GOD: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher - The Podcast

Jerry L. Martin
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  • Spirituality
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GOD: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher - The Podcast is a true story of a philosopher’s conversations with God. Dr. Jerry L. Martin was a lifelong agnostic. But one day he had occasion to pray. To his vast surprise, God answered - in words. Being a philosopher, he had a lot of questions. And God had a lot to tell him. Dr. Martin served as head of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the University of Colorado philosophy department. Find out more at www.GodAnAutobiography.com

  1. 1d ago

    286. What’s Your Spiritual Story?: Dr. Stephen Spector on the Bible as Literature and the Nature of God

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! In this deeply personal installment of What’s Your Spiritual Story, Jerry L. Martin speaks with Dr. Stephen Spector, professor of English, scholar of religion and literature, and author, for a profound conversation about spiritual experience, suffering, miracles, the Bible, and the changing nature of God. Spector recounts the moment that transformed his life forever. At fifteen years old, after his mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer and given only weeks to live, he made a bargain with God. What followed would shape his spiritual life, his understanding of faith, and his lifelong relationship with scripture. Drawing from his background in medieval literature, biblical interpretation, psychology, and Jewish thought, Dr. Spector explores the Bible not only as sacred text, but as a living literary and psychological journey. Together, he and Jerry discuss Genesis, trauma, forgiveness, Jewish identity, evangelical support for Israel, Jewish-Christian dialogue, Ethiopian Jews, Isaac’s suffering, the problem of evil, and the surprising idea that God may grow and change through relationship with humanity. This episode is thoughtful, intellectually rich, emotionally honest, and deeply human — ideal for listeners interested in spirituality, theology, religion, philosophy, biblical interpretation, spiritual transformation, and the search for meaning. What does it mean to wrestle with God? Can suffering transform us? And what happens when we begin reading scripture not as distant history, but as a living story about becoming human? Join the conversation on the Ultimate Questions Substack: Does each of us have a personal calling that responds to something beyond ourselves? Get the books: Radically Personal: God and Ourselves in the New Axial Age God: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: Radically Personal: Reflections on lived experience, divine encounter, and personal vocation, drawing on a seeker-centered approach to spirituality in a new Axial Age.From God to Jerry to You: Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers.Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue: Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership.What’s Your Spiritual Story: Real stories of people changed by encounters with God.What’s On Our Mind: Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes.Two Philosophers Wrestle With God: A dialogue on God, truth, and reason.The Life Wisdom Project: Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life.What’s On Your Mind: Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue. Share Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    42 min

  2. May 28

    285. A New Axial Age? Religion and Spiritual Transformation- Radically Personal

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! Jerry L. Martin explores the idea that humanity may be entering a New Axial Age: a new era of spiritual transformation shaped by globalization, interreligious encounter, and expanding spiritual consciousness. Drawing from philosopher Karl Jaspers, Wilfred Cantwell Smith, Robert Bellah, and Theology Without Walls, he reflects on whether the world’s religions represent competing systems of belief or different dimensions of divine revelation. Beginning with the remarkable story of Saint Josaphat — a Christian saint whose story traces back to the Buddha — this episode explores “religion in the singular,” mystical experience, comparative religion, and the possibility that spiritual truth has always moved dynamically across cultures and traditions. What happens when inherited religious boundaries begin to loosen? Could humanity be moving toward a more open and interconnected understanding of spiritual reality? Get the books: Radically Personal: God and Ourselves in the New Axial Age | God: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher ********* We continue these spiritual and philosophical conversations through Ultimate Questions, a public discussion project of Theology Without Walls on Substack. Join the conversation and share your perspective on life’s deepest questions:  https://ultimatequestions.substack.com ********* Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: Radically Personal: Reflections on lived experience, divine encounter, and personal vocation, drawing on a seeker-centered approach to spirituality in a new Axial Age.From God to Jerry to You: Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers.Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue: Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership.What’s Your Spiritual Story: Real stories of people changed by encounters with God.What’s On Our Mind: Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes.Two Philosophers Wrestle With God: A dialogue on God, truth, and reason.The Life Wisdom Project: Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life.What’s On Your Mind: Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue.  Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comUltimate Questions SubstackGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically PersonalShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    21 min

