Progressive Spirit

The Walking Dead. The Night of the Living Dead. Sean of the Dead. Z Nation. We can't seem to get enough of the zombies. So what is that about? Greg Garrett is Professor of English at Baylor University, where he teaches classes in fiction and screenwriting, literature, film and popular culture, and theology. The author or coauthor of twenty books on fiction, nonfiction, and memoir, Garrett (according to the BBC) is one of Americas leading voices on religion and culture. Professor Garrett says that we love killing zombies for a number of reasons. When societies face looming catastrophes and fears, zombies rise. His book is "Living with the Living Dead: The Wisdom of the Zombie Apocalypse."

This is an encore podcast of my conversation with Matthew Fox that I previously released in November 2016.Matthew Fox. Silenced by the Vatican for his views, left the Catholic priesthood in the early 1980s. Matthew Fox is a theologian and activist who has written over 30 books. He has introduced millions of people to Creation Spirituality. His latest book, published in 2016 is called "A Way to God: Thomas Merton’s Creation Spirituality Journey." According to Fox, Merton was assassinated by the CIA. We will talk more about that as well as have a candid conversation about ecology, human rights, capitalism, and resistance.

Politicians like to misquote Jesus to slash programs for the poor. Republican congressman, Roger Marshall of Kansas misused a quote from Jesus to support his program to reduce healthcare benefits for the poor. This is from the article on Stat from March 3rd, 2017:“Just like Jesus said, ‘The poor will always be with us,’” he said. “There is a group of people that just don’t want health care and aren’t going to take care of themselves.”Did Jesus really say, “The poor will always be with us?” What is the exact quote? What is the context? What did Jesus really mean? How do we respond to politicians who use the Bible and Jesus to cut aid to those most in need? Liz Theoharis is fighting back. She is the founder and co-director of the Kairos Center for religions, Rights, and Social Justice and coordinator of the Poverty Initiative at Union Theological Seminary, New York City. An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Theoharis has spent the last two decades organizing among the poor in the

The good citizen defends his castle.   Punks, thieves, thugs, and rapists don’t stand a chance against a 44 Magnum in the hands of the good guy who stands his ground.   That is the myth.  The reality is that America’s love affair with guns and lethal self-defense has not made America safer, just more violent and more afraid.   Harvard Professor Caroline Light explores the development of the American right to self-defense and reveals how the original “duty to retreat” from threat was transformed into a selective right to kill. In her book, Stand Your Ground:  A History of America’s Love Affair with Lethal Self-Defense, Professor Light traces white America’s attachment to racialized, lethal self-defense by unearthing its complex legal and social histories—from the original “castle laws” of the 1600s, which gave white men the right to protect their homes, to the brutal lynching of “criminal” Black bodies during the Jim Crow era and the radicalization of the NRA as it transitioned from a sporting org

Drew Bekius was a true believer.  He prayed the “sinner’s prayer” when he was three and was immersed in evangelical Christianity, starting an award-winning ministry in his high school.  He became a minister and a leader and he was skilled at the job.   But a few years ago, the edifice began to crack.   He realized he no longer could believe the things he needed to believe in order to be a minister.   Now he no longer holds belief in God or Jesus or the church.  He is now a humanist coach and is the president of The Clergy Project.  The Clergy Project is online community for former and active religious professionals who no longer hold supernatural beliefs.    In many ways Drew is still a minister at heart.  He is a caring, thoughtful person who wants to help people overcome stereotypes and to understand each other even when they might not agree.   In particular, he wants atheists and Christians to talk to each other. We discuss his journey and his new mission that he outlines in his book, The Rise and Fall of

The Nag Hammadi library discovered in 1945 has provided a number of alternative Christian texts.   They were not included in the Bible. Dr. Celene Lillie discusses three of these texts in her book, The Rape of Eve:  The Transformation of Roman ideology in Three Early Christian Retellings of Genesis. In each of these texts, “On the Origin of the World,” “The Reality of the Rulers,” and “The Secret Revelation of John,” Eve is portrayed as having been humiliated by the cosmic powers but experiences restoration.    They have been dismissed by many orthodox Christians as Gnostic or even heresy.    New scholarship has discovered that these texts are quite complex, even playful, as they provide alternative myths to the founding myths of Rome.  She sees these Nag Hammadi stories are myths of resistance to Roman imperial power and to Rome’s culture of rape and domination.     Dr. Lillie is the director of the Tanho Center in Longmont, Colorado.  The Tanho Center is dedicated to the exploration of the many discoveries

Justin Dillon is a former musician turned filmmaker and social entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of Made in A Free World, a platform that brings together consumers, organizations, and businesses to dismantle the 150 billion dollar business of human trafficking. His latest book is titled A Selfish Plan to Change the World: Finding Big Purpose in Big Problems. His message to all of us, Find Your Riot.

