The Lord of Spirits
Fathers Andrew Stephen Damick and Stephen De Young explore the enchanted nature of creation and the union of the seen and unseen realms as made by God and experienced by humanity throughout history. The podcast airs live on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays at 5:00pm Central/6:00pm Eastern.
Episodes
We Are the Aliens
Father Stephen discusses our alienation from our humanity, and how the Orthodox Church is positioned. Live Q&A with Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew follows. Recorded at the 2026 Parish Life Conference of the Antiochian Diocese of Miami and the Southeast, June 10-13, 2026 in Springdale, AR.
Convert Surge: The Wise Welcome
Father Andrew presents on the current Orthodox convert surge. How do we understand and address it? Live Q&A with Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen follows. Recorded at the 2026 Parish Life Conference of the Antiochian Diocese of Miami and the Southeast, June 10-13 in Springdale, AR.
Commander Shepherd
The strangest and most mysterious of the texts in the ancient Christian collection known as the Apostolic Fathers is the Shepherd of Hermas. How should this apocryphal text be read, and what does it mean?
Pantheon and Pandemonium XXI: Asynchronous Q&A June 2026
The Podfathers reach down into the audio mailbag to answer your questions. You never quite know what people are willing to say into voicemail, so here we go!
The Gods of Gerizim
When the Assyrians carried off the 10 northern Israelite tribes, they imported pagans into Samaria. What is the nature of the religion these people then practiced, and why did Judeans despise them? Take a deep dive with us into the history of the Samaritans.
Let Me Acts You Something
What happened to the Apostles after the events of Acts? Traditions regarding them are preserved in apocryphal texts from the early Church, but how are we to understand them?
From Abel to Zechariah
Martyrdom runs throughout the whole Scriptures, memorably referenced by Christ in His phrase "from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah." What is the inner meaning of martyrdom? Is it just getting killed, or does it have actual theological purpose?
Intro: 0:00
1st Half: 1:08
2nd Half/Callers: 1:22:24
3rd Half/Callers: 1:45:06
Conclusion: 2:54:00
He Suffered and Was Buried
What is going on with the Gospel accounts of the passion of Jesus? Why do the Gospel writers describe it as they do? Join us for a close look at the moment when God died.
What Must I Do to Be Saved?
Is "salvation" a technical term in Christianity? How is it used in the Bible? And what does it mean to be faithful to the calling of salvation? Tune in to explore this key Christian term.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XX: Live Q&A March 2026
"If you were ever turned away for being too off-topic, this is your moment. The lines are open. Jam them up with your calls. No question is too weird. No questioner is unwelcome. (That means you, Bart Ehrman.)"
Pantheon and Pandemonium XIX: Asynchronous Q&A Feb 2026
The voicemail is full. Doom. Doom. Doom. The system is down. Join the Podfathers for a pre-recorded SpeakPipepalooza.
East End Boys, West End Girls
Why is the Western theology of salvation, both Catholic and Protestant, different from Orthodoxy? Where did the Latin "treasury of merit" come from? Did Martin Luther fix it? Join the Podfathers for a direct look at a core theological difference with Orthodoxy.
Stole Something? Kill a Goat!
Old Testament sacrifices were offered for sins, but was it only accidental ones? What happens if you sin on purpose? Does Jesus' sacrifice change all this? And why repent if Jesus paid it all? Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew explore the relationship between sin and sacrifice.
Bring Out Your Dead
What do you do with a dead human body? The ancient world had strong opinions about this, and they showed up not only in their cemeteries and funerary rites but also in the myths central to their religious practice.
Yesterday, Today & Forever
Icons of God in the Old Testament depict Jesus. The Hymn of Kassiani includes "I will kiss Thy feet whose tread, when it fell on the ears of Eve in Paradise..." How can this be? Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew discuss the eternality of the incarnation of Christ.
When the Morning Stars Sang
Mankind has looked to the heavens with fascination since pre-history, always charting the stars and sometimes worshiping them. But what is the Biblical witness? And is there such a thing as a Christian Zodiac? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew for a look at astrology.
Magical Mystery Tour
Christianity has been called a “mystery” religion. There are some who say that it is simply one of many mystery cults that existed in the ancient Greco-Roman world, such as the Eleusinian, Dionysian, Orphic or Samothracian mysteries. So what were their mysteries really like?
No, Virginia, Christmas Isn’t About Mithras
In 1954, deep under the streets of London, a mysterious 3rd c. temple was unearthed, but it was not as hoped a Christian church. It was a Mithraeum, a place of bloody secret rituals practiced by Roman soldiers. Who is their god Mithras? And is he the real Jesus?
Pananthropon & Pandemonium II: Live, In-Person Q&A
In this live-recorded, in-person Q&A session, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to questions and comments from the attendees at the Lord of Spirits Conference, hosted Oct. 2-5 at the Antiochian Village in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.
The Other Messiah in the Bible
Some say that the Persians had their own Messiah, and some even say that this is where Israel got the idea. Cyrus the Great, founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, once ruled much of the ancient world. But was he God's anointed?
Ye Wrote an Opera?
Nebuchadnezzar II, king of the Neo-Babylonian empire, most powerful man in the world, was brought low by divine madness. Who was this king who lived in the shadow of Etemenanki, whose visions were revealed by a prophet, and whose apex in pop culture is as a wealthy zucchini?
