Believe to See

The podcast of the Anselm Society's Arts Guild. Join host Matt Mellema and a rotation of guests at the digital pub table for conversations about faith and storytelling. “Some things have to be believed to be seen." -Madeleine L'Engle

The Hosts Debrief: Naming - We Just Can't Escape It! 11/23/2024

The Hosts Debrief: Naming - We Just Can't Escape It! Matt, Mandy, and Christina gather together to debrief about our . There may be more than a little talk about best and worst fantasy football names and houseplants christened after famous authors, but what can we say? Names matter. And when you sit down to talk about it? You may be startled to discover how much the power of names - ( and the human instinct to name everything from our cars to our kids) - is inextricably linked to the identity God gave you. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/34115886

Sense of Wonder: Delighting in God’s Presence Throughout the Holiday Season 11/10/2024

Sense of Wonder: Delighting in God’s Presence Throughout the Holiday Season Another holiday season is upon us, bringing with it the potential for wonder—or for stress, consumerism, and detachment. Amanda Luedeke and Hannah Oplinger have created a new devotional that walks us from Thanksgiving through the new year, engaging all six of our senses (yes! There are six!). Join Mandy as she talks with Amanda about how we might “reclaim the holidays for [our] heart’s formation and the glory of God”. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/33869817

Halloween: Should Christians Celebrate this Iconic Holiday? 10/24/2024

Halloween: Should Christians Celebrate this Iconic Holiday? Christina didn't celebrate Halloween growing up. But every October, her children parade around the neighborhood trick-or-treating in their favorite super-hero costumes with their buddies, school-mates, and neighbor-friends. So what changed? Christina dives deep into the history and significance of Halloween. Is it an "evil" holiday? Are we "inviting darkness" or participating in "devil worship" by handing out candy in ghoul costumes? Together with Matt and Mandy, she explores how a proper understanding of Halloween fits into the larger Christian story. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/33603717

Flip the Pub Table: Matt Mellema Interview 10/17/2024

Flip the Pub Table: Matt Mellema Interview Matt’s debut middle-grade fantasy novel, Red Rex, is here! Join Mandy and Christina as they talk with Matt about the dream, the process, the plot, the characters, the illustrations — and the footnotes. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/33503677

Obligated to Create? 10/04/2024

Obligated to Create? Calvin and Hobbes may be the greatest comic strip ever. But there’s a problem. Its creator, Bill Watterson, quit after only ten years. At age 38. Did Watterson squander his incredible talent? Matt thinks so. Mandy and Christina aren’t so sure. Together, they discuss whether artists have a responsibility to share their talent with others. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/33336737

Taylor Swift’s Storytelling Power 09/19/2024

Taylor Swift’s Storytelling Power Taylor Swift is the most popular musician since the Beatles. And Matt doesn’t understand. Don’t get him wrong—he doesn’t dislike Taylor Swift. He’s just not the target audience. What he needs is a thoughtful fan to show him the ways of the Swifties. Matt has found that fan in his cousin, Alyssa. She explains the appeal of Taylor Swift as a musician, and the power of Taylor Swift as a storyteller. Can she win Matt over to the Swifties? /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/33127227

Encouraging Our Young Storytellers 09/07/2024

Encouraging Our Young Storytellers We all have young storytellers in our lives. Maybe it’s a first-grade nephew drawing comic books in crayon. Maybe it’s a teenage granddaughter writing her first short story. How can we best encourage them? Millie Florence is here to help. The 21-year-old author is about to publish her third novel. She gives insight on fostering a love of stories with the kids in our lives. Learn more about Millie’s work at: /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/32953902

The Power of Naming 08/23/2024

The Power of Naming In this conversation, Cultivating founder Lancia Smith joins Christina and Evangeline to discuss the power of naming and its impact on our identity and relationships. They explore how naming can be an act of love and reclamation, allowing us to see and be seen. They also discuss the importance of naming our fears and how it can take away their power. They emphasize the need for humility, listening, and recognizing the belovedness of others. They conclude by highlighting the role of myth-making and storytelling in reflecting eternal truth. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/32719317

Jacoby Elliott Interview: How Beauty Can Point Us Back to God 07/27/2024

Jacoby Elliott Interview: How Beauty Can Point Us Back to God Matt and Mandy interview fellow Anselm Guild member Jacoby Elliott, who is a musician, writer, and visual artist. Jacoby talks about his desire to make beautiful things and how a longing for beauty helped point him back to God. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/32311552

Interview with Jane Scharl 07/20/2024

Interview with Jane Scharl Mandy interviews poet, playwright, and critic Jane Scharl to discuss poetry. Learn more about Jane at https://jcscharl.com/ /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/32222502

Dune 06/29/2024

Dune Matt, who has never been able to get into Frank Hebert's classic science fiction Novel Dune or the films adaptations, brings Brian Brown and Peter Houk to the digital pub table to convince him of the merit of Dune. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31940207

Interview with Jody Collins 06/20/2024

Interview with Jody Collins Matt interviews Jody Collins about poetry, and why people should like poetry and it shouldn't be so hard to do so. Find Jody at and writing on Substack at /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31831247

Interview with KC Ireton 06/14/2024

Interview with KC Ireton Matt interviews short-story author KC Ireton, discussing KC's work and journey as an author. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31749392

