Real People, Real Lives, Real Spirituality

Lisa Shasky, Interview #168

2012-03-02T08:28:00.000-06:00

Name: Lisa Shasky

Where you live: Midwest, USA

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Author, mentor and corporate leader

Your two favorite books:
Number one is the book I co-authored, Naked Feet Living: Finding Your Real Self at Work and in Life. Aside from my own book, I love You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay and Travels by Michael Crichton.

Your two favorite songs:
I enjoy any song that touches me in a way that gives me chills from head to toe and connects with me on an emotional level. These two songs I love for the message they give. “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield says “Live your life with arms wide open; Today is where your book begins; The rest is still unwritten”. The message I take is that I am writing my own story by how I live my life and the story is mine to write – I really relate to that concept! “Seasons of Love” from the musical Rent challenges me to think about how I measure my life and others’ (e.g. sunsets, cups of coffee, laughter) and reminds me that what’s truly important is love.

Why are you interested in spirituality?
I’ve always struggled with individual religions, because each seems to think they have the one true version of the truth. To me, spirituality opens up the possibility of many truths. I believe that our spirituality is like the most beautiful, intricate quilt you can imagine with many different pieces of material, different fabrics, textures, colors, styles, yarn, etc. all meticulously sewn into one magnificent quilt. The power in the universe (or God, if you prefer) created each piece to help us in our belief. I am fascinated to continue learning about all the parts that make up the quilt and I believe that every belief system has something unique to add to it.

Your favorite quote:
from The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."

Your favorite web sites:
These are always changing as I find new things, but my current favorites are:
http://letters4rdaughters.com/
http://www.ineedmotivation.com/blog/

Your hero?
I certainly admire people like Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, and other great spiritual leaders, but my hero is Pat Summit, women's basketball coach at the University of Tennessee. Coach Summit has a very special ability to identify the strengths in others and bring those out in them. In doing this, she has had a tremendous positive impact on so many young women - one person at a time. She did this in obscurity for many years and then even when she became a famous and successful coach, she continued her efforts to build strong, authentic, others-focused women who are continuing her legacy of strength and compassion. Even as she announced her battle with early-onset Alzheimer's, she used it as a platform to help others and deflect attention from herself.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
I want to learn to notice who and what is right in front of me and not just focus on what I’m looking for or where I’m going.

A place in the world you feel spiritually connected:
Glen Lake/Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (Michigan, USA). The quiet, slow, lapping of the water on the lakes edge, hundreds of small minnows swimming past your ankles in the clear, shallow water, or standing on top of the golden sand dunes overlooking both Glen Lake and Lake Michigan....I feel and see the power of the universe in each of these images and imagine they were created just for me to experience that connection. And of course, I have to mention I also feel spiritually connected when looking into a puppy's eyes filled with unconditional love and the joy of playtime!

Shanthi Kiran, Interview #167

2012-03-02T08:05:00.001-06:00

Name: Shanthi Kiran

Where you live: Andhra Pradesh, India

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
Sales Manager in Insurance sector by profession; writing, blogging, reading Bible and other books of interest constitute my hobbies.

Your two favorite books:
The Bible and Wikinomics by Don Tapscott & Anthony D. Williams. I personally believe Mass Collaboration and Open Source are two concepts that are going to change the way the businesses are run for forever.

Your two favorite songs:
That's a tough ask but 'Paradise' by Coldplay and 'The Little Drummer Boy' are two among the favorites.

Why you are interested in spirituality?
I believe there is nothing bigger and better thing in this world than to live a life that is pleasing to God.

Your favorite quote:
"What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" - The Bible

Your favorite web sites:
Google, Ted and Wikipedia. Ted is the website I am particularly found of these days. It is amazing to see numerous ideas shared on one single platform, which can inspire you and have the power to change attitudes, lives and the world ultimately.

Your hero?
Jesus is my hero because he led a life that is 'perfect' and taught others about how to live a life of perfection.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
I want to become an Evangelist one day (by God's will) and I want to learn and do what ever it takes to become one.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" In a quiet and lonely room.

Shanthi's blog: http://melifejesus.blogspot.in/

Jon Rojas, Interview #166

2012-03-01T10:42:00.000-06:00

Name: Jon Rojas

Where you live: Arlington, Virginia

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
Consultant by day, podcaster by night. The podcast is what I enjoy most. I started the Smart People Podcast with long time friend, Chris Stemp. We created it to give us an excuse to talk to amazing people. It also gave me an excuse to buy some new toys!

Your two favorite books: Linchpin by Seth Godin and Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Your two favorite songs:
'A Day in the Life' by The Beatles and 'Johnny B. Goode' by Chuck Berry

Why you are interested in spirituality?
It's cool to think that everyone is connected somehow.

Your favorite quote:
"Stay hungry, stay foolish." - Steve Jobs

Your favorite web sites:
LifeHacker, Gizmodo, and MacRumors. I enjoy reading about new technology.

Your hero?
Steve Jobs, Wolverine, and my dad. All for different reasons. I think Wolverine is the most obvious!

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
How to truly love all people, including myself. I think love is one of the main focuses across all religions, but we still love in a world where people still hate each other for the color of their skin, orientation, or beliefs. I would love to learn how to love unconditionally.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?":
This is going to sound bad, but anytime I have music playing on my iPod. Sometimes I think about all the people that might be listening to the same music at that same exact moment.

Kristina Robb-Dover, Interview #165

2012-02-27T09:22:00.003-06:00

Name: Kristina Robb-Dover

Where you live: Atlanta, Georgia

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Minister, Writer and Blogger

Your two favorite books: The Bible and Brothers' Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Your two favorite songs:
A very hard choice, because just about anything that Bruce Springsteen sings I fall in love with; but of late my two favorite songs would be "The Cave," by the band Mumford & Sons, and "Come Down O Love Divine"

Why you are interested in spirituality?
I'm interested in spirituality because for me "spirituality" is all about what it means to be truly human and in relationship with God. I'm curious about how the Holy Spirit works in the world and how we as human beings respond to and are transformed by Her work. These days I'm working on a book for those who would call themselves "spiritual but not religious": "Grace Sticks: The Bumper Sticker Gospel for Restless Souls," is a spiritual memoir told through the lens of bumper stickers; I guess I'd like to think that even the most ordinary of things, even something "cheaper by the dozen" like a bumper sticker, can in all of our comings and goings mediate God's grace for us in the form of purpose, truth and life.

Your favorite quote:
"It's the test of a good religion whether you can joke about it." -G.K. Chesterton

Your favorite web sites:
These days "favorite" for me translates as the site I spend the most time on, which, as it turns out, is my own: "Fellowship of Saints and Sinners," hosted by the online magazine, Beliefnet, is a virtual "church" for real people with real questions about God and life.

Your hero?
Marguerite Porete. She was executed in 1310 by a corrupt church hierarchy wedded to money and power. Her crime? Writing a book, "The Mirror of Simple Souls," which was a labor of love for spiritually hungry souls who sought to know and experience God's love in their lives. Ultimately, Porete's crime, as I see it, was to really believe in the full import of Divine Love, which did not depend on a church to mediate it.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
I would like to learn more about how to experience the joy C.S. Lewis speaks of when he writes that we, when offered "infinite joy," are like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slums because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea." The joy I'm talking about here is a kind of grounding in God's goodness and love that doesn't depend on the level of pleasure or pain in my life. I would like to get to a place where I am able to experience this kind of deep joy regardless of my circumstances. I think it's a bit along the lines of what the apostle Paul speaks about when he writes that he has learned to be "content" in all circumstances.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
I have felt most spiritually connected in two places: in a refugee camp working with south Sudanese widows and orphans and seeing their faith, hope, and love in the midst of the most trying of circumstances; and hearing good live music, whether it's at a very cozy, local music joint called "Eddie's Attic," where various bands play, everyone is welcome, and you come as you are, or in a huge amphitheater with Bruce Springsteen crooning away at a high decibel level. (Good) music heals spirits and brings people together, I think.

Brad Karelius, Interview #164

2012-02-24T11:16:00.001-06:00

Name: Father Brad Karelius

Where I live: Laguna Niguel, Orange County, California

Vocation: Associate Professor of World Religions at Saddleback Community College, Mission Viejo, California since 1973; Episcopal Priest in the Diocese of Los Angeles since 1970. Recently retired as rector of Messiah Parish in the Logan Barrio of Santa Ana, California after 30 years. The parish is located in the city with the highest percentage of native Spanish speakers in USA. One-third of parishioners are very low income Latino, many are undocumented. Most live in very dense housing situations, e.g. in a three-bedroom apartment there can be three families. The parish has almost 70 persons with doctoral degrees. On the one hand: highly educated and affluent; on the other hand, many with less than elementary school education. The parish founded an afterschool tutoring center, the Noah Project (more than 50% of youth in area do not get past 9th grade) two high quality early childhood education programs for the poorest families in Santa Ana (Hands Together---a Center for Children), and a program for homeless mothers and children (Morning Garden).

Your two favorite books: The Desert Padre: the Life of Father John Crowley (in 1920’s and 30’s he was the priest with a circuit to all the little desert towns near Mt. Whitney and Death Valley); Land of Little Rain, by Mary Austin, the seminal work of a famous writer on the desert and Native Americans.

