How are people meeting Christ? What part can apologetics play? Is it always necessary? Is a non-intellectual conversion an honest one? The Areopagites are once again joined by Richard Rohlin, and together they wrestle with these questions and more.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites talk about Lenten devotional practices, especially focusing on non-liturgical traditions that adopt practices from liturgical traditions. How does that work, and how does it transform those practices when they are re-contextualized?By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Dr. Cyril Gary Jenkins makes his triumphant return to the Areopagus, and this time he’s got a book. The Areopagites chat with him about his newly-published “A Perilous Realm: Confronting Dragons, Angels, and Saints in the Ordering of the Soul.”By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites do their year-in-review episode, discussing things they’ve accomplished, books they’ve read, places they’ve been, people they’ve lost and things they’ve learned.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites take email and voice questions from listeners, discussing issues such as whether social media is worth using, how to talk to Evangelical friends about Orthodox services, the true nature of schism, and the rotating Guamanian pope statue.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Podcaster and musician Jim Lovelady of Serge (formerly World Harvest Mission) joins the Areopagites to talk about his pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain as well as the work he does with missionaries and pastors.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Fr. Andrew and Pastor Mike talk about their two very different experiences this summer as Fr. Andrew details his return to Lithuania and Pastor Mike walks through his father’s passing.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites welcome Fr. Christopher Rowe, the Assistant Director of Development for the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), talking about the foreign missionary work of the Orthodox Church as well as Christian mission in general – why, how, and how not to do foreign and local evangelism.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Discussing the confusing, conflicting definitions in play for “ecumenism,” the Areopagites talk about ecumenical history, what the Church Fathers say about relations with other Christians, and finally reveal their own true feelings about the Pan-Heresy of Ecumenism.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites talk about the good side of church leadership, basing their discussion on the enthronement speech of Metropolitan Saba, the new leader of the North American Antiochian Archdiocese. Jack Chick and Joel Osteen also make appearances.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites greet each other (and you) with the resurrection of Christ and then delight in commenting on incoherent and heretical takes on the feast.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

In February 2023, tens of thousands participated in a religious revival at Asbury University in Kentucky. What is the context of the Asbury revival? How can people outside the Wesleyan/Methodist tradition understand the Asbury revival? Can revival outside our boundaries even be a real thing? The Areopagites welcome Fr. Symeon Kees, an Orthodox prie…

Are in men in crisis? How did that happen? What does authentic men’s ministry look like? What are good and bad ways to do it? What does all this have to do with priesthood? The Areopagites welcome Michael Baclig, president of the Antiochian Men of the Diocese of Miami and the Southeast, to talk about ministry to men. Meanwhile, Fr. Andrew fills us …

The Areopagites embark on an epic journey into the strange, millenarian world of Jack Chick.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Christian Gonzalez and Steven Christoforou show up for one last Pop Culture Coffee Hour crossover with the Areopagus. They talk about the origins of PCCH, what they hoped to accomplish when they started in 2015, and how they feel about its 200 episodes. They and the Areopagites also share the stories they’re into lately in a bald-faced attempt by t…

The Areopagites host Anglican priest Fr. Wesley Walker to talk about how he sees the problems of deconstructionist Exvangelicalism, to talk disenchantment in the Evangelical world within which he was raised, and to share Raleigh in-jokes, but not before Fr. Andrew reveals his weird hobby of researching episcopi vagantes – and how they seem to be fo…

The Areopagites hone in on revivalism – its origins, how it functions, how it distorts church and culture, and how it’s made its way into nearly every facet of American life – bracketing the episode with clips from a couple of their favorite films.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

For their fifth anniversary, the Areopagites do a self-indulgent retrospective episode, looking back at their five years of making the second-greatest podcast in existence. Fr. Andrew tells about his upcoming big pilgrimage, Pastor Mike reveals his Lenten secrets, both struggle to remember how this all started, and they do an MST3King of the first …

Steven Christoforou joins the Areopagites in the Emmaus studio to do a post mortem on 2021. Now that it’s in the past even for the Old Calendarists, what did these three guys learn about life and ministry over the past year? And what judgy things can they say to each other about those lessons? Pastor Michael tries not to cry.…

