Podcasts about beloved community

A beloved community centre which has served as a second home to tens of thousands of Queenstowners over 35 years in on the hunt for a new home of its own. Happiness House offers everything from free food to financial advice and spaces for social connection - but it's learned it has to vacate its iconic premises in the centre of town by late 2028. Otago Southland reporter Katie Todd has the story.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on July 5, 2026. Join us for the first in a sermon series exploring the spiritual significance of the ways (called "ends") through which we as a church have committed to living our mission. This Sunday, we will contemplate the first of our four ends: We are a collaborative, pluralistic church living our values and mission in the greater world, achieving together what we can't do alone.

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on June 28, 2026. What do Care Bears, Pride, spirituality, and UU theology have in common? According to Rev. Carrie, a lot. Join her to see how she makes that argument.

Ariel Fristoe: Theater as a Civic CommonsWhat happens when theater stops asking audiences simply to watch and starts inviting communities to listen, speak, and act?In this conversation, Bill Cleveland talks with Ariel Fristoe, founder and Artistic Director of Out of Hand Theater in Atlanta, about a lifetime spent reclaiming theater's oldest purpose—not entertainment alone, but civic life. Together they explore how storytelling, conversation, and community partnerships can become practical tools for reducing polarization, strengthening democratic participation, and helping neighbors encounter one another as fellow human beings rather than strangers.From foster parenting to community organizing, from performances in living rooms to citywide dinners on racial equity, Ariel describes a practice built on a deceptively simple recipe: Art to open hearts. Information to open minds. Conversation to inspire action.In this episode:Why theater originally existed as a civic commons—and why Ariel believes it should become one again.The story behind Decatur Dinners, where more than 1,200 strangers gathered in homes across one city for conversations about race.Ariel's vision for a modern “federal theatre project” that would put artists to work helping communities address their most pressing challenges.How community conversations created through theater can strengthen civic participation and democratic life.ART IS CHANGE Episode 184 Notable MentionsPeopleAriel Fristoe — Founder and Artistic Director of Out of Hand Theater, nationally recognized for developing theater-based civic engagement models that combine performance, dialogue, and community action.Bill Cleveland — Host of Art Is Change, artist, researcher, and founder of the Center for the Study of Art & Community.Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — Civil rights leader whose vision of the “Beloved Community” profoundly influences Ariel's work and the mission of Out of Hand Theater.Bryan Stevenson — Civil rights attorney, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, and author of Just Mercy. Ariel references his conviction that hope is the enemy of injustice.Malunga Casquelourd — Congolese cultural leader and teaching artist whose work at San Quentin Prison used traditional storytelling, music, and movement to create dialogue across prison factions.Nikki Young — Playwright whose work appears in the Decatur Dinners performance excerpt featured in this episode.Jesenia Ingram — Atlanta actor performing the excerpt from Nikki Young's play during the Decatur Dinners segment.Brian Goldstone — Journalist and anthropologist whose Pulitzer Prize-winning book There Is No Place for Us examines housing insecurity and the working poor in Atlanta.Organizations & InitiativesOut of Hand Theater — Atlanta-based theater company working at the intersection of art, civic engagement, and social justice through performances, community dialogue, and partnerships.Community Impact Lab — Out of Hand Theater's national training initiative helping artists, activists, and community leaders develop arts-based civic engagement projects.“Equitable Dinners” — Out of Hand's signature model combining a short play, shared meal, facilitated dialogue, and concrete civic action.“Shows in Homes” — Long-running initiative bringing professional theater into private homes to spark conversations around difficult community issues.“We Hold These Truths” — Out of Hand Theater's America250 initiative using four original plays and community dinners to encourage conversations across political, racial, and cultural differences.Center for the Study of Art & Community — Producer of Art Is Change.Charles F. Kettering Foundation — Partner through its Democracy and the Arts program.National Endowment for the Arts — Federal arts agency supporting public access to the arts, including Out of Hand's America250 initiative.The King Center — Atlanta institution dedicated to advancing Dr. King's philosophy of nonviolence.The Carter Center — International nonprofit advancing peace, democracy, and public health.National Center for Civil and Human Rights — Atlanta museum and educational center exploring links between the U.S. Civil Rights Movement and global human rights.United Way of Greater Atlanta — Regional nonprofit working to improve education, housing, and economic mobility.Atlanta Regional Commission — Metropolitan planning agency serving the Atlanta region.Mixed Blood Theatre — Minneapolis theater company licensing Out of Hand's community dinner model.RealTime Arts — Pittsburgh arts organization presenting Out of Hand's civic engagement model.Events & ProjectsAmerica250 — National commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, inspiring Out of Hand's “We Hold These Truths” initiative.“Decatur Dinners” — Landmark civic arts initiative in which more than 1,200 participants gathered in homes across Decatur for performances and conversations about racial equity.Publications & ResearchThere Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America — Brian Goldstone's Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into working homelessness in Atlanta.International Journal of Arts Management — Peer-reviewed journal publishing Ariel Fristoe's research on Out of Hand Theater's community-centered business model.Journal of Arts Management, Law, and Society — Scholarly journal publishing research related to arts management and cultural policy.American Theatre — National publication covering nonprofit theater, including Out of Hand Theater's America250 initiative.“Out of Hand Theater: Monetizing Creativity”— Harvard Business School case study examining Out of Hand Theater's innovative business model.Places & InstitutionsMartin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park — Historic district where Ariel Fristoe lives and works.Hope-Hill Elementary School — Neighborhood school Ariel describes as transforming her understanding of segregation and systemic racism.San Quentin Rehabilitation Center — California correctional institution referenced in Bill Cleveland's story about arts-based conflict resolution.Boston Children's Theatre — Historic theater where

