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RUMORS OF DOING GOOD PODCAST

S05 E02

Counter | Presence

Seeing God in Every Face

S5 E2 Conter Presence - Seeing God in Every Face

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In this episode, we explore the deep and disruptive belief that every person bears the image of God — the Imago Dei. We reflect on how this conviction, rooted in the life and teachings of Jesus and nurtured within the Anabaptist tradition, calls us to a radically different way of seeing and relating to others. In a world that often categorizes, dehumanizes, and divides, we ask: what kind of community becomes possible when we begin by recognizing the divine in every face? And how might that recognition reshape the way we live, lead, and belong — together?

Many of us are living with a deep dissatisfaction — with organized religion as it’s been, with society as it is, and with the pace and patterns of life that leave us fragmented and exhausted.

Counter Presence: Dissatisfaction Rooted in Hope is a series of conversations born from that unrest, and from a longing to live more grounded, more human, and more faithful lives. Rooted in the conviction that the Anabaptist tradition offers a wealth of wisdom for these times, we take the time to explore what it means to cultivate a countercultural presence — one that is shaped by the life and teachings of Jesus, and formed through community, simplicity, mutuality, and hope.

Not as an escape, but as a faithful way of being in the world, together.

Intro/Outro music by Skinfiltr8r.

About Andrew:

Dr. Andrew S Dungan serves as pastor of Summit Street Church, a Mennonite Church USA affiliated congregation, located in Beatrice, Nebraska. Summit Street Church is Jesus-centered, others-focused, neighborhood church located in the very same neighborhood that Andrew grew up in. Andrew earned a Masters Degree in Christian Education from Bethel Seminary (St. Paul, MN) and a Doctorate in Leadership from Creighton University. Directly out of seminary Andrew served as Pastor of Ministry Development for a non-denominational church in Omaha, NE. That work was short-lived, however, as he exited the ministry (and “church“) dissatisfied, discouraged, disgruntled and disenfranchised, vowing that he’d “never do that (ministry) again.” God had other plans and Andrew has a new appreciation and compassion for those who “dig Jesus, but not the church.”


After leaving the ministry, Andrew worked the next 10 years in the nonprofit sector finding his niche in developing organizational systems and engaging volunteers. Andrew enjoys working through sticky organizational problems and finding places for people to get involved. Back in the pastorate, Andrew is a voice for new church possibilities and for Neighborhood-Narrative Theology – for a fresh praxis of actively re-contextualizating scripture in embodied ways with others in local neighborhoods. Andrew has been characterized as “angsty productive,” living with a creative dissatisfaction that fuels his imagination and his urgency. His Substack, “Wired for Urgency,” is a space intended to confront cliché and explore Jesus-centered faith for the disillusioned, the restless, and the called. He has a wife, Alicyn, and two children: Beckett and Emberly. 

Dive Deeper

Today’s conversation invites us to reconsider how we see others — and how we live in light of the truth that every person bears the image of God. Below are resources that explore the implications of Imago Dei for community, justice, and everyday discipleship, especially through the lens of Anabaptist values like nonviolence, mutuality, and dignity.