PODCAST · religion
The Semi-Seminarian
by Pastor Jim Wilhelm
Welcome to The Semi-Seminarian—where we talk about the Bible like grown-ups. Maybe you were taught the Bible as a child… or by folks who never really moved past children’s church themselves. That might’ve left you with a Vacation Bible School version of scripture in a world that demands something deeper. This podcast is for the ones asking honest questions, carrying quiet wounds, and still hoping there’s more. Around here, we wrestle with the text, laugh when we can, and tell the truth even when it stings. Because the gospel is better than you were told—and you’re not alone in wanting to believe that again.
Episodes
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The Most Dangerous Question in the Book of Acts | Acts 28:17-31
Why does the book of Acts end without an ending? No trial before Caesar, no verdict, no word on how Paul died. Luke stops on one Greek word, and it answers a question a stranger asked back in Acts 8. This is the final message in our verse-by-verse series through Acts: Acts 28:17-31, Paul under...
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Paul Survived the Shipwreck. Then a Snake Bit Him. (Acts 28 Sermon)
Paul survived 14 nights in a storm and a shipwreck off Malta. Then, while he was gathering firewood for everybody else, a viper came out of the kindling and bit him. The islanders had him figured out in about four seconds: he must be a murderer, and Justice finally caught up with him. When he...
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God Never Promised to Save the Ship Acts 27
Paul's shipwreck in Acts 27 throws everything overboard: cargo, tackle, the wheat, the anchors, the ship itself. Everything but the people. "All hope that we would be saved was now taken away." Luke wrote that, and Luke was on the boat. Then a prisoner stood up in the middle of sailors, soldiers,...
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He Could Have Walked Free |Regret, Grace & the Road You're On (Acts 27)
Paul could have walked free. A king said so. Then they put him on a boat anyway. A sermon for anyone who keeps driving back to the intersection where it all went wrong. In Acts 26:30–27:12, the hearing is over, the royals have swept out, and the one expert in the room admits there's no charge....
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King Agrippa ND the Question He Tried to Dodge Acts 26
King Agrippa knew the prophets. Paul knew he knew them. So the prisoner looked at the king and asked the question Agrippa never directly answered: “King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets?” This is where Acts 25–26 gets dangerous—not for people who have never heard the Bible, but for people who...
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Acts 23 How Paul Got Out Alive
Acts 23:12–35 records one of the wildest rescue stories in the Book of Acts: more than forty men swear not to eat or drink until Paul is dead—but Paul’s unnamed nephew overhears the murder plot, and everything starts moving. In this Acts 23 sermon and Bible study, Pastor Jim Wilhelm follows Paul...
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TAKE COURAGE. YOU’RE NOT FINISHED YET.
Paul spends the day preaching resurrection. That night, the risen Jesus stands beside him and says: “Take courage.” In this Acts 23:1–11 Bible study, Paul stands before the Sanhedrin, gets struck in the mouth at the command of the high priest Ananias, watches the council erupt over the…
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They Listened Until Paul Said THIS | Acts 22
Paul tells the crowd his whole story—and they listen. The Damascus Road. The voice of Jesus. Ananias. The healing. The Temple vision. They listen to all of it. Then Paul says one word. Gentiles. And the crowd explodes. In this Acts 22 sermon, we follow the Apostle Paul onto the Roman stairs in...
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THE PRISON OPENED. THE CHURCH DIDN’T. | Peter’s Wild Escape in Acts 12
Peter escapes a Roman prison in Acts 12 — chains fall, guards sleep, and an iron gate opens by itself. Then he gets to the church… and they nearly leave him outside knocking. Acts 12 contains one of the strangest, funniest, and most painfully human scenes in the Book of Acts. James is dead. Herod...
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WHO TOLD YOU THAT? | Acts 21 Bible Study: When Rumor Turns Into Violence
Paul finally reaches Jerusalem—but before he can speak for himself, the rumors have already arrived. In Acts 21, Paul is accused, dragged from the Temple, beaten by a mob, and nearly killed by people who are certain they already know who he is. In this episode of The Semi-Seminarian, Pastor Jim...