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on June 21, 2026. You can't throw a rock without learning about the harm that patriarchy plays in the lives of women and children, but what we don't often think about is how patriarchy impacts men and boys and the many obstacles it places between them and their full humanity. Join Rev. Carrie as she uses Father's Day to explore the impact of patriarchy on men and how we might use our understanding to help us do the work of liberation.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on June 14, 2026. Building the Beloved Community and living into our full potential as individuals are far from exclusive pursuits - each requires the other. Our ability to flourish as individuals is bound up in creating communities and societies rooted in a fierce love that recognizes our sacred interdependence.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on June 7, 2026. Join Rev Chris, Sol, and our Chalice Camp participants for this much-loved Unitarian Universalist ritual where we bring flowers to add to the large bouquet we create and take a different flower with you, symbolizing both the unique, sacred beauty of each of us and the even greater beauty we create when we share that sacred uniqueness with one another.

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on May 31, 2026. There is what we aspire to be....the utopian vision of how we can be, and then there is the often harsh and painful reality of people's lived experiences. Inspired by Jose Martinez's powerful work "Voces Olvidadas," Rev. Carrie explores what it means to expand our capacity to hold what we are working for while also holding reality, especially the realities that are living in so much suffering.

In this special Pride Month

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on May 24, 2026. The board of First UU Church of Austin has been listening to the congregation about your dreams for the church and the differences it might make in our community and our world. Join us as the board president Karen Neeley and the Rev. Chris talk about your exciting vision for what comes next.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on May 17, 2026. You have probably heard the old "truism" that "Curiosity Killed the Cat", but did you know that there is a lesser-known version that says, "Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back." What if curiosity can feel risky, but actually holds the key to both individual and collective liberation?

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on May 10, 2026. The origin stories of Mother's Day were a cry for peace and an attempt to acknowledge the work of nurturing that goes unrewarded in a patriarchal society. While the day has become about the physical act of bearing and/or rearing children, the origins speak to something more radical, the transforming power of nourishing and providing care. Rev. Carrie unpacks this holiday and any gifts it might have for us.

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on May 3, 2026. If we hold values such as equity, interdependence, and justice, what are we obligated to do when we encounter situations that violate those beliefs? And what do we do when we feel overwhelmed by the number of situations that violate our beliefs? Can we do anything? Rev. Carrie explores these questions through the lens of May Day using our UU values.

