Todd and Tyler talk about sola scriptura and related ideas. Sola scriptura is the position that Scripture is the only "inerrant, sufficient, and final authority for the Church" (Matthew Barrett, God's Word Alone). Another position is that "both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church). And another position is the "open canon" of the Latter-day Saints that includes other scriptures in addition to...

Todd and Tyler talk about free will. Do we have free will? One possible response is, "It depends," because free will can mean different things, from an absolute ability to have done otherwise to simply an ability to act in conformity with one's desires. We talk about Robert Sapolsky's recent book, Determined, arguing against both libertarian and compatibilist notions of free will. The thought of the late Daniel Dennett, who passed away the day before this recording, and who argued for a...

Todd and Tyler talk about spiritual experiences. Scriptural accounts of rushing mighty wind and hearts burning within. Surrendering control to the Spirit. The physical aspect of spiritual experiences, particularly in the brain. What we can know from spiritual experiences? Who we can know from spiritual experiences? How to interpret them. What spiritual experiences are for. And Todd mixes up Micaiah and Elisha.

Todd and Tyler share personal reflections on Easter and Holy Week.

Todd and Tyler discuss temples. The functions of temples in different cultures and the temples of Ancient Israel in particular. The various offerings and sacrifices. The concepts of holiness and separation. Christian theologies of the way temple worship carried over into the body of Christ in the Church and the Eucharist. Margaret Barker’s provocative theories about Josiah’s reforms and Deuteronomistic influence on temple worship. And the place of secrets, mysteries, and parables in religious...

Todd and Tyler talk about Catholicism and Latter-Day Saints (Mormonism), particularly as discussed in the writings of Stephen Webb (Catholic) and Alonzo Gaskill (LDS). Topics include authority, ecclesiology, general conference, catechism, canon, extra-canonical texts, and pseudepigrapha. We talk about Webb's special interest in the metaphysics of matter and how that features in both religions. Also the afterlife, Spirit Prison, Purgatory, the incorporeality or corporeality of the Father, and...

Todd and Tyler conclude a four-part series on the Book of Revelation. Subjects discussed include eating the scroll, the woman clothed with the sun, the child, the dragon, the beasts from the sea and the earth, Babylon and its fall, the lament of the merchants of the earth, the testimony of Jesus as the spirit of prophecy, the new heaven and new earth, and making all things new. We end with a discussion about the power of the book as a testimony of Christ and how all its imagery inspires...

Todd and Tyler talk about the Two Powers in Heaven thesis, the idea that in Second Temple Judaism and earlier there was understood to be a secondary divine figure alongside the primary God, YHWH. We discuss the Angel of the Lord, the Word of the Lord, and the Son of Man. We go into texts from the Hebrew Bible as well as extra-Biblical texts like the Book of Enoch, Targums, and Talmudic texts. We talk about similarities between the divine beings in Israel and in Canaanite religion. One...

Todd and Tyler continue in the Book of Revelation, with chapters 6 and 7. We cover the Seven Seals, the Four Horsemen, the 144,000 sealed of Israel, and the multitude from the great tribulation. Concluding with the opening of the seventh seal.

Todd and Tyler return to the Book of Revelation, this time moving into the visions in chapters 4 and 5. The throne, the 24 elders, the 4 living creatures, the scroll with 7 seals, the Lion of Judah who is also a Lamb, and the new song. We also begin to look at the opening of the seals in chapter 6 but mostly leave the 4 horsemen waiting in the wings until next time.

Todd and Tyler talk about the Book of Revelation. Or is it Revelations? Revelationses perhaps? We talk about the genre of apocalyptic literature and the vivid imagery taken from Exodus, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. The apocalyptic and supernatural worldview. The letters of John to the Seven churches. And the value of the book for spiritual insight as an “unveiling” of Christ’s mission and identity. In this first part we get through chapters 1-3. Later chapters will be taken up in future...

Todd and Rick talk about Garak, one of the most fascinating characters from Stark Trek: Deep Space Nine. At the end of the occupation of Bajor all Cardassians abandon their former station Terok Nor, now Deep Space Nine. Almost all. One Cardassian remains, a gregarious and mysterious tailor named Garak. No one really knows what he is up to. And with Garak there’s never only one story but several contradictory stories. In fact, there was so much that we decided to split our discussion into to...

Todd and Tyler talk about the Song of Songs. The unusual presence of love poetry in Bible. The history of allegorical interpretation with examples from Origen, Gregory of Nyssa, and Bernard of Clairvaux. How passion can be enflamed for God.

Todd and Tyler talk about the Dead. What happens to people who died without knowing Christ? Do sinners get any more opportunity to repent after they die? Christian practices and doctrines like prayer for the dead and Purgatory. Latter-day Saint practices of baptism for the dead and other vicarious ordinances. The Harrowing of Hell. And the use of money for religious purposes.

Todd and Tyler talk about the Trinity. The doctrine as taught in traditional Christianity and the Nicene Creed. Differences and similarities with the understanding of Latter-day Saints. Some history and Saint Nicholas (allegedly) slapping Arius.

Todd and Tyler talk about the Epistle to the Hebrews, a magnificent section of sacred scripture. The exalted status of Jesus Christ. His role as high priest after the order of Melchizedek. The way that doctrinal meat builds upon the foundations of doctrinal milk.

Todd and Daniel talk about some significant ancient texts: Targum Onkelos, Targum Jonathan, Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Tosefta, Mishnah, Talmud, Midrash, and other Second Temple texts.

Christian culture is not always subdued or ascetic. It is often polychromatic, extravagant, and excessive. Saints and sinners mingle in a culture of piety and transgression, a culture that believes in forgiveness because it knows how much it needs it. Seasons of Lenten fasting cycle with seasons of sumptuous and sensuous feasting in a way that generates an emotionally replete cosmology.

Todd and Tyler continue their discussion about the Septuagint, an ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. Important Septuagint passages that show up in the New Testament like “a virgin shall conceive” (Isaiah 7:14) and “recovering of sight to the blind” (Isaiah 61:1). Paul’s deep roots in the Septuagint text. The ways that scriptures can accrue meaning and significance, like Christological meaning. And the ways the Septuagint can give us insight into how Second Temple Jews understood...

Todd and Tyler talk about the Septuagint, an ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. The Hellenistic character of Diaspora Judaism and early Christianity. The importance of the Septuagint to our understanding of the development of the Hebrew Bible texts. The ways that the Septuagint was used by New Testament authors. And ways that Septuagint translators sometimes shifted the meaning of certain passages with their translation choices. We really just got started so we expect to pick up...

Todd and Daniel talk about Bible translations. Translation approaches ranging from word-for-word to thought-for-thought. How different translations handle idioms. The vast number of Bible translations. And the different preferences that people and groups have.

Todd and Tyler talk about Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians. Among other things. "Is Christ divided?" Diversity of spiritual gifts. Ecumenism. Modern equivalents to eating meat sacrificed to idols. Heretical lawlessness (antinomianism) that presumes to transcend morality. The nature of resurrected bodies.

On arguments for the existence of God from the principle of sufficient reason. The principle of sufficient reason is the principle that everything must have a reason, cause, or ground. This principle has been applied to argue for the existence of God as the ultimate reason behind all things.

The recent developments in AI are quite impressive. If someone had told me a couple years ago about the capabilities of something like ChatGPT I wouldn't have believed them. AI certainly has enormous practical benefit. But since artificial neural networks were inspired by biological neural networks they can also be useful models for them. In this episode I share some recent studies investigating the behavior of the brain using AI models and evaluating their possible underlying computational...