Best Scott Caesar Podcasts (2025)

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TRUST: The trustworthy God. "Double Indemnity." Trust falls. Basketball. 18:30

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3d ago18:30

18:30

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Trust is a rare commodity these days -- earned slowly, lost quickly. Christians should thank God we have One worthy of trust, and a host of others trying their best. This week we'll discuss the trustworthy One and the untrustworthy alternatives; the danger in picking the wrong partner when …

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Hamnet, with Chloe Zhao and Maggie O'Farrell 36:23

3d ago36:23

36:23

Hamnet, the acclaimed novel by Maggie O’Farrell, is now a major film. The story imagines the life and death of Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, whose loss would later echo through one of his most famous tragedies, Hamlet. O’Farrell joins director and co-writer Chloé Zhao to reveal how they adapted the novel for the big screen.With Jessie Buckley as Agnes…

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THANKFUL: Faithful love. Clearance books. Dead people. Caesar and Cleopatra. 17:57

10d ago17:57

17:57

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Every year it seems I have more and more to be thankful for, and it's high time I said so on the podcast. this week I'll tell you which Hebrew word brings joy to my heart and why; the particular genre of book that piquest my interest the most and where I find them; the reason Roy Orbison an…

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FLYING: Eagle's wings. "Jonathan Livingston Seagull." Turbulence. Pan Am. 18:09

17d ago18:09

18:09

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! If I could choose any superpower, I might pick being able to fly. I doubt I'm alone in that. No wonder flight is used so often in the Bible as a spiritual metaphor. This week we'll learn how to escape the problems of this life by looking at the world the way God does; how to embrace the des…

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London's First Playhouse and Shakespeare 36:07

18d ago36:07

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Before Shakespeare became a literary icon, he was a working writer trying to earn a living in an emerging and often precarious new industry. In The Dream Factory: London’s First Playhouse and the Making of William Shakespeare, Daniel Swift explores the dream of making money from creating art, a dream shared by James Burbage, who built The Theatre, …

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ACCOUNTABILITY, part 3: with Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall 20:32

22d ago20:32

20:32

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! This is my final installment of my conversation with Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall, who partner in the work with the West Mason church of Christ in Mason, Ohio. We finish by talking about the most popular game in town, or so it seems — the Blame Game. These are smart fellows; can they explain…

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ACCOUNTABILITY, part 2: with Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall 20:48

23d ago20:48

20:48

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall preach for the West Mason church of Christ in the suburban Cincinnati area. Scott, Tyler and I are all fathers, so I thought it would be good to continue our conversation by addressing the accountability of fathers in the home, and how we practically apply the co…

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ACCOUNTABILITY: with Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall 25:40

24d ago25:40

25:40

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Scott Taylor and Tyler Hall preach for the West Mason church of Christ in the suburban Cincinnati area. We start our conversation with a simple question: What is your favorite story in the Bible about judgment? Check out Hal on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@halhammons9705 Hal Hammons …

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ET CETERA: Haight-Ashbury. Closed. Sea lions. Find the Chow Mein. 18:31

1M ago18:31

18:31

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Turns out, there's not quite enough weeks in the year for me to say everything I have to say about San Francisco. So this week we'll put all the leftovers into a pot and see what comes out -- what if anything was really wrong with hippies; what businesses on the waterfront are closed and wh…

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Mary, Queen of Scots, with Jade Scott 36:11

1M ago36:11

36:11

Imprisoned for nearly 20 years by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I, Mary, Queen of Scots, fought her battles through words, sending and receiving coded letters hidden in books, garments, and even beer barrels.Historian Jade Scott, of the University of Glasgow, Scotland, has uncovered the human and political depths behind Mary’s captivity through 57 rec…

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GOLDEN GATE: Arrival. 15 mph. Karl. Finding Garfield. 19:31

1M ago19:31

19:31

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! The Golden Gate is a bridge, a park, and a geological feature. All three made a tremendous impression on me on my recent trip to San Francisco, and I'm here to tell you about it. We'll talk about crossing the barrier between opportunity and accomplished reality; the hazards of walking where…

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Richard Burbage and the Shakespearean Stage 34:17

1M ago34:17

34:17

Long before Shakespeare became a household name, there was Richard Burbage. As the first actor to play Hamlet, Macbeth, Richard III, and King Lear, Burbage helped define what it meant to be a Shakespearean actor.A commanding performer, he became one of early modern England’s first celebrities—celebrated for his emotional power and versatility, as w…

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MUIR WOODS: The Cathedral. "Coolidge." Souvenirs. Redwood. 18:11