Enjoy this rerun from the Fall 2023 season! What an excellent episode.-------------------------Welcome to our Fall 2023 season! In this episode, Zen speaks with Amy Carr and Christine Helmer about their brand new Baylor University Press book ⁠Ordinary Faith in Polarized Times: Justification and the Pursuit of Justice.⁠ Amy Carr is Professor of Religious Studies at Western Illinois University.Christine Helmer is Peter B. Ritzma Professor of Humanities at Northwestern University.Here's some of the book's blurb:Christians in the United States and around the world are politically polarized today, unable to speak to one another across deep divisions regarding urgent social issues. Ordinary Faith in Polarized Times: Justification and the Pursuit of Justice addresses this dire reality by offering a theological framework for Christian justice-seeking. Amy Carr and Christine Helmer draw on Paul's theology to center the idea of justification by faith in Christ as the primary ground of Christian belonging and community.This approach yields a theology of ordinary faith that resists the temptation to equate Christian identity with the performance of a heroic "here I stand" posture against moral and political positions felt to be inimical to a properly Christian life...Carr and Helmer articulate ways that justification by faith grounds Christian practices of affective listening and storytelling, even on the most contentious ethical questions today, with the hope that mutual conversation in and through the Beloved Community can get Christians who disagree oriented towards each other again for the good of the world.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on April 26, 2026. Rising authoritarianism. The climate in crisis. War without reason or remorse. Racism, misogyny, and bigotry unbridled. Democracy, equality, justice seemingly at threat in so many places. And, of course, our dreams for our own individual life can sometimes feel at risk also. And yet, what if creative potential, our own and the world's, is still virtually limitless? What if, through all the chaos, we are being lured toward possibilities that we have not yet dared to dream? What if we are being called to create something new?

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on April 19, 2026. This Sunday we celebrate all our volunteers who keep our church alive in a million different ways and make it possible for us to live into our mission. Our theology teaches us about the inherent worthiness of all and the beauty of our interdependence. In this church, when we put those beliefs to work, we generate beautiful things both inside and outside the church. Together we nourish each other, we journey with each other through transformation, and we do the work of building the beloved community.

Guest speaker Dr. Elias Ortega's service delivered on April 12, 2026. Dr Ortega explores how the Love Ethics of our Universalist tradition extends a radical welcome to a world marred by deep divisions, conflict, and growing uncertainty. Our shared Unitarian Universalist tradition invites us to choose Love as our guide in our relationships with one another and the world. This is a daring faith. A faith of a radical welcome where justice-seeking and justice-making lead to healing, transformation, and community.

Christopher Mack acknowledges the Jesus Movement has given us many reasons to leave, while encouraging curiosity around reasons we might choose to stay, and ultimately invites us to include and transcend the different stages of faith we have experienced as we participate in Jesus' calling to love neighbor and love God by forming Beloved Community.       Reflection Questions: Where does your heart explode with hope, joy, and love at the Jesus movement? Where does your heart sink with frustration, disappointment, and disgust at the Jesus movement? What if your real desire is not simply a way to stay Christian or put Christianity behind you but a way to be more fully and maturely human?

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt and Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on April 5, 2026. Rev. Chris and Rev. Carrie challenge each other with questions about this time that is so sacred to so many. Join us as we seek to understand and experience Easter in a Unitarian Universalist theological context.

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt and LB Lomeli's service delivered on March 29, 2026. The early warning alarms of genocide directed towards transgender people are starting to sound blaringly loud. How do we turn anger against transgender, nonbinary and intersex people into love? Rev. Carrie Holley-Hurt and LB Lomeli are offering a special Trans Day of Visibility worship service. Can we collectively challenge the systems of oppression by strengthening our spirituality?

On Palm Sunday, Vanessa Maleare confronts the feelings of sadness, disappointment, and frustration we experience when something is different than we anticipated. Jesus didn't act like the violent warrior king many of the people anticipated. What do you do when you face unmet expectations? Vanessa invites us to choose how we respond by realizing that “I can change what I do next.”   Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.     Reflection Questions: Have I been radically disappointed lately?  I can't change the past, but what will I do next?  What this week, imagine yourself saving your own “Hosannas,” “Save me from injustice,” or “Save me from this toxic relationship [with cookie dough].” 

Rev Chris Jimmerson and Sol Cornell's service delivered on March 22, 2026. Everybody has to start somewhere. We tend to focus more on our endings, though, what we've accomplished, what we've lost. But what if we turned our attention back to the beginning? What if we held our first steps and awkward starts with the same honor we do our successes? This Sunday, we'll pause to notice these beginnings and to appreciate them for getting us where we are.