  3. May 21

    284. Suffering, Purpose, and the Courage to Keep Living Fully | Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! What happens when suffering enters a new season of life? How do we face aging, grief, limitation, and uncertainty without surrendering our sense of purpose? In the latest Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue, the married philosophers return for another stimulating dialogue exploring suffering, aging, calling, and the search for meaning.  Beginning with the Serenity Prayer and the Stoic distinction between what we can and cannot control, the conversation moves into deeper questions about suffering as a source of growth, the temptation to “give up” too early in life, and the challenge of remaining fully engaged with one’s purpose. Abigail reflects on resisting cultural narratives of decline, particularly those imposed on women, while sharing her thoughts on aging, neuropathy, resilience, and refusing to “die before you’re dead.” Jerry connects these reflections to themes from God: An Autobiography, including the idea that “suffering is the law of growth in the universe.” The discussion also explores antisemitism, historical responsibility, Aristotle’s vision of human flourishing, the story of David and Goliath, and the question of what it means to live in alignment with one’s deepest calling. This is a rich and personal conversation about suffering, purpose, spiritual courage, and remaining fully alive on the timeline of human history. Whether you are navigating grief, searching for meaning, or trying to discern what still has your name on it, Episode 284 offers a thoughtful and deeply human exploration of the courage required to keep living fully.  Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: The Life Wisdom Project – Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life. From God to Jerry to You – Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers. Two Philosophers Wrestle With God – A dialogue on God, truth, and reason. Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue – Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership. What’s Your Spiritual Story – Real stories of people changed by encounters with God. What’s On Our Mind – Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes. What’s On Your Mind – Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue.  Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically Personal, Confessions of a Young Philosopher, A Good Look at EvilShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    57 min

  4. May 14

    283. Why Suffering Is the Law of Growth: What to Accept, What to Change- From God to Jerry to You

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! In Episode 283 of God: An Autobiography, The Podcast, Jerry L. Martin reflects on a striking idea given in prayer: “Suffering is the law of growth in the universe.” Through personal experience and philosophical insight, he explores what this means in everyday life in this From God to Jerry to You. Drawing on Stoic Philosophy and the Serenity Prayer, this episode asks a central question: how do we know what to accept, and what we are called to change? From aging and illness to habits and difficult decisions, discernment becomes essential. Not all suffering can be avoided—but it can be understood, and sometimes transformed. The episode also turns to love. When life changes, when abilities fade, what does it mean to love someone for who they are, not what they do? This is a reflection on suffering, growth, and the wisdom to live through both. Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: The Life Wisdom Project – Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life. From God to Jerry to You – Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers. Two Philosophers Wrestle With God – A dialogue on God, truth, and reason. Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue – Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership. What’s Your Spiritual Story – Real stories of people changed by encounters with God. What’s On Our Mind – Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes. What’s On Your Mind – Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue.  Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comUltimate Questions SubstackGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically PersonalShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    26 min

  5. May 7

    282. How Do You Know the Right Thing? Moral Ambiguity and Finding Your Way- What’s On Our Mind?

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! In Episode 282, Jerry L. Martin and Scott Langdon explore moral ambiguity and how we make decisions when the right answer isn’t clear.  What replaces fixed rules in a complex world? The conversation also turns to at-homeness, whether it’s something we seek or something we already are, connecting action, faith, and calling.  Listen to the full episode and explore the question with a community of philosophers and seekers. Join the Ultimate Questions conversation on calling and divine guidance: https://substack.com/@ultimatequestions Related Episodes: 281. What's Your Spiritual Story?: Hans on Spiritual but Not Religious & Religious Seeking 280. What Has Your Name on It? Calling, Truth, and Discernment- Radically Personal 279. Can You Ever Do the Right Thing? Moral Ambiguity | Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue 278. The Cost of Doing What’s Right: Moral Ambiguity in Real Life- From God to Jerry to You Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: The Life Wisdom Project – Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life. From God to Jerry to You – Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers. Two Philosophers Wrestle With God – A dialogue on God, truth, and reason. Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue – Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership. What’s Your Spiritual Story – Real stories of people changed by encounters with God. What’s On Our Mind – Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes. What’s On Your Mind – Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue.  Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically PersonalShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    42 min

  6. Apr 30

    281. What's Your Spiritual Story?: Hans on Spiritual but Not Religious & Religious Seeking

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! What does it mean to be spiritual but not religious, and can that way of life be taken seriously, both intellectually and spiritually? In this episode, Hans le Grand shares his journey from physicist to theologian, and the question that shaped his work: what do religious seekers actually have in common?  Drawing on his book Life Seeking Understanding, Hans explores the idea of a “theology of religious seeking”—a way of thinking about spirituality that moves beyond traditional religious boundaries while still engaging the deepest questions of meaning, truth, and growth. This conversation touches on liberal theology, Unitarian Universalism, and the challenge of constructing a spiritual framework in a world where millions identify as spiritual but not religious. If you’ve ever felt caught between belief and exploration, this episode offers a thoughtful and compelling path forward. Join the conversation on Ultimate Questions: What does it mean to seek without a fixed framework? Get the books: Life Seeking Understanding: How Spiritual but Not Religious and Other Seekers Can Construct Their Own Theology Radically Personal: God and Ourselves in the New Axial Age God: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: Radically Personal: Reflections on lived experience, divine encounter, and personal vocation, drawing on a seeker-centered approach to spirituality in a new Axial Age.From God to Jerry to You: Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers.Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue: Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership.What’s Your Spiritual Story: Real stories of people changed by encounters with God.What’s On Our Mind: Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes.Two Philosophers Wrestle With God: A dialogue on God, truth, and reason.The Life Wisdom Project: Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life.What’s On Your Mind: Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue. Share Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    1h 10m

