This week we are joined by CTP Fellow Ben Burkholder. Ben shares how he developed an interest in learning how people grow as disciples. Reflecting on his time as a student, Ben also shares insights about the relationship between psychology and spiritual formation. This and more on today’s podcast!
Join us this week as we get to know Eric Rivera. Eric will be a plenary speaker at the 2025 Pastor Theologians Conference, Good Shepherds: Pastoral Identity and the Future of the Church. On this episode, Eric talks about how his story shaped his interests and calling in church history and pastoral ministry. Drawing from his context as a pastor at a multi-ethnic church in the greater Chicago area, he also shares what he has learned it means to be a Good Shepherd in the 21st Century.
Samuel Parkison joins the podcast today to talk about his recent book, To Gaze upon God: The Beatific Vision in Doctrine, Tradition, and Practice (InterVarsity Press 2024.) He also shares with us his story and calling to academic ministry at the Abu Dhabi Extension Site at Gulf Theological Seminary in the United Arab Emirates.
What is the beatific vision? What does the beatific vision have to do with this moment in history for the church? This and more on today's podcast!
For our April episode on books, we, the CPT staff, have been reading:
CR Wiley, In the House of Tom Bombadil (2021)
Ryan Holiday, The Obstacle Is the Way (2014)
Percival Everett, James (2024)
Harold Netland, Religious Experience and the Knowledge of God (2022)
Nadya Williams joins the podcast to talk about her recent book, Mothers, Children, and the Body Politic: Ancient Christianity and the Recovery of Human Dignity (IVP Academic, 2024.) How do our attitudes towards motherhood reflect either a commodification of human life or, by contrast, a rich affirmation of the imago dei? This and more on today’s podcast!
CPT Podcast host Todd Wilson and co-host Zachary Wagner discuss Zach's journey of faith and education so far. How does the so-called "anti-intellectualism" of evangelicalism manifest in local churches? Is this a fair characterization of this Christian tradition? What are the strengths and drawbacks of both Bible college education and a liberal arts education for Christians? Zachary Wagner is the Managing Director of the Center for Pastor Theologians.
CPT fellow Gavin Ortlund joins the podcast gain to discuss his habits of study and writing, as well as his recently published Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy (IVP Academic, 2020). What were the important emphases of Augustine's doctrine of creation and view of what we would call "science"? What can we learn from this church father on humility? In what other surprising ways is Augustine's surprisingly relevant for theological controversies related to evolution, animal death, and creation ex nihilo?
CPT fellow JT English joins the podcast again to share the story of how he gave up his “dream job” at the Village Church in Dallas to accept a call as Lead Pastor of Storyline Fellowship in Colorado. Listen now to this amazing story of God’s provision and guidance.
How should Christians and pastors approach the 2020 election? How have the two major political parties changed in recent years? How can Christian leaders influence politicians rather than being influenced by politicians? Karen Swallow Prior joins the podcast do discuss her approach to voting, political parties, and the importance of character when Christians engage in politics.
On this episode of the podcast we are joined by CPT fellow Rachel Stahle. Pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Towanda, PA. Rachel shares her story of life, education, and conversion, which involved a unique and dramatic experience where Jesus appeared to her during college.
What makes the pastor theologian different from the academic theologian? What types of theological reflection is the pastor particularly well-positioned to engage? What has been lost as the theological task has moved away from the church and into the academy? This episode features a conference lecture from Dr. Gerald Hiestand, co-founder of the CPT.
Gerald Hiestand is the Senior Pastor of Calvary Memorial Church in Oak Park, IL. He is a co-founder of the Center for Pastor Theologians, and currently serves as the Board Chair. He is the co-author of The Pastor Theologian: Resurrecting an Ancient Vision.
What are the good works that God has prepared for the church to do in 2020? How can white pastors love their black congregants well? What does it look like for Christians as individuals and the church as a whole to reckon with hard questions about politics and faith? On this episode we are joined by Dr. Vincent Bacote, Associate Professor of Theology at Wheaton College and the Director of the Center for Applied Christian Ethics.
This resource is part of the series More than Imago Dei: Theological Explorations on Race. Click here to explore more resources from this series.
Vincent Bacote is an Associate Professor of Theology at Wheaton College and the Director of the Center for Applied Christian Ethics. He is the author of several books, including The Political Disciple: A Theology of Public Life (Zondervan, 2015).
For the Summer of 2020, we will be releasing midweek episodes with special focus on theology and politics. How can Christians engage in politics and public witness while remaining faithful to the lordship of Christ? On this first episode we are joined by Kristen Deede Johnson, a professor of theology at Western Theological Seminary. She tells us her story of becoming interested in the intersection between theology and politics––and shares what insight we can gain from St. Augustine with regard to our own political moment.
We are joined by CPT fellow Matthew Wilcoxen as he tells his story of his education and call to ministry. On this episode Matthew discusses the unique challenges of ministering in Washington DC, his conversion experience as a young person, as well his pursuit and development of his intellectual gifts.
How should Christians think about the over-politicization of our culture? What is the theological significance of this cultural trend? How does the Gospel teach us a counter-narrative to the power politics of our day? On this episode, Todd Wilson shares how pastors and Christians can put politics in its proper place within the good world God created.
ARTICLE: Life Is Hard, Be Humble: Thomas Aquinas on Humility
NATHAN BARCZI
PODCAST: Becoming a Pastor Theologian
ERIC RIVERA
ARTICLE: Christians and the Virtues
BENJAMIN BURKHOLDER
NEWS: Announcing Two New Learning Cohorts
CPT NEWS UPDATE