On the fifth Sunday of Lent, Christopher Mack acknowledges we live in times where nerves can easily get fried and hope can seem in short supply. Everywhere we turn, it seems the world is on fire. The Hebrew people also wondered if the chaos engulfing their world would ever relent and give way to new life. A valley of dry bones seemed to offer evidence of a sealed and gruesome fate. Yet for Ezekiel, these beyond dead bones, were the perfect canvas for a community to believe they could begin again. Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.   Reflection Questions: Can you acknowledge to yourself and to God where you feel bone tired, sapped of hor or where your well has run dry?  Which stage of grief resonates most with you?  What is one step you can take toward wholeheartedness? 

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on March 15, 2026. The ability to keep our attention focused on the present moment has been shown to benefit us emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Yet sometimes, doesn't it feel like the past many present moments (years?) have been filled with drama, trauma, and a constant deluge of factors vying for our attention? How might we develop the spiritual resources and practices that will help us direct our attention toward that which centers us and brings us love and joy?

Belonging in the Wilderness: The Wild Bone Dried On the fifth Sunday of Lent, Christopher Mack acknowledges we live in times where nerves can easily get fried and hope can seem in short supply. Everywhere we turn, it seems the world is on fire. The Hebrew people also wondered if the chaos engulfing their world would ever relent and give way to new life. A valley of dry bones seemed to offer evidence of a sealed and gruesome fate. Yet for Ezekiel, these beyond-dead bones were the perfect canvas for a community to believe they could begin again.   Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.   Reflection Questions: Where can you acknowledge to yourself and to God where you feel bone tired, sapped of hope, or where your well has run dry?  Which of Brené Brown's Guideposts resonates most with you?  What is one step you can take toward wholeheartedness? 

Preaching for the Fourth Sunday of Lent, Joan F. Neal, M.A. encourages us to live as children of the light—speaking truth, defending human dignity, and embodying the Gospel in our public and personal lives: "Every time we witness to the truth in whatever way we can, every time we act in friendship, love, and solidarity with our neighbors, a ray of the light of the Reign of God pierces the darkness. And as more of us show up for the Gospel, these rays of light grow. And before we know it, the darkness of hate, lies and division is shattered. And God's vision for creation – the Beloved Community – reveals itself, becomes real, and surrounds us."Joan F. Neal is an Associate of the National Black Sisters Conference, a member of the Ecumenical Faith Table in Washington, DC, and the Black Catholic Theological Symposium. She has served in many leadership positions throughout her career and ministry. Most recently, she served as Interim Executive Director at NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice. Ms. Neal holds an Honorary Doctor of Ministry; a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies and a Certificate in Biblical Spirituality, from Catholic Theological Union (Chicago, IL).Visit https://www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/03152026 to learn more about Joan, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on March 8, 2026. What do you do when the onslaught of bad news floods our nervous system and causes us to feel shaky in our faith? Rev. Carrie explores that question and leads us through a spiritual practice of lament.

On this third Sunday of Lent, Eric Robinson roots us in a spirituality of the wilderness. Eric reminds us of how anxiety spreads through systems and communities to scapegoat either one of the most powerful people in the group or the least powerful. He encourages us to resist the temptation to emotionally fuse with anxiety or to cut ourselves off, but to instead self-differentiate. We are encouraged to look at the Triune God and imitate being separate-together.  Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.   Reflection Questions: What is a triangle you see in your own life? Where might God be inviting you to more self-differentiation? How might you be involved in changing societal systems that are triangulating? 

We come together to celebrate the life of Rev Meg Barnhouse. Rev. Erin Walter and Rev. Joanna Crawford read two of Meg's published stories. Invited guests who shared their personal stories include: Rev Chris Jimmerson, Rev. Dr. Sofia Betancourt, Rev. Tandi Rogers, Rev. Jake Morrill, as well as her two sons, Ned and Sam Durrett. Rev Kiya Heartwood performed songs.