1M ago18:11

18:11

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! If you don't have the time or the vehicle to travel 5 1/2 hours to Redwood National Park on your next San Francisco trip, you can instead cross the Golden Gate Bridge, take a scenic drive through Marin County, and spend some quality time in Muir Woods National Monument. We did, and it's awe…

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ALCATRAZ: The Rock. Rule 5. The Birdman. Bridge. 17:38

2M ago17:38

17:38

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Check out Hal on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@halhammons9705 Hal Hammons serves as preacher and shepherd for the Lakewoods Drive church of Christ in Georgetown, Texas. He is the host of the Citizen of Heaven podcast. You are encouraged to seek him and the Lakewoods Drive church throu…

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TOURISM: Best foot forward. Bus stop signs. The Bushman. Letter Pool. 18:42

2M ago18:42

18:42

By Hal Hammons

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Harriet Walter: New Words for Shakespeare's Women 35:35

2M ago35:35

35:35

By Folger Shakespeare Library

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SPECIAL MESSAGE: San Francisco month in October! 1:10

2M ago1:10

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Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Scheduled postings: October 7: Tourism. October 14: Alcatraz. October 21: Muir Woods. October 28: The Golden Gate. Check out Hal on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@halhammons9705 Hal Hammons serves as preacher and shepherd for the Lakewoods Drive church of Christ in Georgetown, Texas. H…

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EVEN MORE BEARS: A bear robbed of her cubs. "The Autobiography of David Crockett." The man or the bear? Bear Attack. 18:16

2M ago18:16

18:16

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! We finish Animal Month with my third and (probably) final venture into ursine territory. If my buddy Kenny Embry is out there, this one's for you. We'll discuss Sarah Palin's favorite mammal and the situations in which you might encounter it; the most famous bear-hunter in history and my su…

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ANTS: The slacker. "The Earth Dwellers." Memories of Dad. Ants in the Pants. 17:56

2M ago17:56

17:56

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Again we turn to the insect world for help with living among the humans. I hope it's not bugging you. This week we'll discuss how smart humans have figured out a way to destroy themselves (which stupid ants don't do); the incredible work ants do by being what they are and doing what they ar…

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Stephen Greenblatt on Christopher Marlowe 40:31

2M ago40:31

40:31

Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare were both born in 1564, rising from working-class origins finding success in the new world of the theater. But before Shakespeare transformed English drama, Marlowe had already done so—with Tamburlaine the Great and the introduction of blank verse to the stage.As Stephen Greenblatt argues in his new biogr…

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MORE CATS: Indifference vs. Self-Assurance. "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats." Curiosity. Exploding Kittens. 19:37

3M ago19:37

19:37

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! I hate cats. But I enjoy Chinese food. See, there’s a blessing in every part of God’s creation – especially the lessons they teach us. This week we’ll deal with whether cats think they’re better than you or just don’t know you exist; some amazing poetry that somehow gave rise to some horrib…

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BUTTERFLIES: Metamorphosis. "Papillon." Flutterbys. Mariposas. 18:40

3M ago18:40

18:40

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Maybe when I announced “Animal Month,” you just thought “lions and tigers and bears, oh my.” But God teaches us big lessons with little things. This week we’ll discuss how ugly things grow beautiful through forces beyond their understanding; the man with a butterfly tattoo who went to crazy…

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Al Letson on his play Julius X 29:42

3M ago29:42

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You may know Al Letson as a journalist—he’s the host of the popular investigative podcast Reveal. Before that, he created and hosted the public radio show State of the Re:Union. But Letson is also an actor, writer, playwright, and poet. His play Julius X: A Re-envisioning of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare kicks off Folger Theat…

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SNAKES, part 3: with Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts 20:26

3M ago20:26

20:26

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts of the Text Talk podcast are back to finish up our discussion of everyone’s favorite reptile. Here we discuss a children’s game that, deliberately or accidentally, teaches us that life isn’t fair, some people catch more breaks than we do, and there’s not muc…

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SNAKES, part 2: with Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts 25:01

3M ago25:01

25:01

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts are partners in the gospel for the Christians who meet on Livingston Avenue in Lutz, Florida. They also co-host the excellent Text Talk podcast; a link is provided in the show notes. Edwin and Andrew are back to give the other side of the Biblical picture of…

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SNAKES: with Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts 43:46

3M ago43:46

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Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! We’re talking animals this month, and we start in style by bringing in Edwin Crozier and Andrew Roberts of the Text Talk podcast to discuss everyone’s favorite reptile. We start where you would expect — the garden of Eden. But when I suggested Eve fell victim to a relatively obvious ploy, m…