Your two favorite songs: “Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys" (Willie Nelson); Ave Verum Corpus (Mozart)

Why are you interested in spirituality: I like Ron Rolheiser’s definition of spirituality as “the fire that burns within us.” Our deepest longings. Although I had been a parish priest for many years, the awareness of my deep longing for connection with God became most acute during the health crises of our son Erik, who was stricken with encephalitis in 1987. Our life was forever changed that day and Erik has been through a lot of suffering. Today he is mentally a four-year old inside a 27-year old body with chronic seizure disorder. In 1990 I began working with a spiritual director on the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola. This involved daily meditation with scripture, weekly meetings with my director over 12 months. In the process I encountered my faith in God and scripture in a new way as I also began to deal with addictive behaviors and expressing more honesty and transparency in my life, both with God and my friends. I began to take five day retreats in the California desert during Advent and Lent. In the desert, the place where most world religions have been birthed or nurtured, I experienced the Holy in a deeply personal way, enfolded in love and grace. Spirituality for me means renewing a daily connection with God and the Holy.

I wrote a book, The Spirit in the Desert: Pilgrimages to Sacred Sites in the Owens Valley, as a result of these retreats. I share an honest narrative of the twists and turns of my life, the movements away from and toward God, and our family’s struggles to care for Erik. The book is an invitation to other spiritual seekers to contemplative encounters in the Owens Valley near Mount Whitney, California. I guide the reader to eleven Euro American and Native American sites and connect the landscape to the history of the people who lived there. All the sites provide solitude for reflection, but are not far from major highways.

In the process of sharing copies of the book with other writers on spirituality and sacred landscape I have made many wonderful connections.

I am now finishing the Spirit in the Desert II: Encounters with the World’s Religions on Highway 395 in the Owens Valley. I apply some of my reflections on world religions over 30+ years of college teaching, as I indentify very-little known sites of the different world spiritualities: a new Cambodian Buddhist Temple emerging out of sagebrush emptiness; a hidden Hindu ashram in a pine forest at the foot of Mt. Whitney; echoes of Mohammed’s encounter with Allah in a cave/mine shaft in the Inyo Mountains; encounters with Shinto spirits at the Manzanar World War II relocation camp; and meditations with Lao Tzu beside a mountain stream in Cottonwood Canyon.

Your favorite quote: “Spirituality is more about whether or not we can sleep at night than about whether or not we go to church” (Ron Rolheiser, the Holy Longing)

Your favorite websites: www.pluralism.org (terrific resource for the study/experience of the world’s religions through Harvard Univesity); www.ronrolheiser.com (Roman Catholic monk’s weekly meditation which is both mystical and inclusive of the world’s spiritualities).

Your hero: our son Erik: he has suffered so much, but continues to radiate and reflect the love that has been given to him; he continues to instruct me in how to live gratefully in the Present Moment.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn: to live in this present moment with a heart that is grateful to God.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected": the Desert (in fall-winter or spring), especially the desert spaces of the Owens Valley near Mt. Whitney, California, the ancient palm desert oasis near Palm Springs and the Mojave Desert.

Brad's book can be found here: http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Desert-Pilgrimages-Sacred-Valley/dp/1439217211/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330103683&sr=8-1

Chris Stemp, Interview #163

2012-02-21T14:02:00.001-06:00

Name: Chris Stemp

Where you live: Arlington, Virginia

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
I try to stay away from defining people by what they do rather than who they actually are. However, everyone has to pay the bills and for that purpose I am employed by LivingSocial. A year ago I co-founded Smart People Podcast with a childhood friend of mine and it has grown into an amazing company, ranked as high as #26 on iTunes. I also recently joined a start-up non-profit, the United States Healthful Food Council as the Director of Social Media.

Your two favorite books:
Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan.

Your two favorite songs:
Up and Down by The Donnies The Amys
Wonderwall by Oasis

Why you are interested in spirituality?
Spirituality can take on many forms and interpretations, which is fascinating. My interpretation is that we are all here together, all part of a larger whole. We are tied to this Earth and each other and the quicker we realize it the better we will be.

Your favorite quote:
"I will lose my youth, my health, my loved ones, everything I hold dear and, finally, life itself by the very nature of being human." - The "Five Remembrances" that Buddhist monks chant each day

Your favorite web sites:
Devour.com
Wikipedia
Amazon.com

Your hero?
My brother

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
How to completely appreciate others

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
The forest

Editor's Note: Catch Chris' Smart People podcast: www.smartpeoplepodcast.com
and/or follow him on Twitter: @SmartPeoplePod

Lori Marie Triba, Interview #162

2012-02-17T15:09:00.002-06:00

Name:   Lori Marie Triba

Where you live: Park City, Kansas

What you do as a vocation or avocation?   Artist

Your two favorite books:

The Holy Bible ~ and a recently read Walking on Water by Madeleine L'Engle

Your two favorite songs:

Oh my, so hard to answer! Today I'll say "Lightning Crashes" by Live and "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M.

Why you are interested in spirituality?

This quote sums it up: “You don't have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.” ~ C.S. Lewis

Your favorite quote:

My favorite quote by myself is:

"Despite its moments of despair and pain, how utterly, incomprehensibly beautiful Life is "~ Lori Triba

Your favorite web sites:

My website for hairstylists; http://www.stylestickers.net

and http://pinterest.com ~ It's my happy place!

Your hero? Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

To be able and well equipped to heed and fully trust in this COMMAND of God; "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" My church ~ The United Methodist Church At Park City (found on Twitter @ChurchParkCity)

Raf Adams, Interview #161

2012-02-09T18:23:00.002-06:00

Name: Raf Adams

Where you live: I live in Shanghai, China for 5 years (I am originally from Belgium)

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
I am an Entrepreneur in China, running workshop on happiness, the meaning and purpose of life, dow. to earth spirituality in China, Hong Kong and Singapore, I do executive coaching for Fortune 500 companies business leaders to help them lead with purpose and vision, I speak professionally for universities and non-profit organizations including TEDx. I’ve also published my new book The Suited Monk: A Guide to Life Purpose and Happiness (available on Amazon).

Your two favorite books: Built to Last by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras and Success Built to Last by Jerry I. Porras, Stewart Emery, and Mark Thompson

Your two favorite songs: Unforgettable by Nat King Cole and Over The Rainbow from Judy Garland

Why you are interested in spirituality?
Because life gave me a wake-up call to stop pursuing my corporate career, to start my life all over again 2 months before the financial downturn in 2008, because I found true love, my life purpose and had an awakening without consciously searching for it. After these experiences I started to dive into spiritual teachings and practices and teaching my experiences to others.

Your favorite quote: The Tao that can be told is not the Eternal Tao.

Your favorite web sites: google

Your hero? Anyone who is brave to follow his or her life purpose and is true to himself / herself

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to teach what I know

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
When I am delivering workshops and teaching from my newly released book The Suited Monk.
www.suitedmonk.com

Arnaud Saint-Paul, Interview #160

2012-02-08T12:32:00.002-06:00

Name: Arnaud Saint-Paul

Where you live: France

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

As a Spiritual Teacher, I have a passion to help people find their own true path. Beyond the shadows of their thoughts lays the path of their dreams, in their heart.

Your two favorite books:

While I Was Learning To Become God-Roxana Jones
For the light that spreads out from its pages

Conversations with God - Neale Donald Walsh
For this book allowed me to shift into Me and revealed to my eyes who I really was and my life purpose.

Your two favorite songs:
too many to count :)

Why you are interested in spirituality?
This has been my life path since I came on Earth. Understanding and falling in love with oneself is the best adventure there is on this planet.

Your favorite quote:
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin wrote a few centuries ago
"We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.
We are spiritual beings having a human experience. "
This seemingly counter-intuitive thought is the base of our reality and also the one I used for my 1st book.

Your favorite web sites:
Mine of course :) http://arnaudsaintpaul.com
But also, the inspirational quotes "Thoughts of the Heart" http://roxanajones.com/inspirational-quotes that help me every day.

Your hero?
Roxana Jones http://roxanajones.com for showing me the clear path toward my Heart and all the ordeals she has had to go through in order to awaken to herself.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
Enjoy more and more of each now moment and be totally grateful for it.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually connected?
Wherever I am...
There are special places also like for instance Sedona, AZ

Anna Zoe, Interview #159

2012-01-14T10:03:00.002-06:00

Name: Anna Zoe

Where you live: Pennsylvania

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Independent Singer-Songwriter

Your two favorite books:
"The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan changed my life, and I'm not afraid to admit, I have "Twilight" to thank for getting me sucked into reading fiction again.

Your two favorite songs:
Being a musician, who didn't really listen to much music growing up, it's always too difficult to answer this question or anything like it.

Why you are interested in spirituality?
What else is there to life? Maybe I'm biased since spirituality has guided me my entire life.

Your favorite quote:
"Live your life in such a way that those who don't know God, but know you, will come to know God, through you." -Unknown ... We talk too much in life. Just be and others will see.

Your favorite web sites:
Even if it is a love-hate relationship, I'd be a liar if I didn't say Google and Facebook.

Your hero?
Anyone who had a really tough childhood, and rises above it in their adulthood. So much time is wasted in life by blaming our past for our present or future. Every moment is a moment of possibility.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
To truly fear God, and no one or nothing else. I find the majority of my stress is caused from fear of failing at worldly matters, rather than spiritual matters.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
In my everyday life, Church. I once spent a week in an orphanage in Guatemala City run by Orthodox monastic nuns. I had never felt more content in life than during that week. Nothing else seemed to matter because the energy was purely positive, even though these children had experienced more negativity in life than most Americans can even fathom. So many people see religion and spirituality as a negative part of life, but if you take humans out of it, it is only positive beliefs... we humans create the negative

For more about Anna; to listen to her music, visit: www.annazoe.com

Erin Dunigan, Interview #158

2012-01-09T11:04:00.002-06:00

Your Name: Erin Dunigan

Where you live: Baja California, Mexico

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
How long do you have? I'm an ordained Presbyterian minister, but make a living through my photography and writing, to put it simply.

