This month's podcast features Elaine Heath, Academy faculty, Upper Room Books author, and so much more. Elaine’s scholarly work is interdisciplinary, integrating pastoral, biblical, and spiritual theology in ways that bridge the gap between academy, church, and world. And it’s because of this approach that I’m excited for her words to us today that were a portion of her time with Academy 34. Her current research interests focus on community as a means of healing trauma, emergent forms of Christianity, and alternative forms of theological education for the church in rapidly changing contexts. In addition to having served as Dean of a Divinity School and Professor of Evangelism, Elaine is co-founder of the Missional Wisdom Foundation, and more recently she co-founded Neighborhood Seminary, a contextualized model of missional theological education for laity.

Elaine's episode reminds us, "We are already God’s joy, God’s delight — even before we embark on our respective journeys toward reconciliation, reparation, and healing, we are aglow with the warmth of Christ’s love. That is good news."

Healing Our Original Wounds

This month's episode features Roberta Bondi's exploration of prayer. Roberta is a writer, speaker, teacher, and retreat leader. She is Professor Emerita of Church History at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. Roberta earned a bachelor’s degree from Southern Methodist University and completed two years of study at Perkins School of Theology. She holds Mater of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Oxford University. A weaver and spinner who is interested in women’s work with fiber through the ages, Roberta is the author of nine books and a longtime faculty member of The Academy for Spiritual Formation. Roberta’s lifetime of studying the desert mothers and fathers of the Early Church lends itself to the wisdom you’re about to hear-–that the whole of the Christian spiritual life is about growing in the knowledge of God’s love, and that we can’t love others if we don’t first know God loves us.

Encountering a Loving God through Prayer with Roberta Bondi

This month's podcast episode features Juan Carlos Huertas, who currently serves as minister of proclamation and the practice of justice at First-Plymouth Congregational Church in Lincoln, NE. Huertas holds a Master of Divinity degree from Emory University in Atlanta, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana, where he majored in Religion and minored in Spanish—his first language growing up in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He is a trained spiritual director and committed to practices that move communities to liberation through shared wisdom, communal leadership, and contextual action. Juan is married to Shannon Perry Huertas. Juan and Shannon have three children: Seth, Isabelle, and Lucas

Reclaiming the Good News of the Gospel with Juan Carlos Huertas

This month's podcast episode features Regina Laroche as she bears witness to the healing and transformation that can come when we risk stepping into the wounded places in our neighborhoods and in our world. Regina cultivates food, connections, and community in her work with DIASPORA GARDENS, Planting Connections, Planting Hope, and the St. Mark Giving Garden. These integrate farming or gardening with art, cultural identity, and celebration; and are dedicated to nourishing and healing earth, bodies, spirit, and communal relationships. The emphasis is on communities of color with histories of racialized trauma and land-related violence. Regina invites us to deepen our birthright connections to healthy land, healthy food, empowering traditions and resilience in ways that bring justice and repair to all.  These offerings draw on Regina's life of small-scale farming on the edge of Lake Superior, her mother's rural South Carolina upbringing, and her father's Haitian Afro-Caribbean culture. Regina is experienced in the creative dance and story work of InterPlay, is trained in spiritual direction, is an alum of the Two-Year Academy for Spiritual Formation, and holds a theatre degree from St. Catherine University. You can follow Regina’s work and offerings at www.diasporaonmadeline.com.


Be sure to check out Regina's latest offering called, "Seeds of Repair," which begins with a free online event on Sunday, February 26, 2023.

The Sacrament of Stepping into the Wounded Places with Regina Laroche

For this month’s Academy Podcast episode, in honor of March and the celebration of women’s history, we have chosen to highlight the life of Saint Teresa of Avila through the scholarship and spiritual guidance of Sister Kathleen Flood. Sister Kathleen bears witness to the courageous life of St. Teresa, whose devotion to Christ led her to become a reformer of the Carmelite order, a resister against the Christian nationalism of 16th century Spain and the Spanish inquisitions, and a profound teacher on the life of prayer.