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Paul’s Last Goodbye to Ephesus Acts 20:13–38 Bible Study
Paul knows this is goodbye. In Acts 20:13–38, Paul summons the Ephesian elders to Miletus for one of the most emotional scenes in the Book of Acts — his final farewell to the church he spent three years teaching, serving, warning, and loving. The ship is waiting. Jerusalem lies ahead. Paul knows...
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A Boy Fell 3 Stories During Paul’s Sermon—Then This Happened | Acts 20
A young man named Eutychus falls three stories during Paul’s sermon in Acts 20:7–12. But the real story begins after they bring him back alive. Paul preached until midnight. Eutychus fell from the third-story window. Paul went downstairs, embraced him, and declared, “His life is in him.” Then the...
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The Gospel Cost Them Money — Then Ephesus Exploded | Acts 19
“Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” In Acts 19:23–41, the gospel reaches deep enough into Ephesus that it begins changing how people spend their money—and Demetrius the silversmith notices. Paul hasn’t organized a boycott. Nobody is attacking the temple of Artemis. People simply encounter the...
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Acts 19 Explained: Sons of Sceva & the Faith Darkness Didn’t Recognize
Acts 19 brings Paul to Ephesus, where twelve disciples receive the Holy Spirit, the sons of Sceva try to use Jesus’ name as a formula, and believers burn a fortune in magical texts. In this Acts 19 Bible study, Pastor Jim Wilhelm follows Luke’s remarkable contrast between incomplete faith and...
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Apollos Was Right—But There Was More Acts 18:24–28
Apollos knew Scripture. He preached Jesus accurately. And Priscilla and Aquila still pulled him aside and showed him there was more. In Acts 18:24–28, Paul leaves Ephesus—but the gospel does not leave with him. Luke stays behind with Apollos, Priscilla, and Aquila, and suddenly we see an early...
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Paul Thought He Was Alone in Corinth He Was Wrong Acts 18
Paul Thought He Was Alone in Corinth — He Was Wrong | Acts 18 YouTube Description Paul walks into Corinth exhausted, rejected, and afraid — and discovers that God was already there. In this Acts 18 Bible study, we follow Paul into Corinth, where he meets Aquila and Priscilla, finds unexpected...
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TO AN UNKNOWN GOD: Paul Found What Athens Couldn’t Name Acts 17
Athens had a god for everything. Then Paul found one altar that admitted the whole system had a hole in it: “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.” In Acts 17:16–34, the Apostle Paul walks into Athens with no shared Bible, no Abraham, no Moses, no prophets—and somehow preaches Jesus anyway. Standing before the...
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Acts 17: Why the Bereans Checked Paul | Don’t Take My Word for It
Acts 17 asks a dangerous question: What if strong faith is willing to check the preacher? Paul opens the Scriptures in Thessalonica and Berea—but the Bereans do something remarkable: they examine the text for themselves. In this Acts 17 Bible study, Pastor Jim Wilhelm follows Paul and Silas from...
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Before the Earthquake | Lydia, Paul & the First Church in Philippi (Acts 16)
Before the earthquake shook Philippi, before Paul and Silas sang in prison, before the jail doors flew open, Acts 16 gives us Lydia—a woman praying beside a river whose heart the Lord opened and whose home became a place for the gospel to live. In this sermon on Acts 16:11–15, Pastor Jim Wilhelm...
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Paul and Silas in Prison: The Jailbreak That Didn’t Happen | Acts 16
Paul and Silas are beaten, chained, and locked inside a Philippian prison in Acts 16:25–34. Then an earthquake opens every door—but the greatest miracle is that nobody runs. At midnight, Paul and Silas are praying and singing hymns while the other prisoners listen. Suddenly, the prison…
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The Fight That Split the Apostles | Useful to Me
Paul and Barnabas helped write the letter that saved Gentile Christianity — then split apart over one man's failure. This is the Bible study on Acts 15:36-41 and the apostle Paul verse "useful to me." Right after the Jerusalem Council settles the biggest theological question in the early church —...
