Episode 194: Violence in the Bible, Part 3--Joshua and the Conquest

Lots of people know the story of when "Joshua fought the battle of Jericho... and the walls came a-tumblin' down." And from one perspective, the story of the Israelites taking the land of Canaan sounds like a triumphant victory and a happy ending.  The freed Israelites at last have a homeland, as God had promised their ancestor Abraham.  But what about the people who lived there already, and what do we do with the ways the conquest stories in the book of Joshua have been co-opted later in history to justify the conquering of "newly discovered" lands, the enslavement, resettling, or killing of indigenous peoples (like the Trail of Tears), or the notion of manifest destiny in our own national past?  Where is God in the midst of this story in the Bible, and how does faith in Jesus affect the way we read it?  This week's episode of Crazy Faith Talk opens all these cans of worms and more, as pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve gather around the microphone for more conversation.