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CHILDREN: Arrows. "Lord of the Flies." "Jesus Loves Me." Lucky Ducks. 18:55

3M ago18:55

18:55

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! It’s time for one of my very favorite topics. How I got six and a half seasons in without a “Children” episode, I have no idea. We’ll discuss the reason spiritual people have children and then launch them out into the world; the sort of society we get when children make the rules; the simpl…

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Director Rosa Joshi on Julius Caesar Today 40:48

3M ago40:48

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Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar feels urgently contemporary in Rosa Joshi’s new production at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival—one of America’s largest and longest-running theater festivals, now in its 90th season. Staged in partnership with Seattle’s upstart crow collective, the production explores the threat of autocracy, drawing on global histories o…

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PREPARATION: Judgment. "The Day of the Jackal." The voices in my head. Grand Austria Hotel. 18:28

4M ago18:28

18:28

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! If something important is on the horizon, you get ready for it. That’s just common sense. Unfortunately, sense isn’t as common as you might think. This week we’ll discuss how Jesus is coming quicker than you think, and not in the way you might think; the extremes to which people will go in …

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INCOMPETENCE: Saved anyway. "Worst. President. Ever." Worst preacher ever. Seers Catalog. 17:56

4M ago17:56

17:56

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! If there’s any subject in which I could claim to be an expert, this is the one. Thankfully God is more than competent enough to compensate for me. We’ll discuss how our repeated failures will not get in the way of a God determined to save us; a president whose best wasn’t nearly good enough…

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Reading Jane Austen in the 21st Century with Patricia A. Matthew 32:36

4M ago32:36

32:36

250 years after her birth, Jane Austen is more popular than ever, with the publication of new editions of her novels and numerous new film adaptations in production. But what does it mean to read and edit Jane Austen today through the lens of colonialism, cartography, and race? Scholar Patricia A. Matthew, who recently edited new editions of three …

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NEWS, part 3: with Brent Clanton and Phil Robertson 16:30

4M ago16:30

16:30

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! We’re wrapping up with Brent Clanton and Phil Robertson in this part of the episode. Here we focus on clickbait — the news industry’s increasing tendency to rope viewers in with wild headlines, claims of urgency, and countless other tactics designed to keep us glued to the screen. How can w…

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NEWS, part 2: with Brent Clanton and Phil Robertson 31:01

4M ago31:01

31:01

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! We’re picking up where we left off from the first part of my conversation with Brent Clanton and Phil Robertson, two veterans of the news business. If you missed the first part, make sure you go back and check that out. Is there media bias? If so, is it deliberate? And if so, what should be…

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NEWS: with Brent Clanton and Phil Robertson 21:58

4M ago21:58

21:58

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! I got a couple of insiders for our discussion this week. Brent Clanton is a long-time radio celebrity in the Houston area and formerly served as shepherd for the Kleinwood church of Christ. Links to his work are included below. Phil Robertson worked in TV news in a former life; currently he…

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ARIZONA: The Grand Canyon. "Tombstone." Dry heat. Trailblazers: the Arizona Trail. 18:34

4M ago18:34

18:34

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! My final featured state this month is one that sparks extreme reactions -- fitting for a state that can be icy cold and boiling hot on the same day. We’ll discuss the most famous feature of Arizona and what it tells us about how the world came to be; the most famous gunfight in history and …

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Inside Hamlet’s Head with Jeremy McCarter 41:43

4M ago41:43

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What if, instead of just watching Hamlet, you could step inside the prince’s mind?A revelatory new audio production reimagines Shakespeare’s iconic tragedy as a first-person experience told through Hamlet’s POV. We only hear the scenes in which he appears—every soliloquy becomes an inner monologue, every whisper a voice in our ears. With stunning b…

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LOUISIANA: Sportsman's Paradise. "Why New Orleans Matters." Zydeco. Riverboat. 17:55

5M ago17:55

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Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Louisiana has given me some of the best food I’ve ever eaten, and with it ten pounds I don’t need. And the potholes on I-10 owe me a TV set and a dining room table. I’m calling it even. This week we’ll talk about how one man’s paradise is just another man’s swamp; whether New Orleans is a c…

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NEVADA: Casinos. "The Ox-Bow Incident." "Whatever happens in Vegas ..." Nevada City. 16:48

5M ago16:48

16:48

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Our tour of America brings us to the Silver State this week, where all that glitters may be gold or may be just a mirage. We’ll discuss the way casinos work to keep you trapped in a situation that will destroy you, and how best to avoid the trap; an old-fashioned lynch mob and what sometime…

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Shakespeare, Money, and Meaning-Making 31:45

