The Lord of Spirits

Fr. Stephen reads tales from the ancient world calculated to drive you mad.

Transcribed - Published: 25 July 2025

The Apostles are given authority by Christ to preach, to bind and loose, to exorcise, to baptize, and so on. Did that authority die with them? What is the nature of the authority of a bishop?

Transcribed - Published: 15 July 2025

Christ said that the scribes and Pharisees sat on the seat of Moses (Matthew 23:2). Is this a metaphor or a defined position of authority? Did Moses pass on his authority in succession, and is it the same as his own?

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2025

The Podfathers open their audio mailbag and turn it upside down to see what shakes out: How many will be saved? What's the deal with saints associated with certain themes? Is dancing wrong? And lots more!

Transcribed - Published: 13 June 2025

Were there really 400 silent years between Malachi and Matthew? Is there a sudden disjunction starting with the New Testament? In this final episode of the History of Israel series, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew look at the Second Temple Jewish period.

Transcribed - Published: 23 May 2025

Continuing their series on the Biblical history of Israel, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew chart the progress from after the Exodus up to the Second Temple Period. (Get excited about giants.)

Published: 9 May 2025

In this first episode concerning the story of Israel, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew take us from Abraham to the Exodus.

Transcribed - Published: 25 April 2025

Is the Cross just what the Romans happened to use to kill Jesus? Or is there something deeper and older that culminates in the crucifixion of Christ? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew for a thorough look at the Cross in the Old Testament.

Transcribed - Published: 11 April 2025

Ever read the Bogomil Bible? If not, you might still be interested in the place of Azazel in apocrypha. Continuing their series on Second Temple Jewish texts, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew read the Apocalypse of Abraham.

Transcribed - Published: 28 March 2025

It's another no-holds-barred live Q&A with the Podfathers! Got a dragon on your mind, a giant in your closet, or a screech owl in your filing cabinet? This is your moment, scorpion-stompers! Give us a call.

Transcribed - Published: 14 March 2025

Angels are active in the world. What does that activity actually look like? Is it just “benevolent haunting”? What about guardian angels? Join Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen as they also look at what all this means for human destiny.

Transcribed - Published: 28 February 2025

Is your house haunted? Do demons still possess people? Can we see the activity of demons in the modern world? How would we recognize it? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew as they uncover the darkest of all conspiracies.

Transcribed - Published: 14 February 2025

What exactly is ritual impurity? Does it equal sinfulness? How do bodily functions figure in? Did the New Testament abolish the ritual impurity traditions of the Old Testament? And does it have any meaning today?

Transcribed - Published: 24 January 2025

It's another metaphysical head-scratcher! Following up on some episodes from 2024, the podcast looks at what change actually means (if anything?) and what bearing that has on teleology.

Transcribed - Published: 10 January 2025

The Podfathers clear out the voicemail backlogs with this pre-recorded end-of-year episode, covering everything from whether Eglon was fat or handsome to if the Orthodox believe in a kind of Calvinism to the unsettling logismoi of Wham! at Christmastime.

Transcribed - Published: 27 December 2024

At the heart of Christian faith and life is the incarnation of the Son of God. When does that happen, exactly? It seems easy enough to answer, but a close look at Scripture yields a more complex picture

Transcribed - Published: 13 December 2024

In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to your voicemail, ranging from whether Jesus could get a speeding ticket to why some canonical texts don't actually get read in church. And Fr. Andrew tries to nail down Fr. Stephen's notorious Nietzsche talk.

Transcribed - Published: 29 November 2024

It’s Election Day on Lord of Spirits! Who is elected? What are they elected to? How is Israel involved in all this?

Transcribed - Published: 15 November 2024

What if Guardian Angels had an exact opposite—Guardian Devils? Are some of those demons actually the evil dead? Or what about the ones who come for you while you’re asleep?

Transcribed - Published: 25 October 2024

"Modernism” is anything bad and not Orthodox, right? Or maybe 20th century? It's said the Church has to confront the modern world or finally enter it, but what does that mean? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew as they look at this most unhistorical of historical phenomena.

Transcribed - Published: 11 October 2024

Orthodox Christianity is said to be "unchanging." The Synodikon even says it's the faith that established the universe. Yet if you look at Christian worship centuries ago, it’s not exactly the same as Orthodox worship now. And we don’t see it in Gen. 1. So what's going on?

Transcribed - Published: 27 September 2024

What does evidence from the Neolithic period tell us about truly ancient religion? How does that fit into the Bible? How should Christians understand this prehistorical part of the human story?

Transcribed - Published: 13 September 2024

The whole episode is dedicated to live calls! Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew want to talk to you about whatever is on your mind. Give them a ring at 855-237-2346.

Transcribed - Published: 30 August 2024

In the age to come, all of humanity will be raised from the dead -- bodily. This core dogma of Christianity, the bodily resurrection, is often misunderstood or even ignored. Yet what does it mean that all will be raised? Will the human body be changed? Join us and find out.

Transcribed - Published: 9 August 2024

Our understanding of time forms the basis of many theological assumptions. But how does it work in the Scriptures and throughout Christian tradition? Is it truly linear? Are "before" and "after" always real? Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew look at the hazy shades of time.

Transcribed - Published: 2 August 2024

Is there magic in the Bible? What about outside the Bible? How does magic differ from miracles? Is it even real? Join the Podfathers as they look at the phenomenon of sorcery.