An Illinois native, Kathleen R. Flood, OP, presently resides in Wisconsin. She became a member of the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation (the Order of Preachers) in 1981, and served as a campus minister in Illinois and Wisconsin. She came to Nashville in 1988, serving for many years as University Catholic Chaplain at Vanderbilt University, as well as providing a ministry of spiritual direction, leading retreats, preaching, and teaching. Sr. Kathleen is a graduate of the Graduate Theological Foundation and holds the Doctor of Ministry Degree in Christian Spirituality. She holds multiple degrees and currently serves as an adjunct faculty member for the Doctor of Ministry program at Drew University in New Jersey and is a long-time faculty for The Academy for Spiritual Formation.

Saint Teresa of Avila on Growing in the Life of Prayer with Sr. Kathleen Flood

In this month's episode, Cláudio Carvalhaes asks us to consider how we understand ourselves and our faith in relation to the land. For over 50 years, we’ve commemorated Earth Day in April and yet investment in our planet feels like such an onerous task. What does it mean to recite “The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof” when it comes to honoring Earth Day? What is our task as followers of the way, who experience the fullness of God revealed in nature, when it comes to divesting of systems that wreak havoc on the earth?

Cláudio Carvalhaes is a theologian, liturgist, performer, artist, and activist. Originally from Brazil, he is the Associate Professor of Worship at Union Theological Seminary - New York City. He is ordained in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and is the author of multiple books including, Liturgies from Below: Praying with People at the End of the World, Praying with Every Heart: Orienting Our Lives to the Wholeness of the World, and most recently, Inventory, Metamorphoses  and Emergenc(i)es: How Do We Become Green People and Earth Communities.

Examining Our Faith Relationship to the Land with Cláudio Carvalhaes

This month's episode features teaching from Wilkie Au during the first session of Two-Year Academy #40 in 2018. Wilkie explores how the stories in scripture can be a paradigmatic lens for viewing our current life experiences, helping us to see how God is showing up in our lives today and inviting us into a deeper felt knowledge of God's love for us. Wilkie reminds us that interacting with scripture using our full being—both our intellect and our imagination—can unlock deeper transformation of spirit.

Wilkie Au is a spiritual director and Emeritus Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, where he taught in the area of Christian spirituality and coordinated the graduate concentration in spiritual direction. He is the author of the award winning books, By Way of the Heart: Toward a Holistic Spirituality and The Enduring Heart: Spirituality for the Long Haul. He has also co-authored several books with his spouse, Dr. Noreen Cannon Au, including God's Unconditional Love: Healing Our Shame, where they explore the topic of this podcast episode. Their latest book together is Aging with Wisdom and Grace. Wilkie's books have been translated into Spanish, Polish, Chinese, and Korean and published in foreign editions in Great Britain, India, and the Philippines. Dr. Au has served as a member of editorial boards for scholarly journals and is a leader in the field of spirituality and formation for spiritual direction and pastoral ministry.

Internalizing God's Love through Scripture with Wilkie Au

In this month's episode, we hear from Safiyah Fosua. Safiyah was speaking on the topic of "Meeting God in Our Healing" from the 2021 cohort of Spiritual Formation in Today's World, a one-year online program from The Academy. Safiyah shares the story of the Gadarene demoniac from the synoptic Gospels to help us understand how our relationship with fear is connected with our healing, both personally and socially.

Safiyah Fosua is a retired professor of spiritual formation at Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University and former Director of Transformational Preaching Ministries at Discipleship Ministries of the United Methodist Church. Safiyah and her husband, the Rev. Dr. Kwasi Kena, also served as missionaries to Ghana, West Africa, assisting the Methodist Church of Ghana in curriculum writing, leadership development, and local pastors’ education. Safiyah has served churches in Iowa, and New Jersey, and is in frequent demand as a preacher, speaker, Bible study leader, and worship designer for national events.

In addition to her professional teaching roles, Safiyah and her husband have two adult children and are the proud grandparents of two grandchildren. In spare moments, Safiyah writes prayers and Christian poetry, as well as engages the ancient practices of needle crafting, quilting, and batik.

