In this episode, Fred interviews Jonathan Bentley - author of - Shadowing St. Francis: A Pilgrimage of Sacred Emergence in the Age of A.I.

https://mitpressbookstore.mit.edu/book/9781968136376

What if orthodoxy is dead and AI knows why?

A barefoot monk, a broken church, and an open future. A retired tech entrepreneur. Fifty years as a committed evangelical. A decade of faith deconstruction he couldn't outrun. And a 120-mile pilgrimage through Italy that changed everything.

Shadowing St. Francis follows Jonathan Bentley from Florence to Assisi to Rome, walking the ancient path of a man who stripped naked in the town square, handed his clothes to his father, and walked into the woods to find God. Eight hundred years later, Francis of Assisi still has something to say-to those exhausted by certainty, wounded by the church, and wondering what faith looks like in a world of algorithms and anxiety.

In this episode, Fred interviews theologian, philosopher and scholar - Dr. Thomas Jay Oord - author of A Systematic Theology of Love.

Learn more at:

https://thomasjayoord.com/

About Dr. Oord:

Thomas Jay Oord is a theologian, philosopher, and scholar of multi-disciplinary studies. Oord is a best-selling and award-winning author, having written or edited more than forty books. Academic Influence ranks him among the most influential theologians in the 21st century. Oord directs doctoral programs at Northwind Theological Seminary and directs the Center for Open and Relational Theology. He is known for his research and writing on love, open and relational theology, science and religion, evil and power, and the implications of freedom and relationships for transformation.

In this episode, Fred interviews William Paul Young - Author of The Shack.

Learn more at:

https://wmpaulyoung.com/

About Paul:

The data of history might help you understand where a person has been, but often hide who they actually are. The Shack and Cross Roads will tell you much more about me than a few facts ever could, but a writer is always more, intentionally illusive behind the curtain of words. For me as a human being, everything is about Jesus and Father and Holy Spirit, about relationships, and to live is to participate in an adventure of faith which can only be experienced inside one day’s worth of grace at a time. Aspirations of success, visions of significance and dreams of grandeur all died a long time ago and I have absolutely no interest in resurrecting them. I have finally figured out that I have nothing to lose by living a life of faith and trust. I know more joy every minute of every day than seems appropriate, but I love the wastefulness of my Papa’s grace and presence.

In this episode, Fred interviews Doug Pagitt - American author, pastor, social activist, founder and executive director of Vote Common Good.

Learn more at:

https://dougpagitt.com/

https://www.votecommongood.com/

About Doug:

Doug Pagitt is a possibility enthusiast. Through creative, entrepreneurial and generative efforts, he works to enlist people to join in the hopes, dreams, and desires God has for a more beautiful world. A proud, concerned and hopeful American, Doug Pagitt is a social activist. He is Co-founder and Executive Director of Vote Common Good, a national political non-profit dedicated to inspiring, energizing, and mobilizing people of faith to engage in civic life. Pulling from his experience as an author, pastor and business owner, Doug consults for and trains churches, denominations, politicians, businesses and non-profits throughout the United States on issues of culture, leadership, social systems, Christianity and Progressive Evangelicalism. Doug has authored 10 books on spirituality, Christianity and leadership, including: Flipped (Random House 2015), The Inventive Age Series (SparkHouse 2012), and A Christianity Worth Believing (Jossey-Bass 2008). His latest book, Outdoing Jesus: Seven Ways to Live Out the Promise of Greater Than (Eerdmans 2019), is a hopeful and provocative commentary on biblical good news exemplified through present-day ordinary people making extraordinary contributions. In 2000, Doug was founding pastor of Solomon’s Porch, a Holistic Missional Christian Community in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He also founded and remains active with the Greater Things Foundation, a charitable non-profit for empowering and fostering more beautiful, inclusive, and life-giving communities. Doug Pagitt has a BA in Anthropology and a Masters of Theology from Bethel Seminary. He lives with his wife, Shelley, in Edina, Minnesota and are parents of 4 adult children. Doug is also a novice ultra marathoner who, on most days, wishes he was out on a run.

In this episode Fred interviews two dear friends about their gender transitions in the context of Evangelical Christian Church culture.