5M ago31:45

31:45

Can reading King Lear help us rethink economic policy? Can Measure for Measure shape how we talk about justice, or Hamlet help us face grief? That’s the idea behind an ambitious project at Montreal’s McGill University called Reimagining Shakespeare, Remaking Modern World Systems.Led by Laurette Dubé, professor emerita of management, and Paul Yachni…

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ALASKA: The gold rush. "God's Hand on America." The Golden Beaches of Nome. Yukon Airways. 19:34

5M ago19:34

19:34

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! We’re touring the United States this month, starting with the biggest state of all. This week we’ll discuss the pros and cons of chasing gold (turns out there may be more of the latter than the former); the crazy scheme that saved America, and then saved it again, and again; the easiest way…

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HALFTIME REPORT: My Best Books of 2025 (so far) 27:57

5M ago27:57

27:57

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! In years past I’ve tried to supply four lists of books around this time of year — my best books, the books that made me think the most, the most surprising books I’ve read, and the most disappointing books I’ve read. Unless I hear a barrage of protests, I’m going to cull that to two lists t…

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AMERICA, part 3: with Steve Wolfgang and BJ Sipe 19:32

5M ago19:32

19:32

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! I hope you’ve enjoyed my discussion with Steve and BJ as much as I have. As we celebrate another birthday in the United States this week, we often find ourselves in a position to brag on ourselves a bit. Or maybe more than that. What’s good for America is good for Americans, basically — inc…

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AMERICA, part 2: with Steve Wolfgang and BJ Sipe 30:08

5M ago30:08

30:08

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! There’s a lot of talk in recent years about how great America is, or was, or might be in the future if we vote for the right people. But instead of America’s greatness, I’d like to talk about its goodness. Steve Wolfgang and BJ Sipe are here to help me cover the topic in the second part of …

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AMERICA, with Steve Wolfgang and BJ Sipe 31:10

5M ago31:10

31:10

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! Steve Wolfgang is a historian of the first order, as well as being the preacher for the Downers Grove church in the Chicagoland area. BJ Sipe preaches for the church in Danville, KY, and hosts the Set Your Mind Above podcast. They join me this week to talk about America, beginning with the …

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Staging Hamlet in Grand Theft Auto 39:56

5M ago39:56

39:56

When live performance shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, actors Sam Crane and Mark Oosterveen weren’t sure when—or if—they’d ever be onstage again. So, they turned to an unexpected venue: Grand Theft Auto Online, a sprawling, open-world video game best known for fast cars, chaotic and often criminal missions, and player-driven mayhem. Amid the…

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HALFTIME REPORT: My Thinkiest Books of 2025 (so far) 33:40

5M ago33:40

33:40

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! The last few years I've been detailing the books that have impacted me the most while putting the podcast together. Here's the "thinkiest" books I've read of late. Here's the list: 10. The Land Between, by Jeff Manion 9. Saving Monticello, by Mark Leepson 8. The Dragon and the George, by Ge…

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CHAOS: The un-God. "A Man of Iron." Rioting. Twister. 18:58

5M ago18:58

18:58

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! As an admitted control freak, I must say – I hate chaos. And I think you should hate it too. Bad things happen in the absence of order. This week we’ll discuss chaos as the antithesis to God – the un-God, if you will; a president who defined himself by a set of rules instead of a set of cir…

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GUARANTEES: Down payment. "The Blessed Life." Faithfulness and Mondays. Payday. 18:25

6M ago18:25

18:25

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! They say there are no guarantees in life. That’s not quite true. God offers us guarantees, both in this life and in the next. This week we’ll discuss the assurances God has given His people and whether they come with strings attached; the guaranteed financial results God either does or does…

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Simon Russell Beale on Shakespeare, from Hamlet to Titus 37:40

6M ago37:40

37:40

Called “the finest actor of his generation,” Sir Simon Russell Beale has played just about everyone in Shakespeare’s canon—Hamlet, Lear, Macbeth, Falstaff, Malvolio, Iago—and most recently, Titus Andronicus, for the Royal Shakespeare Company. In this episode, Beale reflects on the Shakespearean roles that have shaped his career and how his approach…

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FEMINISM: A helper. "What Would Cleopatra Do?" The clock and the wall. Lumberjills. 19:27

6M ago19:27

19:27

Register your feedback here. Always good to hear from you! OK, I haven’t had any death threats lately, so what do you say I push the envelope a bit? This week we’ll discuss Biblical teaching on what a woman is, what a woman’s role should be, what happens when women push back against that, and who you should be listening to on the subject. Please ke…