Your two favorite books:
I always have a tough time with the word 'favorite.' But recently, two of my favorite reads have been 'Cutting for Stone' and 'A Fine Balance' by Rohinton Mistry.

Your two favorite songs:
Again, see above with the issue on 'favorite.' Two recent favorite albums are Tori Amos' 'Midwinter Graces' and Adele's 21.

Why you are interested in spirituality?
Why do I breathe? Because I cannot imagine much of a life without it.

Your favorite quote:
A modified version of Gandhi: Be the change you wish to see in the world.

Your favorite web sites:
Well, I know it might be silly, but I have to say Google. My dad always used to tell me, and this was way before the mainstream use of the web, that, in learning, you don't need to know it all, you just need to know where to find it. Pretty much sums it up.

Your hero?
At the moment, and I know this is going to sound a bit geeky, it is Catholic priest and Franciscan Richard Rohr. I love how he is giving voice to something that is radical (at the root) from within the tradition, but which is, at the same time, revolutionary.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
I am trying, wanting, hoping, to cultivate a deep mindfulness toward God/Spirit, creation, and 'the other.'

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
Right here in Baja. I live in a beautiful community--a phrase I mean both to describe its 'place' and its people.

Anya Cordell, Interview #157

2012-01-06T13:26:00.004-06:00

Name: Anya Cordell

Where do you live: In my body (see below), in Illinois

What is your vocation or avocation:
My journey in this regard began as a beauty-and-fashion obsessed girl. Now, I speak, write, and present programs against the designating of any group as “Other.” I focus on the universal experience of the injustice of “appearance-ism” (appearance-based judging of ourselves and others), as a core issue to inspire everyone to combat all types of bias.

My programs for children through seniors offer practical strategies for bridging divides of religion and ethnicity and for crossing into one another’s lives. I address teasing, bullying, stereotyping, age-ism, racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, homophobia, and discounting associated with age or health-related challenges.

Following 9/11, 2001, although I’m Jewish, I reached out to Sikh, Hindu and Muslim families I did not know, and founded “The Campaign for Collateral Compassion” to raise awareness of the backlash and the murders of innocent members of these groups. In the decade since I have worked passionately around xenophobia and seek connections with others who share this concern.

I am a recipient of the 2010 Spirit of Anne Frank Award and also the author and illustrator of RACE: An OPEN & SHUT Case, a double-sided parable, for kids to adults, which unravels traditional presumptions of what we call “race,” named among the“books to change your life” by N’Digo Magazine.

My widely acclaimed piece, “Where the Anti-Muslim Path Leads”, was recommended by Nicholas Kristof of the NewYork Times, Queen Noor of Jordan, and Eboo Patel of the Interfaith Youth Core, and named among “the best sites to help teach about 9/11.” Comments included: "Should be mandatory reading today in schools," and "This author really nails this…The next Anne Frank hiding in an attic in Amsterdam will be wearing a hijab…and it won’t be from a foreign invading army, but from the locals."

A primary aspect of my work is combating teasing and bullying in schools. A particularly poignant comment was whispered to me by a student following a presentation, “Thank you for your program; I’m Muslim, but no one here knows it,” exemplifying the danger of the very chilling climate we are in, when students and others feel they must “pass” in order to be safe.

My programs emphasize how we are influenced by the media to adopt not just fashions, but fashionable attitudes. I demonstrate how, historically,“just because many people scream something does not make it true,” and how “it is not a crime to be born into any ethnicity, color, configuration, or religion”, though it has sometimes been treated, horrifically, as if it is.

Through sharing my personal issues with appearance-ism, and evoking our common longing for a world in which we all feel safe and valued “as-is,” I discovered a touchstone for us all to imagine a world in which everyone claims their own worth and recognizes the worth of others.
I emphasize the extreme importance of being an ally for others, even outside one’s own group, religion, ethnicity, etc., and for crossing into one another'slives and living rooms, even crossing the lunchroom!

I share practical strategies and effective initiatives for such alliance building, as well as concrete ways to find our strong voices, and become anti-bias allies, and I seek opportunities to network and co-create with others working to heal our world, together. Please see www.Appearance-ism.com

Your two Favorite books (+one):
The Diary of Anne Frank, from which I’ve been so deeply inspired by the heroic non-Jewish supporters who at mortal risk sustained Anne’s family in hiding. It was a particular honor to receive the Spirit of Anne Frank Award for my work.

Also, Against Forgetting: Twentieth-Century Poetry of Witness by Carolyn Forché ; an extraordinary compilation—so sad, yet so important, to read.

And Healing Into Life and Death, by Stephen Levine, which sustains me in times of travail.

Your two favorite songs:
Anthem and Hallelujah, both by Leonard Cohen

Why are you interested in spirituality?:
My sense of spirituality feels deep and personal to me; not codified or articulated in a single expression.

Your favorite quote:
(from Anthem, by Leonard Cohen):
“Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.”

Your favorite websites: It may sound odd as a ‘favorite,’ but I visit and refer people to www.IslamophobiaToday.com all the time, because it serves what I believe is an essential function in today’s chilling climate; culling, compiling and commenting on the dangerous and wholesale smears, stereotyping and scapegoating of all Muslims today. And Facebook, to check in, daily, on an array of phenomenal organizations, doing extraordinary and necessary work in the world.

Who is your hero:
My heroes are those who have crossed gulfs and divides to ally on behalf of groups other than their own, and who have worked to heal seemingly intractable and polarized positions: Anne Frank’s non-Jewish sustainers, described above, especially Miep Gies. People whose names we’ll never know, who have risen to extreme levels of courage and compassion and have stood for justice. Nelson Mandela, who kept South Africa from a bloodbath of retribution after the end of apartheid. Desmond Tutu, who presided over the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Gandhi. Martin Luther King. Currently, Kathy Kelly, of Voices for Creative Non-Violence (www.vcnv.org), the founders of the Iraqi Student Project (www.IraqiStudentProject.org) and Rais Bhuiyan, (www.WorldWithoutHate.org), among extraordinary activists I’m honored to count among my friends.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn:
So much of my story has grown out of the everyday reality of “living life in a body.” I’ve learned my deepest spiritual lessons thus far from relationships and these issues of appearance, and “appearance-ism,” from ‘intuitively’ (for want of a better word) felt knowings, and from aging and health challenges.

Life seems to bring the big ‘spiritual’lessons—not necessarily sought. I seek to be patient and willing to open to them, even when that requires re-evaluation of closely held views, or difficult change from what feels habitual.

Where do you feel spiritually connected:
The moment I first set foot on the ground of Cape Town, South Africa, (to present at the 1999 Parliament of the World’s Religions), I felt I was “home”, as if Africa really was the “birthplace” I knew in my bones. This overtook me, totally unexpectedly.

I feel it when I float in, or drop into, the dimension of creating art and witnessing the creation of others (mostly at Open Studio Project in Evanston, IL www.OpenStudioProject.org ) and through conscious dance, mostly at Five Rhythms workshops (www.GabrielleRoth.com )

Otherwise, I feel most spiritually connected when I’m in diverse settings, experiencing people expressing their deep truths, in whatever form that takes; art, narrative,work, play. I feel this, annually, in my own living room, for our yearly “sharing party” to which we invite diverse friends, new and old, to share music, stories, poetry, work-in-progress, play-in-progress, whatever…and have the huge honor of people sharing their‘souls,’ in the heart of our home.

Anya's recent article: Muslims and Lowes Are Both Integral To Our Society

Phil Torcivia, Interview # 156

2011-12-02T13:47:00.001-06:00

Name: Phil Torcivia

Where you live: San Diego, CA

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Write humorous books about relationships, both for work and fun.

Your two favorite books:
Women by Charles Bukowski, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Your two favorite songs:
Great Gig in the Sky by Pink Floyd, Silent Lucidity by Queensryche

Why you are interested in spirituality?
Superstition is fascinating. I wonder how religious types maintain their beliefs when their “God-given” senses provide evidence contradicting many of them. Either their Gods are cruel or are intentionally distracting and misleading them. It’s interesting how similar the Jesus myth is to earlier Greek/Pagan myths. I’m curious how religion explains dinosaurs and the many-million-year gap between them and man. Still, as children need the Santa threat to behave, some adults need the eternal damnation threat to behave. I’m OK with that.

Your favorite quote: A man has got to know his own limitations. – Clint Eastwood

Your favorite web sites: Amazon, Facebook, Twitter

Your hero? Jeff Bezos

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
Religion and spirituality are both necessary to give some people hope and meaning to their lives. I can respect it without subscribing to it and find happiness without it.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
Museums. They provide evidence that religious types can’t truly reconcile with their beliefs. Life has evolved in such fascinating ways.

Cash Peters, Interview #155

2011-11-22T12:39:00.001-06:00

Name: Cash Peters

Where you live: Los Angeles, California

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
I write travel and spirituality books - my latest is A Little Book About Believing: The Transformative Healing Power of Faith, Love, and Surrender'- and have been in radio and TV for years, broadcasting on public radio in the US and the BBC in Britain. That has been my bread and butter since I was in my teens.

But I also have a gift for handwriting analysis, so that would be my avocation, although it's taking up a huge amount of my time these days.

I never studied handwriting, I could just do it. It's a form of channeling, I'm told, and goes very deep. I can stare at a piece of writing and, in seconds, effortlessly, make a connection with the person's soul, often feeling what they feel, understanding why they are as they are, where they hurt, where their own gifts are. It's mind-blowing to people, how I'm able to link their handwriting to their spiritual development. It's all about energy, of course. That's what I seem to be picking up. Then then played a part in my spiritual writing. I became a contributor to Spirituality & Health magazine, and then wrote the 'Believing' book, which combines travel to Brazil with a full-immersion experience in a healing retreat there, which was like a spiritual car-wash for the spirit. It revolutionized my life. Absolutely amazing.