 The United States with five percent of the world’s population  incarcerates 25% of the world’s prisoners.   Mass incarceration in the United States is well-known.   Today’s guest points out something not as well known.   Overcrowded and underfunded prisons now outsource educational and mental health services to religious groups.   These religious organizations are overwhelmingly run by nondenominational protestant Christians who see prisoners as captive audiences for their message.   Is there a problem here?Tanya Erzen is the author of God in  Captivity:  The Rise of Faith-Based Prison Ministries in the Age of Mass Incarceration.  Laura Everett is a United Church of Christ minister in Boston who for the last eight years has made the bicycle her main vehicle of transportation in all four seasons.   She has found that riding her bike has connected her with her city, expanded her community, activated her on issues of transit justice, and increased her spiritual growth.  She is happier because she rides her bike

Contemporary American Society is saturated with fear, fear that is out of proportion to the actual threats we face. That is how Michael Kinnamon, a widely respected leader and scholar in the ecumenical movement begins his book, The Witness of Religion In An Age of Fear.Why are we so afraid? Of what are we afraid? How can we respond with courage?I also speak with one of the 100 most spiritually influential people alive today, according to Mind, Body, Spirit magazine. Steve Taylor is a spiritual psychologist, author, and lecturer. We tend to think that spiritual enlightenment or awakening is for the professionals, those who devote their lives to meditation or simplicity or study. Steve Taylor says awakening is accessible to all. He is the author of The Leap: The Psychology of Spiritual Awakening.Michael Kinnamon Interview, 2:00 - 28:07Steve Taylor Interview, 28:37-53

What if we brought mindfulness to schools and Buddhism to economics?Clair Brown teaches at Cal Berkely and is the author of Buddhist Economics: An Enlightened Approach to the Dismal Science.Caverly Morgan is the founder of "Peace in Schools," the first for credit high school mindfulness course in the nation.What if we brought mindfulness to schools and Buddhism to economics?We just might make a more compassionate world.:00-26:00  Caverly Morgan Interview26:30-53:00  Clair Brown Interview

When we hear the word theology, we may think we are going to engage in esoteric reflections about divinity and the afterlife.  But theology at its best is not about God or gods, but about life and its meaning and the myths that drive us.   Arthur Dewey is professor of theology at Xavier University in Cincinnati.  He is a scholar of the historical Jesus and a Fellow of Westar Institute, popularly known as the Jesus Seminar.   He says that ““Theology is resonant. At its best, it lends rhythm and rhyme to the raw energy of life. It improvises on this world without trying to escape to a heaven somewhere else”We are going to talk about his book, Wisdom Notes: Theological Riffs on Life and Living. The Ramadan Tent Project is a creation of students in London.   It is an open iftar, a breaking of the fast, in which the public is invited.   The first ever Ramadan Tent Project in the United States was held last year in Beaverton, Oregon.  The students who brought it to Portland will do it again this year.   We will hea

What is moral?  How has morality changed and how does that effect how we make decisions and evaluate the decisions of others in politics, business, and sex?   In Behaving Badly:  The New Morality in Politics, Sex and Business. Eden Collinsworth embarks on a personal journey to discover morality in a new globalized culture.Eden Collinsworth is a former media executive and business consultant.  She was formerly of Arbor House Publishing Company founder of the LA based monthly magazine Buzz before becoming a vice president at Hearst Corporation.She wrote a best-selling book in China for Chinese businesspeople on Western deportment and she launched Collinsworth & Associates, a Bejing based consulting firm which specialized in intercultural communication.

Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth was one of the leaders of the civil rights movement along with Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy.  But he was in many ways unsung.  Middle Georgia State University Professor Andrew Manis talks about the legacy of Fred Shuttlesworth.   In 1999, he wrote A Fire You Can’t Put Out: The Civil Rights Life of Birmingham’s Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth.  This book is in the process of being made into a film.I also speak with Dr. Michael Eric Dyson.    He is a Georgetown University sociology professor, a New York Times contributing opinion writer, and a contributing editor of The New Republic, and of ESPN's The Undefeated website.  In January he released Tears We Cannot Stop:  A Sermon to White America.Powerful spokespersons for truth about race past and present.  Fire and tears.

Mary Astor’s biggest role was Brigid O’Shaughnessy.  Brigid was the love interest of Sam Spade played by Humphrey Bogart in the film, the Maltese Falcon.But Mary Astor is most famous for what happened off screen and was recorded in her diary.   Caricaturist Edward Sorel brings her story to life in the book he wrote and illustrated, Mary Astor’s Purple Diary:  The Great American Sex Scandal of 1936.I also speak with a young minister, who at the age of 37 was diagnosed with a form of cancer usually reserved fo men in their 60s and 70s.  Jason Micheli tells his story in his book, Cancer is Funny:  Keeping Faith In Stage Serious Chemo.

