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Free Radicals

by William Loewen

History Christianity

Season 2

S2E8 - St. George the Unflappable

After the debate doesn't go the way they hoped, the Bible study group switches to another location to discuss their way forward, and their lives and the Christian church would never be the same again.

S2E7 - God of Wild Donkeys

This is a sermon episode. This sermon was preached at Trinity Mennonite Church on January 18, 2026. Building on creation texts of Genesis 1 & 2, Psalm 104, and Job 38-40, there are mentions of God's care and provision for wild donkeys. The Anabaptist story in Zurich and other places could not have happened without the role of wild donkeys.

S2E6 - The Castelberger Joint

Disssatisfied with the way things are going, a group of reform minded scholars in Zurich start studying without the main reforming priest in the city. They fight about new theological issues, welcome new members, and deal with new crises.

S2E5 - Kingdom of the Plow

In this sermon, I go through the stories of Luke 9 (feeding the 5,000, Jesus asks his discples who the people say he is, Jesus' transfiguration) and connect them with the journey of the early Swiss Anabaptists deciding where they fit in the larger Reformation story.

S2E4 - Saint Anna's Fire

The Reformation in Switzerland continues as Zwingli and a growing number of other local pastors start advocating for the removal of sacred images in churches, cathedrals, and monasteries. The city hosts another debate, but almost nobody is satisfied with the results.

s2E3 - Grounding Rebaptism in Scripture

The historical storytelling episodes will be back soon, but for now here is a sermon I preached on January 26, telling the story and connecting it with Acts 19. Faith, whether today in our personal lives or for the church over centuries, is a lot like a community crossword puzzle, where you show up ready to build on someone else's work, that is, until you find too many mistakes and you need to start fresh.

S2E2 - Appealing to external authority

The story of the Anabaptists in Switzerland begins with a radical new priest who seems intent on stirring up controversy everywhere he goes. But ultimately, the city council sides with him on theological matters, even against representatives of Rome.

S2E1 - What Hinders Me?

Season Two of this podcast will cover the events of the early Anabaptists in Zurich, Switzerland 500 years ago. This episode contains a recording of a sermon given by Will Loewen at Trinity Mennonite Church in Calgary, on January 19, 2025. It weaves together the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch with the stories of Balthasar Hübmaier and the Zurich group of Anabaptists.

Season 1

S1E13 - Season One Finale

In this wrap up of season one, I think through a variety of different approaches to historical storytelling.

S1E12 - Interview with Gerald Mast

Professor Gerald Mast of Bluffton University in Ohio joins us to talk about the connection between Menno Simons and the Münster story.

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