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Acts 15 Bible Study: Who Put You in Charge of Grace? | Just As They Will
Acts 15 asks a question the church has never fully escaped: Who put us in charge of grace? In this Acts 15 Bible study and sermon, Pastor Jim Wilhelm examines the Jerusalem Council, Peter’s defense of Gentile believers, James’s use of Amos 9, and the church’s decision not to burden people whom…
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The Long Way Home | Acts 14 Bible Study on Paul Stoned at Lystra
Why did Paul return to the city where he had just been stoned? This Acts 14 Bible study follows Paul and Barnabas through Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe as they face opposition, false worship, persecution, suffering, and the difficult work of strengthening new churches. In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas...
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Acts 13 Bible Study: Paul’s First Missionary Journey Begins | The Word Moves On
The gospel has left home. In this Acts 13 Bible study, we begin Paul's First Missionary Journey and witness one of the greatest turning points in the Book of Acts. After years of the Holy Spirit preparing the church, Barnabas and Saul are finally set apart and sent from the church at Antioch to...
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Acts 13 Bible Study: Paul’s First Missionary Journey | Set Apart for Me
Acts 13 begins Paul’s first missionary journey as the Holy Spirit calls the church at Antioch to set apart Barnabas and Saul for the work of spreading the gospel. But this Acts 13 Bible study is not only about missionaries leaving home. It is about a church learning to open its hands. Throughout...
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You Ate With Them?! | Acts 11 Bible Study on Peter, Cornelius & Gentile Inclusion
What happens when the Holy Spirit moves faster than the church? This Acts 11 Bible study examines Peter’s return to Jerusalem after the conversion of Cornelius and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Gentiles. The Jerusalem church has already heard the news—but their first accusation is not...
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Acts 10 Explained: Peter, Cornelius, and the Day the Church Opened Its Doors to the World
Acts 10 is one of the most important turning points in the Book of Acts. Peter enters the house of Cornelius, the Holy Spirit falls on Gentiles, and the early church is forced to recognize that God’s grace has already crossed every boundary they thought still mattered. In this Acts 10 Bible…
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She Opened Her Eyes!! | Acts 9:31–43 Bible Study on Tabitha, Peter, Healing & the Church Breathing Again
Acts 9 does not end where most people think it does. After Saul’s dramatic conversion on the Damascus Road, after Ananias lays hands on him, after Barnabas vouches for him in Jerusalem, the church sends Saul home to Tarsus — and then Luke turns the camera away from the famous convert. Acts…
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Basket Case! Saul Escapes Damascus in a Basket | Acts 9 Sermon on Paul, Grace & the Early Church
In Acts 9:19–31, Saul has been healed, baptized, and filled with the Holy Spirit — but now the church has to decide whether it believes Jesus. This episode of The Semi-Seminarian Podcast, “Basket Case! Saul Escapes Damascus in a Basket,” follows Saul after the Damascus Road conversion. The light...
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Boy, You’re Late: Jesus Stops Saul on the Damascus Road | Acts 9 Bible Study
In Acts 9:1–19, Saul of Tarsus is on the road to Damascus, carrying letters from the high priest and breathing threats against the followers of Jesus. But Saul is not early. Saul is not in charge. Saul is late. By the time Saul gets to Damascus, the Holy Spirit has already outrun him. The gospel...
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What’s To Stop Me? Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch Revealed | Acts 8, Baptism, Samaria & Saul
Before Saul ever reaches the Damascus Road, the Spirit is already moving. In Acts 8, Stephen has just been stoned, Saul is ravaging the church, and the believers are scattered from Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria. But what looks like persecution becomes proclamation. Saul thinks he is stomping…
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Acts 7 Explained: Stephen’s Trial, the Sanhedrin, and the Sermon They Stopped Listening To
What were they trying to stop hearing? In Acts 7, Stephen stands before the Sanhedrin accused of speaking against Moses, the law, the temple, and the customs. But Stephen does not offer a polite defense. He tells Israel’s story back to Israel’s leaders — Abraham, Joseph, Moses, the wilderness…
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Acts 6:1-15 Bible Study | The Food Pantry Catches Fire — Stephen, the Widows & the Spirit
The Food Pantry Catches Fire — a verse-by-verse Bible study through Acts 6:1-15, where a complaint about a soup line becomes the moment the early church catches fire. This is The Semi-Seminarian: a digital church bell for the exiles, the backsliders, and anyone listening alone in the dark who...
