Episode: In this episode co-host Amy Brown Hughes nerds out with fellow historical theologian J. Warren Smith about what it would be like if a bunch of early Christian theologians hung out for dinner. Smith's new book Early Christian Theology: A History offers us an entrance into the story of the development of early Christian theology that is engaging, winsome, and informative.

Guest: J. Warren Smith is Professor of Historical Theology at Duke Divinity School. He's the author of several books, including Passion and Paradise: Human and Divine Emotion in the Thought of Gregory of Nyssa (Crossroad, 2004), Christian Grace and Pagan Virtue: The Theological Foundation of Ambrose's Ethics (Oxford, 2010), Ambrose, Augustine, and the Pursuit of Greatness (Cambridge, 2020), and the book we're discussing in this episode, Early Christian Theology: A History (Eerdmans, 2026).

Beyond these works, Dr. Smith is turning to a project, tentatively entitled Plato and Christ: Platonism in Early Christian Theology, that will examine the significance of the tradition called "Christian Platonism" for Christianity in a post-modern age.

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Episode: Is redemption the Bible's "big story"? Is salvation THE goal of Scripture's narrative? Are "story" and "narrative" even helpful ways of conceptualizing the whole Bible? Cornell would answer (a qualified) NEIN! to each question. Listen in to hear why, and about alternative communion model he proposes.

Guest: Dr. Collin Cornell is Assistant Professor of Bible and Mission at Fuller Theological Seminary. Previously, he was a Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow at Candler School of Theology (at Emory University). Before returning to Emory, he taught for three years as a visiting assistant professor of biblical studies in the School of Theology at the University of the South (Sewanee). Collin is author of three books, Divine Aggression in Psalms and Inscriptions (Cambridge University Press, 2020), Divine Aggression in Psalms and Inscriptions (2021), and the book under discussion today, God Draws Near: Rethinking the Biblical Theology of Mission (Baker, 2025). He's edited two books, Divine Doppelgängers: YHWH’s Ancient Look-Alikes (Penn State University Press, 2020) and The Incomparable God: Readings in Biblical Theology (Eerdmans, 2023), and co-translator of a third, Biblical ABCs: The Basics of Christian Resistance (Lexington Books, 2021). He is currently working on a book entitled The Lords that Never Were: Early Judaism and the Gods of the Hellenistic Levant. He has also written several articles on Elephantine.

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Episode: In this second part of a two-part episode, Kevin Vanhoozer is interviewed by Matthew Bates, along with his Northern Seminary students, as part of a "live" classroom event. Over the duration of an academic quarter, Bates and his Intro to Biblical Interpretation students read and discussed Vanhoozer's award-winning book, Mere Christian Hermeneutics. Now they have questions! Vanhoozer brings both academic expertise and pastoral wisdom, clarifying what it means to interpret Scripture faithfully.

Guest: Kevin Vanhoozer is currently Research Professor of Systematic Theology at TEDS, but in the fall will take a new post: Blanchard Professor of Systematic Theology at Wheaton College. He has written numerous books, including several award-winners: Is There a Meaning in this Text? (Zondervan, 1998; Christianity Today Book Award, 1999) and The Drama of Doctrine (Westminster John Knox, 2005; Christianity Today Best Theology Book of the Year, 2006). Our conversation today focuses on Mere Christian Hermeneutics (Zondervan Academic, 2024), which won major book awards from Christianity Today and the Gospel Coalition, among others.

OnScript's Review: "Wise. Learned. Bold. Faithful. Kevin Vanhoozer's Mere Christian Hermeneutics is the definitive work on the theory of scriptural interpretation." -- Matthew W. Bates, Professor of New Testament, Northern Seminary

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