Theologian and professor John J. Thatamanil discusses the growing field of "religious pluralism" - where the boundaries of "religion" are loosened and faith traditions are encouraged to mix and blend.  While a controversial concept to some, Thatamanil insists that theologies of religious pluralism are simply exploring the reality of religious mixture that has always been happening, whether we admit it or not.  Also on the program, David J. Dunn comments on the "myth" of the 47%.

Award-winning author Joanna Brooks discusses her love for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as well as her frustrations with the faith.  A self-described "Mormon feminist," Brooks has sometimes felt misunderstood and unwelcome in her tradition. Despite these frictions, Brooks proudly proclaims her Mormon heritage and its history as a "pioneer faith."

Also on the program, Katy Scrogin reviews Speaking Christian, by Marcus J. Borg.

This is about 15 minutes of extra audio from our interview with Joanna Brooks from show #1213.  We talk about South Park, Judaism, and the X-Files.

In the late 1990s, Sherry Cothran was the lead singer for the popular indie-rock band The Evinrudes.  After the band broke up, Cothran followed a calling to divinity school, and is now a pastor in the United Methodist Church.  As she leads her congregation, she combines her skills as a musician with preaching, resulting in what she refers to as "song sermons."

Cothran has collected several of these song sermons on her new album, "Sunland," which explores the voices of women from the ancient religious world.

Also on the show. Katy Scrogin reviews The Chemistry of Tears, a novel by Peter Carey.

Tom Bergler is Professor of Ministry and Missions at Huntington University in Indiana.  His recent book, The Juvenilization of American Christianity, looks at nearly a hundred years of history to explore what has gone wrong - and what is still going right - in youth ministry.  His examiniation looks at how "youth culture" has permeated even adult spiritual formation programs.  The goal, Bergler says, should be spiritual maturity, not an endless quest for the new and the different.

Also on the program, Katy Scrogin reviews iDisorder: Understanding our Obsession with Technology and Overcoming its Hold on Us, by Larry Rosen

Show #1210 features Tom Beaudoin of the Rock and Theology Project, and Katy Scrogin reflecting on the Gnossienne Suites by Erik Satie

Our guest Tom Beaudoin tells us more about the Rock and Theology project.

This is extra audio from the interview with Katherine Willis Pershey

If it is hard for us to admit faults and shortcomings, it must be doubly hard for a pastor.  Katherine Willis Pershey, however, has learned to trust her congregation, her family, and her readers.  Her book, Any Day a Beautiful Change, is a moving and personal account of her journey as a woman in ministry, a new mother, and a spouse to a loving but struggling husband in recovery.

Also on the show, Travis Ables explores what the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who can tell us about everyday faith.

Nina Paley journeyed from grief to unexpected blessings with the help of a couple of Hindu gods.  In the process, she made a feature-length animated film, Sita Sings the Blues, based on a portion of the 3,000 year old epic, the Ramayana. 

Also on the show, Katy Scrogin reviews In the Presence of Absence, by the late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish.

In this bonus podcast, Nina Paley describes the difficulties she had in using the music of Annette Hanshaw in her film, and the steps she took to help the film clear the copyright hurdles.

Constitutional scholar and Boston University Law professor Jay Wexler answers questions about the relationship between Church and State.

This is a bonus audio portion of material we were not able to include in the broadcast show.

What does the Bible actually say about forgiveness?  The answer may surprise you.  New Testament scholar and Huffington Post writer Maria Mayo challenges traditional Christian assumptions about forgiveness in her research.  While not dismissing the idea of forgiveness or diminishing its importance, she takes issue with the current practice of forgivenes as an individual, psychological act.

Also on the program, Katy Scrogin reviews David Foster Wallace's posthumous novel, The Pale King.

This is bonus audio from our interview with Maria Mayo.

The object Christians call "The Bible" seems simple and straightforward.  As our guest Tim Beal shows us, however, a closer look reveals not "The" Bible, but many (and many different) Bibles.  In our conversation, we explore what that means for the past, the present, and the future, of consumer Bible culture. Beal is the author of The Rise and Fall of the Bible: The Unexpected History of an Accidental Book.

Later on the broadcast, David J. Dunn reflects on the recent shootings in Colorado, with an impassioned plea for rational gun control.

In this extra audio podcast for show #1205, we continue our conversation with Timothy Beal, and explore the deeper meanings of the word "religion," as well as the strange new world of American Bible culture.

In this week's bonus podcast, we expand on our conversation with Mary Button.  We talk more about the politics of art, and art as religious expression.  We discuss Clarence Jordan's Cotton Patch Gospels, and explore Button's most recent work, a Stations of the Corss based in narratives from the recent conflicts in Syria.

"I try to use old stories to draw my viewers into new meanings," says painter Mary Button.  Button trained in fine arts at New York University, and studied theology at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta.  Her work has been featured in events at the United Nations and the national Council of Churches, and she is currently an artist-in-residence at First Congregational Church in Memphis, Tennessee.

In 1995, Robert Rhodes and his family sold most of their possessions ans went to live on the Minnesota prairie in religious seclusion.  Rhodes had gone to live among the Hutterites, a 500 year old religious movement centered on communal ownership of property, radical pacifism, and an intense fervor for the Gospel.

By 2002, Rhodes and his family had left the Hutterites.  He chronicles his six years there in the book Nightwatch: An Inquiry into Solitude.

Also on the broadcast, Huffigton Post writer and lay theologian David J. Dunn explains to Christians why they should reconsider the ideas they have about Hell.

Bonus audio from the interview with Robert Rhodes that we were unable to include in the broadcast version of the show due to time.

This is an extra part of the interview with Todd Green we weren't able to include in the broadcast portion of the show.

Legislation against Sharia law and vandalism against Mosques in Virginia and Tennessee are just the most recent outbreaks of anti-Muslim sentiment that many refer to as "Islamophobia."  Our guest, Todd Green, assistant professor of religion at Luther College, talks with us about the religious and political aspects of Islamophobia, and the factors that contribute to its presence in American culture.

Also, Travis Ables offers comments about the television show Community.

This week we talk with pastor and author Stacy Smith about her book, Bless Her Heart: Life as a Young Clergy Woman.  Co-authored with Ashley-Anne Masters, the book gathers anecdotes from female pastors from across denominational lines, and offers frank advice about the joys and pitfalls of being a young woman starting out a career in ministry.

Also, Katy Scrogin reviews Stephen Sheehi's book, Islamophobia: The Ideological Campaign against Muslims.