  7. Apr 23

    280. What Has Your Name on It? Calling, Truth, and Discernment- Radically Personal

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! What if the most important decisions in your life don’t feel like choices at all? In this episode of Radically Personal, Jerry L. Martin explores calling not as something we choose, but something we recognize—something that can feel required—even when it is unclear or difficult. Beginning with an epistemology of trust, he challenges the idea that knowledge starts with doubt. We rely on our experience from the start—but when it comes to calling, that raises a harder question: how do we know which inner promptings to trust? Not every voice carries authority. And yet, the responsibility to discern cannot be handed off to anyone else. Drawing on the idea of dharma in the Bhagavad Gita, the episode turns to a more specific question: what is being asked of you—here, now, in the life you are actually living? At the center is a question that resists abstraction: what task has your name on it? One way to approach this question is through three others: what are you being called to do, who or what is doing the calling, and who is the one being called? Each answer carries its own kind of authority—and its own risk of misreading. The challenge is not only to listen, but to discern. Get the books: Radically Personal: God and Ourselves in the New Axial Age | God: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: Radically Personal: Reflections on lived experience, divine encounter, and personal vocation, drawing on a seeker-centered approach to spirituality in a new Axial Age.From God to Jerry to You: Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers.Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue: Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership.What’s Your Spiritual Story: Real stories of people changed by encounters with God.What’s On Our Mind: Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes.Two Philosophers Wrestle With God: A dialogue on God, truth, and reason.The Life Wisdom Project: Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life.What’s On Your Mind: Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue. Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comUltimate Questions SubstackGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically PersonalShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

    27 min

  8. Apr 16

    279. Can You Ever Do the Right Thing? Moral Ambiguity | Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue

    Questions? Comments? Text Us! What if doing the “right thing” isn’t always right? In this episode of Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue, a deceptively simple question opens into one of the most difficult problems in moral philosophy: moral ambiguity.  Can we ever act with complete moral certainty, or is every meaningful choice marked by tension, compromise, and consequence? Drawing from God: An Autobiography and real-world experience, Jerry lays out three common ways people try to escape this burden: rigid moral rules, the pursuit of moral purity, and the attempt to rise “beyond good and evil.”  Together, Jerry and Abigail examine why each approach ultimately fails, and what it means to live honestly within the complexity of real life. Through powerful examples, from the story of Krishna and the Mahabharata to whistleblowers, personal relationships, and philosophical debates from Kant to Aristotle, this conversation moves beyond abstract ethics into lived decision-making.  When truth causes harm, when lies may protect, and when action always carries a cost, how do we choose? This episode challenges the idea that morality is about staying pure or being right. Instead, it asks whether the real task is something harder: learning to navigate ambiguity with discernment, responsibility, and courage. If you’ve ever struggled with a decision that had no clear answer, listen to this conversation; it will stay with you! Other Series: The podcast began with the Dramatic Adaptation of the book and now has several series: The Life Wisdom Project – Spiritual insights on living a wiser, more meaningful life. From God to Jerry to You – Divine messages and breakthroughs for seekers. Two Philosophers Wrestle With God – A dialogue on God, truth, and reason. Jerry & Abigail: An Intimate Dialogue – Love, faith, and divine presence in partnership. What’s Your Spiritual Story – Real stories of people changed by encounters with God. What’s On Our Mind – Reflections from Jerry and Scott on recent episodes. What’s On Your Mind – Listener questions, divine answers, and open dialogue.  Stay Connected Share: questions@godanautobiography.comGet the books: God: An Autobiography, Radically Personal, Confessions of a Young Philosopher, A Good Look at EvilShare Your Story | Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

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GOD: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher - The Podcast is a true story of a philosopher’s conversations with God. Dr. Jerry L. Martin was a lifelong agnostic. But one day he had occasion to pray. To his vast surprise, God answered - in words. Being a philosopher, he had a lot of questions. And God had a lot to tell him. Dr. Martin served as head of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the University of Colorado philosophy department. Find out more at www.GodAnAutobiography.com

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