Show notes:
Safiyah references the Adinkra symbol from Ghana called the Gye Nyame, which you can see and learn more about at http://www.adinkra.org/htmls/adinkra/gyen.htm.

The 2023/2024 cohort of Spiritual Formation in Today's World begins August 24-26, 2023. You can learn more and apply at https://academy.upperroom.org/event/sftw-2023/.

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.


SUPPORT OUR WORK
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can do so and learn more about how your gifts make a difference at academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Confronting Fear as a Path to Healing and Liberation with Safiyah Fosua

This month’s episode of the Academy Podcast features teaching from Amy Oden on the topic of “Meeting God in Our Longing” from the 2021 cohort of Spiritual Formation in Today’s World. Amy explores the art of discerning between the way that leads to life and the way that leads to death by paying attention to our deepest longings. She emphasizes that in our fast-paced and noisy world, practicing mindfulness, or pausing to listen within, can help us recognize what our soul needs and guide us in making the choices that will bring freedom and aliveness.

Born and raised on the prairies of Oklahoma, Amy has found her spiritual home under the wide-open sky. She earned her PhD in Religious Studies at Southern Methodist University, writing her dissertation on Augustine. Over the last 30 years, she has served on the faculties of Oklahoma City University, Saint Paul School of Theology and Wesley Theological Seminary where she also served as Dean. She now is an itinerant professor, teaching at several schools in the areas of theology and history of Christianity and spiritual formation. She is also a spiritual director, companioning people as they listen for God in day-to-day life. Amy is committed in her scholarship to illuminating ancient voices for Christian life today, introducing spiritual practices that can ground and nourish lives of following Jesus into the world. Her most recent book is "Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness."
Show notes:
The 2024 cohort of Spiritual Formation in Today's World begins February 1-3, 2024. You can learn more and apply at academy.upperroom.org/event/sftw-2023/.

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.


SUPPORT OUR WORK
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can do so and learn more about how your gifts make a difference at academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Listening for the Way That Leads to Life with Amy Oden

This month, the Academy Podcast features a word from Alexia Salvatierra. The content comes from her lecture at last December’s online Academy Day Apart retreat called, “Hope in a Time of Despair.” Alexia explores the immigrant and refugee experience through the lens of hope, likening it to the hope of a woman in labor. They have faith that on the other side of the hardship, there is new life that is a fulfillment of God’s dream for their lives—a life where they not only survive but thrive.

Rev. Dr. Alexia Salvatierra is the Academic Dean of Centro Latino and the Associate Professor of Integral Mission and Global Transformation at Fuller Theological Seminary.  She has over forty years of ministry experience, including as a missionary in the Philippines, in Spanish-speaking and English-speaking congregations, as a legislative advocate, as the founder and director of multiple non-profit organizations and as an international speaker/training/consultant.  She was the co-founder of several national initiatives in the arena of engaging the Church in the immigration crisis. She is the co-author of "Faith-Rooted Organizing: Mobilizing the Church in Service to the World" and "Buried Seeds: Learning from the Vibrant Resiliency of Marginalized Christian Communities."

Show notes:
Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources


SUPPORT OUR WORK
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can do so and learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Hope in a Time of Despair with Alexia Salvatierra

This month, the Academy Podcast features Daniel Wolpert’s teaching from the 2021 online Academy Day Apart retreat called Drinking from Ancestral Wells: God’s Wisdom for the Work of the Present Age. Dan contrasts the wisdom of our ancestors with the destructive nature of colonization that cuts people off from God. He guides listeners to reconnect to their ancestors and allow that ancestral wisdom to help them reconnect with God.

Dan is the author of multiple spiritual formation books and is executive director and co-founder of MICAH, the Minnesota Institute for Contemplation and Healing; spouse; partner; ally; activist; and dad. Dan has been a student of the spiritual life since age 21 and has taught in the fields of psychology and spiritual formation in numerous settings. In addition to his retreat and teaching work, Dan provides counseling and spiritual direction services at MICAH.

Show notes:
The quote from Wendell Berry that Shalom references in the outro comes from the poem, "Wild Geese," by Wendell Berry found in "Collected Poems 1957-1982" (North Point Press).

