titled, ““Leaning into the Distant Goal of Vatican II: Pope Francis and Christian Unity.”

In her lecture she states that Catholics would not be embarking on the path towards a more synodal church today were it not for sixty years of sustained ecumenical dialogue with other Christians who have helped us to rediscover how such practices are “constitutive” of the church. Learning to embrace the synodal way in the life and practice of the Catholic Church will have profound consequences for the realization of Vatican II’s distant goal of Christian unity and for the future shape of Christianity. Francis models a practice of leaning into reconciliation, walking together with fellow Christians in common witness as we grow together in unity.

I am so happy to bring this lecture to all of you who were unable to be at the conference. In the coming weeks, we will bring you the keynote lectures of Dr. Emilce Cuda and Dr. Massimo Faggioli also.

Upcoming Events:

On September 13, CCE is presenting a film on AI with Regent College and VST in which we screen a film called The End of Humanity followed by a panel discussion. Register here for in-person tickets.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest. Matt will be interviewed by Clay Imoo, Canuck Clay!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public,

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the twenty-third episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Sara Parks. Sara Parks is Assistant Professor in Religious Studies, teaching and conducting research in the field of Early Christianity at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. She joined St. Francis Xavier University in the Fall of 2022. She was formerly Assistant Professor in New Testament at Dublin City University, and before that was a Leverhulme Fellow and Assistant Professor in New Testament Studies at the University of Nottingham in England.

We spent much of our time discussing her excellent book Gender in the Rhetoric of Jesus, a highly readable introduction to some complex questions and issues in Gospel studies. I recommend it if you are interested in questions regarding the historical Jesus, Q, Jesus’ gendered parables, women in the teaching and ministry of Jesus, and how to assess Jesus, early Christianity, and feminism. What better way to start summer? If you are listening to this podcast, I think you know I’m not joking! The book is excellent and I learned something new within the first five pages of starting it.

Also check out her co-authored book with Shayna Sheinfeld,and Meredith J. C. Warren, Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean, a recent winner of the 2023 Canadian Society of Biblical Studies Frank W. Beare Award.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. This is a podcast about big questions, about big issues, about what matters most to people, what’s important to you, what gets you up out of bed in the morning or keeps you up late at night wondering. We are looking at these big questions and big issues through the lens of individual stories and individual lives. Religious traditions and institutions might be systems, ancient and modern, but people are people and religion lives in and through people. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

As I mentioned in the last episode, there will be a hiatus of recording new episodes with guests at some point this summer, but we are going to get you new material all through the summer. On June 3rd, Father Nick Meisl will be interviewing me at the St. Mark’s library regarding a new study Bible I edited with Fr. Paul Turner called the Liturgy and Life Study Bible. It is a finalist for the Association of Catholic Publishers Excellence in Publishing Award for 2024 in the Resources in Liturgy category. It’s a Bible focused on worship within the bible and how the Bible is utilized in worship today. We will be taping the conversation and will have that available for you within a week or two of our conversation.

We will also be making available the keynote lectures from our Pope Francis conference from May 2023, featuring Massimo Faggioli, please don’t sue me, Emilce Cuda, who is so good, and Cathy Clifford, whose keynote Sam Rocha told me might have been the best lecture he had ever heard.

Some upcoming events:

We will be having some new events starting in Fall of next year, including a joint presentation on September 13 on AI with regent College and VST in which we screen a film called The End of Humanity followed by ba panel discussion. Register here for in-person tickets.

On October 29, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

On December 5, we will have Matt Hoven presenting in-person on his new book on Fr. David Bauer, Hockey Priest.

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. You should also know that the plenary or keynote addresses are free and open to the public,

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series and support of our conferences.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. It really does help people find these inspiring conversations!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is the twenty-second episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring me speaking with Fr. Nick Meisl! Why? I was interviewed by Father Nick Meisl, my colleague and friend, who appeared on episode 13 of season 2 of What Matters Most. The original interview took place on June 3, 2024, at St. Mark’s Library for the book launch of the Liturgy and Life Study Bible, which was just awarded first place for Excellence in Catholic Publishing 2024 in the Liturgy category by the Association of Catholic Publishers on May 31, 2024. Fr. Paul Turner and I were the general editors for this 6 year long project. You’ll learn all about the study Bible in this episode.

We had a lovely crowd to celebrate the event and we taped it for your listening pleasure and…it did not record! So, on June 7, Nick and I recorded the conversation again, which you are listening to right now.

If you are interested in checking out more of my writing, please check out my author page on Amazon, my blog Bible Junkies, and my page at America Magazine, where I wrote over 600 pieces. If you want to hear a little more of me, check out Jesuitical and Outside the Walls.

I mentioned the story of Eutyches in this episode and said I thought it came from Acts 21, or Acts 20. It is actually from Acts 20: 7-12. I was close!

Finally, check out the new CCE website, designed by Kenton McDonald-Lin! It is still in development, but look around, check it out, and let us know what you think.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

I have already spoken to Dr. Sara Parks of St. Francis Xavier University, so get ready for that terrific discussion coming soon. We discussed her book Gender in the Rhetoric of Jesus, Women in Q, historical Jesus research in general, was Jesus a feminist, and what exactly is Q.

There will be a hiatus of recording new episodes with guests at some point this summer, but we are going to get you new material all through the summer. We will be making available the keynote lectures from our Pope Francis conference from May 2023, featuring Massimo Faggioli, Emilce Cuda, and Cathy Clifford.

Some upcoming events:

We will be having some new events starting in Fall of next year, including a joint presentation on September 13 on AI with regent College and VST. In October, date to be determined, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to thank people who have been rating the podcast. The ratings have grown in number and they remain at 5 stars. Thank you so much for your kind support. ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is the twenty-first episode of the second season of What Matters Most, featuring Dr. Jaime L. Waters of Boston College, an Associate Professor of Old Testament and Program Director of Courage to Preach. I met Jaime in person last summer in Omaha, Nebraska at the Catholic Biblical Association meetings and we bonded over biblical studies, a shared run as authors of the Word, the scripture column at America Magazine, and a shared anxiety about getting to the airport in time. Basically, it’s never too early.

Dr. Waters is a native Philadelphian and alumna of Boston College (BA, Theology and Philosophy), with graduate degrees from Yale Divinity School (MA, Religion) and Johns Hopkins University (MA, PhD, Near Eastern Studies). Before joining the Boston College faculty, Dr. Waters taught for nine years in the department of Catholic Studies at DePaul University.

She also spoke of her love of Jeremiah and some of the imagery of animal suffering, which evoked her own interest in ecological hermeneutics, the environment and the non -human characters in the biblical texts. But also, her discussion of the relevance of Jeremiah for African American women, especially the passages that talk about the suffering of childbirth, the pain and anguish associated with it, and how many African American women in the US suffer from inadequate medical care, which is not about not having resources or access to care, but whose experience is not being listened to. As she said, her keynote paper at the CBA was a way of developing her own feminist and womanist kinds of ways of reading the Bible. We will certainly hear more on this as Dr. Waters is currently working on a commentary on the book of Jeremiah for the Wisdom Commentary Series (Liturgical Press), as well as a book on methods of biblical interpretation (Baker Academic).

She also wrote “The Word” column in America: The Jesuit Review of Faith & Culture,2019-2022, which we discussed in the episode, and you can find her work online at America magazine on the link above.

If you want to dig into more of Dr. Waters work, click on the link to her Boston College webpage here and you will find some of the writings listed below:

“A Biblical Model of Love.” Pages 73-80 in Fratelli Tutti: A Global Commentary. Studies in World Catholicism 13. Edited by William T. Cavanaugh, Carlos Mendoza-Álvarez, OP, Ikenna Ugochukwu Okafor, and Daniel Franklin E. Pilario, CM. Eugene: Cascade Books, 2024.

“Prophetic Tenacity.” Pages 62-74 in Do Black Lives Matter?: How the Christian Scriptures Speak to Black Empowerment. Edited by Lisa M. Bowens and Dennis R. Edwards. Eugene: Cascade Books, 2023.

“Pain and Provocation: A Social-Scientific Reading of Jeremiah 15.” Pages 127-135 in A Sage in New Haven: Essays on the Prophets, the Writings, and the Ancient World in Honor of Robert R. Wilson. Edited by Alison Acker Gruseke and Carolyn J. Sharp. Ägypten und Altes Testament, Band 117. Münster: Zaphon, 2023.

What Does the Bible Say About Animals? Hyde Park: New City Press, 2022.

Threshing Floors in Ancient Israel: Their Ritual and Symbolic Significance. Emerging Scholars Series. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2015.

Before moving on, I mentioned my old colleague Arthur Kennedy, a bishop in Boston – imagine that a Kennedy in Boston - and in 2006 Cardinal O’Malley asked him to return to Boston and appointed him as Rector of St. John’s Seminary where he remained until 2012. On June 30, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston. He was ordained to the episcopal office on September 14, 2010 at Holy Cross Cathedral.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. This is a podcast about big questions, about big issues, about what matters most to people, what’s important to you, what gets you up out of bed in the morning or keeps you up late at night wondering. We are looking at these big questions and big issues through the lens of individual stories and individual lives. Religious traditions and institutions might be systems, ancient and modern, but people are people and religion lives in and through people. Our goal, then, is to talk to a lot of people, to learn from them, to listen to them, and to find out what motivates them, what gives them hope, what gives them peace, and what allows them to go out into the world to love their neighbors.

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Sara Parks of St. Francis Xavier University, where I hope to discuss many things, but definitely her excellent book Gender in the Rhetoric of Jesus, Women in Q. if you have an opportunity to read it before she appears later this summer, please do. It’s excellent and I learned something new within the first five pages of starting it. Also check out her co-authored book with Shayna Sheinfeld,and Meredith J. C. Warren, Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean, a recent winner of the 2023 Canadian Society of Biblical Studies Frank W. Beare Award.

As I mentioned in the last episode, there will be a hiatus of recording new episodes with guests at some point this summer, but we are going to get you new material all through the summer. On June 3rd, Father Nick Meisl will be interviewing me at the St. Mark’s library regarding a new study Bible I edited with Fr. Paul Turner called the Liturgy and Life Study Bible. It is a finalist for the Association of Catholic Publishers Excellence in Publishing Award for 2024 in the Resources in Liturgy category. It’s a Bible focused on worship within the bible and how the Bible is utilized in worship today. We will be taping the conversation and will have that available for you within a week or two of our conversation.

We will also be making available the keynote lectures from our Pope Francis conference from May 2023, featuring Massimo Faggioli, please don’t sue me, Emilce Cuda, who is so good, and Cathy Clifford, whose keynote Sam Rocha told me might have been the best lecture he had ever heard.

Some upcoming events:

We will be having some new events starting in Fall of next year, including a joint presentation on September 13 on AI with regent College and VST. In October, date to be determined, we will have a webinar on the American election featuring Steve Millies and his new book, A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with U.S. Politics. We will also have a Canadian respondent. Much more to come on Fall 2024 and other speakers!

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025.

Three Confirmed Plenary Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to thank people who have been rating the podcast. The ratings have grown in number and they remain at 5 stars. Thank you so much for your kind support. ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is the twentieth episode of the second season of What Matters Most. I spoke with UBC Sikh Chaplain Inderjeet Singh. This episode was recorded in February 2024, but due to a backlog of episodes is only being released in May 2024. I am happy for you to be able to hear it and learn about Sikhism.