Transcribed - Published: 12 July 2024

Christian tradition refers to “the devil” or “the evil one,” but is this one being? What about (the) Satan -- or Samael, Mastema, and Azazel? Join Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen as they have a look at the wickedest of the wicked. *PRE-RECORDED EPISODE*

Transcribed - Published: 28 June 2024

Continuing their series on Second Temple Jewish apocrypha in this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew read two texts about the apocalyptic visions of prophets -- the Ascension of Isaiah and the Assumption of Moses.

Transcribed - Published: 14 June 2024

What if you could see the unseen spiritual reality in Genesis? How did the world into which Jesus was born understand this story? Explore the ancient Book of Jubilees in this next in the Apocrypha series with Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick.

Transcribed - Published: 31 May 2024

What might the 12 sons of Jacob have said before they died? Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew begin a new series on Second Temple Judaism literature, an exploration of religion in the time and place of the Apostles.

Transcribed - Published: 10 May 2024

In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to some of many voicemails, covering the falls of angels, the bones of Elisha, David Bowie, ethno-nationalist tchotchkes, Psalm 82/81, Theophany, the Book of Enoch, prayer against blacksmiths, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 26 April 2024

The last several episodes have generated a lot of questions, so Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen are dedicating this episode fully to taking live questions. So it’s time to remember that your phone actually makes phone calls! Give them a ring at 855-237-2346.

Transcribed - Published: 12 April 2024

The last several episodes have generated a lot of questions, so Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen are dedicating this episode fully to taking live questions. So it’s time to remember that your phone actually makes phone calls! Give them a ring at 855-237-2346.

Transcribed - Published: 12 April 2024

Continuing their examination of the Torah and its place in the Christian Church, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew look at Torah themes of worship, uncleanness, and the death penalties.

Transcribed - Published: 29 March 2024

Christ said that He did not come to abolish the Torah but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17), but a lot of Christians seem to think He came to abolish it. All that Old Testament stuff is over. But is that the real relationship of the OT to the NT? Tune in and find out.

Transcribed - Published: 15 March 2024

People often say "Lent is not in the Bible," claiming that it's a medieval invention, and the traditionally elevated prayer and fasting of Lent are dismissed as "earning your way to heaven." Is that true, though? Join Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen to find out.

Transcribed - Published: 23 February 2024

What does it mean that Jesus is the Messiah? What were the apostles saying when they said that, identifying Him as the Christ? Find out the weight behind their words with Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick.

Transcribed - Published: 9 February 2024

What’s Good? What does it mean that God is good? Are good and right the same thing? Are bad and evil the same thing? Does bad still mean good, like in the '80s?

Transcribed - Published: 26 January 2024

In the great feast of Theophany, Christ is baptized by the Forerunner in the Jordan river. What is the cosmic spiritual reality of what’s happening there? What is going on in Theophany icons? And how does this affect Christianity? Find out with Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew.

Transcribed - Published: 12 January 2024

In the great feast of Theophany, Christ is baptized by the Forerunner in the Jordan river. What is the cosmic spiritual reality of what’s happening there? What is going on in Theophany icons? And how does this affect Christianity? Find out with Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew.

Transcribed - Published: 12 January 2024

What does it mean for a Christian to have a patron saint? For a church? For a nation? What is the Biblical basis for this practice? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew for a look into this spiritual relationship.

Transcribed - Published: 29 December 2023

How did the ancients understand the source of technology? How does that relate to the Fall? What does that mean for our own age and the age to come? Why do printers never work? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew for an ages-long look at the work of men's hands.

Transcribed - Published: 15 December 2023

Time to open up the voicemail and see what weird recordings you people have sent it. In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to questions they've received via voicemail. And you never know what people will say into microphones.

Transcribed - Published: 24 November 2023

Time to open up the voicemail and see what weird recordings you people have sent it. In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to questions they've received via voicemail. And you never know what people will say into microphones

Transcribed - Published: 24 November 2023

Expanding on what's in the episodes "But We Have the Mind of Christ" (July 2021) and "How (and How Not) to Read Your Bible" (April 2022), the podcast dives back into how meaning is constructed and what that has to do with being Christian.

Transcribed - Published: 10 November 2023

On Oct. 26, 2023, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew recorded a live episode at the Lord of Spirits Conference at Antiochian Village in Bolivar, Pennsylvania, that featured questions from conference attendees. As this particular program was recorded before a live audience, we apologize for any inconsistencies in audio quality.

Transcribed - Published: 27 October 2023

On Oct. 26, 2023, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew recorded a live episode at the Lord of Spirits Conference at Antiochian Village in Bolivar, Pennsylvania, that featured questions from conference attendees. As this particular program was recorded before a live audience, we apologize for any inconsistencies in audio quality.

Transcribed - Published: 27 October 2023

What happens when you have to miss the party? What happens when you miss the party in the Ancient Near East?

Transcribed - Published: 27 October 2023

What actually is a religious icon? How does it work? In this second episode of a two-part series, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew look at iconography – pagan, Israelite, and Christian.

Transcribed - Published: 13 October 2023

"Idol” gets used for a lot of things, but what was its ancient meaning? How did idols actually work? What does it mean for a people to engage in idolatry? And what does the Bible say about all this? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew for this first in a two-part series.

Transcribed - Published: 29 September 2023