Today, Michael welcomes back Arndrea Waters King. Arndrea is a visionary leader at the intersection of justice, feminine empowerment, and transformative community impact. As the founder of Divine Feminine, she champions a global movement inviting women to reclaim their inner wisdom, grace, and sacred strength—qualities often suppressed in a culture that prioritizes productivity over presence. Through storytelling and conscious leadership, she reframes leadership as an act of love and a pathway to collective healing. A National Merit Scholar, president of the Drum Major Institute, co-founder of Realize the Dream, chancellor at Legacy College, and co-host of the My Legacy Podcast, Arndrea blends decades of civil rights leadership, service, and feminine wisdom with spiritual insight.  Conversation Highlights include: -How years of Civil Rights work revealed both the cost of leading through force and the deeper power of leading through love. -Why the Divine Feminine is not about gender, but about restoring compassion, intuition, creativity, and fierce care to leadership. -The difference between building ladders of individual success and weaving webs of interconnected community. -How today's political and social upheaval can be understood as birth contractions stretching society toward something more conscious. -Why burnout happens when women give from depletion—and how slowing down, setting boundaries, and reconnecting to joy restores sacred energy. -A redefinition of power and prosperity that shifts from "me" to "we," where success uplifts entire communities. -Simple daily practices—gratitude, breath, journaling, intentional environments—that help anchor feminine wisdom in everyday life. -Justice as love expressed publicly: refusing to look away from suffering while choosing compassion over domination. -Legacy not as a name on a building, but as how we live, serve, and contribute to the Beloved Community right now. Next, Michael leads a grounding meditation to reconnect with your eternal spiritual nature.

Rev Chris Jimmerson's service delivered on March 1, 2026. As the song says, "Well, you know, we all want to change the world." The thing is, we can't romanticize the revolution. Revolutions can be hard and messy, and last beyond singular lifetimes. The world resists change mightily, at times with the starving of souls and the spilling of blood. How do we sustain ourselves through the long revolution? Perhaps, in the words of author and justice activist Dorothy Roberts, "We have to start with ourselves, and our most intimate relationships..." Perhaps we start by building what have been called "Islands of Sanity" together.

In this audio essay from my SubStack ⁠,Process This,⁠ I take Stephen Miller's claim that the "real world" is governed by strength and force and use it as a window into something much bigger than one political figure—a diagnosis of the soul of America. Drawing on the thesis Tom Holland developed in ⁠Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World⁠, Reinhold Niebuhr's ⁠The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness⁠, and the Black prophetic tradition of King and West, traced by Gary Dorrien in his ⁠3 volume history of the Black Social Gospel movement, ⁠I argue that what we're witnessing isn't actually Christian nationalism triumphing—it's post-Christian nationalism wearing Christian clothes. The cross is still everywhere, but the crucified one has been removed, and what's left is just Rome again: empire, domination, and the ancient lie that might makes right. But here's where it gets really interesting—Niebuhr doesn't let progressives off the hook either, naming them as "children of light" who kept the Christian ethics of justice and victim-focus but severed them from grace, forgiveness, and the theological roots that make them sustainable. It's a prophetic call that refuses easy partisanship, traces the American rhetoric of force back through white supremacy to its Roman origins, and ultimately invites us back to the "sublime madness" of King's Beloved Community—where power is redefined not as domination but as the capacity to achieve a shared, constructive purpose.  ⁠⁠⁠⁠You can subscribe to the Audio Essay podcast feed here.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join us at Theology Beer Camp, October 8-10, in Kansas City!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠ONLINE LENT CLASS: Jesus in Galilee w/ John Dominic Crossan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ What can we actually know about Jesus of Nazareth? And, what difference does it make? ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠This Lenten class ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠begins where all of Dr. John Dominic Crossan's has work begins: with history. What was actually happening in Galilee in the 20s CE? What did Herod Antipas' transformation of the "Sea of Galilee" into the commercial "Sea of Tiberias" mean for peasant fishing communities? Why did Jesus emerge from John's baptism movement proclaiming God's Rule through parables—and what made that medium so perfectly suited to that message? Only by understanding what Jesus' parables meant then can we wrestle with what they might demand of us now. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The class is donation-based, including 0, so join, get info, and join up here.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ This podcast is a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Homebrewed Christianity ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠production. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠the Homebrewed Christianity⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Theology Nerd Throwdown⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Rise of Bonhoeffer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ podcasts for more theological goodness for your earbuds. Join over 75,000 other people by joining our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Substack - Process This!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get instant access to over 50 classes at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.TheologyClass.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow the podcast, drop a review⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, send ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠feedback/questions⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or become a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠member of the HBC Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the second Sunday of Lent, Lilly Louise Ettinger reminds us powerfully and poignantly that the wilderness is not always received as a gift. We often find it the last place we want to be. Yet we still often find ourselves in the middle of it. Lilly suggests prayer labyrinths, morning pages, and the power of presence as lodestars to guide us in the wilderness.   Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.   Reflection Questions: What brings you to the wilderness? How do you feel invited to respond to God this week? Where are you experiencing tension in your journey right now?