Indy, as his friends know him, offered a lot of information about the origins of Sikhism in India, and its connections and differences from Hinduism and Islam and Buddhism, even as these religions clearly influenced Sikhism and do so today through the Guru Granth Sahib, the collection of holy writings that make up what is considered the final guru.

I thought the discussion regarding Gurus, teachers, not prophets he stressed, was enlightening. There were ten human gurus and we discussed the first guru, Nanak, and the second guru, Angad, as well as the tenth and final human Guru Gobind Singh, who decreed that the Guru Granth Sahib , linked here, would be the final and eternal Guru; but "the first version of the book was compiled by the 5th Sikh Guru, Arjun, at Amritsar in 1604 ce. He included his own hymns and those of his predecessors, the Gurus Nanak, Angad, Amar Das, and Ram Das, and a selection of devotional songs of both Hindu and Islamic saints (notably the poet Kabīr)," as the Encyclopedia Britannica describes.

Guru Granth Sahib is a fascinating collection of literature as it is in many ways a compilation, as just described, of writings from other religions and original compilations from many of the Gurus. This might as Indy said lead to particular issues of translation, but anyone who has translated literature from another language, especially religious literature, knows, it is a process fraught with issues and complexities. Most of the “hymns are arranged according to the musical modes (ragas) in which they are to be sung. The language is mostly Punjabi or Hindi, interspersed with Marathi, Persian, and Arabic words.” Marathi is a language spoken mostly in the Indian state of Maharashtra.

There is a lot more to learn about Sikhism and I would be interested to hear from listeners to the podcast: is there a particular aspect of Sikhism you are most interested in knowing more about? Please let me know. Perhaps something more on langar, the free kitchen that is found in Sikh gurdwaras. Inderjeet coordinates Guru Nanak's Free Kitchen, which provides nearly 50,000 meals per year to the unhoused on Vancouver's Eastside. Or perhaps more on the theology of Sikhism? This is something about which I would love to learn more.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to thank people who have been rating the podcast. The ratings have grown in number and they remain at 5 stars. Thank you so much for your kind support. ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Sara Parks of St. Francis Xavier University, where I hope to discuss many things, but definitely her excellent book Gender in the Rhetoric of Jesus, Women in Q. if you have an opportunity to read it before she appears later this summer, please do. It’s excellent and I learned something new within the first five pages of starting it.

There will be a hiatus of recording new episodes at some point this summer, but I am trying to figure out how we might nevertheless get you new material all through the summer. Keep listening to stay up to date.

Finally, some upcoming events:

May 17, 2024 Sister Damien Marie Savino will be offering the second annual Laudato Si’ lecture, Educating for Laudato Si' at St. Mark’s College. Please click on the link to register!

May 16, 2024, Sister Damien Marie Savino will also be doing a workshop on Laudato Si’ at St Joseph the Worker church in Richmond, B.C., so if you are local please come for 7 pm to the parish centre on May 16.

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025.

Three Confirmed Pleanry Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

We are deep into season 2 now with the nineteenth episode of What Matters Most. I spoke with Dr. Hans A. Harmakaputra, an Assistant Professor of Religion in the Department of Philosophy, Religion, and Classics at Augustana University, Sioux Falls, South Dakota about Christian and Muslim saints and views of sainthood. Hans Harmakaputra is the author of A Christian-Muslim Comparative Theology of Saints: The Community of God's Friends, which was at the heart of much of our discussion on today’s podcast.

Hans is from Indonesia, a country whose religious environment shaped much of the research for this book. Indonesia is a majority Muslim country, with a substantial Christian minority, Protestant and Catholic. It’s Indonesia that led to questions about what makes a person a saint because both Muslims and Christians share this conception and Hans will talk about an Indonesian Muslim, Abdurrahman Wahid, who is widely considered a saint among Christians and Muslims in Indonesia. Some of this emerges from popular conceptions of sainthood, but as Hans says in the podcast, “some people make a difference between popular religion and this is the official theology. And for me, there is no such thing. People always try their best to connect with the tradition, but also have a hybrid forms of religiosity.”

As a scholar, Harmakaputra writes, “I employ a comparative theology method to draw insights from a Muslim understanding of saints and sainthood in order to enrich the Christian theological discourse on saints.” He examines in his book and we discuss scholars such as the Jesuit priest Frans Van der Lugt and the Muslim poet and Philosopher Ibn Arabi, as well as catholic scholars Karl Rahner, Jean-Luc Marion, and Elizabeth Johnson, and Protestant scholars Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Paul Tillich. Below you will find links to his book and the major thinkers we discussed:

A Christian-Muslim Comparative Theology of Saints: The Community of God's Friends;

Abdurrahman Wahid;

The Jesuit priest and martyr Frans Van der Lugt;

The Muslim poet and Philosopher Ibn Arabi;

Karl Rahner;

Jean-Luc Marion;

Elizabeth Johnson;

Dietrich Bonhoeffer;

and Paul Tillich.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to thank people who have been rating the podcast. The ratings have grown in number and they remain at 5 stars. Thank you so much for your kind support. ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Mr. Inderjeet Singh, Sikh chaplain at UBC;

Dr. Jaime Waters, Boston College;

Dr. Sara Parks, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

Finally, some upcoming events:

May 17, 2024 Sister Damien Marie Savino will be offering the second annual Laudato Si’ lecture, Educating for Laudato Si' at St. Mark’s College. Please click on the link to register!

May 16, 2024, Sister Damien Marie Savino will also be doing a workshop on Laudato Si’ at St Joseph the Worker church in Richmond, B.C., so if you are local please come for 7 pm to the parish centre on May 16.

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. Please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. You do not have to present a paper to come. You can purchase a conference pass and simply attend all of the sessions. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025.

Three Confirmed Pleanry Speakers:

Dr. Margaret MacDonald, St. Mary's University, Halifax

Dr. Samuel Rocha, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Reverend Dr. Stan Chu Ilo, De Paul University, Chicago

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

Welcome to the eighteenth episode of season 2 of What Matters Most. I spoke to Alex Martins from his office in Milwaukee in February and have been waiting to get this episode to you for the past two months.

Alexandre A. Martins is a theologian and bioethicist from Brazil; he is also a nurse. He received a Ph.D. in theological ethics/bioethics from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (USA) where he studied bioethics and global public health from a liberation approach. He then received a Post-Doctorate Degree in Democracy and Human Rights from the Human Rights Center at the Law School of the University of Coimbra, Portugal. He is a specialist in health care ethics and social ethics, especially in the areas of public health, global health, community-based health care, and Catholic social teaching, which you will hear about on this episode. As he tells us in this episode, citing Pope Francis, “you have to listen to the poor,” specifically in terms of health care, to move away from dependency, to sustainability, to local agency.

As a healthcare provider and global health advocate, he has served in middle and low-income countries throughout the world, such as Brazil, Bolivia, Haiti, and Uganda. Currently he is an associate professor at the Department of Theology and the College of Nursing at Marquette University in Wisconsin, where he is also director of undergraduate studies for the theology department, and William J. Kelly, S.J., Chair in Theology (2023-2026). He also serves as Regional Coordinator of Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church for Latin American and Caribbean region, and Vice-President of the Brazilian Society of Moral Theology.

There is so much you will learn about Alex’s life in this podcast that is moving, inspiring, and generative of love for the other. At the end of the podcast he says, “let the suffering of the other touch us and let the touch generate a response that puts ourselves with them.” Before we get to that powerful ending, we will learn about basic ecclesial communities in Brazil, his life as a teenager on his own in Sao Paulo, liberation theology, agricultura familiar, Paulo Freire, Paul Farmer, global health, Gustavo Guttierez, and what Christology has to teach us about health care.

Here are some links for books and articles written by Alex and others who have influenced his thought. In the Company of the Poor was written by Fr. Gustavo Guttierez and Paul Farmer. I mentioned the book about Paul Farmer by Tracey Kidder, Mountains Beyond Mountains and it is a beautiful introduction to his work and that of Partners in Health. The method of teaching that Alex mentioned was pioneered by Paulo Freire, whose best-known book is Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Leonardo Boff is a Brazilian liberation theologian who ran afoul of the Vatican in the 1980s and 90s for his book Church, Charism and Power : Liberation Theology and the Institutional Church. He ultimately left priestly ministry.

Also, you might want to look into basic ecclesial communities and agricultura familiar in Brazil.

Alex’s scholarship has been broad. He is widely published, and he has lectured in various countries, including Canada. Please check out his lecture for the CCE at on Care for the Sick in Catholic Healthcare. I will mention only a few of his books and I will link to them:

Christology and Global Ethics: Encountering the Poor in a Pluralist Reality (Mahwah, NJ.: Paulist Press, 2023)

A Prophet to the Peoples: Paul Farmer’s Witness and Theological Ethics, co-edited with Jennie Weiss Block, OP and M. Therese Lysaught, (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications by Wipf & Stock, 2023).

Covid-19, Política e Fé: Bioética em diálogo na realidade enlouquecida (São Paulo, SP: O Gênio Criador, 2020)

The Cry of the Poor: Liberation Ethics and Justice in Health Care(Lanham, MD.: Lexington Books, 2020)

For his other writings, please check out his Marquette University website.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Hans Abdiel Harmakaputra, of the department of religion, philosophy & classics at Augustana University;

Mr. Inderjeet Singh, Sikh chaplain at UBC;

Dr. Jaime Waters, Boston College;

Dr. Sara Parks, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

Finally, some upcoming events:

May 17, 2024 Sister Damien Marie Savino will be offering the second annual Laudato Si’ lecture, Educating for Laudato Si at St. Mark’s College. Please keep your eyes out for more information – it is coming soon.

May 16, 2024, Sister Damien Marie Savino will also be doing a workshop on Laudato Si’ at St Joseph the Worker church in Richmond, B.C., so if you are local please look for that information.

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. I will link to the CFP in the show notes, so please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. We will announce the names of our plenary speakers soon, but I can say that 3 out 4 of the speakers are now confirmed.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

A note before the significant stuff: you will notice that the intro and outtro are noisier than usual. I was not able to record at home in my home office with my regular equipment, but had to record in my office at work. It's a different location, and a worse microphone, and I will make sure to record at home again. And always. The episode itself sounds great!

Welcome to the seventeenth episode of season 2 of What Matters Most. I spoke to Dr. Joanna Leidenhag of the University of Leeds, who is currently Associate Professor in Theology and Philosophy at Leeds. She brings such a keen mind to the study of Christian theology, delving into topics like science and theology, creation, panpsychism, neurodiversity, pantheism, panentheism, and classical Christian doctrine. In general, Leidenhag is a Christian theologian interested in interdisciplinary engagement with analytic philosophy and with the natural and psychological sciences. She engages with Christian doctrines such as doctrine of creation ex nihilo, the incarnation, the resurrection of the body with the metaphysics of panpsychism.

Panpsychism holds mind and matter together. Panpsychism is the idea that consciousness is not unique to human beings or even animals, but comes in gradients as a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of reality. Leidenhag argues convincingly that such views are not odd and not at odds with Christian theology classically construed, but a way to understand creation’s value and its relationship to the creator. It’s also a way to keep matter and mind, consciousness, together, to solve the problem of mind-body dualism problem. How are we conscious and material?

