BibleWorm

This week we meet the prophet Elijah. We discuss his increasingly vulnerable existence through a period of drought, and his ultimate reliance on another paradigmatically vulnerable character -- a widow and her child who are already unable to take care of themselves. We talk about the idea of God’s care during the hardest of times, and the pairing in this story of a miraculous healing with the more commonly encountered miracle of having just enough to last you through one more day. And we introduce a strange coping strategy to get through the moments when the internet is out. 

This week BibleWorm turns to the story of God’s covenant with David in Second Samuel 7:1-17. We talk about gift giving, both with God and with each other, and the tendency to give others what we think they want rather than listening to what they ask of us. We wrestle with the significance of a God who dwells in tents versus as God who lives in a Temple and the ways God can be invoked to legitimate the ruling authority. And we wrestle with how one can tell a story about David without sounding like an episode of Schitt’s Creek. Ewww, David.

If you'd like to listen to the extended version of this episode, visit our Patreon at patreon.com/biblewormpodcast. 

This week BibleWorm reads the story of Hannah, expanding the Narrative Lectionary a little bit to I Samuel 1:1-20 and  2:1-10. We step into a scene that reads like the worst Thanksgiving meal ever, complete with taunting, sulking, and refusals of food. We discuss the nature and impact of prayer on God and on ourselves, and connect the experience of triumph over obstacles in our own lives with hope for the larger society.

If you'd like to listen to the extended version of this episode, visit our Patreon at patreon.com/biblewormpodcast. 

This week BibleWorm looks at the story of Aaron and the Golden Calf in Exodus 32:1-14. We wonder about the unrealistic expectations that the people could wait in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights without getting anxious, and struggle with the decisions Aaron makes to keep the people from rebelling. We try to parse the difference between worshiping false gods and worshiping God falsely, and wonder whether there is really a difference. And we wrestle with what it means to worship a God who becomes angry but who also relents of anger when faced with a human interlocutor who insist on covenantal fidelity.

If you'd like to listen to the extended version of this episode, visit our Patreon at patreon.com/biblewormpodcast. 

This week BibleWorm discusses the original Passover ritual described in Exodus 12-13. We think about the mix of urgency and powerlessness that the Israelites may have felt, each in their own homes, just as we may feel today. We consider the ways in which ritual can form us and prepare us for what’s next, even when we can’t see around the pike. And we call out the losses and sorrows that accompany the struggle for liberation.

In this special extended episode, BibleWorm discusses the original Passover ritual described in Exodus 12-13. We think about the mix of urgency and powerlessness that the Israelites may have felt, each in their own homes, just as we may feel today. We consider the ways in which ritual can form us and prepare us for what’s next, even when we can’t see around the pike. And we call out the losses and sorrows that accompany the struggle for liberation.

On this special extended episode, BibleWorm turns to the Joseph story in Genesis chapters 37 and 50, exploring the complicated family dynamics of Jacob and his eleven sons. We discuss how a sense of scarcity, whether of grain or of a father’s love, can create divisions in families and among peoples who would otherwise get along. We discuss the idea that God can turn even evil plans toward good outcomes if only we can learn to trust divine promises. And we think about the relative value of love and justice, and how love unevenly applied can lead to disastrous outcomes.

This week BibleWorm turns to the Joseph story in Genesis chapters 37 and 50, exploring the complicated family dynamics of Jacob and his eleven sons. We discuss how a sense of scarcity, whether of grain or of a father’s love, can create divisions in families and among peoples who would otherwise get along. We discuss the idea that God can turn even evil plans toward good outcomes if only we can learn to trust divine promises. And we think about the relative value of love and justice, and how love unevenly applied can lead to disastrous outcomes.

This week, BibleWorm discusses Genesis 15:1-6 -- God’s covenant with Abraham. We talk about the honest, holy mess of it, the sussing each other out, and the early days in a relationship when everything feels fragile and trust goes an especially long way. We talk about waiting, and the anxiety of waiting when we don’t have access to the full plan. And we talk a surprising amount about the time-space continuum, and how Abraham, God, and even BibleWorm fit into it.

In this special extended episode, BibleWorm discusses Genesis 15:1-6 -- God’s covenant with Abraham. We talk about the honest, holy mess of it, the sussing each other out, and the early days in a relationship when everything feels fragile and trust goes an especially long way. We talk about waiting, and the anxiety of waiting when we don’t have access to the full plan. And we talk a surprising amount about the time-space continuum, and how Abraham, God, and even BibleWorm fit into it.