14 Aug The Progressive Christians Podcast – A new podcast from The Loft
Dear Westwood Family,
I hope this email finds you all doing well, and a special shout-out to the parents who are (quietly) celebrating the return of the school year! Given the number of graduate degrees I have, it may come as a surprise that I didn’t enjoy school very much until I was in college. I fell in love with learning in graduate school, and I do miss the days when I had the time to sit and digest literature that could help me become a better follower of the religion of Jesus.
The invention of podcasts and audiobooks (Yes, I was alive before either of these were “invented.” Our young readers will enjoy poking fun at me about this, I’m sure!) have helped me keep up with the latest trends and conversations on topics that I find interested and relevant. However, the vast majority of podcasts that discuss Christianity present a very conservative view of Christianity. I noticed the void of progressive Christian podcasts a few years ago, and in response, we began the “Loft Conversations” podcast. This podcast engaged my sermons and was intended to mimic the types of conversations people are having in The Loft based on the “conversation questions” I pose each week. This podcast was a good start, but we needed to discuss a wider spectrum of topics to reach a broader audience.
Beginning this week, we are replacing our Loft Conversations podcast with a new one titled “The Progressive Christians Podcast.” The Spotify and Apple Podcasts description of the podcast reads: “We’re the love your neighbor kind of Christians, not the storm the capital kind. So, if you’re curious about what a socially and politically progressive Christianity looks like, this podcast is for you! In each episode we discuss politics, pop culture, and anything else we find interesting from the perspective of progressive Christianity.” Our first episode will drop on Friday, and this podcast will have its dedicated podcast feed. I hope that you will subscribe, rate (only 5 stars!), and review the podcast on whatever podcast platform you are using.
Podcasts are another way for us to evangelize and educate people about a type of unapologetically inclusive Christianity rooted in love and justice. I now realize that I have always loved learning and that my disinterest in school stemmed from my teachers’ inability to make their lessons relevant to someone like me, a poor black kid. How many people have grown disinterested in Christianity because it feels irrelevant to them or their community? My own struggles with education inform my pedagogy (i.e., my theories and methods of teaching) to this day. I believe that education is the practice of freedom. Learning should be transformational: it should transform how the student views herself, her neighbor, and her worldview. My prayer is that my sermons, lectures, essays, and podcasts equip people with the necessary tools for personal and communal liberation.
In Love and Solidarity,
Rev. Dr. Carter