Who Decided Children Mattered

Who Decided Children Mattered

In the Roman world, leaving an unwanted newborn at the base of a public column was legal, common, and considered a reasonable household decision. Aristotle endorsed infanticide for weak children. Seneca described it as rational household management. The Spartans institutionalized it. The idea that a child’s life has inherent worth; that it cannot be assigned or revoked by a father, a state, or a council of elders, is not ancient wisdom. It is a specific invention. It has an origin. This episode traces how one religious movement changed the legal, cultural, and moral status of children across the Western world, built the first orphanages, lobbied the first child protection laws, and generated the intuitions about childhood that modern secular culture now treats as self-evident. The invention of childhood is one of the most consequential and least told stories in Western history. Someone had to say it first. This is who, and why it mattered. Theology Made is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Theology Made at substack.theologymade.com/subscribe [https://substack.theologymade.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Woman the Church Couldn’t Ignore

In the twelfth century, a nun with no formal authority, no official platform, and no institutional power began writing down what she saw. Kings wrote back. Emperors wrote back. The pope read her work aloud to a room full of bishops and told her to keep going. Hildegard of Bingen shouldn’t have had the influence she had. By every rule her world recognized, she was outside the circle of people who got to speak. She had no theological degree, no political office, no inherited title. She had visions she’d been quietly carrying since childhood—and eventually, she stopped keeping them to herself. What followed was one of the strangest careers in church history: composer, scientist, preacher, prophet, and one of the most widely consulted voices in medieval Europe. This episode is about Hildegard—but it’s really about influence. How it moves. Where it comes from. And why the people who aren’t supposed to be heard are sometimes the ones nobody can stop listening to. Theology Made explores the ideas, figures, and moments in Christian history that still have something to say. New episodes every week. Theology Made is a listener/ reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Theology Made at substack.theologymade.com/subscribe [https://substack.theologymade.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Faust: The Story That Predicated Modern Life

Five hundred years ago, Europe told a story about a man who sold his soul for unlimited knowledge, unlimited power, and a life without limits. We turned him into a hero. This episode traces the Faust legend from its historical roots in the Holy Roman Empire to Christopher Marlowe’s stage, to Goethe’s radical reinvention of the character — and then straight into the present. Because the Faustian bargain didn’t end in the 16th century. It just changed address. Ray Kurzweil wants to live forever. Peter Thiel is transfusing young blood. Silicon Valley is building what it openly calls a god. And the ancient heresy the early church spent centuries arguing against is back — this time wearing a lab coat. This is an episode about the deal modern civilization is making. What it’s trading. What it’s losing. Theology Made is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Theology Made at substack.theologymade.com/subscribe [https://substack.theologymade.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Why Smart People Still Fall For Cults

You think you’d never fall for a cult. Most people do. But the truth is, cults don’t prey on stupidity, they rely on something far more dangerous: intelligence, commitment, and the human need for certainty. This piece explores why smart people aren’t immune to manipulation, how belief systems become self-sealing, and why the real threat isn’t deception from the outside; but the stories we learn to defend from within. Theology Made is a listener/reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. At 18 I decided I wanted to be a pastor. There was one problem. While I grew up in church, I didn’t have a clear understanding of how I thought about God. So, I spent 20 years pursuing that. This framework is the result of those 20 years. You can get it in 40 minutes. The Theology Made Workshop: https://theologymade.mykajabi.com/offers/RqeAzfaY [https://theologymade.mykajabi.com/offers/RqeAzfaY] Get full access to Theology Made at substack.theologymade.com/subscribe [https://substack.theologymade.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Science vs Religion Is a Myth? What Darwin Actually Changed

In 1859, Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species—and many believed it marked the end of faith. Science had won. Religion had lost. But that story isn’t history. It’s a myth. In this episode, we break down the real relationship between science and Christianity—unpacking the famous Darwin debate, the origins of the “science vs religion” narrative, and why historians now reject it. You’ll discover: * Why the Darwin vs Christianity conflict is largely invented * The truth behind the 1860 Oxford debate * Famous Christian scientists you’ve never heard about * What Darwin actually challenged (and what he didn’t) * Why evolution doesn’t disprove God From Gregor Mendel to Francis Collins, from Augustine to modern theology—this episode explores how faith and science have always been more connected than we’ve been told. Theology Made is a listener/reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. At 18 I decided I wanted to be a pastor. There was one problem. While I grew up in church, I didn’t have a clear understanding of how I thought about God. So, I spent 20 years pursuing that. This framework is the result of those 20 years. You can get it in 40 minutes. The Theology Made Workshop: https://theologymade.mykajabi.com/offers/RqeAzfaY [https://theologymade.mykajabi.com/offers/RqeAzfaY] Get full access to Theology Made at substack.theologymade.com/subscribe [https://substack.theologymade.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]