"You deserve to see Jesus in Christians.” That’s the central theme of the new upcoming podcast, Bridges Over Walls from the Oregon Conference.

Over the last six years, Kaleb Eisele has worked in creative ministry and storytelling, having the opportunity to interview over 700 people for creative film, text, and projects—including fellow Seventh-day Adventists, former Adventists, and many who have very little experience with the Seventh-day Adventist church at all. That experience has made clear that forming healthy relationships is one of the most prominent problems that we face as people. Whether across generations, cultures, or even lived experiences—we have gotten very good at building walls between each other.

When we read the stories of Jesus, we see something very different. The society and religious culture at that time was one with many of its own walls, dividing people by class, religion, race, gender, and more—but we see Jesus sitting with the woman at the well, healing the Roman centurion’s servant, and standing between His own religious leaders and a woman they wanted to stone. Where people built walls, Jesus built bridges.

Now that lived experience and knowledge has inspired Bridges Over Walls, a show about relational healing. In every episode the question will be asked, “What are the relational obstacles we have created as Christians, and how can we reconcile and come together as one community again?” First season guests include familiar Adventist faces such as José Rojas, Andreas Beccai, and Kevin Wilson, as well as new friends like the mayor of Gladstone, Oregon. The show is produced by the Oregon Conference Communication team, edited by Mitchell Kessler, and hosted by Kaleb Eisele. Our first episode will release on Friday, July 28th, on YouTube, Instagram, Tik Tok, and your favorite podcasting app.
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We hope you’ll take a little time and learn with us as we build new bridges of connection with our neighbors and each other this fall on Bridges Over Walls!