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The Urban Gems Podcast

The Urban Gems Podcast

By: urbangems
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The Urban Gems podcast is brought to you by the authors of the book Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives On The Global City And Its People (releasing April 2026 on SacraSage Press), a group of urban ministry practitioners that have a love for urban places and a love for the Christian faith tradition.

We believe that the city is like a diamond – forged out of intense pressure and crafted into something beautiful by its citizens. When we see the city this way, we can hold both the city's very real difficulties in one hand and its beauty in the other. When we enter the city seeking something beautiful, a precious stone, we behold the glimmer of lives, stories, and relationships that make up the hidden yet very real structure of any city. When we turn that gem and let a different facet catch our eye, we can see the globalized world we all share with a clear view of all the city holds, both the precious and the precarious. Still another turn might pull back the curtain on the pressures and processes beneath the surface, making the city what it is. Just like a gem, the city can be constantly revealing different aspects of itself.

Join us as we discuss the beautiful gem that is the city.

Copyright 2026 All rights reserved.
Christianity Social Sciences Spirituality
Episodes
  • S1:E11 - Vancouver: Dena Nicolai
    Jun 22 2026

    Welcome to the Urban Gems Podcast, a companion to the new book Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People.

    My guest on this episode is Dena Nicolai. Dena works in the areas of refugee resettlement and refugee sponsorship (associated with Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program) in Vancouver, British Columbia, connecting with newcomers throughout Metro Vancouver and with refugee support groups across Canada. She has an M.A. in Theological Studies from Regent College (Vancouver, BC) and has been deeply shaped by her time in the cities of Edmonton, Alberta (where she was born and raised), Cairo, Egypt (where she lived after university), and Vancouver, BC (her current home).

    Dena is also the author of Chapter 9, titled “No Debt to Repay”: Refugees and the Welcome of God in the new book “Urban Gems”

    Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People, published by SacraSage Press, is available as an eBook or paperback:

    eBook: Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/ya52w24h or BN: https://tinyurl.com/3f232jfj or Google Play: https://tinyurl.com/yfj5vb87

    Paperback: BN: https://tinyurl.com/bkzvxfcz or Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/mr22cv7v

    Urban Gems Cover Art:

    Neighborhood Church by Scott Erickson (scottericksonart.com).

    Used with permission from the author.

    Theme Music: Urban by EwaySound

    Royalty Free Music from Tune Tank (https://tunetank.com/track/2090-urban)

    Show More Show Less
    46 mins
  • S1:E10 - Guatemala City / Grand Rapids, MI: Joel Aguilar
    Jun 15 2026

    Welcome to the Urban Gems Podcast, a companion to the new book Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People.

    On this episode my guest is Dr. Joel Aguilar-Ramirez. Joel holds a PhD from the University of Pretoria in South Africa, a master’s degree in Global Urban Ministry from Bakke Graduate University, and a bachelor’s in theology from the Central American Theological Seminary in Guatemala. Joel is the author of the book A Human Catechism: A Journey from Violence and Collective Woundedness to Peacebuilding, and several other publications. He also publishes a substack called A Human Catechism. Joel has worked for two decades in connecting the non-for-profit and academic worlds through leadership and youth development in the slums of Guatemala City.

    Joel teaches courses in theology and mission at Bakke Graduate University and the Community of Interdisciplinary Theological Studies. Joel is an ordained member of the Street Psalms community, where he currently serves as the Director of Fellowships.

    Joel is also the author of Chapter 8, titled A Guatemalan Experience Of Planetary Urbanization in the new book “Urban Gems”

    Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People, published by SacraSage Press, is available as an eBook or paperback:

    eBook: Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/ya52w24h or BN: https://tinyurl.com/3f232jfj or Google Play: https://tinyurl.com/yfj5vb87

    Paperback: BN: https://tinyurl.com/bkzvxfcz or Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/mr22cv7v

    Urban Gems Cover Art:

    Neighborhood Church by Scott Erickson (scottericksonart.com).

    Used with permission from the author.

    Theme Music: Urban by EwaySound

    Royalty Free Music from Tune Tank (https://tunetank.com/track/2090-urban)

    Show More Show Less
    40 mins
  • S1:E9 - Kansas City: Kurt Rietema
    Jun 8 2026

    Welcome to the Urban Gems Podcast, a companion to the new book Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People.

    On this episode our guest is Kurt Rietema. Kurt is the Senior Director of Youthfront Neighborhood at Youthfront. Kurt lives and works in a neighborhood called Argentine in Kansas City, Kansas, that may be short on money and status, but rich in culture. Kurt’s work includes youth social entrepreneurship, short-term mission, community development, and creating just housing and lending partnerships for immigrants.

    Kurt has an MA in Global Development and Social Justice from St. John’s University and is the co-author of To Mend the World: A New Vision of Youth Ministry.

    Kurt is also the author of Chapter 10 , titled “Foreigners There”: Privilege, Wilderness, and the Search for Belonging in the new book “Urban Gems”

    Urban Gems: Ministry Perspectives on the Global City and its People, published by SacraSage Press, is available as an eBook or paperback:

    eBook: Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/ya52w24h or BN: https://tinyurl.com/3f232jfj or Google Play: https://tinyurl.com/yfj5vb87

    Paperback: BN: https://tinyurl.com/bkzvxfcz or Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/mr22cv7v

    Urban Gems Cover Art:

    Neighborhood Church by Scott Erickson (scottericksonart.com).

    Used with permission from the author.

    Theme Music: Urban by EwaySound

    Royalty Free Music from Tune Tank (https://tunetank.com/track/2090-urban)

    Show More Show Less
    30 mins
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