Author and podcaster Dr. Nicole Roccas of AFR's Time Eternal podcast joins the Areopagites to return to the Christianity Today podcast The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, which wrapped up this month.They give their assessment of the podcast, asking why it was valuable and why it got millions of downloads, including bringing to bear Nicole's newly-acqui…

The Areopagites welcome Fr. Patrick Cardine and Dr. Cyril Jenkins to discuss the phenomenon of Anti-Westernism in Orthodox discourse and writings. What is it? Is the standard polemic against “The West” damaging to our faith and evangelistic witness? If so, how? And what would a proper approach to the Western Christian past and present look like?…

The Areopagites go full Q&A, addressing questions on parenting and prayer, finding spiritual profit from authors outside your tradition, how life changes when becoming Orthodox, singleness, keeping sane in the midst of Internet travails, profiting from criticism, what it means that the Orthodox Church is the “true church,” and what exactly is in th…

The Areopagites say that there is a crisis of the gospel in the modern world. A lot of people have no idea what it even is. There are numerous versions being preached. And almost all of them are missing something -- demons. And Fr. Andrew promises he’s not trying to sell you a book. Really. No, really.…

What happens when ministry success outpaces personal character? The Areopagites welcome fellow AFR podcaster Jamey Bennett to discuss the new Christianity Today podcast The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, which tracks the meteoric rise and collapse of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, led by Mark Driscoll.Far from looking only at Mark Driscoll himself and t…

Fr. Stephen De Young comes back to the Areopagus to talk disenchantment and re-enchantment within a fractured Christian world. How did we get here? And does spiritual warfare “work” outside the Orthodox Church? Fr. Andrew quotes Hamlet, Pastor Mike casts out ghosts, and Fr. Stephen Hulks out.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites tackle the phenomenon of the “Exvangelical,” the (de)conversion of prominent Evangelical Christians away from traditional doctrines or from Christianity altogether, tracing it back to the iconoclasm of the Reformation. They launch into a discussion of what Christian culture is and what this has to do with ritual. And Pastor Mike tel…

Icon carver and YouTuber Jonathan Pageau joins the Areopagites to talk about parasitic storytelling in popular culture -- pushing the outsider and the marginal into the inside -- and offering both critique to diversity as a core value and positive responses to this inversion of hierarchy in culture. The revolution of the culture is coming to its en…

Germanic philologist and Amon Sûl podcast co-host Richard Rohlin joins the Areopagites to talk about the good, bad, and ugly in how modern people deal with the past and incorporate it (or don’t) into their present, not to mention why English spelling reform is a terrible idea and why there is no such thing as an “incense holder.”…

Fr. Anthony Perkins, archpriest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA living in the State of Georgia, mission pastor covering two parishes, AFR podcaster, Ph.D. student in political science at the University of Georgia, former US Army intelligence officer, and probably not secretly an operative of the CIA, FBI and NSA all at once, joins the A…

The Pseudo-Areopagite Dr. Mike Petrow returns to the podcast after a 2-year hiatus to talk friendship (especially in the midst of pandemic), where he’s been all this time, and with long but relevant detours into the Ralph Bakshi (and other renditions of) Lord of the Rings. Prominently featured is the leaking of nearly every other podcast Fr. Andrew…

Reformation historian Dr. Cyril Gary Jenkins returns to the Areopagus to talk politics -- not candidates or elections, but what it means for Christians to live under human governments, what the Bible says about government, and the spiritual realities that we face here in 2020 America. And Fr. Andrew makes a dumb joke about a centaur.…

Former Pentecostal pastor and now Orthodox Christian priest Fr. Barnabas Powell joins the Areopagites to discuss the book he's writing about the relationship between Pentecostalism and Orthodox Christianity, how charismatic gifts function within the Orthodox tradition, and what Pentecostal experience means in the light of that tradition.…

The Areopagites welcome podcaster, Biblical scholar and On-Site Holy Land Professor/Instructor (NOT "tour guide"!) Dr. Cyndi Parker to discuss sacred space and sacred place, with an emphasis on her scholarly focus of the book of Deuteronomy. But they begin with a deep dive into whether there can be sacraments or even church life at the Starbucks.…