In this episode, Fred interviews Dr. Jonathan Foster - Author & Executive Director of the Curian Network, about his book: At-One-Ment: An Open and Relational Take on Atonement (Micro Theology Series).

Learn more at:

https://www.jonathanfosteronline.com/

https://thecurian.org/

https://a.co/d/glGcyti

About Dr. Foster:

I’m into a bunch of stuff, the best of which is granddaughter, mountains, friendships, and art, but I’m also the co-founder and un-executive, executive director of the Curian Network, a new denominational tribe empowering faith communities, pastors, chaplains, and spiritual directors in their local, missional contexts.

Oh, and I write. Find me on Substack or pick up a book. Some of my books have won awards, and some haven’t. It’s sad, the not-winning-awards part, but I do get to add Dr. to my name as I successfully defended my dissertation in mimetic theory and open and relational theology. So, make sure to let everyone know about that news.

Let’s see, what else? Well, Tom Oord and I help make books at SacraSagePress, so if you write in a generally progressive theological way and are interested in partnering with us to bring your book to life, let me know.

Oh, I also hang out with people on my podcast and talk about all kinds of things that intersect with theology. If you can’t find me on FB, it’s because I’m blocked 🤔, but no problem, join a few thousand other people and subscribe to my Substack page, where you will get a post at least twice a month. Or find me on the IG @jonathan_foster.

Email: jonathanunderscorefoster@gmail.com.

In this episode, Fred interviews Melissa Ferrer Civil - Inaugural Poet Laureate of Kansas City.

Learn more at:

https://melissaferrerand.com/

https://www.kcmo.gov/programs-initiatives/poet-laureate

About Melissa Ferrer Civil:

Melissa Ferrer Civil (&), (she/they), formerly known as Missy T. Ferrari, is a poet, performer, organizer, and educator living on unceded Kaw, Kansa, Kickapoo, and Oceti Sakowin lands (KCMO). Rooted in the practical and the possible, their spoken word poems and songs are mostly responses to the world around them and their own internal journey. Melissa is the founder of the arts and organizing event series A Nation In Exile.

Melissa received a Bachelor’s Degree in both Creative Writing and Italian from The Florida State University. She has also received her Master’s of Education with a specialization in Urban Education from Park University. She received her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Randolph College. She was also long listed for the Palette Poetry 2021 Emerging Poet Prize. They are a Charlotte Street Studio Resident, a Chrysalis Institute Alumnus, and a Heartlandarts KC Fellow. Melissa Ferrer Civil is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Kansas City, Missouri.

In this episode, Fred interviews Dr. Chris Hanson, M.D., Th.D. - Pediatrician & author of Open and Relational Parenting: Loving Parents Reflecting a Loving God.

Learn more at:

https://openrelationalparenting.com/

https://openrelationalparenting.substack.com/

About Dr. Hanson:

Dr. Chris Hanson is a pediatrician who has practiced in Memphis, TN for 27 years. He earned his ThD degree from Northwind and the Center for Open and Relational Theology in 2025. He is interested in the daily lives of his patients and their families and in helping them develop healthy, nutritive parent-child relationships.

In this episode, Fred interviews Janay Reliford - Chair of the Kansas City Reparations Coalition & Founder/CEO of Camp C.H.O.I.C.E (Children Having Opportunities in Creating Environments).

Learn more at:

https://kcreparationscoalition.org/

https://www.campchoicekc.com/

Meet Janay:

Janay Reliford is a Kansas City community leader, founder of Camp CHOICE, and chair of the Kansas City Reparations Coalition. After becoming a teen mom and overcoming early hardship, she dedicated her life to youth empowerment, family support, and advocating for Black reparations and community healing. Her work focuses on helping young people build confidence, purpose, and strong decision-making skills.

In this episode, Fred interviews Brian Recker - Author of Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love.

Learn more at: https://www.brianrecker.com/

Meet Brian Recker:

A former Marine Officer, the son of a Baptist preacher, and an alum of the fundamentalist Bob Jones University, Brian spent eight years as an evangelical pastor before deconstructing his faith to find a more inclusive spirituality. He now speaks about following Jesus without fear of hell on his popular Instagram account and his Substack, Beloved. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, and has four children and a rescue pup named Maev.