Curiously Kaitlyn

For this week's Curiously, Kaitlyn, we're releasing a Holy Post Plus Exclusive episode of Getting Schooled by Kaitlyn Schiess. Revelation is perhaps the most mysterious book in the Bible. Many take it as a map of the future—but maybe it's more about theology and faithfulness than we realize! Kaitlyn breaks down how this book which often scares us is actually a strong message of hope.

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Recommended Resources

Reading Revelation Responsibility: Uncivil Worship and Witness: Following the Lamb of Creation: https://a.co/d/3AV5sWx

The Theology of the Book of Revelation (New Testament Theology): https://a.co/d/5MWOtzi

Comfort and Protest: The Apocalypse from South African Perspective: https://a.co/d/c4TCydL

Author and astrophysicist Deborah Haarsma joins us to tackle a tough theological and scientific question - why did God make the other planets? Dr. Haarsma shows us how Scripture describes God's cosmic creation, tells us how her scientific training helps her experience God in a different way, and gives us some guidelines for thinking about faith and science.

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Pastor and theologian Corey Widmer is back, this time to talk about how to read the Bible well, how to understand violence in the Bible, and how to think about the Trinity. This week, an older kid asks "Does the God of the Old Testament and Jesus have different moralities?" Dr. Widmer teaches us how understanding who God is can help us better understand confusing or even horrifying stories in Scripture.

- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/podcasts/difficult-conversations/ to check it out!

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Book Resources:

The God I Don't Understand by Chris Wright

Old Testament Ethics for the People of God by Chris Wright

Getting Involved With God: Rediscovering the Old Testament by Ellen Davis

The Art of Biblical Narrative by Robert Alter

Music director and producer Dr. Wen Reagen joins us to talk about angels, ghosts, and demons, oh my! Dr. Reagan explains the different kinds of angels, how depictions of angels have changed throughout church history, and what he thinks about Halloween.

 - Sponsor - Hiya Health - Go to https://www.hiyahealth.com/CURIOUSLY to receive 50% off your first order

- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/podcasts/difficult-conversations/ to check it out!

New Testament scholar Nijay Gupta joins Kaitlyn to answer another baptism question: why do we have to go underwater?! Dr. Gupta explains the significance of water in the ancient world and in the Bible, and shows us how something scary can also be beautiful.

- Sponsor - Go to https://helloned.com/CURIOUSLY or enter code CURIOUSLY at checkout to get 15% off.

- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/podcasts/difficult-conversations/ to check it out!

Pastor and theologian Sharon Hodde Miller joins Kaitlyn to answer a deeply personal and theological question: how do we know what God wants us to do? Dr. Miller explains three different levels of this question, and offers practical advice for people seeking God’s will for their life.

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- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/podcasts/difficult-conversations/ to check it out!

Dr. Keith Johnson joins Kaitlyn to answer the question: Why are we in the world if we are just tiny specks to God? Dr. Johnson teaches us about creation, why God does anything, and if we actually are just “tiny specks” to God. Plus, he answers an even thornier question: Why did God make us in the first place, especially if he knew we would sin?

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- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/podcasts/difficult-conversations/ to check it out!

This week, instead of kid questions, we're talking about YOUR questions! Kaitlyn is joined by Producer Mike to answer questions about the Trinity, teaching kids in church, and complementarianism. Plus: Kaitlyn gets some pop quiz kid questions!

- Sponsor - The National Association of Evangelicals - Listen to the Difficult to explore how Christians can become peacemakers. Go to https://www.nae.org/introduction-difficult-conversations-podcast-series/ to check it out!

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Pastor and theologian Steve Bezner joins Kaitlyn to answer a series of important questions: Why do we have to get baptized? Does it have to be in front of other people? Do I have to say all the words? Dr. Bezner helps us understand what baptism means, why we do it, and why those other people being there is important.

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Theologian Gayle Doornbos joins Kaitlyn to tackle a tricky question with big implications: Does God control us, or do our brains do that? Dr. Doornbos helps us understand how God’s sovereignty and our agency can possibly make sense together. Then she answers another tricky kid question: If God is in control, does that mean he makes us do “the bad stuff”?

