A series of podcasts for Severn Church, Bristol (Severn Vineyard as was) made in 2024.

I find the Bible quite amazing. I’ve spent my whole life being immersed in it, in various ways, and yet I’m still learning what it means, how it works, and what on earth we seem meant to do with it.

While I’m probably going to stack up this site with various angles on that, I’m especially glad to have done this project, immersing in listening to the Bible for a year, and discussing thoughts and feelings about it with Severn’s co-lead pastor Owen Lynch.

I’ve described the thinking behind it on Severn’s site, along with a plan you can follow to do this for yourself.

I have lots of reasons to suggest listening to the Bible as a great alternative to reading it. Maybe I’m biased as an audio producer! But I’ve found that listening has a different effect from reading. I can easily slip into what I’d call “study mode” while reading, which isn’t bad, but can lead to an excess of analysis, where I miss the wood for the trees. When I listen, I find it easier to get immersed and involved with the big picture, the whole shape of what’s being shared in the Bible, and I genuinely find this life-changing.

I’d add that most people have absorbed the Bible through hearing and discussing rather than reading it for most of its history. So if I want to understand it better the way they first understood it (which I think it vital), listening is key. It also happens to be extremely convenient and helpful for linking the Bible with everyday life today – it’s really good to listen in the same way we’d listen to podcasts or radio, while doing other things.

Don’t believe me? Why not try it? I’d recommend the NIV UK recordings read by David Suchet as very listenable and non-cringey if you have British ears like mine. They’re available free in most Bible apps I’ve found, and also at the links we’ve provided on Severn’s site.

As for our discussions, we deliberately made them take up less time than it takes to listen to the Bible itself, so they don’t get too much in the way. I’d be delighted if you get something from them, whether it’s before or after listening to the Bible (though I wouldn’t recommend them as a substitute for listening to the source!)

You can find Boxset Binge The Bible on Spotify and other podcast sources – here’s a link – and you can also hear all of the episodes right here.