Cruciform Conversations is a space where we pursue wholeness and healing through the self-giving love of Christ. This podcast features both independent conversations and seasons hosted in partnership with like-minded organizations. The first season of the podcast, titled "In Conversation With...", was produced in partnership with the Ideos Institute. <br/><br/><a href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">drgregarthur.substack.com</a>
In Conversation With..... An Ideos Institute/ (Re)union Project Podcast
Claim This Podcastby Greg Arthur
5.0(4 reviews)
47 episodes
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Podcast Overview
Cruciform Conversations is a space where we pursue wholeness and healing through the self-giving love of Christ. This podcast features both independent conversations and seasons hosted in partnership with like-minded organizations. The first season of the podcast, titled "In Conversation With...", was produced in partnership with the Ideos Institute. <br/><br/><a href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">drgregarthur.substack.com</a>
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Publishing Since
9/5/2024
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Recent Episodes
July 7, 2026
Understanding the Cruciform God
<p>“You sure use the word cruciform a lot, Greg. Why? And also, what does it mean?”</p><p>If you’ve ever had that thought as a reader of this Substack or podcast listener, here is a conversation for you!</p><p>It was such a delight to sit down with Dr. Michael Gorman recently. Dr. Gorman’s work first introduced me to the idea of cruciformity (inspiring the name of this Substack and podcast), and his biblical scholarship continues to prove incredibly valuable to my understanding of God's nature and what it means for us to participate in God's life and mission. Our conversation begins with a basic exploration of what cruciform means, and then we wander through scripture, diving into a biblical theology of cruciformity.</p><p>“But staying with John, the word became flesh and dwelt among us. Well, who is that word? So the word is Jesus Christ. Well, where was that word? That word was with the Father, that word reveals the Father. No one has ever seen the Father. The Son, who is the eternally begotten one, who’s with the Father from the beginning, he has revealed him. And in John 1:18, there is a really interesting word there.</p><p>God’s son has explained God, and the Greek word there is the word from which we get the word exegesis. So, in other words, exegesis is the word for the explanation of a text, right? God’s son, Christ, is the self-exegesis, the self-manifestation, the self-explanation of God. </p><p>So when we see Christ. We need to see Christ’s love as God’s love, Christ’s self-giving character as the character of God.</p><p>Dr. Gorman helps us understand how cruciformity, as a framework, invites us to grasp the empathic and self-giving nature of God, develop a beautiful theology of atonement, and consider how we live out our faith in community and ministry to the world. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and feedback!</p><p>Resources that we mentioned in the conversation: </p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Cruciformity-Pauls-Narrative-Spirituality-Anniversary/dp/0802879128/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3E7J4K8AFZUZV&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.r87tPktzpoJOx165zoQcSvwo6bqgEfO6BJOu-qFG9JrW5IYbunQvNt-FvcpLdE3K46GlehxN_Mf-ACQHYF5CXwmxc2s8gNd83UAJbBnaI_-Rp-D2YqHXY8I_AyDMQE2VHA1GsARxyS1VHI1TOm55hkNWaDSZaNqFX3QQE6a_rwXIB6spNm1V8jK2Cuht6qz1pkjFJbMBvFCGyx3dfSpEIAWLHxmE3ByFqxLJ0JiuJ9gblig8NtsftnTmFrPgrULcqG2rXJDwxFg_ZTR9dAVq1z75jM4PwLHtN8a7K-2LXuQ.rzxdPQNVUfSpEIHIvhabQRthU5uyj5ZB3sUyKbWQNzI&dib_tag=se&keywords=michael+gorman+books&qid=1783427368&sprefix=michael+gorman%2Caps%2C119&sr=8-2"><strong>Cruciformity: Paul’s Narrative Spirituality of the Cross</strong></a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Reading-Revelation-Responsibly-Followingthe-Creation-ebook/dp/B01MTC8L5P/ref=books_amazonstores_desktop_mfs_aufs_ap_sc_dsk_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=jU8cx&content-id=amzn1.sym.9c9a049f-252a-49d9-a8c2-e300a1663200&pf_rd_p=9c9a049f-252a-49d9-a8c2-e300a1663200&pf_rd_r=147-2712412-9591218&pd_rd_wg=a1VXv&pd_rd_r=489af952-a4fa-4342-9bc2-0510c674f592"><strong>Reading Revelation Responsibly</strong></a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Inhabiting-Cruciform-God-Justification-Soteriology-ebook/dp/B0039808FM/ref=books_amazonstores_desktop_mfs_aufs_ap_sc_dsk_0?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=jU8cx&pd_rd_wg=a1VXv&pd_rd_r=489af952-a4fa-4342-9bc2-0510c674f592&content-id=amzn1.sym.9c9a049f-252a-49d9-a8c2-e300a1663200"><strong>Inhabiting the Cruciform God</strong></a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Paul-John-Harmony-Theological-Explorations/dp/1540969894/ref=books_amazonstores_desktop_mfs_aufs_ap_sc_dsk_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=jU8cx&content-id=amzn1.sym.9c9a049f-252a-49d9-a8c2-e300a1663200&pf_rd_p=9c9a049f-252a-49d9-a8c2-e300a1663200&pf_rd_r=147-2712412-9591218&pd_rd_wg=a1VXv&pd_rd_r=489af952-a4fa-4342-9bc2-0510c674f592"><strong>Paul and John in Harmony</strong></a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">drgregarthur.substack.com</a>
June 5, 2026
Spiritual Revival or Church Decline? What is really happening on the front lines of ministry?