There are connections with this view of panpsychism and religions of the east such as Buddhism and Hinduism, but this I think is a positive feature of panpsychism and something to be welcomed. Leidenhag also successfully, for me, explained the ways in which panpsychism is related to pantheism and panentheism, and how scientific theories, such as evolution, helps us understand consciousness and its development. Finally, in one of the most interesting aspects of our conversation regarding language and metaphor, Joanna Leidenhag explained how panpsychism helps us to understand passages of Scripture in which nature sings the praises of God. As a biblical scholar, I found this compelling. In fact I loved the idea of the mountains singing in joy and the rivers clapping their hands as metaphor that reflects the reality of all creation calling out in the consciousness of God best suited to each aspect of their unique creation.

We also discussed toward the end of our conversation neurodiversity, and autistic people, and what people with autism can teach theologians and the church about what it means to be human, a child of God, and members of the body of Christ. Joanna Leidenhag has published three articles on autism and theology to date, which I will link in the show notes:

• ‘The Challenge of Autism for Contemporary Theological Anthropology,’ International Journal of Systematic Theology (2020)
• ‘Autism, Doxology, and the Nature of Christian Worship,’ Journal of Disability & Religion (2021)
• ‘Accountability, Autism and Friendship with God,’ Studies in Christian Ethics, Vol. 34, Is. 3 (2021).

She is also working on a new research project, which she discussed in the podcast, God, Language and Diversity: Spiritual Flourishing in Neurodiverse and Multilingual Communities. I look forward to this new work. She has also written Minding Creation: Theological Panpsychism and the Doctrine of Creation, and her short popular level book called Creation and Ecologythat introduces readers to the Christian doctrine of creation. In addition, she co-wrote with Dr John Perry, Science-Engaged Theology, which explores how theologians can use science and empirical studies as a resource within their work. And one more link you will find: Joanna co-edited a special issue in the journal Modern Theology on this topic, also called Science-Engaged Theology. I love the work she is doing and the doors she is opening to collaboration and to rethinking theology.

For more of her research, please do check out her academia.edu site and her webpage at Leeds.

This is theology in conversation with ideas old and new, theological and scientific, and I just love the work she is doing. Her research opens up a world of wonders, a world alive with consciousness at every level, and it is exciting. Who would not want to be a part of this?

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Alexandre Martins of Marquette University on healthcare justice and his life that began in poverty in Brazil;

Dr. Hans Abdiel Harmakaputra, of the department of religion, philosophy & classics at Augustana University;

Mr. Inderjeet Singh, Sikh chaplain at UBC;

Dr. Jaime Waters, Boston College;

Dr. Sara Parks, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

Finally, some upcoming events:

May 17, 2024 Sister Damien Marie Savino will be offering the second annual Laudato Si’ lecture, Educating for Laudato Si at St. Mark’s College. Please keep your eyes out for more information – it is coming soon.

May 16, 2024, Sister Damien Marie Savino will also be doing a workshop on Laudato Si’ at St Joseph the Worker church in Richmond, B.C., so if you are local please look for that information.

Finally, the CCE is presenting a conference in 2025, The Promise of Christian Education: Past, Present and Future, MAY 1-3, 2025, at ST. MARK'S COLLEGE, VANCOUVER, CANADA. I will link to the CFP in the show notes, so please consider sending in a proposal for a paper. If you are a graduate student and we accept your proposal to present a paper, we will cover your conference registration fees and the cost of the conference banquet. Consider joining us in Vancouver in 2025. We will announce the names of our plenary speakers soon, but I can say that 3 out 4 of the speakers are now confirmed.

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Welcome to the sixteenth episode of season 2 of What Matters Most. I spoke to Dr. Emilce Cuda, an Argentinian theologian, university professor, and Roman Curia official. In 2021, Pope Francis appointed her to serve the Holy See as an official in the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, first as head of the office and then as Secretary. In the spring of 2022, Francis appointed her to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and to the Pontifical Academy for Life. She views her mission as assisting the Holy Father in preaching the gospel by building bridges that are about the peripheries.

Born in Buenos Aires, Emilce completed a cycle of studies at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina that resulted in Bachelor, Master, Licentiate, and Ph.D./STD degrees. She also studied philosophy at the University of Buenos Aires. She has an MBA from the Commercial and Economic Sciences University. In December 2022 the National University of Rosario in Argentina bestowed upon her a Doctorate of Humane Letters in honoris causa.

She has taught in various professorial capacities in a number of Argentinian universities, Boston College, DePaul, Northwestern, the National University Arturo Juaretche, and others.

Emilce is married with two adult children. She is one of the very few lay women to hold executive office in the Roman Curia. She has been based at the Vatican since September 2022.

I first met Emilce Cuda in Vancouver when she gave one of the keynote lectures at the Pope Francis conference in May 2023. She is a speaker who brings the fire, which aligns with the nickname Pope Francis gave her, the Vatican pepper. I was also able to spend time with her at CELAM in Bogota, Columbia when I was invited as a Canadian representative for a conference comprising mostly South and Central American and Caribbean theologians and artists discussing theology of the peripheries. On this episode, you will get a sense of what she means by theology of the peripheries and closely related terms such as theology of the people and liberation theology. It’s a joyous occasion to speak with Dr. Emilce Cuda and I hope you find that same joy listening to her.

Emilce Cuda asks people who want to understand Pope Francis in North America to read the encyclicals, read Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti, read Praedicate Evangelium on the Roman Curia, where our mission is described as in the Gospels to touch the suffering flesh of humanity.

She also directed us to her and Pope Francis’s professor, the late Juan Carlos Scannone, S.J., an Argentinian theologian and his work on theology of the people, though I have not been able yet to determine which book of his she was referring to. I will add that to the show notes when I hear back from Emilce, but in the meantime the link above is a nice overview of his theology. Emilce Cuda also noted the work of another Jesuit, Juan Luis Segundo, S.J. and I have linked to an overview of his life and work from the Boston College website.

This was a great conversation because it encapsulates for me what Christian theology should be. It’s good to know Dr. Cuda is at the Vatican doing her work because for me she is a model theologian, paying attention to all of the theologians out there who do not write books but need to be heard.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me or Ms. Fang Fang Chandra at cceconferences@stmarkscollege.ca. Let us know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Alexandre Martins of Marquette University on healthcare justice and his life that began in poverty in Brazil;

Dr. Joanna Leidenhag of the University of Leeds, who spoke to me about panpsychism;

Dr. Hans Abdiel Harmakaputra, of the department of religion, philosophy & classics at Augustana University;

Mr. Inderjeet Singh, Sikh chaplain at UBC.

Finally, a recent lecture is now available on YouTube:

On February 29, Dr. Niigaan Sinclair joined us from Winnipeg to speak about the Pope’s apology and what are the necessary next steps in truth and reconciliation. This lecture was dynamite and challenging. Watch it!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Regular listeners know that this episode is late! I apologize for that but blame a nasty norovirus that has run amok through our extended family. And directly through me. It seems right, then, that the fifteenth episode of the second season focuses on health and public health with Fr. Myles Sheehan, SJ.

Fr. Sheehan is a Jesuit priest, physician, and, since December 2020, the Director of the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University, where he also serves as Professor of Medicine and the David Lauler Chair of Catholic Health Care Ethics. A graduate of Dartmouth College and Dartmouth Medical School, he trained in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, practiced in these fields, and served until 2009 as the Senior Associate Dean at Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine, Professor of Medicine, and the Ralph P. Leischner Professor and Chair of the Leischner Institute for Medical Education.

On this episode we discussed Myles Sheehan’s life as a medical doctor and a Jesuit priest. We discuss green bioethics, how to make healthcare sustainable, and how to ensure everyone has access to healthcare, something we in the West both have in abundance and take for granted, while accepting that others have little access to, especially in the US. On the other hand, there are countries and regions that simply have little access to basic healthcare that would preserve numerous lives. Myles Sheehan places all of this in his role as a priest and in the Gospel of Jesus.

Myles was in Vancouver for a lecture on January 25, 2024 and you can find that by clicking on the St. Mark’s YouTube channel here. The lecture features a PowerPoint presentation that makes it a bit easier to follow up on the names of scholars and theories.

But one scholar Myles’ mentioned in the podcast, and the lecture, is Cristina Richie, not the actress, but an academic engaged with green bioethics and a graduate of Boston College. Her book is titled Principles of Green Bioethics: Sustainability in Health Care.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Upcoming Episodes:

And now some news on upcoming podcast episodes:

Dr. Alexandre Martins of Marquette University on healthcare justice and his life that began in poverty in Brazil;

Dr. Emilce Cuda, of the Vatican, secretary of the Pontifical Commission on Latin America;

Dr. Hans Abdiel Harmakaputra, of the department of religion, philosophy & classics at Augustana University;

Mr. Inderjeet Singh, Sikh chaplain at UBC.

Finally, a recent lecture is now available on YouTube:

On February 29, Dr. Niigaan Sinclair joined us from Winnipeg to speak about the Pope’s apology and what are the necessary next steps in truth and reconciliation. This lecture was dynamite and challenging. Watch it!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This episode is the fourteenth episode of the second season of What Matters Most and features Reverend Grant Ikuta. Since 2008, Grant has been the minister at Steveston Buddhist Temple outside of Vancouver. From April 2011 to April 2013, he served as Bishop of Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples of Canada. He was educated at the University of Alberta, holding a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in biology. In 1987, he attended a year of Ryukoku University Bekka (Foreign Student) program and received Tokudo (Basic) Ordination in the fall of 1988. He enrolled at Central Buddhist Academy (Chuo Bukkyo Gakuin) in April 1989 and graduated from Central Buddhist Academy Honka level (Primary level) in 1990. He entered Ryukoku University Post Graduate studies in April 1990 and received Kyoshi (Higher) Ordination in May 1990. In February 1992, he completed the Master’s Program in Shinshu (Pure Land Buddhism) Studies at Ryukoku University.

On this episode we discussed Reverend Ikuta’s life as pastor and a pastor’s son and grandson, just like Reverend Mark Kleiner in the Lutheran tradition, something which we discussed on a previous episode. And like Mark, Grant was not sure he wanted to follow in his Father’s and Grandfather’s footsteps. We also discussed celibacy in Buddhism, just as we discussed with Fr. Nick Meisl in the context of the Roman Catholic tradition. Celibacy is not common in Japanese Buddhism, but it is throughout much of the Buddhist tradition.

We discussed a number of figures and places in the history of Japanese Buddhism and Japan in general. I link to a number of these topics below. Key figures in the development of Pure Land Buddhism include Honen and Shinran. They were instrumental in the formation and history of the Jodo Shinshu school of Buddhism. A significant place for all of Japanese Buddhism is Mt. Hiei in Kyoto. If you have never been to the temple in Nara and seen the massive Buddha statue there, please do check out this link. It is an incredible site and sight. If you have a chance to go to Nikko, a shinkansen ride north of Tokyo, and see the many temples and shrines, I highly recommend it!