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

Support our work

If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Drinking From Ancestral Wells with Dan Wolpert

This month, the Academy Podcast features Ray Buckley's teaching from the 2021 Spiritual Formation in Today's World. His Lecture on Reconciliation. As an indigenous person in North America, Ray speaks with authority about what it takes to be reconciled across walls meant to keep people and creation apart. Let us consider what it will take for indigenous folks, and all historically marginalized people, to have more access which leads to equity in all areas of life.

Ray Buckley is the Director for the Center for First Nations Spirituality and longtime faculty member of The Academy for Spiritual Formation. Ray has served the United Methodist Church as a staff member of the United Methodist Publishing House, Director of the Native People Communication Office, and Director of Connectional Ministries and Native Discipleship for the Alaska Missionary Conference. Ray is the author of multiple books and resources for all ages. His stories, poetry, and art have appeared in numerous journals, periodicals and books around the world. Ray and his brother, Rick, make their home in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley of Alaska.

The 2024 cohort of Spiritual Formation in Today’s World begins February 1-3, 2024. You can learn more and apply at https://academy.upperroom.org/event/sftw-2023/.

Show notes:

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

Support our work

If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Reconciling Across Walls of Fear with Ray Buckley

This month, the Academy Podcast features Luther Smith's teaching from Academy 29 in Burlingame, CA. His lecture on "Faithfulness within Conflict" reminds us that conflict should be embraced as a pathway to healing. Ultimately, Dr. Smith invites us to deal with conflict because “Our obedience requires it." The question he asks us is, "will we engage conflict confidently and creatively, or will we find ourselves unprepared?” Listen on, dear one, and as you listen, breathe deeply and expand gently for our world is in deep conflict and, as Luther suggests, it has always been.

Luther Smith is an ordained elder in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, longtime Academy faculty person, and a member of The Academy Advisory Board. Luther spent 35 years of his career as an activist, scholar, and professor at Candler School of Theology, and he is known to be an authority on the life and theology of Howard Thurman. Luther is Professor Emeritus of Church and Community at Candler. His current research focuses on the writings and  correspondence of Howard Thurman, advocacy on behalf of children, and a spirituality of hope. He is married to Helen Pearson Smith and lives in Stone Mountain, GA. They have four children and five grandchildren.

JOIN US
If you would like to hear Luther Smith teach in person, he will be one of our faculty presenters for Spirituality in Practice: Embodied Imagination for Life and Liberation. This newest offering from The Academy for Spiritual is a unique six-session hybrid model that consists of three immersive, five-day in-person retreats and three online one-day retreats plus monthly two-hour online practice sessions to support integration of learnings and nurture community. Spirituality in Practice is structured to provide an in-depth spiritual journey while keeping the time and financial commitments at more manageable levels. We are accepting applications now. Session 1 begins September 6, 2024, in Mundelein, IL (near Chicago). Find more details and apply at https://academy.upperroom.org/event/spirituality-in-practice2024/ 

Show Notes:
Order Luther Smith's new book Hope is Here: Spiritual Practices for Pursuing Justice and Beloved Community.

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

Support Our Work
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Faithfulness Within Conflict with Luther Smith

This month, the Academy Podcast features Claire K. McKeever-Burgett as she discusses the sacred people, places, and experiences that shaped her new book, Blessed are the Women. Step into the holy conversation of what it means to be - not just a woman - but human - one who is loved, and listened to by the Divine. Blessed indeed are the ones who hear women in the Bible for they, like Christ, will see the Divine Mother face to face. Listen on Beloveds. 

Claire K. McKeever-Burgett is an author, creative contemplative, and spiritual leader who has dedicated her life to bridging spirituality and social justice. With a background in English and Professional Writing from Baylor University and a Master of Divinity from Vanderbilt Divinity School, she has served as a clergy, led congregations, and facilitated transformative writing, movement, and liturgical practices centered on healing and embodiment. A mother, certified birth and postpartum doula, and a yoga, dance, and martial arts instructor, Claire lives with her family in Nashville, Tennessee. She writes regularly on Substack, and her book, Blessed Are the Women: Naming and Reclaiming Women's Stories from the Gospels (February 27, 2024), shares stories of women from the Gospels in their words, with their own names, interwoven with Claire’s personal story of growing up as a woman with a vision and a voice in a conservative, Southern Baptist, male-dominated world. Claire’s writing invites people to pray, dance, sing, and create along with women in ways that help them heal from religious and theological trauma and find a place of welcome and peace within a reimagined, woman-led faith.