Soon the Water Will Come
The ancients told tales of the inundation of the world with water -- the Great Flood. How do these stories compare with the story told in Genesis, and what does this event mean for the Christian?
Pantheon and Pandemonium XVIII Live Q&A August 2025
It's time to call in with all your weirdest, nuttiest, and most mind-bending questions, from giants to the gyrations of James T. Kirk.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XVII Asynchronous Q&A August 2025
The audio mailbag is starting to fill up again, so it's time to take out the garbage. Wait, that didn't come out right.
Storytime with Fr. Stephen
Fr. Stephen reads tales from the ancient world calculated to drive you mad.
Apostolic Succession
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?
Mosaic Succession
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?
Pantheon and Pandemonium XVI: Asynchronous Q&A June 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!
Hasmonean? Nah, I’m Broke
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.
Kingdoms of Israel: Reckoning
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.)
I Will Make a Distinction
In this first episode concerning the story of Israel, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew take us from Abraham to the Exodus.
Every Stick of Wood in the Old Testament
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.
Apocalypse of Abraham and Atonement Revisited
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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XV: Live Q&A 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.
Your Skin Makes Me Cry
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.
Who is Your Demon and What Does He Do?
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.
Purifications of the Law
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?
Is Progress Even a Thing?
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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XIV: Asynchronous Q&A Dec 2024
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.
When God Became Man
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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XIII: Asynchronous Q&A Nov 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.
Israel, I Choose You!
It’s Election Day on Lord of Spirits! Who is elected? What are they elected to? How is Israel involved in all this?
Fiend Folio
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?
Modernism 101
"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.
Mutatis Mutandis (100th Episode!)
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?
Bible, the Prequel?
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?
Pantheon and Pandemonium XII: Live Q&A Aug 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.
Some Body
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.
Time, See What's Become of Me
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.
Swords and Sorcery (Mostly Sorcery)
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.
The Devil(s)
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*
The Ascension of Isaiah and the Assumption of Moses
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.
The Book of Jubilees
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.
Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs
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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium XI: Asynchronous Q&A April 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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium X: Live Q&A 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.
Torah 2: Back in the Habit
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.
Torah! Torah! Torah!
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.
The Season of Virtue
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.
You Are the Christ, the Son of the Living God
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.
God is So Good
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?
Waiter, There's Gods in the Water
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.
The Saints Will Judge the World
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.
The Art and Science of Technomancy
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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium IX: Asynchronous Q&A Nov 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
What Does Stuff Mean?
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.
Pananthropon and Pandemonium: Live, In-Person Conference Q&A
On Oct. 26, 2023, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew recorded a live, in-person Q&A at the Lord of Spirits Conference held at the Antiochian Village – featuring questions from conference attendees.
This episode of Lord of Spirits was recorded before a live studio audience. We apologize for any inconsistencies in audio quality.
The FOMO Episode
What happens when you have to miss the party? What happens when you miss the party in the Ancient Near East?
Image of the Invisible
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.
Scarecrows Among Cucumbers
"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.
Pantheon and Pandemonium VIII : Live Q&A September 2023
For their third anniversary episode, Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew open up the lines for an all-live, all-Q&A episode. No topics are off-topic! You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll wonder why you can't find anything else to do on Thursday nights.
What in Tarnation?
What is eternal condemnation? Do people go to heaven or hell when they die? What are the Biblical images? Is universalism an acceptable Orthodox view? Join Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick as they look at the Orthodox tradition on this dark question
His Glorious Appearing
Christians commonly speaking of the "Second Coming of Christ." Is that the right terminology? What does it mean that there are two advents of the Messiah? Join Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick and Fr. Stephen De Young as they continue their series on Orthodox eschatology.
Bad Boys of the Apocalypse
The Four Horsemen. Gog and Magog. Locusts. It's going to be an uncomfortable apocalypse, and a rogues' gallery of agents of destruction will be showing up. Are you ready? Find out with Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick.
Doomsday
What happens on Judgment Day? What criteria are used? Do Christians go to heaven and non-Christians go to hell? What is the Book of Life? Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick take a look at what the Bible says about that Day before the throne of God.
Millennium : Bug or Feature?
What exactly is the Millennium? Is it in the future? Are we in it? Did we miss it? What about Chiliasm? Was St. Irenaeus really a Chiliast? Join Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick to see what Scripture says about this eschatological period.
Antichrist Devil's Children
Are we living in the time of the Antichrist? Is the Antichrist alive right now? What are the signs? Join Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick to see what the Scripture says about this eschatological figure.
Pantheon and Pandemonium VII: Asynchronous Q&A May 2023
Q&A May continues! Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew respond to questions they've received via voicemail, ranging from giants to psychedelics to unicorns to polygamy to Eckankar.
Pantheon and Pandemonium VI: Live Q&A May 2023
It's an open-line night with the Podfathers for an all-live, all-Q&A show! This episode is your chance to ask whatever is on your mind. Nothing is off-limits, so tune in LIVE and give us a call.
Who Stole the Soul?
What is a soul? Do you have one? Are you one? Do dogs and oak trees have them? Are they made of rubber? What happens to the soul when the body dies? Join Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew as they talk about the Biblical understanding of the soul.
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