<p>(This podcast is produced in partnership with <a target="_blank" href="http://www.futureoffaith.org">Future of Faith</a>, where I contribute as the Ministry Practitioner Coordinator and as a Researcher. Please check out Future of Faith, follow the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/@FutureofFaith">YouTube Channel</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.futureoffaith.org/newsletter">sign up for the best newsletter around</a>!) </p><p>I want to be very distinct about what we’re seeing is not a movement away from faith. They’re believing in other things; they’re believing less, and their confidence in the church and church leaders has declined.</p><p>And so to kind of qualify that, they’re sharing the internet with us; they see the fall of pastors, they see people being arrested; they see harm coming from people who profess to know God and love God…</p><p>They’re looking for faith that feels real to them, and so our hope is that in living out what it really means to be a believer and a follower of Christ is that they will be exposed to more examples of what that really looks like. True revival only comes with repentance and I do believe that there are leaders of our generation that need to take a moment to say we repent for the thing that we’ve made it. - Keturah Boston</p><p>Sorry that I have been so quiet the past two months! My work for Future of Faith continues to expand, and I have been helping with some qualitative research projects. But a few weeks ago, I sat down with our amazing team of Ministry Practitioners to record this conversation. </p><p>There are very different narratives going around about the state of the church. Some are trumpeting signs of revival. Some are recounting their celebrations of revival. Others are pointing to the steady and steep decline in church participation. With all of that going on, we wanted to stop, pay attention to our unique and diverse ministry contexts, and bear witness to the ways we see God at work in them. Find out more about the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.futureoffaith.org/aboutus">Ministry Practitioners</a> and the team at Future of Faith. </p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">drgregarthur.substack.com</a>
April 16, 2026
How do the stories and experiences of trafficking survivors inform sexual ethics?
<p>(To stay up to date on the podcast, you can subscribe here on Substack or find us over on <a target="_blank" href="https://open.spotify.com/show/30O13fMayaKIL7KfFx1v18?si=5CjnMeAoSNq0Ru1TFkwB5A">Spotify</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cruciform-conversations/id1766638594">Apple</a>, or <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/@cruciformconversations">YouTube</a>. Please subscribe and leave a review!)</p><p>Episode Summary:</p><p>In this insightful conversation, Dr. Courtney Skiera-Vaughn shares her extensive experience in cross-cultural trauma, human trafficking, and sexual ethics. She explores how cultural perspectives shape our understanding of trauma, the myths surrounding human trafficking, and the importance of humility and contextual understanding in addressing these complex issues.</p><p></p><p>What I saw there (in Uganda), as well as what I have learned in a variety of other cultures, is that in these cultures that are more embodied, many of the trauma symptoms show up somatically. So they are physical symptoms, not emotional. So it’s going to be headaches that are so bad you can’t see. They are stomach aches that are not explained. It is these these other types of things, those are the primary, not the emotional. </p><p>And with my dissertation that I did looking at how stress and trauma are conceptualized within Uganda, who does not have, they do not have vernacular words for stress or trauma. A lot of my participants were saying, in general, the quote was, " You in the US separate who the human is. You separate the body from the emotions and the mind and the spirit. In Africa, we are one, we are whole.” </p><p>We have to recognize that 85% of the research we conduct is conducted in the West. Less than 5 % of research is conducted with a non-English speaker as a researcher. - Dr. Courtney Skiera-Vaughn</p><p></p><p>My journey to understand sexual ethics took a marked detour when I first encountered sex trafficking survivors. Hearing their stories, studying their experiences, and growing to understand the larger forces that created their vulnerability sent me on a 20-year journey. This series on Cruciform Sexuality, and much of my ministry, was born out of an encounter that took place when trafficking became real to me for the first time. </p><p>One of my beloved companions on this journey, whose research, co-labor, and friendship have deeply impacted me, is my friend Dr. Courtney Skiera Vaughn. I was delighted to sit down with her this week to record a conversation about her research, wrestle together with some of the hard contextual questions regarding sexual ethics, and to reflect on our own journeys. </p><p>As with all conversations in this series, we dive into difficult subject matter around sex trafficking and exploitation. So be aware of your own health, needs, and limits. </p><p>In this episode, we talk about polygamy, and <a target="_blank" href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com/p/what-about-polygamy-a-case-study">I reference this case study I wrote for this series. </a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.courtneyskieravaughn.com/">Connect with Courtney</a></p><p></p><p></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://drgregarthur.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">drgregarthur.substack.com</a>
47 total episodes available
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