A significant place for the development and growth of Pure Land Buddhism in the west is the Hongpa Hongwangi Temple in Honolulu. On the Christian converts to Pure Land Buddhism in Hawaii, Zorn and Hunt, please see the book Immigrants to the Pure Land. Locally, of course, for those in the Vancouver area, is Reverend Ikuta's Steveston Buddhist Temple.

For some of the history of Christianity in Japan, especially in Nagasaki, and the story of the Jesuits in Japan, please click on this link. This history was sometimes painful and involved persecution. Shusaku Endo's novel Silence offers a powerful literary representation of this early period of Christian history in Japan and the novel was also made into a motion picture by Martin Scorcese. Both the novel and movie are excellent. For the story of the internment of Japanese Canadians in Canada during World War II, please do read the moving novel by Joy Kogawa, Obasan.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This episode is the thirteenth episode of the second season of What Matters Most and features Father Nick Meisl. Fr. Nick Meisl is an Assistant Professor at Corpus Christi and St. Mark’s Colleges where he teaches the Bible. In addition, he is Pastor of St. Peter’s Parish in New Westminster, BC. He completed his License from the Pontifical Biblical Institute and is currently a PhD candidate at Durham University working with Dr. John Barclay on 1 Corinthians and celibacy.

I asked Nick onto the podcast to talk about celibacy, both in the Church as a whole, his own life, and how it emerged in Jewish and Christian antiquity, because celibacy has a long history in the Christian tradition. Our conversation was spurred, however, by a recent interview given by Archbishop of Malta Charles Sclicuna about ending mandatory celibacy for RC priests. It’s a fascinating and complex topic. And Scicluna is an important voice on this matter as an archbishop, someone involved in the Church’s fight against clerical abuse, and adjunct secretary to the the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Some of the important texts dealing with celibacy in the early Christian appear in the New Testament. Fr. Nick and I discussed Matthew 19 , Mark 12:18:-27, 1 Corinthians 7. See also 1 Corinthians 9 for other discussions on marriage and celibacy. This chapter is also a passage that some scholars believe points to the possibility that Paul might have been married previously. Fr. Nick also discussed how Genesis 2 might play into Paul's own thought. We also discussed the deutero-Pauline passages in 1 Timothy 3 and 5 and the development of marriage and celibacy in the early Church. For further reading on the background of celibacy in 1 Corinthians, please see Will Deming, Paul on Marriage and Celibacy: The Hellenistic Background of 1 Corinthians 7 (Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series, Series Number 83)

If anyone is interested in the Jewish context regarding celibacy and Jesus' own singleness, please see my article, "(Why) Was Jesus Single?" in The Single Life in the Roman and Later Roman World. I would be happy to send people a PDF of the article if they are interested.

We also discussed the current Church teaching on celibacy and you can find a short summary of its theological justification on the Vatican website.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This is the twelfth episode of the second season of What Matters Most and features Reverend Mark Kleiner from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Mark is open, vulnerable, and honest, about the role of the Gospel in his life, his past struggles with alcoholism, his rock n’ roll life, and his passion for men’s health.

As Mark said in the podcast, and as you can find on the Christ Church website, he is the son of the son of a preacher man, with both his grandfather and father serving as Lutheran pastors and as professors at Lutheran Theological Seminary in Saskatoon. That same website says that “Pastor Mark Kleiner spent much of his youth trying to chart a path far removed from the ‘family business’ of ordained ministry. Following a spectacularly disastrous attempt at rock n roll stardom on the West Coast in the 1990s, Mark returned to his prairie roots in Saskatoon and eventually attended theological school. “To my surprise, and initially to my horror, I realized I actually wanted to be a pastor,” he now says. In 2011 Mark received a call to St Paul’s Anglican Parish and Redeemer Lutheran Church in Biggar, SK, where he lived and served until receiving and accepting the call from Christ Church in 2016.”

I’m not sure Mark’s attempt at rock n roll stardom was “spectacularly disastrous,” because the songs are great and the feedback I get from people who saw his bands and heard him play was that it was terrific music. The songs today say the same thing. A 2019 story from Vancouver is Awesome remembers him as an indie pop hero about town. But stardom itself was not to be and alcoholism accompanied the rock n’ roll, something that Mark is open and gracious about discussing. The 2019 story remembers Mark as “one of the all time great characters from the 1990s Vancouver music scene, who often served as the hilarious and wasted ringmaster of the house parties.” He has battled alcoholism through twelve step programs. Those of you who remember the Dawn Eden Goldstein episode on this podcast where we discuss her book Fr. Ed will remember that one of the first twelve step programs, AA, has deep spiritual roots, much of which came through Fr. Ed, the spiritual mentor and guide for Bill. Kleiner took his last drink of alcohol on April 6, 2002. About his show in 2019, the story says, “for Kleinz’s musical disciples, his rare upcoming Vancouver show this weekend is nothing short of biblical. For the first time ever, it involves incarnations of all of Kleinz’s former bands on one bill. Fittingly, it’s at Kleinz’s former hall of worship, where he first started to see the light at the end of the ’90s: Spirit of Life Lutheran Church at 375 West 10th Avenue.”

By the way, the band name Jungle came from a Dwight Twilley Album, and Sister Lovers came from a Big Star album. If you have not listened to these bands and singers, you should! Track them down. Some Dwight Twilley tunes you should listen to right now: Looking for the Magic; I'm On Fire; Why You Wanna Break My Heart; Darlin'. Big Star, and its leading force Alex Chilton, recorded some great albums. Take a listen to these songs: In Love with A Girl; and When My Baby's Beside Me. The Cowsills had a few big hits, apart from inspiring the Partridge Family TV show, but the biggest was The Rain, The Park, and Other Things (Love the Flower Girl). Mark also is a Monkees expert and you can find his podcast on the Monkees at this link.

Here are links to a few songs by Mark Kleiner himself. One is Beautiful Slide, another is Fell in Love With the Girl, and Good to See You, all of which deserve to be hits, though I have no idea how Fell in Love with the Girl did not become a hit. And if you listen to the Mark Kleiner Power Trio’s version of Baby It’s You, a Phil Seymour song – Phil was a part of the Dwight Twilley Band before striking out on its own and one of my favorite rock n’ roll vocalists of all time – I am certain Mark’s vocals transcend the great Phil Seymour’s. Amazing.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This episode is the eleventh episode of the second season of What Matters Most and features Reverend Dr. Mark Miller. Fr. Mark is currently the visiting scholar in health care ethics for St. Mark’s College and Providence Health Care in Vancouver for the academic year of 2023-2024. Fr. Mark Miller, C.Ss.R., was ordained in 1975 as a Redemptorist priest after studies in Winnipeg, Toronto and West Germany. Fr. Mark worked with young people for six years followed by the preaching of parish missions for seven years.

After receiving a doctorate in moral theology from the University of Notre Dame (1992), he spent 16 years as a clinical bioethicist at St. Paul’s Hospital in Saskatoon and for the Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan. In 2008 he moved to Toronto as part of the leadership team of the Redemptorists but continued his work in Catholic healthcare ethics at the Centre for Clinical Ethics (St. Joseph’s Health, St. Michael’s Hospital, Providence Health). He has taught and provided workshops at Catholic Colleges, in adult formation programs, for Catholic teachers, and many health care practitioners. He also gave an excellent lecture for the CCE in December 2023; please listen to it here.

Fr. Miller mentioned a number of thinkers, Margaret Farley and her book Just Love, James Keenan, Richard A. McCormick, Charles Curran, and Catherine Mowry LaCugna. Many of these scholars have died, but their work is still available for consultation. Mark also noted the Catholic World Forum on Ethics, which is actually called Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church, but he told us he had a hard time remembering the name! The recent document from the Vatican on blessing people in same-sex or other non-marital relationships is Fiducia Supplicans. My recent piece in America Magazine on mercy and Pope Francis is available at the link.

As to "moral distress" and "moral residue," I was not familiar with these terms prior to our discussion, so I am linking to an article I found online, but I am not certain that I am linking to the best discussions of these terms. Please let me know if you know of better articles on this matter. On MAID in Canada, please go to this Government of Canada link. On the Catholic response to MAID, please see the documents at the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Catholic Church remains opposed to the intentional taking of human life.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong, Kevin Eng, and Fang Fang Chandra for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs. In addition, the Cullen Family, Mark and Barbara, continue to support the work and outreach of the CCE, particularly in our lecture series.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

View Details

This episode, the tenth of the second season of What Matters Most, features Dr. Cristina Vanin, an associate professor of theology and Director of the Master of Catholic Thought program at St. Jerome’s University in Waterloo, Ontario. I invited Cristina on the podcast to discuss Laudato Deum, Pope Francis’s newest apostolic exhortation, released in October 2023. Laudato Deum was released just prior to COP 28 in Dubai, which Francis was unable to make due to illness. Those close to him said he was genuinely upset that he could not travel as it is a significant aspect of his pontificate and close to his heart. In addition, we discuss Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’s encyclical letter of 2015. Both of these documents are concerned with the natural world, the environment, and with all of creation, including the place of human beings in creation. If you do not know these documents, you might not be aware of how important climate change and our need to care for the environment are to Pope Francis. Listen to this podcast to get some insight into these documents and then click on the links above to read them. The official versions in a number of languages are freely available online.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong and Kevin Eng for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Our guest on today's episode of What Matters Most, the ninth episode of our second season, is Dr. Matthew Anderson.

Matthew Anderson holds a Gatto Chair in Christian Studies at St FX in Religious Studies. He is also an affiliate assistant professor at Concordia University, Montreal. Matthew was born to settlers on Treaty 4 territory. His PhD in Religious Studies is from McGill University (1999). His most recent books are Prophets of Love: The Unlikely Kinship of Leonard Cohen and the Apostle Paul (McGill-Queens University Press, 2023); The Good Walk: Creating New Paths on Traditional Prairie Trails (University of Regina Press, 2024); Our Home and Treaty Land (with Ray Aldred, 2022); and Pairings: The Bible and Booze (Novalis, 2021; in French as Apocalypse et gin tonic). Matthew is an ordained Lutheran minister of the ELCIC Eastern Synod. His research interests are Pauline studies, pilgrimage studies, gender, and decolonizing/aware-settler biblical studies. Matthew has walked thousands of kilometres on pilgrimage trails in Europe and North America.

Matthew’s public-facing scholarship has resulted in over 300,000 reads of his articles for Narwhal, The Tyee, Salon, and The Conversation: Canada. In 2020 Matthew was named a “Newsmaker of the Year” by Concordia University Montreal. Matthew is a recipient of a SSHRC grant for his research “Before the Fact: How Paul’s Rhetoric Made History.” He is also recipient of two Canada Council grants, in 2020-21 and 2021-22, for emerging fiction. In 2016 Matthew was asked by CBC Radio One Montreal for a feature interview as a “Canadian Creative” and asked to share his favourite playlist. The interview can be found here.

Please enjoy our wide-ranging conversation!

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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Today's episode Our guest on this episode of What Matters Most, the eighth episode of our second season is Dr. Jill Hicks-Keeton. Jill Hicks-Keeton (PhD, Duke) is currently Associate Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Oklahoma, where she teaches courses on biblical literature. In 2024, she will begin a new position, as Associate Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California.