Guest Speaker Rev Dr Leona Stucky-Abbot's service delivered on February 22, 2026. Infants begin to develop their brains in the context of a mothering matrix, which involves the important relationships of their early years. Internalized relational patterns gradually establish expectations and structures for how babies think. Their novice experiences also distort who mother is and why she exists. These distortions mirror the ways humans construct their relationships with the Divine.

On this first Sunday of Lent, Christopher Mack invites us to open ourselves to God's Presence in the wilderness through Henri Nouwen's suggested practices of contemplative prayer, forgiveness, and theological reflection. Belonging in the Wilderness lays bare the tension between our vulnerable humanity… our desire to simply be, without hustling for worthiness or trying to fit in… and our longing for Beloved Community with our friends, family, neighbors, enemies, creation, and our Creator. The wilderness is an unavoidable part of this journey. It is where we abandon the game of dressing up like our mythical heroes and begin to uncover the mystery of our one wild and true self.  A life so rooted in Divine Love, we find ourselves simultaneously set apart and intimately connected to God's global family. We rarely choose to go to the wilderness, where all our distractions and pretense evaporate. Yet the wilderness invites us to live together for what really matters, because here there is energy for little else. There are no shortcuts in the wilderness. It is a solitary journey, which we cannot walk alone.      

From interfaith practice to ancestral wisdom, Kaira Jewel Lingo and Vincent Moore explore how engaged spirituality across traditions supports collective awakening.Today's podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Kaira and Vincent discuss:The Beloved Community for Engaged Spirituality: developing a monastic space for Buddhist/Christian/non-denominational practice in upstate New YorkReceiving Lamp Transmission from Thich Nhat HanhContending with hostility, wars, and climate crises Ancestral wisdom and honoring those who came before usSkillful means and working with people in denial around the current troubles of our timeEnjoying practice, allowing individuality, and letting go of rigidity Remembering that everyone has the capacity for awakeningThis conversation was originally recorded on the Paths of Practice Podcast. Listen to more episodes HERE.About Kaira Jewel Lingo:Kaira is a mindfulness meditation teacher, author, and mentor who guides people to transform and heal through embodied presence, stillness, and play. She is a Buddhist teacher who has spent decades weaving mindfulness and meditation with social justice. Check out her book, We Were Made for These Times, to learn about navigating change. You can keep up with Kaira on her website.About Vincent Moore:Vincent Moore is a creative and creative consultant living in San Francisco, California, with over a decade of experience in the entertainment industry and holds a graduate degree in Buddhist Studies. For years, he performed regularly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, an improv and sketch comedy theatre based in New York and Los Angeles. As an actor, Vincent performed on Comedy Central, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Late Show with Seth Meyers, Above Average, and The UCB Show on Seeso. As a writer, he developed for television as well as stage, including work with the Blue Man Group, and his own written projects have been featured on websites such as Funny or Die. Additionally, he received a Masters of Buddhist Studies from the Institute of Buddhist Studies with a Certificate in Soto Zen Studies and engages in a personal Buddhist practice within the Soto Zen tradition. Vincent is also the creator and host of the podcast, Paths of Practice, which features interviews with Buddhists from all over the world. Learn more on Vincent's website HERE."Whenever I read the Christian mystics or any mystic, really, it's like the mystics are in touch with this space that is beyond the confines of one tradition. They're in the groundwater, not in the well. All the mystics seem to get to that place of oneness, emptiness, or total interconnection." –Kaira Jewel LingoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bis Thornton's service delivered on February 15, 2026. Our world is full of so much greed, violence, and hatred. Many of us have begun to wonder: "Is love really enough?" Recently, the Texas UU Justice Ministry (TXUUJM) joined 30 partner organizations in a procession to the ICE family detention center outside of Dilley, Texas. Join TXUUJM Intern Minister Bis Thornton for a journey through the events of that day. Together we will explore what it means to hold love at the center of all things.