Those familiar with the Academy Podcast will also recognize Claire as a former host of the podcast. Claire is an alum of Two-Year Academy #41 and previously served on staff as Associate Director for The Academy for Spiritual Formation.

JOIN US
The Academy for Spiritual Formation presents Spirituality in Practice. This newest offering is a unique six-session hybrid model that consists of three immersive, five-day in-person retreats and three online one-day retreats plus monthly two-hour online practice sessions to support integration of learnings and nurture community. Spirituality in Practice is structured to provide an in-depth spiritual journey while keeping the time and financial commitments at more manageable levels. We are accepting applications now. Session 1 begins September 6, 2024, in Mundelein, IL (near Chicago). Find more details and apply at https://academy.upperroom.org/event/spirituality-in-practice2024/. 

SHOW NOTES
Order Claire K. McKeever-Burgett's new book Blessed are the Women at https://www.clairemckeeverburgett.com/book.

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

SUPPORT OUR WORK
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Conversation with Claire McKeever-Burgett and Shalom Agtarap

This month, the Academy Podcast features Elaine Heath's understanding of neighborhood shalom. Her lecture from Academy 40 speaks to us of hopes and expectations, of well formed theology that is undone by lived experience. Knowing about Jesus and experiencing the compassion and presence of Jesus in the neighborhood is nothing short of transformational. Listen on, dear one, and as you listen, breathe deeply and expand gently.

Elaine Heath’s vocational journey includes having served as Dean of the Divinity School at Duke University, and the McCreless Professor of Evangelism at Perkins School of Theology.  She is a pioneer in new forms of theological education. In that capacity Heath is co-founder and former President of Neighborhood Seminary. The author of thirteen books, Heath is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church and served in pastoral ministry prior to her academic ministry.  She lives with her husband at Spring Forest, an intentional Christian Community and farm in rural North Carolina where she serves as Abbess.

JOIN US

The Academy for Spiritual Formation presents  Spirituality in Practice. This newest offering is a unique six-session hybrid model that consists of three immersive, five-day in-person retreats and three online one-day retreats plus monthly two-hour online practice sessions to support integration of learnings and nurture community. Spirituality in Practice is structured to provide an in-depth spiritual journey while keeping the time and financial commitments at more manageable levels. We are accepting applications now. Session 1 begins September 6, 2024, in Mundelein, IL (near Chicago). Find more details and apply at https://academy.upperroom.org/event/spirituality-in-practice2024/. 

Show Notes:

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

Support Our Work
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

Neighborhood Shalom with Elaine Heath

This month, the Academy Podcast features Grace Imathiu teaching at the Indiana Five-Day in 2021. Grace illuminates the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32, a title she challenges because parables cannot be contained. Grace explores the story through different lenses to reveal a God of reckless abundance who shows us how our life together could be despite our histories.

Rev. Grace Imathiu is Senior Pastor of First United Methodist Church in Evanston, Illinois. Pastor Grace is a citizen of the world for whom ‘the world is her parish’. As an African who is married to a European and is raising an American son, Grace is fluent in three languages, was educated in Kenya, U.S.A., in England and Israel. Grace has a passion and gift for inspiring and nurturing prophetic communities of faith to live out loud the Jesus Story. For Grace, the quintessential expression of the resurrected Lord’s presence is a community whose very DNA is a radical hospitality which births a loving and a healthy tension that is ideological, theological, racial, ethnic and cultural. She thrives on diversity. Grace was married to David Jones, who recently died in March 2023. Together, they are the parents to Erik.