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Prison Break in Acts 5: Angels Don’t Respect Religious Paperwork | Peter, Apostles & Holy Spirit
In Acts 5:17–42, Peter and the apostles are arrested, locked in prison, and ordered to stop preaching in the name of Jesus. But during the night, an angel of the Lord opens the prison doors and sends them right back to the temple to speak “all the words of this life.” This sermon explores the...
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Acts 5 Explained: Peter’s Shadow, Healing, and Mercy in the Street
What really happened when people laid the sick in the streets so Peter’s shadow might fall on them? In Acts 5:12–16, Luke gives us one of the strangest and most powerful scenes in the New Testament. The early church is gathered in Solomon’s Portico after the terrifying story of Ananias and...
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Why Did Ananias and Sapphira Die? Acts 5 Explained | The Choice Is Yours
What really happened to Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5? Was this story about money, generosity, church discipline, hypocrisy, or something deeper? In this episode of The Semi-Seminarian Podcast, Pastor Jim Wilhelm walks through Acts 4:32–5:11 and the terrifying story of Ananias and Sapphira — not...
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Still Knocking: Peter’s Prison Break, Rhoda’s Witness, and the Church That Almost Didn’t Open the Door | Acts 12 Bible Study
In Acts 12, Peter is chained between two soldiers, guarded by sixteen men, locked behind an iron gate, and scheduled for execution by Herod. James has already been killed. The church is grieving, praying, and bracing for another funeral. Then heaven interrupts. An angel wakes Peter up, his chains...
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The Greek Word That Changes Acts 4 Forever | Why Peter "Could Not" Stop (Boldness, Pentecost & ου δυναμεθα)
Peter didn't say they WON'T stop talking about Jesus. The text says they CAN'T. In Acts 4, hauled before the same court that killed his Lord, Peter answers with two Greek words — ou dynametha — "we are not able." And that one shift, from won't to can't, cracks the whole passage open. Boldness was...
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He Sat at God's Door Every Day and Never Walked In | The Beautiful Gate | Acts 3:1-10
A lame man spent his entire life at the door of the temple — close enough to hear worship, close enough to watch everyone else walk through — and never went inside. Then Peter stopped. Most people don't. Acts 3:1-10. What if the thing keeping you outside isn't what you think it is? What if you've...
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Pentecost Was Never Just About Tongues | Shavuot, Firstfruits & What Acts 2 Actually Says
What is Pentecost really about? This Pentecost Sunday sermon on Acts 2:1-21 goes deeper than tongues of fire and a rushing wind — all the way down to the Jewish harvest festival of Shavuot, the meaning of firstfruits, and why the Holy Spirit fell on that specific day in that specific room with...
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Ruth Explained: No Bread in Bethlehem | Ruth 1 Bible Study on Naomi, Moab & Pentecost
Ruth Explained: No Bread in Bethlehem is a Ruth 1 Bible study about Naomi, Ruth, Moab, Bethlehem, famine, and the surprising way God brings provision through the outsider. Most Bible studies on Ruth begin with the beautiful words, “Where you go, I will go.” And they are beautiful. But Ruth 1…
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"Just Say the Word" — Matthew 8 and the Centurion Who Stunned Jesus
What if the greatest faith Jesus praised in Matthew 8 did not come from the disciples, the synagogue, or the covenant insiders, but from a Roman centurion standing in occupied Galilee? Welcome to The Semi-Seminarian — Pastor Jim Wilhelm walking slowly through Scripture for those listening alone…
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Rahab Explained: The Spy Report That Was Actually a Sermon | Joshua 2 Bible Study
What if the spies didn’t bring back military intelligence from Jericho, but a sermon? This Joshua 2 Bible study looks at Rahab and the spies, the scarlet cord, the walls of Jericho, and the confession of faith that changed Israel’s report. Most Bible studies on Rahab in the Bible focus on the red...