Hicks-Keeton’s book Arguing with Aseneth: Gentile Access to Israel’s Living God in Jewish Antiquity (Oxford University Press, 2019) was awarded the 2020 Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise. She is also the author, with Cavan Concannon, of Does Scripture Speak for Itself? The Museum of the Bible and the Politics of Interpretation (Cambridge University Press, 2022). Her most recent book is Good Book: How White Evangelicals Save the Bible to Save Themselves (Fortress, 2023).

Hicks-Keeton has been awarded the Society of Biblical Literature Regional Scholar Award and has served as a Humanities Forum Fellow, a Risser Innovative Teaching Fellow, and Honors College Presidential Teaching Fellow at the University of Oklahoma.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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Our guest on this episode of What Matters Most, the seventh episode of our second season, is Dr. Hans Gustafson, Director of the Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, where he also teaches courses in the study of religion and theology for the Theology Department. Today we are going to discuss his book published by Fortress Press in 2023 Everyday Wisdom: Interreligious Studies in a Pluralistic World, but also we discuss more generally the field of interreligious studies and interfaith studies, including interreligious dialogue and interfaith dialogue.

Hans is current President of the Association for Interreligious / Interfaith Studies (AIIS), serves on the steering committee for the Interreligious and Interfaith Studies Unit at the American Academy of Religion, and has published numerous articles and a few books in the field. His current project is a short book on the theory and practice of humanizing dialogue across difference.

Interreligious and Interfaith Studies is a field that in our increasingly diverse and pluralistic world is essential for all of us. One of the surprising pieces of data that I learned in Hans’ book is that the world is getting increasingly religious not less religious as we might think. The number of people in the world who identify as religious has now reached 86%. This might seem off to those of us who live in the North America or Western Europe, especially those of us who live in Vancouver or Cascadia more generally, where more people identify as spiritual than religious, but religion matters to more people than not. And, frankly, I wouldn’t want to suggest that those who do not identify as religious do not have rich spiritual lives or are not in their own way religious, even if not associated with a formal or traditional religious tradition.

This means that Hans’ call for interreligious phronesis – that is “practical wisdom” – is more important than ever. As Hans says in the podcast, “we all orient around religion in some way and everyone exists in some state between and among religious spaces, and so it seems to me that the more predominant view is that interreligious and interfaith encounter includes everyone, because we all have a religious identity..." Another great piece of data: American "Nones" are more religious than European Christians. This is precisely why I invite you all to participate in this podcast and to engage with these issues. We are open and welcoming to all people and to all religious and spiritual questions.

Hans mentioned a number of other authors and thinkers and I want to link to some of those writers here. Apart from Hans' book, he mentioned Rabbi Rachel Mikva and her new book Interreligious Studies: An Introduction, Krister Stendahl, Eboo Patel, Stephen Prothero, God is Not One, and Raimon Pannikar.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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This episode with Charles Gallagher, S.J. takes us into some dark history concerning Nazis and the Christian Front, a Catholic lay organization, in Boston and New York in the 1930s and 1940s just prior to and during the early stages of World War II. The story of Frances Moran, head of the Boston National Front and his Nazi handler, the German consul in Boston, Herbert Wilhelm Scholz is a depressing story. That neither of them ever paid a real price for their espionage and treason makes it more depressing. The only person who really comes out of this with any sense of goodness is Francis Sweeney, the unknowing British agent, who led the American-Irish Defence Association. Her organization fought anti-semitism and fascism and was funded, Gallagher says, by British intelligence. She was recruited by an American handler, someone Charlie Gallagher believes in later years was an advisor in the oval office.

Charlie's research speaks to the rise of Christian nationalism today and how to respond to it. He spoke of Steve Bannon and the audience he commands and how it is important not to simply write off that audience by thinking of them as "nutcases." How should we respond? We certainly need to engage with the concerns of those who are attracted to autocratic and anti-democratic movements, which does not mean we need to grant their solutions or encourage them in their fears. Charlie points us to the law of love as the antidote. Combined with that essential response, in times of rising hatred and terrorism, we need to name Islamophobia or anti-semitism, or any other hatred, call it out, and find ways to enact love in the midst of human complexity and suffering.

If you want to know more about Charlie’s work, please check out his webpage at Boston College, linked above. There you can read about his education and his many publications. I want to mention a bit about his own history here though before we wrap up. Charlie formerly worked at the Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations in 2010, where he was a visiting fellow, teaching undergraduate and doctoral courses on religion and international relations. From 2004 to 2006, he taught in the History Department at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. In 2008, he published Vatican Secret Diplomacy: Joseph P. Hurley and Pope Pius XII (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008), which won the John Gilmary Shea Prize from the American Catholic historical Association. In 2017, he was the William J. Lowenberg Memorial Fellow at the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, United States Holocuast Memorial Museum, Washington, DC.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Thanks to Martin Strong and Kevin Eng for all of their help and support in crafting this and all the other episodes. I also want to thank our donors to the Centre, whose generosity enables this work to take place at all: Peter Bull, Angus Reid, and Andy Szocs.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

Director, Centre for Christian Engagement, St. Mark's College at UBC

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Dr Amy Lindeman Allen is an Associate Professor of New Testament at Christian Theological Seminary (CTS) in Indianapolis and only a couple of weeks ago was appointed to an endowed chair, the Indiana Christian Church Chair in Biblical Studies at CTS. Amy is also an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Allen earned her doctorate in New Testament and Early Christianity from Vanderbilt University, where she studied with distinguished postcolonial scholar Fernando F. Segovia.

In this episode, we focus on her latest book, The Gifts They Bring: How Children in the Gospels Can Shape Inclusive Ministry, which combines her expertise in the study of ancient children and childhood, with her passion for inclusive ministry including the place and role of children in the Church today. This book is written to be accessible for a broader audience, including churchgoers, families, and others. I also want to mention Amy’s first book For Theirs is the Kingdom: Children in the Gospel According to Luke (Lexington/Fortress, 2019), which emerged from her doctoral research.

For people who want to explore the field of children and childhood in the biblical world more extensively, please check out a few collected volumes as a start: T&T Clark Handbook of Children in the Bible and the Biblical World, edited by Sharon Betsworth and Julie Faith Parker; Shawn Flynn’s volume, Children in the Bible and the Ancient World: Comparative and Historical Methods in Reading Ancient Children; and Children and Methods Listening To and Learning From Children in the Biblical World, edited by Kristine Garroway and me. There’s a lot of material out there, but this will introduce you to many of the major themes and writers. Amy’s work is a part of this burgeoning field of research. Scholars in the field of ancient childhood define the research as childist criticism, seeking to locate and reclaim the voices of children from the biblical and other ancient texts, trying to understand their value and vulnerability.

Dr. Allen’s scholarship and ministry emphasize the importance of acknowledging children’s presence, voices, and contributions in religious spaces. It is about more than just preparing them for the future; it’s about recognizing and celebrating their gifts here and now. Those of us who work in this field of biblical studies seem to all share a belief in the value of our work for current children today not just historical children and you will hear that in my conversation with Amy, who shares the core belief that children are not just the future of the church but an integral part of its present.

After the podcast, I told Amy I thought her book was a unique contribution to the study of children. She demurred and directed me to a book by Stephanie Buckhanon Crowder called When Momma Speaks: The Bible and Motherhood from a Womanist Perspective. This book was influential on her own work. Amy also mentioned Heather McGhee’s book The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together with respect to the way in which black children in the USA are so often treated differently than white children, not allowed to be children, though the book is much broader than that.

With respect to parthenos, the Greek word translated as virgin, I recommended Lauren Caldwell’s book Roman Girlhood and the Fashioning of Femininity and Giulia Sissa’s book Greek Virginity. These are helpful books for understanding the construction of girlhood in antiquity and how that still has repercussions today. These books are definitely, though, academic treatises.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @stmarkscce. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

Thanks so much for listening and remember what matters most.

John W. Martens

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Today's guest on What Matters Most, Imam Dr. Abubakar Mohammed Marzuq, is from Ghana. Imam Marzuq introduces us in this episode to the country of Ghana generally and to the interfaith situation in the West African country specifically. Imam Marzuq is the assistant to the Chief Imam of Ghana, Shaikh Dr. Osman Nuhu Sharubutu who is 104 years old. Marzuq belongs to the Tijaniyyah tariqa, or order, a branch of Sufi Islam. Islam is not the majority religion in Ghana, that is Christianity, at around 71% of all Ghanaians, but Islam has been a significant presence in Ghana for a long time alongside a smaller contingent of people who belong to indigenous religious traditions. Imam Marzuq discusses how Ghana has been successful in countering the religious violence of Boko Haram, ISIS, and Al Qaeda in their country, unlike some of their neighbours such as Burkina Faso and Nigeria. Marzuq also sees national security as an interfaith matter, in which religions work with the government to forestall the potential rise of religious violence. He spoke particularly of the Ghana Christian Council and the Office of the Chief Imam working together to create peace.

Imam Marzuq is a is a bit of a renaissance man, as a lecturer, journalist, and researcher on issues in language, education, and religion. He is a multilinguist in Arabic, English, and French. If you want to read his writing, he writes the column Literary Discourse on myjoyonline.com and Language Agenda on modernghana.com. Apart from being an Imam, he holds a PhD in English as a Second Language (ESL), an MA in Adult Education (ESL Specialty), and a BFA in TV Production. Schools he attended include National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), University of Ghana, Legon, and Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. Currently, Imam Marzuq lectures in Functional English and and Academic Writing at the University of Applied Management, Ghana. He is also a member of the Governing Board of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) and a member of the Governing Board of Ghana Library Authority (GhLA).

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seeks to learn from others, other Christians, other religious traditions, and those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @biblejunkies. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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Our guest on this episode of What Matters Most, the second (new) episode of our second season, is Dr. Massimo Faggioli, a full professor in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University (Philadelphia).

Massimo is one of the most prominent Catholic theologians working today in North America and Europe. Massimo is a friend and was a colleague of mine at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota between 2009 to 2016, where we both worked together in the Department of Theology. Massimo Faggioli is a married lay Roman Catholic. He lives in the Philadelphia area with his wife and their two children. He was born, raised, and educated in Italy, as he will discuss in the podcast. He studied in Ferrara, Bologna, Tübingen, and Turin, where he got his PhD in 2002. He taught at the University of Bologna, at the Free University of Bolzano and at the University of Modena-Reggio Emilia. He worked at the John XXIII Foundation for Religious studies in Bologna between 1996 and 2008 under the mentorship of the founder of the Bologna School Giuseppe Alberigo.

Massimo was the founding co-chair of the study-group “Vatican II Studies” for the American Academy of Religion between 2012 and 2017. He has a column in La Croix International and is a contributing writer for Commonweal magazine and the Italian magazine Il Regno. He is co-editor with Bryan Froehle of the new series “Studies in Global Catholicism” for Brill Publishers (first volume scheduled 2023). His books and articles have been published in more than ten languages. His latest books are Catholicism and Citizenship: Political Cultures of the Church in the Twenty-First Century (Liturgical Press 2017), and The Liminal Papacy of Pope Francis. Moving Toward Global Catholicity (Orbis Books, 2020), and Joe Biden and Catholicism in the United States (Bayard 2021). He is the co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Vatican II (Oxford University Press, 2023) with Catherine Clifford, who has also been a guest on this podcast.