Your two favorite books:
The Seat of the Soul, by Gary Zukav, and I Had It All The Time, by Alan Cohen. But anything by Alan Cohen, Caroline Myss, or Stuart Wilde really. They are true masters of connection, stirring the human heart and spirit. I never grow tired of hearing their take on life.

Your two favorite songs:
Vincent by Don McLean and I Vow To Thee, My Country by Cecil Spring-Rice, set to music by Gustav Holst to part of his Jupiter Suite. I want both played at my funeral, I don't care in which order.

Why you are interested in spirituality?
I don't see myself as having any choice, any more than I choose to breathe air. Everything up to the point of accepting our spirituality is denial of self, and a disconnect. The only way to live congruently, to my mind, and to be sure you're taking one positive step after another is to accept your nature as an eternal being cloaked in mortal flesh and bone, and to have faith and trust that this connection to divine consciousness will sustain you through periods of challenge and doubt. I'm always shocked when people view the world in terms of only what they can see or touch, or they rely on drugs, surgery, and medication to treat the body when they become seriously ill. In other words, they're looking to the external rather than the eternal to resolve their issues, when it's so obvious that the true answers lie on the inside. As I say in my book, you heal from the inside out, not the outside in.

I met a very famous Hollywood actor recently. He'd read A Little Book About Believing and loved it, so he asked if he could take me to lunch. I was understandably a little nervous. I've seen him in movies and thought I might be tongue-tied. But everything was very relaxed. It turns out that he's sick with the late stages of cancer and desperately looking for an answer. In order to heal, he's throwing everything but the kitchen sink at the problem. Non-stop treatment, drugs, doctor visits, clinics, spas, the works. As we sat there eating and chatting, I could almost hear his soul screaming for mercy. The answer was so obvious to me - look within. Stop trying so hard. Quit looking for answers 'out there' somewhere, and instead ask spirit, in stillness and total faith, "What have I done to my body to bring on this cancer? What is my body trying to tell me? What do I need to stop doing in order to help restore balance and harmony to my system?"

I fully believe that this is the road to healing and wellness, not endless treatment, or fighting the disease, which often only makes things worse. Why does everything have to be about struggle, combat, fighting back? Whatever happened to good nutrition, rest, harmony, clean air, a joyful heart. Sound simplistic, but I believe it works.

My parents were rookie Christian Scientists, which is all about healing the body in spiritual ways, but I was unable to embrace any one religion. As a travel writer and TV host on the Travel Channel for my series Stranded, I got to have adventures all over the world, and the more I met different cultures, the more I realized that a religion is just a set of convenient assumptions based on available evidence, then perpetuated by fear and doubt, whereas spirituality knows no such rules and boundaries and promotes reliance on self, as well as trust in the Divine.

Your favorite quote:
"You don't get what you want in life, you get what you are." Dr. Wayne Dyer. Deep and brilliant and so true.

Your favorite web sites:
Anything that provides material nourishing to the soul and which furthers togetherness rather than division. So www.Patheos.com is right there at the top. You could get lost for days in that thing.

Your hero?
I don't do hero worship. I tend not to idolize, and never have, though I can respect astonishing visionaries who inspire us - Caroline Myss, Steve Jobs - and those who believe in something with the utmost conviction and go do it, proving to the doubters what's possible: Mahatma Gandhi, Richard Branson, J.K. Rowling....anyone who brushed the naysayers aside and pursued their vision to success.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?
Is relaxation a spiritual lesson? I've always had a high metabolism matched, somewhat perversely, with an inner quiet, which is an odd combo. So although I do yoga and meditate often, in between times I do find it hard not to gush and enthuse and participate and express joy. It's my natural way, even if I think it can sometimes be wearing on people around me. You certainly know when I'm in the room, that's for sure! So calmness, I'd say. Repose. Balance.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
Oh, Brazil definitely. When I got off the plane in Rio de Janeiro that first time, I felt a rush of adrenaline but also peace like I'd never felt before. And after I'd spent two weeks with John of God, receiving treatment, I was an entirely different person. My world has not been the same since. If ever there was a time when I fully understood my connection with the Divine, it was in Brazil.

Editor's Note: To learn more about Cash Peters, go to www.cashpeters.com
--

Elizabeth Myer Boulton, Interview #154

2011-11-01T09:28:00.000-05:00

Name: Rev. Elizabeth Myer Boulton

Where you live: Indianapolis, Indiana
What you do as a vocation or avocation?I am President and Creative Director over at the SALT Project, Inc. We’re a small, not-for-profit production company dedicated to creating beautiful, devotional resources for small groups, congregations, and individuals!

Your two favorite books:

Guess How Much I Love You, Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram

The Nativity, Julie Vivas

Your two favorite songs:

My first favorite song was written by my husband, Matthew Myer Boulton, and is entitled, "Great and Small."

There's an amazing collection of Jewish Hasidic folk-tales entitled, "Tales of the Hasidim Later Masters." And in that collection, there's a wonderful little gem that has always stuck with my husband, so he decided to write a song about it.

Here's the gem:
"Rabbi Bunim taught: Every person should have two pockets. In one pocket should be a piece of paper saying: 'I am but dust and ashes' (Genesis 18:27). When one is feeling too proud, reach into this pocket and take out this paper and read it. In the other pocket should be a piece of paper saying: 'For my sake was the world created' (Talmud: Sanhedrin 38a). When one is feeling disheartened and lowly, reach into this pocket and take this paper out and read it."
From my point of view, this is the perfect life lesson for all of us (from 2 to 92!), and it vividly evokes what it's like to live a religious life: always evolving, tacking back and forth, endeavoring to stay both humble and courageous.

My second favorite song is “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes -- need I say more?

Why you are interested in spirituality?

"Why spirituality and why Christianity?"
A woman at the coffee shop asked me this the other day. I was working with the scriptures, trying to craft a sermon, and out of no where came that question, "Why Christianity?"

I stumbled. I hemmed. I hawed. I wasn't elegant in the least...

So, without further adieu, I will kill two birds with one stone (so to speak!) and answer both questions at the same time:

For me, Christianity (my form of spirituality) is a poem. A beautiful and broken poem that soars to the highest heavens, but not before it slugs through the trenches of violence, shadows, betrayal, abandonment, and finally, death.

For me, life wouldn't make sense without Christianity. Without Christianity, without a God who chooses to become flesh, to become breakable; without a God who, through Christ and the church, continues to side with the poor; without a God who stands in solidarity with every victim of every hate crime; without a God who transforms, redeems, and declares in the face of death, “You will not have the final word!" - without this God, I couldn’t make it through the day, I couldn't read the paper, I couldn't bring children into the world.

I choose Christianity because, for me, the world would be a veil of tears without it. For me, this beautiful, broken poem contains life and life in abundance.

Your favorite quote:

Those who don't feel this Love pulling them like a river,
those who don't drink dawn like a cup of spring water or take in sunset like supper,
those who don't want to change, let them sleep.
Rumi

Your favorite web sites:
Etsy, Apartment Therapy, Text This Week, and SALT (I couldn’t resist!)

Your hero?
My mom!

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

How to be love, to serve well, to give to everyone who begs of me, to pick up my cross, and to follow...

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"
The place I feel most spiritually “connected” is in front of a “Madonna del Latte” or "Madonna of the Milk." She’s everywhere in Italy and every time I catch a glimpse of her the whole world seems to melt away...

Back in the 14th century, artists were positively enamored with her. They painted her, carved her out of stone, prayed to her, and painted her again.

More often than not, she's either actively nursing the baby or preparing to nurse. And sometimes, Jesus is actually fighting to get inside her robes.

If you ever have the privilege of going to Sicily's national art museum in Palermo, she will be there again and again and again. Not one, not two, but twenty, maybe twenty-five renditions of Madonna del Latte.

Again and again and again: Mary, the “Theotokos” (“House of God”). Mary, figure for the Church, one of the marvelous ways in which God is letting down God’s milky love, God’s grace, God’s tenderness, God’s mercy, God’s peace, God’s healing.

In the halls of that museum, you can hear the wisdom of tradition singing across the centuries, “Come to me, all who are weak and heavy laden. Come to me if you are going through a broken relationship, battling depression, struggling with an addiction, or surviving an eating disorder. Come to the church; come and drink deeply from the grace of God. Come and see, come and pray, come and be made whole.”

Daniel Walker, Interview #153

2011-10-10T08:57:00.002-05:00

Name: Daniel Walker

Where you live: New Zealand

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Detective and Author

What are your two favorite books? The Bible and A Wolf Story by Jes Byron Huggins

Your two favorite songs: "The Power of Love" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood and "I want to know what love is" by Foreigner.

Why you are interested in spirituality? Because I have found it to be the essence of who I am as a human being and as a man. It has allowed me to "suck the marrow" out of life without it passing me by.

Your favorite quote: "All men die one day. Not all men truly live."

Your favorite web sites: www.hagarinternational.org and www.compassion.com

Your hero? Jesus is my hero, because he seems to me to be the most "unreligious" person who ever lived and was yet the most fully alive human being who ever lived. I love it that it was the "religious" people he upset the most and who ultimately wanted him dead.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? I hope to learn how to love more fully and become more fully alive, even as my body ages and decays.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" New Zealand has so many beautiful places where I have felt "connected" and for that we are very spoilt.

Karen Skalitzky, Interview #152

2011-09-22T13:48:00.001-05:00

Name: Karen Skalitzky

Where you live: Chicago, IL

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

I am a writer, speaker, and spiritual director. My book, A Recipe for Hope: Stories of Transformation by People Struggling with Homelessness, was inspired by the men and women I met volunteering at Inspiration Café. www.arecipeforhope.com

I also have my own business as an educational consultant and am in the process of becoming an adoptive mom.