Fr. Andrew and Pastor Mike discuss prominent Christians falling from grace, including comedian John Crist and Liberty University president Jerry Falwell, Jr. They finish up with the “Don’t Go to Church, Be the Church” slogan during the present pandemic. But first they begin with a listener question about whether schisms ever heal.…

Shawn Raymer, a former ministry co-worker with Pastor Mike, has journeyed from mission work in the heart of the prophetic movement in the Pentecostal world to becoming an Orthodox ChristianBy Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Christian Gonzalez and Steven Christoforou are back with the Areopagites to talk ministry in the time of global pandemic -- live-streaming, virtual communion, Zoombombing, Daleks, bidets, mystically multiplying toilet paper, and a whole lot more!By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Fr. Andrew and Pastor Mike wrestle with tough questions such as the return of the Orthodox Kevin Bacon to the show and the right response of Christians to the political process. (This episode was recorded before the onset of COVID-19 restrictions in the US, so that topic is not addressed.)By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites welcome Marc Richter, a long time friend of Pastor Mike, to the podcast to talk about his upbringing in the Roman Catholic Church, what led him away to Protestantism, and what is leading him back. They also introduce a new segment on the latest amazing public things said by religious leaders.…

Epic fantasy novelist and Russian Orthodox deacon Nicholas Kotar joins the Areopagites to talk culture creation in a wide-ranging conversation including everything from Tolkien to Star Trek to techniques of story-writing and the place of religion in imaginative fiction.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Dr. Cyril Jenkins joins the Areopagites to talk about the rough and rowdy world of being Christian on the Internet. The conversation ranges from social media to education to reading to ministry and content creation online.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Are pagan gods just made-up stories? How many gods are there?Biblical scholar and AFR podcaster Fr. Stephen De Young returns to theAreopagus to talk with Pastor Michael and Fr. Andrew about gods as depicted inthe Bible, as understood and worshiped in the ancient world, and as seen in thehistorical Christian tradition.…

The Areopagites compare notes from their respective Holy Weekand Paschal worship traditions and even find some surprising points of contact.They also address an email they received after their last episode.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites tackle the question of how religious communities engage in internal criticism, when and how that criticism can be received, as well as how and why it might be rejected. The discussion ranges throughout Protestantism, Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism, with both drawing on their own experiences in multiple traditions.…

Fr. Andrew and Pastor Michael answer your questions, finally revealing the secrets behind Michael's relationship to the UCC, Fr. Andrew's thoughts on woodchucks who won't just chuck wood like they're supposed to, and how they both feel about secret agent Michael Scarn.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

The Areopagites have the tables turned and get asked questions by their friend the 'Lost Areopagite,' Dr. Mike Petrow! Together they discuss liturgy both in its more technical sense and also in the sense that nearly everything we do in life is liturgical. They also discuss their first encounters with liturgical worship, how it changed them, and als…

Fr Andrew and Pastor Michael welcome Brian Gillispie, worship leader at Wolfforth United Methodist Church in Lubbock, TX, and an avowed Areopagite, to talk about all things worship. What is worship and what does it do? Is there some value in contemporary worship? Are younger people turning to more traditional forms of worship? Is Timothy Dalton the…

For the first time, Fr. Andrew and Pastor Michael record with a live audience, hosted by the Eastern University Orthodox Christian Fellowship and the St. Basil Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture. Featured are two guests as well as a Q&A with the audience, discussing what the Church's mission in the world is and how it moves in that context.…

The Areopagites welcome Fr. Stephen De Young, Orthodox priest, Biblical scholar and Ancient Faith podcaster and blogger, to discuss his work on understanding the Bible and the Church Fathers better in terms of the ancient religious mindset, especially Second Temple Judaism. Topics discussed: The Holy Trinity, venerating the Theotokos, giants, Voltr…

Fr. Andrew and Pastor Michael begin Season 2 of the Areopagus with a wide-ranging chat covering clergy scandals, worship and church styles, catechism, and clergy marriage in the Orthodox Church. It's classic coffee talk with just our two hosts!By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio

Fr. Theodore Petrides returns to the Areopagus for the second part of this two-part discussion focusing on the Jesus Prayer. What are the conditions needed for this prayer? How is it practiced? What does it accomplish? Dr. Mike Petrow also joins for this intimate and in-depth conversation.By Fr. Andrew Damick, Michael Landsman, and Ancient Faith Radio