Massimo has written 15 books, and I have linked to all of them through his Amazon page above, but he suggested in the podcast that the two book he thought might be a good introduction to his thought were his two books on the new Catholic movements and I will link to them specifically here:

The Rising Laity. Ecclesial Movements since Vatican II (Paulist Press, 2016).

Sorting Out Catholicism. A Brief History of the New Ecclesial Movements (Liturgical Press, 2014).

I should also mention that Massimo gave one of our keynote addresses at our Pope Francis conference in May 2023 and that lecture will soon be appearing on our St. Mark’s YouTube channel.

I mentioned a number of other books and documents, which I will link to here also, including Laudato Si’, a new part two of which is due soon, Fratelli Tutti, the International Theological Commission document on the upcoming synod, and Micah Kiel, Reading the Bible in the Age of Francis.

What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE is a centre at St. Mark’s College that explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seek to learn from others, other Christians, members of other religious traditions, and from those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @biblejunkies. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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Our first guest on the second season of What Matters Most is Rev. Dr. Robert James, Associate Professor, Anglican Formation and Studies at VST.

Rob James is an Anglican priest who was ordained in the Church of England and worked as a parish priest in Gloucestershire and then as Canon Chancellor of Wells Cathedral, Somerset, before coming to Canada. Before he was a parish priest, he worked in intelligence for GCHQ, the agency formerly known as Bletchley Park, where Alan Turing worked and where the Enigma code of the Nazis was broken.

Rob and his wife Jean came to Canada in 2022 when he took up his post at the Vancouver School of Theology, on the campus of the University of British Colombia. He also is a priest in the Anglican Church of Canada. He holds six degrees from five universities, including a PhD from SOAS, London. Most of his research in recent years has been in Biblical studies, including a book on the Gospel of Luke called The Spiral Gospel. He has a number of academic articles published, with a forthcoming one in the Journal of Theological Studies on Luke and the Syriac Gospel tradition, a subject of ongoing research for him.

In this episode we are talking Christian theology – incarnation, soteriology, exclusivity inclusivity, pluralism, particularism, universalism, Nostra Aetate, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Nestorius, Origen, Karl Rahner, John Robinson, purgatory. This is a deep dive, so get your notepad and questions ready! Feel free to send them to me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Perhaps you'll also come up with ideas for other topics and guests.

For those of you who are regular listeners, you already know that What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. Welcome to the second season of the podcast. I'm glad you have joined us. If you enjoy what you hear today, please recommend it to your friends, even your enemies if you want!

Dr. John W. Martens

Professor of Theology

Director of the Centre for Christian Engagement

St. Mark's College at UBC

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As What Matters Most prepares to begin its second season in September 2023, I thought we should return to the first episode with Fr. Jim Martin, released on October 7, 2022. Many of you were not listening to the podcast when this episode was released, so to prepare you for the upcoming season, this is a taste of what's on offer. I will say that a number of tweaks have taken place since Fr. Martin's episode was released, especially with the Intros and the Outros, and beginning with a bit of the conversation at the beginning of each pod. Still, this gives you a real sense of what we do here at What Matters Most.

As I wrote at the time, "In this episode, I discuss with Fr. Jim Martin, a Roman Catholic priest based in New York City, his outreach to the LGBTQ community and his associated book Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity. We also talk about his pilgrimage to Israel and Jesus, which lead to his book, Jesus: A Pilgrimage. The conversation ranges widely, though, discussing his early life and how he became a priest.

Fr. Martin is the editor-at-large at America Magazine and the author of many other books, including My Life with the Saints and Learning to Pray: A Guide for Everyone.

Please enjoy this encore epsiode with a priest who has a huge social media following and is clearly a major Catholic public figure, but who in person is as warm, kind, and pastoral as his public image. He receives a lot of vitriol and anger online, but my own experience has always been of a good man and a good priest.

John W. Martens

Professor of Theology

Director of the Centre for Christian Engagment

St. Mark's College at the University of British Columbia

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Welcome to What Matters Most. On this episode I speak with the Interfaith Amigos, who are Imam Jamal Rahman, Pastor Don MacKenzie, and Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan. Rabbi Laura replaced the recently retired Rabbi Ted Falcon as a part of this interfaith trio. When you listen to the episode you will notice that I did not start with saying, "A Rabbi, an Imam, and a Minister walk into a bar..." This is either a missed opportunity or a sign of great restraint on my part. They did however come into a terrific Zoom session and a wonderful podcast resulted.

The podcast was recorded on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam) People. We are thankful for their welcome to us so that we can live, learn, and pray on their land.

It has been a while since I have released an episode due to our Pope Francis conference in early May, which was a smashing success, and the death of my father John Martens on May 18 at the age of 92, a couple of weeks prior to his 93rd birthday on June 5. Death and funerals certainly turn one’s mind and heart to What Matters Most.

This is our final episode for the year, though I will re-release episodes during July and August. I also hope to be taping episodes in July and August to be released in September.

Now let me turn to our podcast. I think many people will find this episode challenging, as it asks serious questions about the nature of religious traditions, beliefs, practices, and scriptures. What’s at the heart of a religious tradition? What are core teachings? What’s the purpose of a religion? Must a religion be exclusive? How inclusive should or can a religion be before it is not one’s own tradition?

Who are the (original) Interfaith Amigos?

Imam Jamal Rahman, Pastor Don Mackenzie, and Rabbi Ted Falcon taught together starting in 2001 until Ted's recent retirement, speaking and leading workshops in the United States and Israel-Palestine. Jamal's personal experience as a Muslim after 9/11 moved him to share more of the substance of Islam. Ted stepped more visibly into the larger community, teaching how a healing spirituality emerges within Judaism. Don concluded his position as minister of University Congregational UCC to devote more time focusing on the ways a true spirituality supports us in bringing healing to our world.

Together they have explored an inclusive spirituality to promote healing that expresses as concrete environmental, social, and political action. They brought and bring a message of deep hope and profound possibilities for healing on both a personal level and a planetary level. Their work comprises a dialogue of the mind, the heart, and the hands, encouraging greater understanding, compassion, and social action in the world. For more on the group, please see this old New York Times article about the group.

Their book, Getting to the Heart of Interfaith: The Eye-opening, Hope-filled Friendship of a Pastor, a Rabbi, and a an Imam, was released in July 2009 by Skylight Paths. Additional books include, Religion Gone Astray: What We Found at the Heart of Interfaith and Finding Peace Through Spiritual Practice - The Interfaith Amigos Guide to Personal, Social, and Environmental Healing. All three books received Spirituality & Practice Book Award as one of the Best Spiritual Books in the year of publication 2009, 2011, 2016.

The Amigos (and one Amiga):

Don MacKenzie: Rev. Dr. Donald Mackenzie, a minister of the United Church of Christ, is a graduate of Macalester College, Princeton Theological Seminary and New York University. He taught at Princeton Seminary, and was a minister at Nassau Presbyterian Church, Church of Christ at Dartmouth College, and University Congregational Church in Seattle. Since 2001, he has been part of the Interfaith Amigos, with whom he has co-authored three books. Don is also an accomplished country musician. He currently lives in Minneapolis.

Jamal Rahman: Jamal Rahman is a popular speaker on Islam, Sufi spirituality, and interfaith relations. Along with his Interfaith Amigos, he has been featured in the New York Times, CBS News, BBC, and various NPR programs. Jamal is co-founder and Muslim Sufi minister at Interfaith Community Sanctuary and adjunct faculty at Seattle University. He is a former co-host of Interfaith Talk Radio and travels nationally and internationally, presenting at retreats and workshops. In addition to the books he has co-authored with the Interfaith Amigos, he is also author of three books on Sufi spirituality, most recently Sacred Laughter of the Sufis.

Laura Duhan-Kaplan: Laura Duhan-Kaplan is Director of Inter-Religious Studies and Professor of Jewish Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology, and Rabbi Emerita of Or Shalom Synagogue. She has won many awards for her teaching of religion and philosophy, including the Carnegie Foundation’s prestigious U.S. Professor of the Year. Rabbi Laura is the author of Mouth of the Donkey: Re-Imagining Biblical Animals and Shechinah, Bring Me Home: Kabbalah and the Omer in Real Life. She has also collaboratively authored four books on interfaith topics including friendship, reconciliation, othering, and hope. She states that she is delighted to be part of the Interfaith Amigos, after admiring their work for many years. If you want to hear more from Laura, please check out episodes one and two with her on What Matters Most.

During our conversation, I asked my guests for recommendations for reading and spiritual practice. Jamal recommended Rumi, the great Sufi mystic. I have linked to one translation of his poems, but there are many others to explore. Don recommended Marcus Borg, and I have linked to one of his books, Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time, but there are many others. Laura noted her doctoral supervisor Rabbi Marcia Prager, the Path of Blessing, a book I am excited to read. There was so many things mentioned, and I might forget something, but I wanted to link to a book Jamal mentioned, American Grace.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @biblejunkies. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

This episode I think makes it clear why this name of this podcast is What Matters Most, as what matters to us leads to behaviors and practices that seek out the good of the planet and its people or that lead to destruction and anger. Keep in mind what Rabbi Laura said about gratefulness: what can you be grateful for today? What gives you hope? What can you do today that helps preserve the planet or that helps you get along better with your neighbour? Thanks so much for listening.

Peace,

John W. Martens

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Today’s guest on What Matters Most is Sam Rocha, associate professor of philosophy of education at University of British Columbia. This was a wide-ranging conversation and as I say at in the intro to the podcast, I am still processing all of it because we covered so much territory.

Sam is the author of a number of books, including A Primer for Philosophy and Education with Cascade Books, Folk Phenomenology: Education, Study, and the Human Person, and The Syllabus as Curriculum: A Reconceptualist Approach. His website contains more information on his writing, music, and other interests.

​I should mention, though, that Sam is an author who has been published widely in popular Catholic media including First Things, Commonweal, America, Our Sunday Visitor, The Catholic Herald, and Church Life Journal. Previously he wrote online for Vox Nova and Patheos on the Catholic channel. Sam also has a pugnacious presence on Twitter, engaging especially with the Catholic Twittersphere and calling out racism in the Church and hypocrisies of various sorts. He’s a terrific follow. He also has his own podcast, Folk Phenomenology that I encourage you to check out also.

In this conversation we spent a lot of time talking about his upbringing in Texas and Mexico as the son of lay Catholic missionaries in the charismatic renewal and the precarity of that life. He mentioned a number of groups such as Sword of the Spirit, Bread of Life Community, Cursillo, and Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Latin America.

Sam also mentioned a great number of people, including authors and their works, Milan Kundera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Ivan Illich, John Stuart Mill, Gloria Purvis, George Weigel, Fr. Michael Scanlan, and Alasdair McIntyre. I also mentioned Nicky Cruz, Run, Baby Run, and David Wilkerson, Cross and the Switchblade. I also mentioned an article of mine on Jesus' teaching on marriage in Journal of Moral Theology with a long title “But from the beginning it was not so”: The Jewish Apocalyptic Context of Jesus’ Teaching on Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage.

We also spoke a lot about Pope Benedict and Pope Francis. Sam is giving a paper at the Pope Francis conference coming up this week at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. Join us and the 45 other speakers coming to Vancouver in early May 2023. You can register at the website. The document I mentioned that Cardinal Ratzinger wrote about the German professor who was not able to teach New Testament any longer ( Friedrich Wilhelm Maier) was Relationship Between Magisterium and Exegetes.