JOIN US

The Academy for Spiritual Formation presents  Spirituality in Practice. This newest offering is a unique six-session hybrid model that consists of three immersive, five-day in-person retreats and three online one-day retreats plus monthly two-hour online practice sessions to support integration of learnings and nurture community. Spirituality in Practice is structured to provide an in-depth spiritual journey while keeping the time and financial commitments at more manageable levels. We are accepting applications now. Session 1 begins September 6, 2024, in Mundelein, IL (near Chicago). Find more details and apply at academy.upperroom.org/event/spiritua…-practice2024/.

Show Notes:

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

For more information and resources visit: academy.upperroom.org/resources

Support Our Work
If the Academy Podcast or any of the ministries of The Academy for Spiritual Formation have benefited your life and spirituality, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to show your support. You can learn more about how your gifts make a difference at https://academy.upperroom.org/donate/

God's Reckless Abundance with Grace Imathiu

In this month’s episode, we hear from Roger Owens on the topic of prayer and spirituality in a postmodern world, taken from his lectures he offered in August 2011 at a Five-Day Academy in Alabama. Listen on as Roger illumines God’s presence of mercy and love in all things...and may you have ears to hear and eyes to see and hearts to open to the sacredness of all. Enjoy.

Secular and Sacred: Prayer and Spirituality in a Postmodern World

In this month’s episode, we hear from Kathryn Damiano on how we live life as a divine office and on how we understand all things as sacramental and therefore as sacred. Kathryn offered the following teaching at Two-Year Academy #33 in Donaldson, IN in November 2013.
Kathryn’s teaching invites listeners into a holy place of listening and awe, of honesty and vulnerability, of hope and promise. How do we live life as a liturgy? How is everything sacramental? What does radical ordinariness look like? Listen on, beloveds, and enjoy.

Radical Ordinariness

Hospitality as a Spiritual Practice

This month’s podcast is the third in a series of conversations with Parker Palmer, released in both audio and visual formats. In June 2018, Academy Director Johnny Sears, visited with Parker in the Palmer home in Madison, WI, and we were lucky enough to get to film it. Parker and Johnny talked about everything from vulnerability to what makes a good leader, to how to sustain the work of The Academy for the next 35 years. What follows is an offering from their conversation in which Parker summons us to celebrate our accomplishments and to honor our ancestors. We share the following excerpt in hopes that Parker’s wisdom might enrich your own lives and the conversations that comprise them in the same ways his wisdom influences and shapes us.

Honoring Our Ancestors

In this month’s podcast, our host, Claire McKeever-Burgett had the honor of interviewing Dana Trent, Academy faculty, Upper Room Books author, and professor of world religions and critical thinking at Wake Tech Community College. Dana is also an ordained Baptist minister and former hospital chaplain, and her work has appeared on Time.com, and in Religion News Service, Sojourners, Religion Dispatches, and The Christian Century. Her third book, "One Breath At a Time: A Skeptic's Guide to Christian Meditation", was released January 1 of this year from Upper Room Books and serves as the focus of their conversation.

One Breath at a Time

This month’s podcast features teaching from Grace Imathiu at a
2015 Five-Day Academy in Nebraska on the topic of “The Word of
God in Me.” Grace uses the story of the rich young ruler in Mark,
chapter 10 to reveal how when we find ourselves in scripture, we
find ourselves connected to our faith in new and transformative
ways. Grace considers the world as her parish. As an African
who is married to a European and is raising an American son,
Grace is committed to advocating for the inclusion of all people.
Her sermons and teachings are always exegeted as tools of justice
on the intersections of religion, race, sexuality, and gender. As you listen to her teaching, may you find yourself in the sacred
text and may that discovery lead you closer to God.

The Word of God in Me

This month’s podcast features teaching from Don Saliers on the liturgy of the Psalms, offered at a Five-Day Academy in 2015 in Alabama. Calling us to the depths of the human heart, Don illumines the Psalms as a “school of prayer” that invites humanity to operate at full stretch and to use language to talk about God that is language of the heart. The Psalms are where we find such language to guide us.

The Liturgy of the Psalms

This month’s podcast features teaching from Roger Owens at Two-Year Academy #36 in San Antonio, TX where he taught on “Traditions of Christian Spirituality.” Walking us through the Ignatian spiritual practice of “Examen,” Roger illumines an age-old exercise that is applicable and perhaps even essential in our modern lives.