Your two favorite books:

Ah, there are so many! Half of a Yellow Sun, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, recently captured my heart, and An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith, by Barbara Brown Taylor, is one I return to again and again.

Your two favorite songs:

Bring on the Wonder – Sara McLachlan

Amazing Grace – as performed by Liz Wright

Why you are interested in spirituality?

To me, the spiritual path is a way of bringing us home to ourselves, to the wisdom that is already in us, to the wholeness that God is calling forth from us. Being on that journey and companioning others is an amazing gift.

Your favorite quote:

This is from Isabelle Allende, best known for her book The House of Spirits. She was asked in an interview about the death of her daughter.

“Many years have gone by, but the feeling of loss is still there and there’s some sadness. I don’t want to get rid of that sadness; it’s part of who I am today. I feel like it’s a fertile soil at the bottom of my heart where everything wonderful grows – creativity, compassion, love, and even joy.”

Your favorite web sites:

I’m always inspired by simple ideas that generate immense goodness in the world. Here are two: www.storycorp.org and www.donorschoose.org.

Your hero?

Rachel Naomi Remen, author of Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories that Heal, for reminding us of the healing power of our own stories. Remen is a physician who sits with people during times of great medical crisis.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

Letting go into, as my friend likes to say, and trusting.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

This place changes for me. As of late, I feel most spiritually connected in the quiet of the early morning when I’m working in the flower garden I planted. The city is still asleep, and I get to witness the beauty of creation all around me.

Karen's book: A Recipe for Hope: Stories of Transformation by People Struggling with Homelessness

Amy Julia Becker, Interview #151

2011-09-15T10:53:00.000-05:00

Name:  Amy Julia Becker

Where you live:  Lawrenceville, NJ 

What you do as a vocation or avocation? 

I am a part-time writer of a blog called Thin Places: Faith Family, and Disability and a memoir, A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations and a Little Girl Named Penny. But I spend most of my time with our three children, ages 5, 3, and 7 months, who give me endless fodder for writing!

Your two favorite books:  Two of my favorite books are Beloved by Toni Morrison and Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith by Kathleen Norris

Your two favorite songs:  Big Country (instrumental by Edgar Meyer with Bela Flek) and When the Saints by Sara Groves

Why you are interested in spirituality?    Catching glimpses of God's Spirit at work in the world and in individual lives fascinates me because I believe we are all invited to live with God—rich, full, meaningful lives-- starting here and now and continuing on for eternity.

Your favorite quote:   

At this moment, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice,” which is often attributed to Martin Luther King, who was quoting 19th century abolitionist and Unitarian minister Theodore Parker

Your favorite web sites:   

Bloom--Parenting Kids with Disabilities, Her.meneutics, the Christianity Today Women's Blog, Motherlode, the New York Times Parenting blog

Your hero?    My daughter Penny, who is 5 1/2, has Down syndrome, for her courage, tenacity, and boundless love.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?   

There's a verse in the Bible that says God gives "peace that passes understanding." I have experienced this peace at times in my life, but I would like for it to be a permanent state of being.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

Some part of my family has spent the summer in Madison, Connecticut, for almost a century. When I sit on the porch there-- in the presence of an expanse of water, with the smell of the salt marsh behind me, and the memories of family gatherings, I call it a "thin place," a place where heaven and earth meet, if only for a moment.

Amy Julia Becker is author of A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations, and a Little Girl Named Penny (Bethany Books, September, 2011)

www.amyjuliabecker.com
http://www.patheos.com/community/thinplaces/

"Becker . . . knows how to grab a reader’s heartstrings and never let go . . ." (Publisher's Weekly)

Graham Farmelo, Interview #150

2011-08-22T15:03:00.002-05:00

Name: Graham Farmelo

Where you live: London, UK

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Vocation – writer, avocation – physicist, but wish it were the reverse

Your two favorite books: Middlemarch by George Eliot, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Your two favorite songs: ‘Bewitched, bothered and bewildered’ by Rodgers & Hart, ‘I am the Walrus’ by Lennon & McCartney

Why you are interested in spirituality? Because it exemplifies how something can arise from nothing

Your favorite quote: ‘Only our surfaces are important; deep down, we’re all the same’ – Oscar Wilde

Your favorite web sites: www.bbc.co.uk

Your hero? The author of the plays of Shakespeare, even if it wasn’t Shakespeare

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? I can never articulate things I don’t know

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Everywhere – no single point in space or instant in time is privileged: a fundamental lesson of physics

Diana Charabin, Interview #149

2011-08-18T11:33:00.017-05:00

Name: Diana Charabin

Where you live: Canada, California, and everywhere else West Coast.

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I have created an inspiring company called Tiny Devotions ww.tinydevotions.com that spreads the awareness about mala beads and setting intentions.

Your two favorite books: Shantaram and The Monk Who Sold his Ferrari

Your two favorite songs: Anything by Bon Ivor or Angus and Julia Stone

Why you are interested in spirituality? This goes along with my favourite quote.... "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience but rather spiritual beings having a human experience." Our spirit IS why we are here.

Your favorite quote: see above

Your favorite web sites: www.ted.com www.crazysexylife.com - www.whitehottruth.com -
www.essenceofliving.com.au -

Your hero? Anyone authentic living their truth.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to be in the flow no matter where you are.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Gold Coast, Australia.

See Diana's work at www.tinydevotions.com

P. V. Vaidyanathan, Interview #148

2011-08-04T10:53:00.002-05:00

Name: Dr. P. V. Vaidyanathan

Where you live: Mumbai, India

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I am a practicing Pediatrician

Your two favorite books:

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle

Quantum Healing by Deepak Chopra

Your two favorite songs:

None

Why you are interested in spirituality?

To be able to understand life and its apparent contradictions and complexities

Your favorite quote:

"Give to others, not because you have, but because you know what it is not to have"

Your favorite web sites:
www.speakingtree.in

www.rediff.com

Your hero?

Swami Vivekananda, India

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

How to be in relationship with others with only love, nothing else

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

Anywhere and everywhere

Bob Bennett, Interview #147

2011-07-13T13:16:00.005-05:00

Name: Bob Bennett

Where you live: Costa Mesa, CA (behind the OC Curtain)

What you do as a vocation or avocation?: Singer-Songwriter-Recording Artist

Your two favorite books:

Sailing Alone Around the Room (collected poems of Billy Collins)

His audio CD "The Best Cigarette" is a free download HERE.

Book of Common Prayer (1928 edition with incomparable English)

Your two favorite songs:

Gloria in Excelsis (text from the BCP, musical setting by Healy Willan)

"Birth of a Song" by Steve Bell (Canadian, criminally unknown here in U.S.)

(Sh-h-h: Here's a LINK to the whole song!)

Why you are interested in spirituality?

I'm most interested in an approach to spirituality that integrates with and

affirms the necessity and blessing of physical, human existence. In other

words, not ascending somewhere beyond to get away from the here-and-

now. In my Christian faith tradition, the Incarnation of Jesus is the Big

Indicator that truth-in-theory is of little use until you hang your life,

conduct, and choices on it … until truth is, in the old parlance, "made flesh".

Your favorite quote:

"The artistic temperament is a disease that afflicts amateurs." -- G.K. Chesterton

"I prefer clarity over agreement." -- Dennis Prager

Your favorite web sites:

www.archive.org -- Never take "no" for an answer on a "missing" web page.

www.imdb.com -- Movie trivia is my favorite part of any listing.

www.en.wikipedia.org -- Almost everything with variable accuracy!

Your hero?

I'm a "Jesus Guy", so as expected … Him!

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

How to be a better human and a better Christian while driving.

To better lose my life so I can truly find it. (Matthew 10:39)

Contrary to _everything_ our culture proclaims, it really is NOT all about me.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

St. Matthew's Anglican Catholic Church (Newport Beach, CA)

Blue Rock Artist and Ranch Studio (Wimberley, TX)

Wherever great music is being made and really listened to!

Editor's Note: Bob's web site is www.bob-bennett.com

Blog readers can be directed to one of Bob's songs for listening and/or download: "Altar in the Field"

www.bob-bennett.com/bob-bennett-altar-in-the-field.mp3

Or check out Bob's songs on YouTube

and/or Small Graces

Sharmen Lane, Interview #146

2011-07-04T09:33:00.001-05:00

Name: Sharmen Lane

Where you live: Concord, CA

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Speak! Empowering people with inspiration is my passion!

Your two favorite books: Gone with the Wind and Atlas Shrugged

Your two favorite songs: Forever and For Always (Shania Twain) Eye of the Tiger (Survivor)

Why you are interested in spirituality? I just believe that there is a force so much bigger and far more powerful that ourselves. When you connect with Spirit miracles happen!

Your favorite quote: "Blowing out someone else candle, doesn't make yours shine any brighter" Eleanor Roosevelt

Your favorite web sites: selfgrowth.com and tappingthesource.com

Your hero? Eleanor Roosevelt

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Silence

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" mountain tops

Sharmen's web site: www.sharspeaks.com

Peter Michael Anthony, Interview #145

2011-06-29T21:31:00.003-05:00

Name:   Peter Michael Anthony

Where you live: Palm Springs Ca.

What is your vocation: Motivational speaker, published author/writer/ Astrologer–Numerologist and Life Coach

Two favorite books: A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson The Isaiah Effect by Gregg Braden

Two favorite songs: The Circle of Life by Elton John Crazy by Seal

Why are you interested in spirituality? Spirituality, unlike religion teaches a very simple philosophy. “There are many pathways up the mountain. Once you arrive to the top, the view is always the same. Spectacular!”