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @biblejunkies. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help this podcast by letting people know about What Matters Most. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring conversations and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens

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On this episode I speak with Sister Damien Savino, F.S.E., Ph.D., Dean of Science and Sustainability at Aquinas College in Michigan. Sister Damien Marie has a Ph.D in Civil (Environmental) Engineering from The Catholic University of America (CUA), a M.A. in Theology from CUA, a M.S. in Soil Science from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, and a B.S. Biogeography (High Honors) from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Sister Damien Marie has scientific, ecological, and theological chops, which made this a fascinating discussion.

For me it was a moving and powerful conversation as Sister Damien Marie spoke of her own revelatory experience witnessing the Northern Lights in northern Norway as a young woman and her recognition of the tight connection she found between place and people as a student among the Sámi people of northern Finland. We also spoke about Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato Si', the sixth extinction, the difference between nature and creation, and whether Christianity is the cause of the ecological crisis in which we find ourselves. On the origin of our current ecological crisis, Sister Damien Marie referred to an influential article written in 1967 by Lynn White called "The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis" in Science 155: 1203-1207 which held Christianity, but not Francis of Assissi, responsible for our current ecological woes. She offered some alternative views on the cause of the crisis and how we might imagine or reimagine humanity's role in responding to the crisis.

Sister Damien Marie will be offering a paper at the upcoming Pope Francis Conference in Vancouver called "The Franciscan Roots of Integral Ecology: Ecological Conversion and the Culture of Encounter." In this paper she will "address the Franciscan roots of integral ecology in light of contemporary challenges to ecological conversion and the culture of encounter, two concepts at the core of Pope Francis’ encyclicals Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti." The paper is on Saturday May 6, so please come and join us if you are in the Vancouver area.

If you would like to know more about her approach to Laudato Si', as well as to Franciscan spirituality in relation to creation and the role of humans, please watch her recent lecture on the encyclical or read her article on how to live an ecology of daily life. Or, check out the "Educating for Laudato Si'" website (praisebetoyou.org).

Please enjoy this episode and if you do, would you please rate, review, and pass on the news about this podcast to your friends? I would appreciate that very much!

John W. Martens

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The guest on this episode is Nicholas Olkovich, my colleague at St. Mark’s College in Vancouver. Nick was just promoted to Associate Professor at St. Mark’s and is the Marie Anne Blondin Chair of Catholic Theology at St. Mark’s. Nick has a Ph.D. in Theology from the University of St. Michael’s College (2009-2016), an S.T.L., Regis College (2009-2013), an M.Div., University of St. Michael’s College/University of Toronto (2005-2009), and a B.A., Honours, History and Philosophy, University of Toronto (2001 – 2005)

As his online bio states, "Nick teaches in the areas of foundational, systematic and pastoral theology. His ongoing research focuses primarily on the relationship between ethics, politics and religion in democratic contexts and on a variety of issues in theological anthropology, fundamental ecclesiology, and foundational theology. His teaching and research is strongly influenced by the work of Canadian Jesuit philosopher and theologian Bernard Lonergan."

Nick and I discussed the upcoming Pope Francis conference in Vancouver (May 4-6, 2023) sponsored by The Centre for Christian Engagement , the Cullen family, the Marie Anne Blondin Chair, and the RCAV. We are co-organizers of this conference and we could have shared how we have bonded over logistical details, but no one wants to hear about that on a podcast, so we discussed why a conference on Pope Francis, his writing and his teaching, is so important after 10 years and some of the topics that will be covered (Laudato Si', polarization in the Church, reaching out to the margins, etc.). Please enjoy this conversation with my colleague and friend Nick Olkovich.

John

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My guest on this episode of What Matters Most is the Canadian biblical scholar Dr. Matthew Thiessen, an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at McMaster University and formerly an Assistant Professor at St. Louis University. It was a fascinating conversation for me as Matt works in the same field, biblical studies and studies of Paul in particular, as do I. I was trained by a different generaton of Pauline scholars, though, including E. P. Sanders, who is mentioned in the episode and became associated with the New Perspective on Paul, and Stephen Westerholm, whose work reflects a more traditional view of Paul. Matt's work develops earlier research on Paul and focuses on Paul as a faithful Jew, who is not opposed to Jews following the Torah, but to his Gentile converts doing so, including men being circumcised. In some ways Dr. Thiessen might be included in the "Paul within Judaism" school, but he eschews labels for himself as you will hear and as he discusses in his forthcoming book A Jewish Paul: The Messiah's Herald to the Gentiles. I think he's also not sure if such labels reagrding the study of Paul are helpful in general.

We spent much of our time talking about his fourth book, A Jewish Paul: The Messiah's Herald to the Gentiles (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2023), forthcoming in August, and I encourage you to buy it and enter into your own conversation with the book. In the podcast, we will discuss why he does not want to translate certain terms, such as pneuma, apostolos, and ekklêsia, and why Christian and Christ might not be the best terms to use with respect to members of Paul's assemblies or as a translation of Christos.

Matt also came to the Centre for Christian Engagement at St. Mark's in September 2022. You can hear and see Matt’s lecture and a panel discussion with Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan on the St. Mark’s YouTube channel. Check it out because there Matt offers a lecture based on his book Jesus and the Forces of Death and with Rabbi Laura speaks about combatting antisemitism in Christian biblical interpretation.

Also, check out some of his previous books, including the aforementioned Jesus and the Forces of Death: The Gospels’ Portrayal of Ritual Impurity within First-Century Judaism (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2020), Paul and the Gentile Problem (New York: Oxford University Press, 2016), and Contesting Conversion: Genealogy, Circumcision, and Identity in Ancient Judaism and Christianity (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011). All of these books have been instrumental in championing a change in how we read early Christianity with respect to Judaism. Contesting Conversion also won the Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise in 2014.

In terms of our conversation, I wondered aloud whether 3 Corinthians appears in the Ethiopic Bible. It does not. Indeed, as Matt says 3 Corinthians had some status in the Syriac and Armenian churches, but does not appear as a canonical text in any Christian New Testament.

Matt also mentioned the work of Ben Blackwell (Christosis: Engaging Paul's Soteriology with His Patristic Interpreters) and of Kathyryn Tanner (Christ the Key). Please follow the links to check out these books.

I also referenced an article on a recent study regarding ongoing anti-Judaism among Catholics. Please follow the links to read Catholic Biblical Literalists More Likely to be Anti-Jewish. With respect to the Vatican II document that Matt mentioned, Nostra Aetate, if you have not read it, I encourage you to do so. It remains important for Catholics and for all Christians. Other Vatican documents that speak out against anti-Judaism include The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible and The Gifts and the Calling of God Are Irrevocable. These are also worth reading.

Please enjoy this episode, rate, review, and let your friends know about the podcast!

John W. Martens

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Welcome to our episode with Dr. David Penchansky, professor emeritus in the Department of Theology at the University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. This was a fascinating conversation. We learn about David growing up in Brooklyn in a family that were atheists and his own religious conversion on a "hippie commune," his words, in Washington State fifty years ago. He became an Assembly of God minister before entering the Catholic Church and working as a Professor.

He was trained as a Hebrew Bible scholar at Vanderbilt University and he has written numerous books, including Understanding Wisdom Literature : Conflict and Dissonance in the Hebrew Text, Twilight of the Gods: Polytheism in the Hebrew Bible, and What Rough Beast?: Images of God in the Hebrew Bible. His most recent book Solomon and the Ant: The Qur’an in Conversation with the Bible, published by Cascade books, was the focus of much of our conversation.

We talk about how David became interested in the Quran and started to learn Arabic. Much of his interest began with his wife Hend Al-Mansour, a medical doctor from Saudi Arabia, who left medicine behind while studying at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, to work full time as an artist. You can check out her art, much of it focused on Arabian and Islamic themes at her website. I would love to have Hend on the podcast some day to discuss her art.

Then we did a deep dive into the three sections of Solomon and the Ant: The Qur’an in Conversation with the Bible, considering the themes of theodicy, polytheism, and prophetic revelation and the nine Suras he examines to explore these themes in the Quran and in conversation with the Bible.

David also mentioned a recommended English translation of the Quran, though we discuss in the podcast some of the issues with translating the Quran into any language other than Arabic. David recommended the A.J. Droge translation and John Kaltner’s general introduction to the Quran.

Please enjoy this episode and do not forget to rate and review and spread the news about the podcast to your friends!

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On this episode of what matters most I speak with Dr. Catherine E. Clifford, a Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She holds a PhD in Theology from the University of St. Michael’s College, Toronto, and an STL from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Her teaching, research, and publications are in the areas of ecclesiology, ecumenism, and the history of the Second Vatican Council with a particular emphasis on understanding the conversion and renewal of the churches, the development of doctrine, and the unity and diversity of Christian communities.

We spent a lot of time in this episode talking about ecumenism, the process by which the variety of Christian churches speak to each other and try to move to greater unity. We also talked about the fact that unity is not uniformity and the great diversity even within the Catholic church. Dr. Clifford is presently a member of the Methodist Roman Catholic International Commission, one of the many official groups working on ecumenism.

Finally, we discussed synodality and her paper for the upcoming Pope Francis conference at St. Mark’s College on Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal May 4-6, 2023. Her paper is titled, “Leaning into the Distant Goal of Vatican II: Pope Francis and Christian Unity.”

Cathy describes her paper in this way: "Catholics would not be embarking on the path towards a more synodal church today were it not for sixty years of sustained ecumenical dialogue with other Christians who have helped us to rediscover how such practices are “constitutive” of the church. Learning to embrace the synodal way in the life and practice of the Catholic Church will have profound consequences for the realization of Vatican II’s distant goal of Christian unity and for the future shape of Christianity. Francis models a practice of leaning into reconciliation, walking together with fellow Christians in common witness as we grow together in unity."

All three plenary addresses at the Pope Francis conference are free and open to the public. You can find tickets at Eventbrite by clicking on the link above or here: Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal, but I would suggest signing up soon to hear Dr. Massimo Faggioli, Dr. Emilce Cuda, and Dr. Cathy Clifford. Tickets are free but limited. If you want to attend the concurrent sessions, you can attend either day of the conference for $20.00 or the whole conference for $40.00.

Finally, Cathy's publications include the newly released The Oxford Handbook on Vatican II (2023), co-edited with Massimo Faggioli, Keys to the Council (2012), co-authored with Richard R. Gaillardetz, and Decoding Vatican II: Interpretation and Ongoing Reception (2014).

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Welcome to part 2 of my conversation with Dr. Greg Kennedy. In the first epiosde we talked about ecology, animals, and spiritual direction. In this, the second episode, we discuss his books the Reupholstered Psalms and Amazing Friendships between Animals and Saints. What does he mean by Reupholstered Psalms ? We talk about that title and how he is not rewriting” or “reconstructing” the Psalms, but “reupholstering” them. He has also written a lovely children’s book called Amazing Friendships between Animals and Saints. We talked about St. Kevin, who held out his hands as a nest for blackbirds. Greg mentions Seamus Heaney's poem St. Kevin and the Blackbird, which you can find at this link. You can find it in many other places online, too, including a reading by Seamus Heaney.