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Pastor and theologian Corey Widmer joins Kaitlyn to talk about two things that have confused and divided Christians for centuries: baptism and communion. Dr. Widmer helps us understand what these sacraments are, how they’re related to each other, and why some traditions “fence the table.” Plus: he and Kaitlyn agree that sometimes you need to dance to communion.

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Pastor and theologian Mika Edmondson joins Kaitlyn to talk about Satan, the problem of evil, and redemptive suffering. Dr. Edmondson tackles two tough kid questions about Satan: Why doesn't God take away Satan's power? Why does God sometimes let Satan do whatever he wants? He and Kaitlyn also discuss how the Black church has endured suffering, and what we can learn from their witness in American history today.

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Theologian Dr. Han-Luen Kantzer Komline joins Kaitlyn to answer a huge question: Where does evil come from? Dr. Kantzer Komline explains some wrong answers to the question, some biblical passages that can help answer it, and a better question we can ask instead. (And, surprise, there’s more Augustine!)

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Historian and pastor Dr. Jennifer Powell McNutt joins Kaitlyn to help us understand how the Bible comes to us. Who passed it down to us? What languages has it been it? How can we trust that we’re hearing from God in the Bible? Dr. McNutt shows us how even the story of Bible translation and transmission is a testament to God’s grace and provision for us.

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Pastor and theologian Alex Sosler joins Kaitlyn to talk about a question kids and grown-ups keep asking ourselves: how do we know when we have a strong relationship with God? Dr. Sosler reminds us that we are secure in our relationship with God, and that God has given us regular practices to receive grace from God. Plus: there’s even more Augustine!

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Who could possibly answer a fantastic and hilarious question like “Is Jesus big enough for everyone to take a bite of him?” Someone who knows her theology AND her bread, baker and writer Kendall Vanderslice. Kendall and Kaitlyn talk about communion/the Lord’s supper/the Eucharist: what it is, what it means, and why the bread should taste good.

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Pastor and theologian Glenn Packiam answers “Why do they do songs in church? Some kids can’t really understand the songs!” He and Kaitlyn discuss why songs are part of Christian worship and why we do things in worship that we don’t always understand. Plus, they talk about Kaitlyn’s favorite topic: welcoming kids in church, noises and wiggles included.

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Theologian Dr. Joseph Gordon joins Kaitlyn to tackle one of our most frequently asked questions: Do dogs go to heaven? Dr. Gordon answers the question, but also gives us a much bigger theology of creation, redemption, and creaturely life on earth. Plus, we also tackle even harder questions like: Do snakes go to heaven? What about mosquitos?

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Children’s ministry expert Dr. Scottie May joins Kaitlyn for an extra-special episode of Curiously, Kaitlyn! Instead of answering a kid question about God, Kaitlyn asks Dr. May all about how we talk to kids about God: How do we talk about hard things in the Bible with kids? How do we get kids to love learning about God, instead of memorizing facts about the Bible? What can we learn from kids about God? Plus: why Dr. May doesn’t like the term “Sunday school.”

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Dr. Carmen Imes joins Kaitlyn to answer the question “Why did God choose the Israelites as his special people out of everyone else, and bless them in a certain way he didn’t bless others?” Dr. Imes takes us back to the Bible, pointing us to the reason God gives for choosing Israel and blessing them: so that they can be a blessing to all of creation. Dr. Imes teaches us a fancy new Hebrew word, gives us lots of biblical examples of what it means to bless the nations, and even touches on one of Kaitlyn’s favorite phrases, “a city on a hill.”

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Dr. Matthew Lynch joins Kaitlyn to answer two kid questions today: Why does God destroy stuff? and Why did God send the flood? We talk about the story of the great flood, why it happened, and God’s promise never to destroy the world with a flood again. Plus, Dr. Lynch describes a few different ways people think about violence in the Bible.

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Dr. Barry Jones joins Kaitlyn to answer a question that we have probably all wondered at some point: Why do we fight God in our hearts? Dr. Jones gives us a theology of sin – where it started, how we encounter it, and what God has done to defeat it. Then he offers some practical help for addressing the sin we find in ourselves: practices of prayer and surrender that acknowledge our dependence upon God to save us from the power of sin.