Special guest preacher Rev. Gail Song Bantum wraps up our series, "Building the Beloved Community."

Rev Carrie Holley-Hurt's service delivered on February 6, 2026. Fear is the reason we are here. It is a tool for survival but it can also get in the way of living into our values and meeting the moment. Rev. Carrie explores how we might honor our humanity, listen to our body, and live in alignment with our values.

Special guest preacher Rev. Gail Song Bantum wraps up our series, "Building the Beloved Community."

DateFebruary 8, 2026SynopsisIn this sermon, we continue our series, Building the Beloved Community: A Blueprint from Dream to Reality, by challenging the gap between creed and deed—the painful disconnect between outward piety and lived justice. The 'breach' is the chasm between "what is and how God wants things to be," and our spiritual task isn't to retreat, but to run toward the vulnerability—brick and mortar in hand—and ask, "Where does it hurt?" This is the difficult but life-giving work of becoming Menders of Broken Walls and Restorers of Livable Streets, where God meets us and promises, "I'm here."ReferencesScripture: Isaiah 58:1–12About The Local ChurchFor more information about The Local Church, visit our website. Feedback? Questions? Comments? We'd love to hear it. Email Brent at brent@thelocalchurchpbo.org.To invest in what God's doing through The Local Church and help support these podcasting efforts and this movement of God's love, give online here.

January 22, 2026 - During the first segment Vernon interviews Stacey Sutton, PhD., Associate Professor of Urban Planning & Policy at the University of Illinois Chicago. Dr Sutton and Vernon will discuss how cooperatives and solidarity economies can transform cities and advance racial and economic justice. In the second segment Vernon will discuss the relationship between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s moral and economic philosophy, the African humanist principle of Ubuntu, and the role of cooperative economics in advancing what Dr. King described as the Beloved Community.  Stacey Sutton, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy at the University of Illinois Chicago, where she also directs the Solidarity Economy Research, Policy & Law Project and serves as Director of Applied Research and Strategic Partnerships for UIC's Social Justice Initiative. Her work focuses on community economic development, economic democracy, worker-owned cooperatives, solidarity economies, and racial and economic justice. Dr. Sutton's research explores how local governments and grassroots movements can support cooperative ownership and equitable economic systems, as well as how punitive urban policies disproportionately affect marginalized communities. She is the author of research on “cooperative cities” and leads the Real Black Utopias project examining Black-centered solidarity economy ecosystems. Dr. Sutton holds a PhD in Urban Planning and Sociology from Rutgers University, an MBA from New York University, an MS from the New School for Social Research, and a BA from Loyola University.

In this sermon, we continue our series, Building the Beloved Community: A Blueprint from Dream to Reality, by diving into the structural integrity of the 'frame.' We move past the foundation of 'somebodiness' to see how the prophet Micah's call reveals the essential, non-negotiable components: to do justice, embrace hesed (faithful love), and walk humbly with God. These three elements are the core beams and joists of a life of faith, ensuring that your efforts do not collapse into self-righteousness, cheap charity, or burnout, so the Beloved Community you're building can actually bear weight.

DateFebruary 1, 2026SynopsisIn this sermon, we continue our series, Building the Beloved Community: A Blueprint from Dream to Reality, by diving into the structural integrity of the 'frame.' We move past the foundation of 'somebodiness' to see how the prophet Micah's call reveals the essential, non-negotiable components: to do justice, embrace hesed (faithful love), and walk humbly with God. These three elements are the core beams and joists of a life of faith, ensuring that your efforts do not collapse into self-righteousness, cheap charity, or burnout, so the Beloved Community you're building can actually bear weight.ReferencesScripture: Micah 6:1–8About The Local ChurchFor more information about The Local Church, visit our website. Feedback? Questions? Comments? We'd love to hear it. Email Brent at brent@thelocalchurchpbo.org.To invest in what God's doing through The Local Church and help support these podcasting efforts and this movement of God's love, give online here.