The UpWords Podcast
Each week, we sit down with scholars, authors, and leaders to explore faith, vocation, culture, and what it means to think and live well. For curious Christians and honest seekers. An initiative of SLBF STUDIO at Upper House in Madison, WI.
Episodes
192 episodes
Loving Our Neighborhoods Together | Jon Anderson
This summer, The UpWords Podcast is spotlighting local leaders shaping faith and community life in Madison. Host Dan Johnson sits down with Jon Anderson, founder and executive director of Collaboration Project, to talk about what happens when c...
A Quick Update on our Summer Release Schedule
Thank you for listening to The UpWords Podcast. We wanted to send you a quick message to let you know that we will be moving to every-other-week podcast releases in July and August this summer, and returning to weekly podcast releases in Septem...
Israel, the End Times & the Evangelical Imagination | Dan Hummel
What do evangelicals mean when they talk about “supporting Israel” — and how did Jewish–Christian dialogue evolve from centuries of suspicion into the conversations happening today?In the third installment of our series built around the ...
Rediscovering the Bible as Wisdom Literature — Tim Mackie of BibleProject
What if many of us have been taught to read the Bible in a way it was never meant to be read? In this special live event recorded by Upper House, BibleProject co-founder Tim Mackie returns to Madison — the city where he earned his PhD in Hebrew...
Water from a Deep Well: Recovering the Riches of Historic Christianity | Dr. Jerry Sittser
Too many Christians, Jerry Sittser says, sit at a banquet table and eat only one food. In this episode, host Tressa Spingler talks with theologian, historian, and author Dr. Jerry Sittser — professor emeritus of theology at Whitworth University...
How Do Jews and Christians Read Scripture Differently? | Seth Whitaker
In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host Jean Geran sits down with biblical scholar Seth Whitaker to explore a question at the heart of Christianity's origins: how do Jews and Christians read Scripture differently—and what holds their inter...
Bad Religion, Good News: Surviving Church Disappointment | Scott Bessenecker
What do you do when the church — the very community that's supposed to reflect the love of God — becomes a source of real pain? Host Dan Johnson sits down with Scott Bessenecker, author of Bad Religion, Good News: An Honest Guide to Spiritu...
Pastoring for Monday: Helping the Church Take Work Seriously | Matt Rusten
What would it look like if the church took seriously the 80,000 hours most people spend at work over a lifetime? In this conversation, host John Terrill sits down with Matt Rusten — pastor-turned-vocational-discipleship-advocate and author of <...
A Jewish Scholar on What Christians miss when Reading the Bible | Dr. Amy-Jill Levine
What does it look like when a Jewish New Testament scholar sits down with a Christian host to talk about how two ancient traditions read the same texts — and reach such different conclusions? That's exactly the conversation host Jean Geran has ...
PREVIEW: American Evangelicals - A History Podcast
This week on The UpWords Podcast, we're bringing you something a little different — and we think you're going to love it.We're sharing the first episode of a brand-new podcast series from the Lumen Center and SLBF STUDIO: American Evange...
TRAILER: American Evangelicals - A History Podcast
STUDIO at the SL Brown Foundation is launching a brand new podcast, and we wanted to share it with our faithful listeners of The UpWords Podcast. If you like what you hear, click the links below to subscribe or follow the show:<...
Reading as a Spiritual Practice | Jeff Crosby
What if picking up a book could become a form of prayer? In this conversation, host John Terrill sits down with Jeff Crosby — publisher, author, and lifelong champion of the written word — to talk about his book World of Wonders: A Spiritua...
Faith, Politics, and the Culture War | Justin Giboney
What does it look like to be a faithful Christian in the public square without losing your soul in the process? In this conversation, host Rebecca Cooks sits down with Justin Giboney — attorney, ordained minister, political strategist, and co-f...
Dallas Willard's Vision for Discipleship: Kingdom Apprenticeship | Keas Keasler
Dallas Willard believed that the aim of God in human history is the formation of a community of loving persons — people apprenticed to Jesus, shaped by his character, and prepared to co-reign with him in eternity. In this episode of The UpWords...
What Does It Mean to Be Human in the Age of AI? | Noreen Herzfeld
Artificial intelligence is everywhere — but what does it mean for us as humans, as embodied creatures, and as people of faith? In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host Dan Johnson sits down with Noreen Herzfeld, a computer scientist turned ...
The Gospel of Being Human: How Asking Better Questions of the Bible Reveals Who We Are | Reed Dent
What does it mean to be human before God? In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host Dan Johnson sits down with pastor and author Reed Dent, whose new book The Gospel of Being Human: How Asking Better Questions of the Bible Reveals Who We...
Forgiveness, Peacemaking, and the Courage to Reconcile | Todd Deatherage
What role does forgiveness play in the hard, often painful work of building peace? In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host Jean Geran sits down with her longtime friend Todd Deatherage, co-founder of Telos, a nonprofit helping leaders navi...
Making Peace with the Proximate: Vocation, Faithfulness, and the Questions That Shape a Life | Steve Garber
What does it mean to give yourself fully to something — a marriage, a calling, a city, a cause — and still make peace with the fact that you won't get everything you hoped for? In this episode of The Upwards Podcast, host John Terrill sits down...
Building Madison: Placemaking, Belonging, and the City We're Becoming
What does it take to build a city where every person truly belongs? In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, we walk the streets of Madison, Wisconsin — metaphorically and literally — with two people who have spent their careers shaping it.<...
Mourning God: Grieving Loss, Wrestling with God, and Finding Your Way Back to Life | Tiffany Stein
In this episode of The Upwards Podcast, host Tressa Spingler sits down with author and pastor Tiffany Stein for a conversation that goes where the church often doesn't — into the deep, disorienting territory of grief, lament, and the silence of...
Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace | Mark DeYmaz
In this deeply reflective conversation, host John Terrill welcomes pastor, author, and practitioner Mark DeYmaz for an exploration of Christian peacemaking. Drawing from his new book Make Me an Instrument of Peace and ...
Finding your Way Out of Shame | S.J. Parrott
In this deeply honest and theologically rich episode of The Upwards Podcast, host Jean Geran sits down with philosopher and biblical scholar S.J. (Shannon) Parrott for a wide‑ranging conversation on shame—what...
The Pastor as Gardener: Cultivating Ministry with Hope | Matt Erickson
In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host John Terrill welcomes pastor and author Matt Erickson for a rich, thoughtful exploration of pastoral ministry through the lens of agrarian imagery. Drawing from his new book The Pastor a...
Lenten Resources: Wilderness, the Cross, and What to Read | Byron Borger
In this Lenten conversation, host Tressa Spingler sits down with longtime bookseller and friend of Upper House, Byron Borger of Hearts & Minds Books, to explore how the church year—and especially Lent—can shape our discipleship. They reflec...
You Have a Calling: Vocation, Work, and the Myths We Believe | Karen Swallow Prior
In this episode of The UpWords Podcast, host Dan Johnson sits down with author and scholar Karen Swallow Prior to explore one of the most pressing questions of our time: What is my calling? Drawing from her new book, <...