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Crumbs for the Dogs: The Syrophoenician Woman, Jesus, and the Table That Wouldn’t Run Out | Mark 7
What if the Syrophoenician woman did not argue Jesus into mercy? What if she did not outsmart Him, outlast Him, or pass some hidden test? What if she simply recognized something from the floor that everyone at the table had missed? In Mark 7:24–30, Jesus enters the region of Tyre and tries to...
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Do Not Go and Do Likewise | Tamar, Judah, Genesis 38, and the Woman Who Kept the Line
Genesis 38 is one of those Bible stories people tend to skip, soften, or explain away. Tamar disguises herself, Judah fails his obligation, and by the end of the chapter, the patriarch who was ready to condemn her has to speak the truth out loud: “She is more righteous than I.” In this Wednesday...
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Where Are the Nine? | Luke 17, the Samaritan Leper, and the Outsider Who Saw Jesus First
What if the story of the ten lepers in Luke 17:11–19 is not mainly a lesson about saying “thank you”? Most of us have heard this passage preached as a simple message about gratitude: ten men were healed, only one came back, so be thankful. And gratitude is certainly there. But Jesus does not ask,...
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Who Really Named God? Hagar, El Roi & Genesis 16 | The Woman Who Named God Bible Study
Who really named God? In this Wednesday night Bible study from First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Cushing, Oklahoma, we walk slowly into Genesis 16:1–16, the story of Hagar, Sarai, Abram, the wilderness road to Shur, and the well that came to be called Beer Lahai Roi: The Well of the...
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The Basket: Firstfruits, Shavuot & Pentecost | Deuteronomy 26 Bible Study on Trust Before the Harvest
What does it mean to bring God the first before you know whether there will be enough? In this Bible study from First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Cushing, Oklahoma, we walk slowly through Deuteronomy 26:1–11, the passage where Israel is commanded to bring a basket of firstfruits...
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Stop Protecting God | The Untold Story of Uzzah, the Ark, and the Mistake We Still Make (2 Samuel 6 Bible Study)
What if the story of Uzzah isn’t about irreverence… but about misplaced reverence? In this midweek Bible study, we take a fresh, deeply honest look at one of the most unsettling passages in Scripture—2 Samuel 6:1–11. A man reaches out to steady the Ark of God… and dies. For generations, this…
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The One Not in the Room | Doubting Thomas Reconsidered | John 20:24–29 Bible Study | Faith, Doubt & Resurrection Truth
What if Thomas wasn’t the doubter we’ve always been told he was? In this episode, we step into one of the most misunderstood stories in the Gospel of John—John 20:24–29—and discover something deeper, sharper, and far more personal than a lesson about “having more faith.” Because here’s the truth:...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Welcome to The Semi-Seminarian—where we talk about the Bible like grown-ups. Maybe you were taught the Bible as a child… or by folks who never really moved past children’s church themselves. That might’ve left you with a Vacation Bible School version of scripture in a world that demands something deeper. This podcast is for the ones asking honest questions, carrying quiet wounds, and still hoping there’s more. Around here, we wrestle with the text, laugh when we can, and tell the truth even when it stings. Because the gospel is better than you were told—and you’re not alone in wanting to believe that again.
HOSTED BY
Pastor Jim Wilhelm
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Semi-Seminarian have?
The Semi-Seminarian currently has 247 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Semi-Seminarian about?
Welcome to The Semi-Seminarian—where we talk about the Bible like grown-ups. Maybe you were taught the Bible as a child… or by folks who never really moved past children’s church themselves. That might’ve left you with a Vacation Bible School version of scripture in a world that demands something...
How often does The Semi-Seminarian release new episodes?
The Semi-Seminarian publishes regularly with 247 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to The Semi-Seminarian?
You can listen to The Semi-Seminarian on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Semi-Seminarian?
The Semi-Seminarian is created and hosted by Pastor Jim Wilhelm.
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