If you enjoy this podcast, please rate and review it for others to find and enjoy it too!

Cheers,

John

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I spoke to Dr. Steve Millies on February 6, 2023. Steve Millies is a Catholic political theorist and the director of the Bernardin Center at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, his hometown, and Professor of Public Theology. He has written Joseph Bernardin: Seeking Common Ground (Liturgical Press, 2016), a book which won first place in the biography category for the Catholic Press Association’s 2017 Book Awards. He is also the author of Good Intentions: A History of Catholic Voters' Road from Roe to Trump (Liturgical Press Academic, 2018).

We talked about the polarization of politics in the US and throughout the world, the similar sorts of polarization in the Catholic Church, much of it focused on opposition to Pope Francis, and the historical roots of this polarization in the Church and in our political systems. When I talk about historical roots, I mean that Steve takes us back to the Roman Republic, Constantine, St. Augustine, and the medieval period. He recommended a number of books to help us understand this polarization currently: The Big Sort by Bill Bishop; "What is Authority?" by Hannah Arendt; and The Revolt of the Public, Martin Gurri.

We also talked about synodality in the Church, what that is and what that isn’t. Finally, we discussed his paper for the upcoming Pope Francis conference at St. Mark’s College on Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal May 4-6, 2023. His paper is titled, “Full Citizenship”: The Synodal Political Vision of Pope Francis.”

All three plenary addresses are free and open to the public. You can find tickets at Eventbrite by clicking on the link above or here: Pope Francis and the Future of the Church: Prospects and Challenges for Renewal, but I would suggest signing up soon to hear Dr. Massimo Faggioli, Dr. Emilce Cuda, and Dr. Cathy Clifford. Tickets are free but limited. If you want to attend the concurrent sessions, you can attend either day of the conference for $20.00 or the whole conference for $40.00.

I also mentioned a favourite book and writer of mine. The Night of the Confessor, a book by Czech priest Tomáš Halík on the state of Christianity in the world today, is a challenge to Christians. He writes "we are witnessing the withering away of a type of religion (and Christianity) that came into existence at the time of the E­nlightenment—­partly under its influence and partly in reaction to it. It is withering away with its epoch: “modern times.” As on many occasions in history, this situation of faith can be interpreted 'optimistically' or 'catastrophically.'" Halík instead wants interpret the present situation not with optimism or catastrophe but as "Easter paradox.”

This was a fascinating discussion for me, especially the discussion regarding cities and rural areas, their differences and similarities. Please enjoy and lease rate and review so others can find the podcast.

John W. Martens

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Dr. Greg Kennedy is a doctor of philosophy and a Jesuit priest. As we discuss in this episode, though, Greg is leaving the Catholic priesthood and has requested laicization. He is not, however, leaving the Jesuit life as he continues what he calls the "joyful disciplines of poetry, spiritual direction, retreat leadership and farming on the graceful land of the Ignatius Jesuit Centre in Guelph, Ontario."

Greg and I spoke on January 10, 2023 and we had a fascinating conversation about spirituality, ecology, gardening, and spiritual direction, something about which Greg is deeply engaged in his life and in his work at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre in Guelph, Ontario. We also talked about capitalism and how those of us who love our pets might be making them unwitting participants in the excesses of late stage capitalism.

This is at the heart of the first episode, but there is a second epiosde that will be released soon in which we discuss his books the Reupholstered Psalms and Amazing Friendships between Animals and Saints.

Please listen and enjoy and if you did enjoy it, rate and review the podcast. We would love other people to find our series of discussions!

Cheers,

John

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In 2012 Sister Nancy Brown received the Order of British Columbia. This is what was written about Nancy on her reception of the award: “Sister Nancy Brown is a tireless advocate for the most vulnerable in British Columbia: homeless youth and young people at risk for human trafficking and sexual exploitation." In this episode I speak to Nancy, who was born in Vancouver, about her life as a Sister of Charity – Halifax, a congregation of consecrated women sharing the gift of a call to give joyful witness to love, and her work at Covenant House Vancouver with young men and young women. Now retired, though you will see this does not mean she does not remain active, Sister Nancy took a leadership role in fighting sexual exploitation and human trafficking for over two decades at Covenant House. Before joining Covenant House, Sister Nancy spent five years volunteering at a women’s shelter, which inspired her to earn certificates in addictions counselling and working with abused young women, as well as those who have been abusing women. Sister Nancy worked directly with young people on the street, and today continues to serve on numerous committees focused on preventing youth homelessness and the exploitation of women and children. She has raised the profile of these issues, highlighting the very real danger of youth exploitation and trafficking.

During the episode Sister Nancy discussed a number of documents and people. I have tried to find the best links for each of them.

Click here to find out more about Canada's Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act.

To learn about Covenant House in Vancouver, please follow this link.

For a short history of Saint Josephine Bakhita, see the following page.

Sister Nancy also mentioned a Vatican document, Pastoral Orientations on Human Trafficking , that can be found by clicking on the title.

For the Canadian bishops' pastoral letter, For Freedom Christ Has Set Us Free, a document that outlines the bishops' response to human trafficking and sexual exploitation in Canada, click on the title of the document.

Finally, Sister Nancy mentioned the horrors of sexual abuse perpetrated by members of the Christian Brothers at Mount Cashel Orphanage in St. John's, Newfoundland against the most vulnerable of children, orphans and wards of the state. The Mount Cashel sexual abuse scandal in many ways made people aware of sexual abuse committed by members of the Catholic clergy, but it was only the beginnings of the necessary and painful revelations of sexual exploitation of minors and other vulnerable people in many places in Canada and around the world by Catholic clergy.

I hope that these links will offer necessary context for the work that Sister Nancy has done and is doing and will encourage you to see if there is a way that you might help in responding to the devastation of human trafficking and sexual exploitation wherever it is found.

If you would like to participate in the upcoming anti-human trafficking webinar that Sister Nancy discussed, Working Towards Freedom, it takes place on February 8, 2023, 7-8 pm PST through the Archdiocese of Vancouver. Please register by following the link.

CANADA NOW HAS A CANADIAN HUMAN TRAFFICKING HOTLINE

If you suspect someone is being sexually trafficked or exploited, please call the 24/7 Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-833-900-1010 or visit www.canadianhumantraffickinghotline.ca

LEARN TO RECOGNIZE THE SIGNS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING Visit www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/human-trafficking/recognizing-human-trafficking-victims

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Donna Naughton is an Ojibway and Cree from Biigtigong First Nation located in northern Ontario. Donna holds both a BSW and a MSW. With a Master’s Degree in Social Work, Donna has been helping Indigenous communities for almost 30 years. She is also the Executive Director of Kateri Native Ministry, a role she has held since 2016.  Kateri Native Ministry is based in eastern Ontario and has been committed to the healing, reconciliation and spiritual growth of Indigenous people for over 20 years. Kateri Native Ministry serves in communion with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Ottawa.

I met Donna this summer at a meeting of the Jesuits of Canada in Midland, Ontario. Donna was part of a panel that reported on the visit of Pope Francis to Canada and the apology that he offered to the indigenous peoples of Canada. Donna spoke powerfully on that panel about the Pope’s visit and what she appreciated about the Pope's apology to the Indigenous people of Canada and what she found missing in the Pope's visit. In this episode we talk about what it means for her to be both Catholic and engaged in Indigenous spirituality, which includes discussion of the Pope's visit. Donna also speaks about her mother's experience as a student at a Catholic residential school. 

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Martin Strong is a veteran of radio in Vancouver, starting out as an announcer and writer in the 1980s at CFOX. He then moved to the Bro Jake Show at Rock 101 and hosting at Roundhouse Radio. He also wrote and hosted "Radio Shangri-La" for the CBC under the pseudonym "Marty Beaumont," which featured the best in cocktail lounge music (Frank, Dean, Sammy, etc.). The show ran nationally in various time slots on both CBC 1 & 2 between 1995 and 2000. He is also a voice over actor, narrating "Jade Fever," which ran for 7 seasons on Discovery Canada as well in the U.S., the U.K. and around the world.

In addition, he is an instructor at BCIT Media Arts, teaching for over 15 years the core course "Discovering Your Inner Storyteller," which teaches writing and communication skills for both traditional and new media. He was also the department head for Broadcasting for Web, Radio & T.V. at VanArts.

In this episode we discuss Martin's  personal story and journey, which includes his spiritual practices and thoughts on organized religion. At the end of the episode I connect some of our discussion to Julian of Norwich, Martin Luther and the indulgence controversy, and Pope Francis's encyclical Laudato Si'. 

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In this conversation I speak with Dr. Dawn Eden Goldstein about her new biography Fr. Ed: The Story of Bill W.'s Spiritual Sponsor. We focus on the life of Fr. Ed, his own struggles to become a priest, his debilitating medical issues, and his indelible mark on AA and the founder of AA Bill W. I hope that when we talk again, we can discuss some of the other books she has written and her own spiritual journey.

Under the pen name Dawn Eden, she has written a number of popular and award winning books, including My Peace I Give You, The Thrill of the Chaste, and Remembering God's Mercy. Dawn began her working life as a rock-and-roll historian and went on to editorial positions at the New York Post and the Daily News before publishing her first book in 2006. In 2016, she became the first woman to earn a doctorate in sacred theology from the University of St. Mary of the Lake. Her book Remembering God's Mercy won First Place in the Inspirational category of the Association of Catholic Publishers 2017 Excellence in Publishing Awards. She has taught at universities and seminaries in the United States, England, and India. Currently, she lives in Washington, D.C. Follow her on Twitter @dawnofmercy.

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In part 2 of my conversation with Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan, Professor of Jewish Studies and Director of Inter-Religious Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology, we speak about her book Mouth of the Donkey: Reimagining Biblical Animals, a book that rekindles wonder about animals and their place in human lives and in creation. Laura is also Professor Emerita of Philosophy at University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Rabbi Emerita of Or Shalom Synagogue in Vancouver, and a U.S. Professor of the Year. She lives in Vancouver, Canada, on the traditional territories of the Coast Salish peoples, with her husband (and musical partner) Charles, their young adult children, and a changing array of companion animals.

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In this episode I speak with Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan, a professor from Vancouver School of Theology, about her integrated life as a philosopher, rabbi, and professor of Judaism at a Christian school of theology. Rabbi Laura brings a thoughtful approach to the spiritual life, seeing God throughout creation and the natural world, an understanding of God inspired by kabbalah. We also talk about the ongoing need to combat antisemitism in Christianity.    

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Michael W. Higgins is an educator, professor, university President, author, and journalist. Most recently he was President of St. Mark's College at UBC. We talked about Pope Francis and his life in academia and as a journalist. Finally we turned to focus on the necessary role for the arts to shine a light on the truth and expose the darkness in the spiritual life. 

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In this episode, I discuss with Fr. Jim Martin, a Roman Catholic priest based in New York City, his outreach to the LGBTQ community and his associated book Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity. We also talk about his pilgrimage to Israel and Jesus, which lead to his book, Jesus: A Pilgrimage. The conversation ranges widely, though, discussing his early life and how he became a priest.

Fr. Martin is the editor-at-large at America Magazine and the author of many other books, including My Life with the Saints and Learning to Pray: A Guide for Everyone.