Your favorite quote: “What time is it? ‘Now! What are you doing? Living in the moment!   Where are you? Here!”~~Dan Millman, The Peaceful Warrior

Your favorite web sites: www.newrealitytransmission.com   and www.awakeningasone.com

Your hero: There are thousands of unsung hero’s on our planet. Firemen, police officers, teachers, rescuers of animals, case workers, emergency medical staff ,Green peace volunteer’s, Red Cross, military and countless others. These are the REAL HERO’S of the planet.

A spiritual lesson I hope to learn: As I write my answers to your questionnaire, I feel that at this very moment I AM learning something about myself.

A place in the world where I feel spirituality connected?
I’m quite fortunate to have relocated to a planetary vortex that many locals call “paradise.” To live in Palm Springs, California is a miracle of miracles. And for that, I AM blessed.

Brent N. Hunter, Interview #144

2011-06-28T12:43:00.002-05:00

Name: Brent N. Hunter

Where you live: Los Angeles, CA

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I am an author, visionary entrepreneur, social media pioneer, IT executive and international networker with the goal of increasing international friendship/community, understanding and unity worldwide.

Your two favorite books: There are so many awesome books! Among many favorites, The Way of the Wizard by Deepak Chopra and Way of The Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman come to my mind first.

Your two favorite songs: It's impossible to say what two songs are my favorite because I have so many different tastes in music but for the mood I'm in right now, Voices by Dario G and Redemption Song by Moodswings are awesome.

Why you are interested in spirituality? I feel it is important to deeply understand spirituality to help bring people together during this unique time in history. It is also important to help facilitate inner peace as well as a connection to the Source.

Your favorite quote: by Marianne Williamson:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves: who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Your favorite web sites: http://www.klout.com and http://www.empireavenue.com plus many other social networking sites.

Your hero? President Barack Obama

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Mastering the art and science of abundance and manifestation.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Anywhere we are is sacred, as we are divine incarnations of Spirit in human form. However, a few places I felt or anticipate feeling particularly connected are Mt. Shasta, India, Istanbul, South Africa, Egypt, South and Central America and Sedona.

Verity A. Jones, Interview #143

2011-06-23T11:37:00.001-05:00

Name: Verity A. Jones

Where you live: Indianapolis, Indiana

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I am the director of the New Media Project at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York (www.NewMediaProjectAtUnion.org). We are exploring how religious leaders and their faith communities can be theologically savvy about technology today. Funded by the Lilly Endowment, the New Media Project is a two-year research and writing endeavor with six thinkers and writers sharing their work as it is compiled. I am an ordained minister with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the former publisher and editor of DisciplesWorld magazine. I also work closely with younger clergy in the Wabash College Pastoral Leadership Program in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

Your two favorite books: Love in the Time of Cholera, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is one of my all time favorite novels. More recently, I have to admit that I have enjoyed the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling immensely. My daughter is eleven years old and we both think The Order of the Phoenix is the best in the series.

Your two favorite songs: It's impossible to narrow this down to two, so I'll just mention a couple of songs that have caught my attention again recently: Sweet Honey in the Rock's "Wanting Memories" and Paul Simon's "The Cool, Cool River."

Why you are interested in spirituality? Spirituality is not a thing or an object or a subject in which I can have a distinct interest. Instead, the Spirit of God--the wind, the breath, the ruach, to use a Hebrew word--inhabits my entire being, my life, the world. To be alive is to be spiritual.

Your favorite quote: Shawshank Redemption (the movie). Closing the film, Red says, "I find I'm so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope."

Your favorite web sites: New Media Project (!), Religion Dispatches (informative), Salt Project (beautiful), the Moth Chase (fun)

Your hero? Barack Obama

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Mindfulness, creativity, courage, peace

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" A small alcove or chapel within a larger church or cathedral. Stained glass and soaring organ music helps!

Jason Byassee, Interview #142

2011-06-22T15:38:00.000-05:00

Name: Jason Byassee

Where you live: Trick question: for now Durham NC, in 6 days will live in Boone NC, where I’ll pastor Boone United Methodist Church and my wife Jaylynn will pastor Bethelview & Valle Crucis UMC’s.

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I’m a pastor, writer, theologian, dad, slow runner and mediocre basketball player.

Your two favorite books: Maybe the two most influential are Flannery O’Connor’s short stories & Andrew Louth’s beautiful book “Discerning the Mystery.”

Your two favorite songs: Right now anything by Mumford & Sons (especially “Little Lion Man”) and anything by the Avett Brothers (especially “Go to Sleep”). Now this is really cheating: anything out of Taize and any Charles Wesley hymn would also count.

Why you are interested in spirituality? Christians often speak of God finding them rather than the other way around. I can’t remember a time I wasn’t interested in God-with-us, in Israel, Jesus, and church. It’s as though I wasn’t seeking at all, but rather I got found, and couldn’t give it up now if I wanted to.

Your favorite quote: “If you understand it, it is not God,” St. Augustine

Your favorite web sites: Faith & Leadership (www.faithandleadership.com), The New Media Project at Union Seminary (http://blog.newmediaprojectatunion.org/), Theolog, the blog of the Christian Century (http://christiancentury.org/blogs).

Your hero? Rowan Williams, precisely for refusing to be a hero, and trying to be a saint, and admitting so freely how often he fails, while contemplating God so profoundly.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? To be wise. So very different than being smart, it seems to require not only multiple intelligences but also profound love.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Mepkin Abbey in the coincidentally named Monck’s Corner SC. Or playing sports with my boys, Jack (8), Sam (6) and Will (3).

Nicole Neroulias, Interview #141

2011-06-04T20:04:00.007-05:00

Name: Nicole Neroulias

Where you live: Seattle, WA

What you do as a vocation
or avocation?

Belief Beat blogger, Religion News Service correspondent, volunteer
(826 Seattle, among others), globetrotter, musician & mom

Your two favorite books:
At the moment? I keep coming back to David Sheff's "Beautiful Boy" and
Michael Chabon's "The Yiddish Policemen's Union."

Your two favorite songs:
The Beatles "Let It Be"
and Bon Jovi "Living on a Prayer"

Why you are interested in spirituality?

We are what we believe. Among my own family and friends, there's a
diverse range of religious beliefs, which always makes for interesting
-- if not heated! -- discussions. And obviously, faith plays a major
role in world affairs, for better or worse.

Your favorite quote:
"In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at
heart." --Anne Frank

Your favorite web sites:
Belief Beat, Facebook & Television Without Pity

Your hero?
Working moms

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

Judge not, lest ye be judged.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

The beach, with my fingers and toes in the sand, the sun on my face
and the sound of crashing waves in my ear.

Nicole's Twitter feed: http://www.twitter.com/BeliefBeat

Marcia Z. Nelson, Interview #140

2011-05-27T17:21:00.008-05:00

Name: Marcia Z. Nelson

Where you live: suburban Chicago

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

Author, The Gospel According to Oprah&
religion reviews editor, Publishers Weekly;
avocationally: gardener

Your two favorite books: The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman; No Future without Forgiveness by Desmond Tutu

Your two favorite songs: Amazing Grace; Let It Be by the Beatles

Why you are interested in spirituality? it keeps me in touch with the better angels of human nature

Your favorite quote: Be still, and know that I am God (Ps 46:10)

Your favorite web sites: Facebook, the New York Times, and ZooBorns

Your hero? Desmond Tutu

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? shutting up (see favorite quote, above)

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" my garden (see avocation, above)

Kristina Neuhauser, Interview #139

2011-05-25T08:04:00.005-05:00

Name: Dr. Kristina Neuhauser

Where you live: I live between the UK, Hungary, and India. I spend a lot of my time travelling

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

I am certified Feng Shui Master with the Imperial School of Feng Shui and practice as a Consultant globally. I am also a Psychodrama Therapist and a Motivational Coach and work across Europe helping individuals unlock their true potential. Originally I was a lecturer of English and Russian at University but then in the '80s decided to retrain as a Nutritionist and my husband and I started a nutrition business. We've worked in nutrition for over 25 years now and combine our knowledge of nutrition with psychodrama, motivational coaching and Feng Shui to offer holistic services to clientele across the globe.

Your two favorite books: Currently my two favourite books are "Have you got the guts to be really healthy" by Don Chisholm & "Cleanse & Purify Thyself" by Richard Anderson. Both fantastic reads, giving great insight into how you can lead a healthy life free without the intervention of pharmaceuticals.

Your two favorite songs: Deva Premal - Om Tare Tuttare, Andrea Boccelli - Time to say goodbye

Why you are interested in spirituality? Sprituality is deeply ingrained in my way of life. I was raised of the Christian faith and felt that there was a vast hidden spirituality in my household. After my children were born I decided to delve deeper into the meaning of connectedness and universal consciousness. I explored Buddhism and made a conscious decision to live a more spiritual life and felt great personal rewards. I brought this new sense of connectedness to my family and watched with great pride and a warm heart as my children explored their own sense of self and spirituality. Spirituality is not just an interest for me, it is part of who I am, what I believe and every decision I make.

Your favorite quote:
"If you begin to understand what you are without trying to change it, then what you are undergoes a transformation." Jiddu Krishnamurti

Your favorite web sites:

http://www.thepennyfriends.com/

http://www.angeltherapy.com/

Your hero?

Helen Keller. She was born deaf and blind. Instead of fearing her personal challenge, she worked hard and embraced the gifts that came with it. As a result she became an accomplished author and a great spiritual teacher. She showed us all that truly is possible.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

To expect less of myself and be patient. These are life-long lessons for a naturally-born overachiever like me.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

The Island of Bali, Kerala (India) and Sri Lanka. These are spiritual power houses where I find myself connecting to the locals, travellers and most of all to the breath-taking nature. Otherwise, when I am with my family.

