On her LDS mission in Bulgaria, Katie taught people that every sin debits a cosmic bank account, that Jesus paid it, and that he set the terms for paying him back. It worked for her for a long time. Until it didn't.

In this solo episode she walks through many of the motifs the church has used to describe the atonement. For each one, she reflects on what's lovely about it...and what's less than lovely.

Ultimately, the New Testament never explains exactly how it works; you have permission to do the same.

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Chapters

00:00 Introduction

02:27 Atonement motifs in the New Testament

05:04 Ransom

11:56 Christus Victor

16:20 Satisfaction

20:21 Moral influence

23:00 Penal substitution

36:48 Happy exchange

Resources

• Faith After Faith, Jesus, the Devil, and Hell — Sarah Hinlicky Wilson
• Gregory of Nyssa, The Great Catechism, ch. 24
• Augustine, Sermon 263
• Origen, Commentary on Matthew
• Gregory of Nazianzus, Oration 45
• Gustaf Aulén, Christus Victor
• Anselm of Canterbury, Cur Deus Homo
• Peter Abelard, Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans
• Steve Chalke and Alan Mann, The Lost Message of Jesus
• Martin Luther, The Freedom of a Christian