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Mike Erre joins Kaitlyn to answer the question “Does God bring heaven to earth?” They talk about what “heaven” is, what it means for God to bring it to earth, and Mike predicts exactly when God will do it (not really). Plus, Mike explains why the Bible sometimes calls the world “good” and other times tells us to hate it.

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Theologian Matthew Emerson joins Kaitlyn to answer a surprisingly complicated question: Where did Jesus go when he died on the cross? Dr. Emerson gives us a simple answer that opens up lots of other questions: What is the “Paradise” Jesus talks about on the cross? What did Jesus do while he was there? Plus, Dr. Emerson helps us think about the theology all Christians share vs. the theological questions that can divide us.

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The Last Judgement

One of the most common Sunday school questions is also a really contentious one! Theologian Fellipe Do Vale joins Kaitlyn to tackle the question: Is God a boy or a girl? Wrapped up in that one question are lots of other important questions: How is God like (and unlike) us? What does it mean to be a boy or a girl? Why is this such a contentious question? Dr. Do Vale helps us think through this question in a way that glorifies God, honors humans made in God’s image, and helps us keep asking more questions!

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Theologian Fred Sanders joins Kaitlyn to answer a very important and very common question for Christians: what is going on with the Trinity? Dr. Sanders explains why the Trinity is so important for understanding the gospel, why analogies for the Trinity aren’t usually helpful, and how God can exist as three persons (and what “persons” means!).

Kaitlyn is joined by theologian Marc Cortez to answer the question: What will my grandma look like in heaven? Will she look like I remember her, or will she look younger? Kaitlyn and Dr. Cortez also discuss other questions about our life in eternity: How old will we be? Will we be the same gender? Will we recognize each other? Dr. Cortez also teaches us why these questions are surprisingly important for understanding humans, God, and God’s plan for creation.

Biblical scholar (and Holy Post pundit!) Dr. Amy Peeler joins Kaitlyn to tackle the question of a budding theologian: Why does Paul say that men are made in the image of God, and not women? (Does Paul say that?) Kaitlyn and Dr. Peeler cover this important question, as well as some others: Who is Paul and why do we care what he thinks? What does the Bible say about women? How should we handle places in Scripture that seem to contradict?

Theologian Brad East joins Kaitlyn to answer a really important question we have probably all asked: how do we know that the Bible is true? Dr. East also answers questions we might not think to ask but that are also really important: What is the Bible? How did we get it? How are we supposed to read it? We learn three analogies for understanding what the Bible is, some guidelines for how to read it well, and some encouragement to stay curious about passages that are confusing or challenging.

This week theologian Beth Felker Jones joins Kaitlyn to answer a question most of us have probably wondered about: Is God everywhere? And if God is everywhere, why can’t we see God? Dr. Jones explains how God is different from everything God made, how we really will see God “face to face” one day, and how we actually can see God now. Plus, our first “Greatest Moments in Sunday School History” segment!

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Kaitlyn is joined by biblical scholar Dru Johnson this week to answer some very practical questions about Adam and Eve: were they created as babies or adults? How did they know about babies? How would Eve have even known she was pregnant? Along the way, we’ll discuss how to read confusing biblical texts, how to ask good questions of the Bible, and why Genesis is so concerned with procreation.

Kaitlyn is joined by theologian Christa McKirland to answer this week’s question, “Why do humans not have superpowers? I’d like to fly.” This might sound like a silly question, but it opens up a whole bunch of important theological ideas: why humans were made as dependent creatures, what the “image of God” really means, and what our resurrected bodies will be like. Plus, Christa argues that we actually do have superpowers! (What are they? You’ll have to listen to find out.)

Kaitlyn sits down with Dr. Daniel Hill to answer this week's question, "How come no one is perfect and how was Jesus perfect, even though humans are not supposed to be perfect?" It may seem obvious that of course humans aren't supposed to be perfect, but what are we missing when we define our humanity by our sinfulness? What if there is more to the story? What does it actually mean to be truly human?

Here is the trailer for Kaitlyn Schiess's new podcast, Curiously Kaitlyn! It'll make you laugh. It'll make you cry. It'll make you actually be able to understand profound theological truths like never before! Follow today so you don't miss out!