Stories for the Waiting Room
"Stories for the Waiting Room" examines the existential value of Jesus' parables for living in today's complex society. The podcast's host, Dr. Mark A. Proctor, holds a Ph.D. in Religion from Baylor University with an emphasis in New Testament Studies. Dr. Proctor has published a handful of scholarly articles on the parables, and their content has provided meaningful subject matter for his graduate and undergraduate courses. "Stories for the Waiting Room" examines the parables in light of their first-century cultural milieu with an eye toward applying their timeless content and challenges to our own contemporary context.
Episodes
16 episodes
Getting By Part 2: The Sower (Mark 4:1-9; Matt 13:1-8; Luke 8:4-8; Gos. Thom. 9)
In the second and final episode on Jesus' parable of "The Sower," Dr. Proctor discusses the genre of allegory and its relevance for studying Jesus' parables. Having acknowledged the presence of allegorical treatments of the "Sower" in each of t...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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1:21:45
Getting By Part 1: The Sower (Mark 4:1-9; Matt 13:1-8; Luke 8:4-8; Gos. Thom. 9)
In the first of two episodes on Jesus' parable of "The Sower," Mark and Lee first discuss a variety of unproductive responses to the Coronavirus pandemic before turning to examine the story's content. As one of three quadruply attested parables...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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1:11:56
5Wc: Matt 13:10-15
In the third and final episode on the topic of "why" Jesus spoke in parables, Dr. Mark and Lee investigate the changes Matthew made to Mark 4:10-13 in an effort to see how his "parables theory" differs from that of his source material. In...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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56:27
5Wb: Parables for Dummies? What a waste!
Having characterized Jesus' use of parables in Mark as his attempt to accommodate the public's need for pedagogical assistance in season two's opening episode, Dr. Proctor examines Mark's characterization of the twelve disciples in episode two....
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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1:02:42
The Fifth “W:” Mark 4:10-13
Who? What? When? Where? Why? In season two's first episode, Lee and Dr. Mark address a very important question: Why did Jesus speak in parables? In order to provide an answer, they examine a critical passage schol...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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1:10:54
A Kudzu Haven for Crop Stealing Scavengers: The Mustard Seed (Matt 13:31-32; Mark 4:30-32; Luke 13:18-19; Gos. Thom. 20)
As one of only three quadruply attested parables in the Gospel Tradition, the Mustard Seed describes the transformational growth of what Jesus calls the smallest of all the seeds. Season one’s final episode begins with a lighthearted quiz befor...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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1:24:21
Parabolic Polyvalency Part 2: Filling the Hungry with Good Figs in Luke 13:6-9
In "Parabolic Polyvalency Part 2," Mark and Lee offer a second reading of Luke's story about the supposedly "barren" fig tree. The episode begins with an examination of the Third Gospel's largely negative presentation of money and the wealthy, ...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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1:02:02
Parabolic Polyvalency Part 1: Blind Loyalty in the Barren Fig Tree (Luke 13:6-9)
The ninth episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room" introduces a new way of categorizing Jesus' parables. While interpretive comments accompany many of these stories, others Jesus presents in a less direct fashion as illustrations of the Kingdo...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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1:07:53
The Sincerest Form of Flattery: The Lost Coin (Luke 15:8-10)
In the eighth episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room" Mark and Lee investigate Luke's parable of the Lost Coin. This unique story follows closely on the heels of the Lost Sheep (see episode seven), and so forms one of Luke's many gendered pai...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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1:12:48
Joy in Recovering What’s Gone Missing: Lost Sheep in Thomas, Matthew, and Luke
In the seventh episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room," Mark and Lee take a look at the three versions of Jesus' parable of the Lost Sheep in the Gospel of Thomas 107, Matthew 18:10-14, and Luke 15:1-7. In each instance, the gospe...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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53:00
Contentment in a Kingdom of Slaves: The Dutiful Servant (Luke 17:7-10)
Did Jesus condone slavery? In the sixth episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room," Mark and Lee discuss one of the more difficult lessons Jesus teaches his disciples. While on his way to Jerusalem to die, Jesus tells them a story about a ...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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1:11:33
Matthew's Conjoined Fraternal Twins: Treasure in the Field and Pearl of Great Price in the First Gospel
The fifth episode of Stories for the Waiting Room investigates Matthew's treatment of the Treasure in the Field and the Pearl of Great Price. Dr. Proctor suggests both Matthew's arrangement of the two stories and his selection of Greek...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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1:00:20
Finders Keepers, Losers Weepers: Pearl of Great Price & Treasure in the Field in the Gospel of Thomas
If a parable’s growth is a good indicator of a writer’s editorial interest, it seems clear the author of the Gospel of Thomas was willing to emend Jesus' parables about the Treasure in the Field and the Pearl of Great Price in such a w...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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41:28
Woman’s Work in a Man’s World: Jesus' Parable of the Leaven
The third episode of Stories for the Waiting Room examines Jesus' parable of the Leaven, which concern's a nameless woman's domestic activity. In keeping with Jesus' normal storytelling style, this brief account presents a stereotypica...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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56:33
Tackling the Question of Genre: What Are Jesus' Parables
In the second episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room," Dr. Proctor uses the text of Ecclesiastes 9:14-15 to illustrate some of the basic narrative qualities of Jesus' parables. In addition to being terse accounts of status quo people in stere...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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45:05
"Where's Waldo?" Locating Jesus' Parables
In the first episode of "Stories for the Waiting Room," Dr. Mark A. Proctor discusses the four sources for Jesus' famous parables (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and the Gospel of Thomas) and the possible historical implications for stories lacking multi...
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Season 1
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Episode 1
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53:01