Womanist Bible Talk: A Podcast for Womanish Bible Readers and Friends

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Dr. Margaret Aymer and I interview Dr. Mitzi Smith to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse, “Race, Gender, and the Politics of ‘Sass’: Reading Mark 7:24–30 through a Womanist Lens of Intersectionality and Inter(con)textuality.” What does women's speech, Sandra Bland, and the Syro-Phoenician woman have in common? Listen to this episode to learn how "talking back" or "sass" is a form of resistance and agency for marginalized women.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I interview Dr. Cheryl Anderson to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse, “The Song of Songs: Redeeming Gender Constructions in the Age of AIDS.” Can the book of erotic poetry also known as the Song of Solomon redeem harmful gender constructions in Gen 2-3? Can the Black church reinterpret this passage more positively to help prevent the spread of HIV in the age of AIDS? Listen to this episode to find out. 

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I interview Dr. Shively T. J. Smith to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse, “One More Time with Assata on My Mind: A Womanist Rereading of the Escape to Egypt (Matt 2:13-23) in Dialogue with an African American Woman Fugitive Narrative.” We discuss the ahistorical depictions of Egypt in art and literature, the Jewish diaspora in Egypt that shield Joseph, Mary, and Jesus in juxtaposition with the story of fugitive Assata Shakur.

Send us Fan MailThis episode Dr. Valerie Bridgeman joins me to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse, “‘I Will Make Boys their Princes’: A Womanist Reading of Children in the Book of Isaiah.” We discuss the good, bad, and ugly of the parent/child metaphor in Isaiah, rebellious Israel, and parental discipline of children.

Send us Fan MailGuest co-host, Dr. Mitzi Smith and I, interview Dr.  Bridgett Green, to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible, "'Nobody's Free Until Everybody's Free': Exploring Gender and Class Injustice in a Story about Women (Luke 18:15-17)." Dr. Green broadens the world of infants in the Greco Roman world for our listeners as she interprets Luke 18:15-17 through the key themes of Human Rights Activist Fannie Lou Hamer's famous 1971 speech. Jesus’ blessing of the infants in the story upends the sociopolitical power dynamics in Jesus' inner circle.

Send us Fan MailGuest co-host, Dr. Mitzi Smith and I, interview Dr. Margaret Aymer to discuss her article in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible, “Outrageous, Audacious, Courageous, Willful: Reading the Enslaved Girl of Acts 12.” Dr. Aymer discusses the intersection of race/ethnicity, gender, immigration and slavery in the ancient world. Dr. Aymer explains what it means to "read darkness" and how "darkness readers" interpret a story live the enslaved girl, Rhoda.

Send us Fan MailDr. Sharon Jacob and Dr. Jennifer Kaalund join guest co-host, the Rev. Dr. Mitzi Smith, and me in discussing their article "Flowing from Breast to Breast: An Examination of Dis/placed Motherhood in African American and Indian Wet Nurses" in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse. Follow along as Dr. Jacob and Dr. Kaalund weave together the stories of exploited African American and South Asian wet nurses with the stories of powerful maternal figures from Christian and Hindu sacred texts, the woman clothed with the sun and the goddess Kali.

Send us Fan MailGuest co-host, the Rev. Dr. Mitzi Smith joins me in interviewing Dr. Stacy Davis for her article “The Invisible Women: Numbers 30 and the Politics of Singleness in Africana Communities" in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse. Listen to Dr. Davis discuss vows made by single, never-married biblical women, the invisibility of single women in the ancient world, contemporary single, never-married Africana Christian women, sex and the church. 

Send us Fan MailGay L. Byron was the co-host of Womanist Bible Talk: A Podcast for Womanish Bible Readers and Their Friends. Gay died suddenly and unexpectedly December 6, 2023.  The Rev. Canon Hugh Page and the Rev. Dr. Margaret Aymer joined me to pay tribute to this womanist scholar, researcher, teacher, preacher, and friend.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, guest, Marlene Underwood, discusses her essay, "'Battered Love': Abuse in the Book of Job" in Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse edited by Gay L. Byron and Vanessa Lovelace. Marlene discusses the treatment of Job by the deity through the lens of intimate partner violence. Learn how an upright and blameless man like Job lose everything but his life and why. Gay Byron and Vanessa Lovelace are your hosts.

Send us Fan MailIn this inaugural episode, hosts, Vanessa Lovelace and Gay Byron, explain how this podcast grew from their volume of essays featuring an ensemble of Old Testament and New Testament women scholars of color titled Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse to bring those voices to life in interviews with the contributors. Gay and Vanessa introduce listeners to womanist biblical interpretation, how it came about, and the possibilities for reading the Bible from the lived experiences of contemporary women of color from different walks of life and various socio-economic backgrounds.