 Stephen Gray is the author of Cannabis and Spirituality: An Explorer’s Guide to an Ancient Plant Spirit Ally. On October 1st, 2015, Oregon joined Washington and Colorado as the third state to legalize recreational use of cannabis. Now that it is easy as going to one of the many cannabis shops in the state and choosing from a wide selection of strains, many who perhaps haven’t used cannabis since college or are curious and using it for the first time may have many questions about the plant.Many misconceptions about cannabis abound. It is much maligned and misunderstood. Today we will address questions such as: What are its effects? What is a good dosage? Why do some people have negative experiences with it (such as paranoia or anxiety)? Is it addictive? Is it good for society to legalize cannabis?We are also going to talk about the spirituality of cannabis. How can cannabis be an ally in spiritual practice?In the second part of the show, I speak with Michael Eric Dyson, author of Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermo

On February 9th 2017 in Northeast Portland, a 17 year old child, Quanice Derrick Hayes was shot three times, twice in the chest and once through the head at point blank range. He was shot and killed by Portland Police Officer Andrew Hearst.The family of Quanice Hayes is calling on Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler who also serves as police commissioner to instruct the district attorney to seek an indictment for Officer Hearst.The mother of Quanice Hayes, Venus Hayes, and the lead organizer of “Don’t Shoot Portland”, Teressa Raiford, speak with me about their struggle for accountability, transparency, and justice.

The theme of this episode is transitions and transformations. Here are two people who see changes on the ground and are helping direct them toward a more flourishing outcome.My first guest ever on this program, when it was called Religion For Life, is Anthony Flaccavento. He returns to discuss his book, "Building A Healthy Economy From the Bottom Up: Harnessing Real-World Experience for Transformative Change." In 1995 he founded Appalachian Sustainable Development and is now the president of SCALE Inc., a private consulting business that supports ecologically healthy economics.In this book he provides examples of locally-based economies that are thriving all over the country. At the same time, he says that we are losing the battle at the policy levels both locally and nationally. His book is a call to action for entrepreneurs, scholars, policymakers, community activists and all citizens to re-think economy and act for a way of justice and commonsense from the bottom-up.Deshna Ubeda is the director of

Progressive Spirit is now one hour! (Technically 54 minutes to accommodate top of the hour news). Ask your local public radio station to carry Progressive Spirit!I am thrilled to have my conversation with Gretta Vosper be the first show in the now expanded Progressive Spirit!Gretta Vosper is an atheist minister in the United Church of Canada. She is the author of 'With or Without God: Why The Way We Live is More Important Than What We Believe'' and 'Amen: What Prayer Can Mean In A World Beyond Belief.'She is the leader of an exciting community in Toronto, West Hill United Church, that has been under fire from its larger institution for moving beyond the language of the church.Gretta discusses the work of this community and her own struggles with the larger institution. Because of her theological views she was reviewed and declared to be "unsuitable" for ministry.Is there a larger story, though? Gretta also talks about how the liberal United Church in order to grow has accepted into its clergy pentecostals

Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell is a pilgrim, speaker, writer, teacher, ordained Presbyterian pastor, parent, partner, and pet lover.In 1999 he came out as a gay man and it was a pilgrimage that enabled him to be honest with himself.Currently, Brett is a pastor serving St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, Portland, Oregon, having been on the faculty of Duke University and North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina.He is the author of ten books and three on pilgrimage. His latest is Practicing Pilgrimage: On Being and Becoming God’s Pilgrim People.Brett directs the School of the Pilgrim taking people on pilgrimage around the world and in their backyards.We discuss pilgrimage as spiritual awakening, liberation, and protest.

Deshna Ubeda is the director of Progressive Christianity Dot Org. She is directing The Embrace Festival, May, 4, 5, and 6 in Portland. Similar to Burning Man, Beloved, and Wild Goose, the Embrace Festival will feature presentations, art, music, dance, community and food for the purpose of building sacred community and inspiring social transformation. Here is its vision:In May 2017, people from all over the world will gather in Portland, Oregon to share knowledge and wisdom, learn from each other, celebrate, be inspired, and find the tools needed to create and enliven local movements within our communities. Together we will explore sacred oneness, Christ Consciousness, Buddha Nature, eco-spirituality, social justice and the way of universal and personal transformation that honors the Divine in all.One of the presenters at the Embrace Festival is Gretta Vosper, an atheist minister in the United Church of Canada. She is the leader of an exciting community in Toronto that has been under fire from its larger i