Impactful Art from Childhood 05/18/2024

Impactful Art from Childhood Mandy, Matt, and Christina discuss impressions made on them as children by different forms of art, why they made an impression on them, and how it impacts them to today. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31362342

Loving Our Neighbors Through Our Art 05/11/2024

Loving Our Neighbors Through Our Art Christina, Mandy, and Matt discuss the question, “How do we love other people with our art?” /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31238082

Interview with Rachel Shinnick 05/03/2024

Interview with Rachel Shinnick Matt interviews Rachel Shinnick, author of YA Fiction novel Moon Thief. They discuss what led Rachel to writing her first novel, how she saw God working in the process, and the various trials of getting published for the first time. They discuss what it looks like to value artistic pursuits while also embracing and embodying Christian values as an artist. Learn more about Rachel and Moon Thief at https://www.rachelshinnick.com/ /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/31120363

Interview with Sylvie Vanhoozer 04/20/2024

Interview with Sylvie Vanhoozer Matt interviews author Sylvie Vanhoozer. Find out more about Sylvie at https://www.theartoflivinginseason.com/ /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30908648

Literature Remixes 04/06/2024

Literature Remixes Matt, Mandy, and Christina talk about literature remixes. What is a literature remix? Take a well-known and beloved story - a Shakespeare play, a Jane Austen novel, fairy tale - and retell the story in a whole new setting. What makes a good remix? What makes a bad one? And what is it about some classic stories that compel us to keep remixing and retelling them over and over? /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30706018

Disney Reboots 03/29/2024

Disney Reboots Matt, Mandy, and Christina discuss Disney movie live-action reboots and whether any (or perhaps some) of the reboots are justified. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30598843

Yearning in the Lives of Christians: Interview with Amy Lee 03/22/2024

Yearning in the Lives of Christians: Interview with Amy Lee Matt and his wife, Danielle, interview fellow Anselm Arts Guild member Amy Lee and discuss Amy's new book "This Homeward Ache" and discuss what it means that God has set eternity in the hearts of man and how longing influences our lives. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30507193

Limitations as Artists 03/02/2024

Limitations as Artists Matt, Christina, and Evangeline discuss the concept of limitations as artists. While limitless possibilities may seem like what is needed to create, perhaps the best way to create is not boundless possiblities, but limits. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30196338

Interview with Brandy Vallance: Symbols and Symbolic Language 02/24/2024

Interview with Brandy Vallance: Symbols and Symbolic Language Evangeline and her brother Dr. John Case Tompkins sit down with Brandy Vallance to discuss symbols and symbolic language and their relationship with the Christian imagination. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/30088328

Interview with G Connor Salter 02/17/2024

Interview with G Connor Salter Matt talks with writer G Connor Salter about his recent article on the classic book and movie The Princess Bride. Connor suggests how the author William Goldman’s Jewish American heritage influenced The Princess Bride. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29993128

Cynical Literature 02/09/2024

Cynical Literature Matt, Mandy, and Evangeline discuss cynicism in literature and what makes the difference between a good cynical story and a bad cynical story. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29878853

Interview with A.D. Rhine 02/02/2024

Interview with A.D. Rhine Christina and Evangeline chat with A.D. Rhine (Ashlee Cowles and Danielle Stinson), the writer duo behind the novel Horses of Fire. Find out more about Ashlee and Danielle and their book Horses of Fire at https://www.adrhine.com/ /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29765058

Interview with Sarah Arthur 01/26/2024

Interview with Sarah Arthur Matt interviews Sarah Arthur about her first YA Fiction book, Once a Queen, as they discuss the intersection between faith and great literature. Sarah is also the author of a nonfiction book on Madeleine L'Engle and a Lord of the Rings devotional. You can find Sarah's upcoming book Once a Queen at https://sites.google.com/view/saraharthur-fiction/home /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29666133

Feedback from Other Artists 01/20/2024

Feedback from Other Artists Matt, Christina, and Evangeline discuss how artists can most beneficially give and take feedback from other artists. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29570468

Interview with Austin M. Freeman 01/13/2024

Interview with Austin M. Freeman Matt sits down to talk with Austin Freeman to talk all things J.R.R. Tolkien and Lord of the Rings. They discuss Dr. Freeman's recent book Tolkien Dogmatics and the deeply theological thought that runs through Tolkien's fiction. Dr. Austin Freeman is a lecturer and the Chair of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. You can find Tolkien Dogmatics at https://lexhampress.com/product/224282/tolkien-dogmatics-theology-through-mythology-in-middle-earth /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29468848

Right Story, Wrong Time 01/05/2024

Right Story, Wrong Time Evangeline, Mandy, and Christina discuss how to handle writing the right story at the wrong time. What do we do, in life or writing, when our timing seems out of sync, when the work we've poured ourselves into doesn't seem to go anywhere? /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29360343

Favorite Books of 2023 12/29/2023

Favorite Books of 2023 Christina, Matt, Evangeline, and Mandy discuss their top books of 2023. In a (mostly) spoilers-free episode, the Believe to See co-hosts discuss books they read in 2023 (not necessarily published in 2023) that they found enriching and delightful. /episode/index/show/believetosee/id/29276123

Believe to See

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