Michael Wenham, Interview #138

2011-05-18T13:09:00.008-05:00

Name: Michael Wenham

Where you live: Wantage, near Oxford, UK

What you do as a vocation or avocation?
My vocation is to be a limping follower of Jesus Christ; my avocation is writing.

Your two favorite books:
(Excluding the Bible and Shakespeare, as they say on the UK's radio programme, Desert Island Discs) they'd have to be Jane Austen's Collected works (and if pushed Persuasion) and Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy.

Your two favorite songs: Dove sono from Mozart's Marriage of Figaro, and Et in terra pax from Vivaldi's Gloria RV589 - and for light listening I Hope you Dance Lee Ann Womack

Why you are interested in spirituality? I'm not sure I'd quite put it like that! Having ALS (or Motor Neurone Disease) has been an interesting test case for me. Would it disprove the existence of God? That's not been my experience. In fact faith has made more sense and paradoxically more mystery. I have found more richness in life and more depth in friendships. Life seems to be infinitely precious and love infinitely powerful. How can that be if we are just machines, or the products of mere chance? My convictions were first intellectual. Then I had an experience of the Holy Spirit. And now I'm discovering the quiet companionship of Christ in hard times, and he hasn't deserted me.

Your favorite quote: Way out in front: 'I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers,

nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.' (St Paul, Letter to Romans)

Followed in the 20th century by:

'We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.' (T.S.Eliot, Little Gidding)

Your favorite web sites:
http://www.loyolapress.com/3-minute-retreats-daily-online-prayer.htm

Christian Medical Comment - http://pjsaunders.blogspot.com/

{love} - http://jillmccloghry.blogspot.com/

http://imprintsoflight.wordpress.com/

Your hero? Without doubt Jane, my wife who is quietly inspirational and keeps me alive.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Not to pity myself.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

Christ Church, Exmouth, in the UK - an utterly unpretentious chapel where I sense a community of love.

Michael's site and where he blogs: http://mydonkeybody.blogspot.com/

Janet Oberholtzer, Interview #137

2011-05-13T14:13:00.001-05:00

Name: Janet Oberholtzer

Where you live: Mohnton, PA

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Writer, speaker and I blog at JanetOberholtzer.com

Your two favorite books: I'm an avid reader, so this is a tough question ... but two that have impacted me over the past few years are Born to Run by Christopher McDougall and Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard

Your two favorite songs: You Raise Me Up by Josh Groban and Firework by Katy Perry

Why you are interested in spirituality? It's been an interest as long as I can remember. As a child, I'd lie in the grass studying the stars wondering if there really was a God and if so, what the connection is between the divine and humanity.

Your favorite quote: Again, how can I pick one? I love quotes! But the one that has kept me going over the past few years after receiving horrific injuries in an accident is "Do what you can, where you are, with what you have." Theodore Roosevelt. By doing that, I've recovered much better than expected ... doctors weren't sure if I would ever walk again and recently I've completed a half-marathon.

Your favorite web sites: For a laugh: CatalogLiving.net. To make me think: NakedPastor.com

Your hero? Right now - Dean Karnazes, he recently completed a Run Across America in 75 days.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to live fully alive as me ... not as someone that I think others want me to be.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Outside in nature ... either being still or going for a run.

www.JanetOberholtzer.com

Ray Clements (J.B.), Interview #137

2011-05-12T09:42:00.000-05:00

Name: Ray Clements (J.B.)

Where do you live? Newburyport, Massachusetts

What do you do as a vocation? I write.

What are your two favorite books?

Having read them both at a very impressionable time in my life, there are two books that have stayed with me through the years; Upton Sinclair's, The Jungle and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe.

What are your two favorite songs?

The Pretender by Jackson Brown, (who explains the song like this; "...it's not me exactly, although sometimes people applaud for me at the moment in the song as if I am, but in truth there is a bit of the Pretender in me, but it's anybody that's sort of lost sight of some of their dreams...and is going through the motions and trying to make a stab at a certain way of life that he sees other people succeeding at. So maybe it's a lot of people of a certain generation who've embraced a very material lifestyle in place of dreams that they had that sort of disintegrated at some point."), and John Lennon's Working Class Hero.

Why are you interested in spirituality?

I think for the complete answer you would have to read my book, Zor. The short answer would be, "It's time." With so much dividing the world; capitalism, politics, religion, race, sex, education, culture, etc; we need to concentrate on something that unites the world. Spirituality is the answer and, for the first time in history, philosophy, spirituality, and science are leading us to the same conclusion.

What is your favorite quote?

"Everything is the result of something else. To have, what you have not; you must do, what you do not."-Zor

Your Hero?

Mohandas Gandhi, for obvious reasons.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

No one can save the world, but any one can change it.

Where do you feel spiritually connected.

I have always been drawn to the ocean, and that is where I am the most spiritually connected.

My web site is www.GoToZor.com.

My amazon page is http://amzn.to/fBFKS0.

Elissa Elliott, Interview #136

2011-05-09T09:12:00.003-05:00

Name: Elissa Elliott

Where you live: Rochester, MN

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Author, blogger, and podcaster

Your two favorite books: Usually it’s the one I’m reading currently, but I’ll play along and say Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead and Barbara Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible.

Your two favorite songs: Again, this list comes from what I’m currently listening to, so let’s just say they’re Brandon Flowers’s “On the Floor” and Arcade Fire’s “Intervention.”

Why you are interested in spirituality? I find it fascinating that the two main questions we want to ask are: Is there Something out there? And how do we relate to that Something? Obviously, the questions don’t come with easy answers. If they did, we’d all believe the same thing…and obviously we don’t. Some have even gone on to reject the notion completely. I long for discussions among people of different beliefs, I guess. We don’t have too many (discussions) that are open-minded (or even civil) anymore.

Your favorite quote: “Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day.”

--Rainer Maria Rilke in Letters to a Young Poet

Your favorite web sites:

TED talks

Brain Pickings

Arts & Letters Daily

Your hero? A person who is kind.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to love properly.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Online, I’d have to say. It’s the one venue I can find others like me, easily and safely.

Book: Eve: A Novel by Elissa Elliott

Blog: Living the Questions Blog. Podcast: Living the Questions Podcast.

Speaking: Wild Goose Festival on June 23, 2011, Shakori Hills, NC

Media: Facebook and Twitter

Robert Hunt, Interview #135

2011-05-04T13:43:00.002-05:00

Name: Robert Hunt

Where you live: Dallas,Texas

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I administer a program of global theological education at Perkins School of Theology, and teach courses in World Religions.

Your two favorite books: Only two? I find Terry Pratchett’s Diskworld series and P.D.James works always thought-provoking and entertaining.

Your two favorite songs: Again only two? Carrie Newcomer’s "Betty's Diner" and Sophie von Otter, “Take it With Me” (by Tom Waits, produced by Elvis Costello)

Why you are interested in spirituality? I’m interested in all the ways that humans in their finitude seek and are sought by the transcendent. Because spirituality is a distinctly human phenomenon, and to me humans are really the most fascinating thing there is in all creation.

Your favorite quote: At the moment: “The universe and the facts of life are stubborn and recalcitrant and the quest for simple explanations is doomed to failure . . . . If any domain of the history of man and of his thought seems to us quite straightforward, we may be fairly certain that we are ill-informed about it or view it from a partisan standpoint.” Arthur Darby Nock

Your favorite web sites: patheos.com, Pandora.com,
Your hero? Ulysses as imagined by Homer and Tennyson, Prometheus as imagined by Shelley.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Oddly, given the above, “to learn to be still.”

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" At sea.

Dean Anthony Gratton, Interview #134

2011-04-29T07:55:00.006-05:00

Name: Dean Anthony Gratton

Where you live: London, United Kingdom

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Bestselling author and columnist

Your two favorite books:
Douglas Adams, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

James Herriot, All Creatures Great and Small

Your two favorite songs:
I don’t really have an overall favourite artist or song. I have an eclectic taste in music, ranging from dance and pop to jazz and classical.

Why you are interested in spirituality?
I’m interested in human potential and that untapped energy within us all, which enables us to make real our dreams.

Your favorite quote:
"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. This I did." --T. E. Lawrence (The Seven Pillars of Wisdom)

Your favorite web sites:
The Internet is a vast virtual space and I’m always eager to learn and explore new things. The creativity and knowledge afforded by many websites is inspirational and there are simply too many to name.

Your hero?
My darling wife: for seeing through the fog and finding me.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn?

How to further explore the Universe within my own mind.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?"

Cambridge, United Kingdom. When I first arrived here I felt a sense of déjà vu and belonging.

Web Site: deangratton.com

In Dean’s latest book, Developing Practical Wireless Applications (Digital Press, an imprint of Elsevier), 2007 - Dean has been critically acclaimed by Barnes & Noble who describe his book as “accessible enough for business decision makers, detailed enough for technologists, occasionally opinionated enough to keep everyone on their toes. It's like hiring a really well-connected industry expert -- for, say, one percent of the cost.” Bill Camarda, 2007.

Greg Smith, Interview #133

2011-04-28T13:47:00.005-05:00

Name: Greg Smith

Where you live: Naples, FL

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Research, speak and write about education, especially relating to technology and faith. Currently, I work in the Distance Education Department of a private university, serve as the Director of Adult Education in a progressive Protestant church, and write a daily blog about matters of faith that matter.