Featured on this podcast before, Roger continues to offer us guidance and wisdom in the way of spiritual formation, reminding us that when we pay attention we can be open to true transformation.

Paying Attention: Ignatian Spiritual Practice

This month’s podcast features a conversation between Academy Podcast Host and Associate Director, Claire McKeever-Burgett, and Academy Worship Leader, Upper Room Books author, and Director of Prayer and Worship Life at The Upper Room, Beth Richardson. They talk about everything from Academy worship to spiritual formation in a divided world, church, and culture to geographical landscapes of faith to how spiritual practice informs the writing and creative processes.

Creativity, Writing, and Spiritual Practice in a Divided World

This month’s podcast features teaching from Jane Vennard from Two-Year Academy #38 in Nebraska when she offered insight, invitation, and reflection into the important topic of spirituality and embodiment. Offering listeners questions about how and when and where we honor, pay attention, and care for our bodies, Jane’s teaching is a master class in spiritual direction, an invitation for all of us to pause and really examine the love we show these bodies of ours...the only ones we’ve got.

Spirituality and Embodiment

This month’s podcast features teaching from Rabbi David Horowitz at Two-Year Academy #41 in Alabama where he taught on Hebrew Spirituality. With his sharp wit, expansive knowledge, and deep compassion, Rabbi David offers us a place to listen, learn, and let go into the presence and breath of God. Rabbi David still resides in Akron, OH with his wife, Toby, and spends his time gushing about his grandchildren, traveling, reading, writing, and, thankfully for us, teaching at The Academy. Academy Faculty since 2004, Rabbi David is, indeed, a friend and teacher to us all.

The Breath of God

In this month's podcast, our host, Claire, talks with Victor Perez via Zoom about all things Bilingual (Spanish + English) Academy #42, which is scheduled to begin in August 2020 in San Antonio, TX, breathing deeply in the midst of a global pandemic, spiritual practice, prayer, family, Puerto Rico, and more. What follows is a conversation about what it is to be human and searching for true connection in these uncertain times.

Conversation with Victor Perez

"Today," our host, Claire, says, "I get to talk with Amy Oden via Zoom about all things spiritual formation, healing in the time of COVID-19, her work with the Academy and why she thinks it’s important, and more. What follows is a conversation with Amy, who is a friend, mentor, and colleague in the way of Love."

Conversation with Amy Oden

In this episode, Claire speaks with Roger Owens from his home in Pittsburgh, where he’s now teaching spiritual formation classes to his seminary students online, enjoying family meals with his teenagers again, and discovering that The Academy and its rhythms are a helpful guide in this time of global pandemic...and always. What follows is a conversation with Roger about the expansiveness of God, the invitations of a global pandemic, his writing process, the spiritual practice of music, and more.

Conversation with Roger Owens

In this episode, Claire is joined by Lanecia Rouse Tinsley who is a multidisciplinary visual artist based in Houston, TX, and the owner/creator of LAR Art Studio. Lanecia's portfolio includes a range of work in abstract painting, photography, teaching, writing, and speaking. Lanecia’s work is deeply informed by her studies in sociology, theology, and culture. Her works are products of contemplative and intuitive abstract composition practices. She explores in them various perspectives that might illumine our everyday quests to make life meaningful and content while grappling with fundamental questions about our existence. Lanecia is the perfect reminder that the work of love and justice is expansive work and it begs of us to stand our sacred ground, to open ourselves to change, and to deeply trust in the God who marches, dances, listens, learns, and sings along with us.

Conversation with Lanecia Rouse

Welcome to The Academy Podcast, a podcast dedicated to sharing rich content for the purpose of spiritual growth. The Academy Podcast is brought to you by The Academy for Spiritual Formation, an international ministry of The Upper Room. The Academy is dedicated to creating safe space for people to connect with God, self, others, and creation for the sake of the world. To learn more about our Five-Day and Two-Year retreat offerings, visit academy.upperroom.org. We’re glad you’re here.

Academy Podcast

Popular tracks