Your two favorite books: The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others (2004) by Scot McKnight and To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, & Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World by James Davison Hunter (2010)

Your two favorite songs: Somos Uno en Cristo (We’re United in Jesus) and Third Day’s Offering

Why you are interested in spirituality? I understand spiritually as a means of experiencing what it means to be human. In the words of Dr. James Fowler, “ The human calling – which we take to be universal – is to undergo and participate in the widening inclusiveness of the circle of those who count as neighbor, from the narrowness of our familial beginnings toward real solidarity with a commonwealth of being. This calling means movement from the limiting love of those who love us and on whom we are dependent toward the limitless love that comes from genuine identification with the source and center of all being (Becoming Adult, Becoming Christian, rev. 1999, p. 60).

Your favorite quote: One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." (Mark 12: 28-31, NIV)

Your favorite web sites: to read: www.patheos.com/Religion-Portals.html and www.pewforum.org/ // to interact: Facebook and Twitter

Your hero? Jesus, the one who taught and lived the way of love

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? contentment

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" online

My daily blog about matters of faith that matter: www.sowhatfaith.com

Jon M. Sweeney, Interview #132

2011-04-28T11:37:00.001-05:00

Name: Jon M. Sweeney

Where you live: Woodstock, Vermont

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I have worked in book publishing for 20 years. Since 2004, I’ve been the associate publisher at Paraclete Press. My avocation doesn’t wander far from my vocation (how I wish I could say that I do something more outrageously interesting!): I’m a writer of books, articles, blogs, and many other things. I write.

Your two favorite books: That’s impossible to answer, so I will answer as if you asked me what are my two favorite books this year. Bruce Chatwin’s The Songlines, and Jack Gilbert’s new book of poems, The Dance Most of All.

Your two favorite songs: I’ve been singing old Carpenters favorites to my baby in utero. Either those, or The Smiths.

Why you are interested in spirituality? Because I can’t shake God. Spirituality is everything that gives life meaning.

Your favorite quote: Again, there can’t possibly be only one. But I’ll give you this one for sure: "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." (H.P. Lovecraft)

Your favorite web sites: I spend a lot of time on The Huffington Post, where I blog on religion, Facebook, and The New Yorker, because I allowed by subscription to lapse.

Your hero? Paul Sabatier, the French Protestant who wrote the first modern biography of St. Francis of Assisi.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to love my neighbor as myself.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Now, that’s the easiest question of all. Not the woods (although they are great on snowshoes in January). I’m a contemplative sort, but not in solitude. Put me in the middle of a crowd of people, preferably strangers.

Editor's Note: Jon blogs here: www.kingjamesbiblegeek.blogspot.com and www.jonmsweeney.wordpress.com.

Ray Hollenbach, Interview #131

2011-04-23T13:13:00.002-05:00

Name: Ray Hollenbach

Where you live: Central Kentucky

What you do as a vocation or avocation? Resident Sage at Vineyard Community Church

Your two favorite books: Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and John Updike's In The Beauty of the Lillies

Your two favorite songs: Elton John, Your Song; John Mark McMillan, Ten Thousand

Why you are interested in spirituality? Spirituality asks questions that are in the right neighborhood. Ask them long enough, you find your way home.

Your favorite quote: "wisdom is proven right by her children."

Your favorite web sites: indigenousworship.com;
http://www.slate.com/
and I'm also partial to my own Students of Jesus!

Your hero? Jesus, the Christ

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Gratitude.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Awake, at night, when my family is asleep. I listen in the silence of the night for His voice.

Amy Ellis Nutt, Interview #130

2011-04-21T12:17:00.006-05:00

Name: Amy Ellis Nutt

Where you live: Watchung, N.J.

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

I am a journalist and author

Your two favorite books:

Walker Percy's "The Second Coming" and F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby."

Your two favorite songs:

Van Morrison "The Bright Side of the Road," and Judy Collins' rendition of "Amazing Grace."

Why you are interested in spirituality? Without it, there is no meaning.

Your favorite quote: "And what were thou, and earth and stars and sea,

     If to the human mind's imagining,
   Silence and solitude were vacancy?"
   (Percy Bysshe Shelley, from his poem, "Mont Blanc")

Your favorite web sites: aldaily.com; brainpickings.org

Your hero? My mother and father

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Acceptance

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Anywhere in nature

Editor's Note: Also check out the great NPR "Fresh Air" interview with Amy and Jon Sarkin about her book Shadows Bright as Glass.

Elizabeth Cunningham, Interview #129

2011-04-21T10:08:00.005-05:00

Name: Elizabeth Cunningham

Where you live: New York State's Hudson Valley

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I am a writer--novels, poems, lately essays or what is called creative non-fiction. I also sing and make up songs (feels more like that than composing). I have inherited the care of my mother-in-law's gardens. Though I feel inept, I like having my hands in the dirt. I hope the land will be my teacher.

Your two favorite books: Till We Have Faces by CS Lewis; Beyond the Abbey Gates by Catherine MacCoun.

Your two favorite songs: "Seasons of Change" from The Muse by Tim Dillinger http://timdillinger.com/. "Wake awake the Night is Flying" from the Episcopal Hymnal, harmony by J.S Bach.

Why you are interested in spirituality? I actually don't like the word "spirtuality." I am interested in incarnation, how we all mediate the human and the divine. I don't exalt one above the other. Keats called this earth, this life the Vale of soulmaking. I believe we make our souls by fully embracing this heartbreaking, heartopening life on earth.

Your favorite quote: "All shall be well and all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well." -Julian of Norwich

Your favorite web sites: I am afraid I don't spend much time online.

Your hero? Everyday people who do what they have to do without hurting or blaming others.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? I would like to learn to be more trusting, not that everything will turn out the way I want it, but that it will be all right even if it looks terrible to me in the moment.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" High Valley http://www.highvalley.org/, the land I have been called to tend, even though I feel unequal to the task as the moment. The Maine Coast also feels like where my spirit lives.

"Never apologize for mistaking a woman for a goddess." -Maeve from The Passion of Mary Magdalen

Website for The Maeve Chronicles: http://passionofmarymagdalen.com/.

Carlo Alcos, Interview #128

2011-04-20T07:49:00.007-05:00

Name: Carlo Alcos

Where you live: Nelson, British Columbia, Canada

What you do as a vocation or avocation?

Freelance writer, Editor of Brave New Traveler

Your two favorite books: Ishmael by Daniel Quinn - it was the book that planted the seed that started me on a spiritual journey, way before I even knew what "spirituality" was. It was the idea that things could be a lot different than they are, whereas before I kind of just took it for granted that things have to be this way and couldn't imagine anything else. And High Fidelity by Nick Hornby - I'm a romantic and I love music. This is the perfect combo.

Your two favorite songs: At the moment, Say, Hey (I Love You) by Michael Franti and Wordless Chorus by My Morning Jacket.

Why you are interested in spirituality? Because I think it's imperative to be. It's how we connect with the bigger picture, how we come to understand that everything is connected, and it just feels good. It feels like the right thing to do, the right way to live, not even so much in an intellectual way...it just feels right, in the heart. It allows me to openly be how I am, and to be loving and compassionate to others. It's how I want to live my life right now.

Your favorite quote: I'm currently reading Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, so I'll pick one from there: "The attempt to develop a sense of humor and to see things in a humorous light is some kind of a trick learned while mastering the art of living."

Your favorite web sites: To be perfectly honest, I enjoy reading articles from a wide range of sites, so don't particularly have any "favorites". They usually cross my attention through Facebook or Twitter, or through my colleagues at Matador. I spend so much time online for "work" that I try to get my eyes off the screen whenever I can.

Your hero? I draw inspiration from anyone who dares to do what they really want to do in life, and do so with consideration for all beings, and who just genuinely love living.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? Learning lessons always surprise me because they're never the lesson I think I am learning or am supposed to learn. It's only ever in retrospect that I've come to realize that, hey, that was meant to happen because I learned this.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Where I'm living right now: Nelson, BC. I initially came for three months, then decided to stay for the winter. Then decided to stay for the summer. Now I'm seriously considering staying for the next winter too. It's a place that draws you in and keeps you here. There is something very special about this place, a small town of around 10,000 people, snuggled in a valley, surrounded by mountains, on the shore of a big lake. The community is amazing, I've never met so many people who are so readily willing to open up and share themselves in a really vulnerable way. Nelson is the kind of place where people still smile and say hi when you pass them on the street.

I edit and write at Brave New Traveler

   I also co-founded and write articles about relationships
   (with others and with ourselves) at Confronting Love.
   I keep a personal blog at Vagabonderz.com.

Janelle Hertzler, Interview #127

2011-04-19T13:05:00.000-05:00

Name: Janelle Hertzler

Where you live: South-Central Virginia

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I work with people who are dealing with grief, loss, and trauma. I am developing my website www.journey-through-grief.com as a primary source of connection with these folks. I am also a spiritual director and retreat leader.

Your two favorite books: It is hard to narrow it down to two. I would have to say any memoir or story that is real and honest and inspires hope. Paula D'Arcy's The Gift of the Red Bird and Anne Lamott's Traveling Mercies and Plan B. Also any of Mary Oliver's books of poetry.

Your two favorite songs: Paul Gurr's Come as You Are and David Haas' You are Mine (I Will Come to You in the Silence)

Why you are interested in spirituality? It is the one thing that can stop the hamster of my mind as it spins on its never-ending wheels.

Your favorite quote: "In difficult times always carry something beautiful inside." - Blaise Pascal

Your favorite web sites: ordinary blogs where people honestly engage their questions and doubts and inspire their readers to a deeper sense of peace and trust

Your hero? A friend of mine, who through a genetic disease, is losing her eyesight. She is dealing with her loss with such honest grit and beautiful openness of spirit.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? To live the questions more fully and with more grace.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Sitting beside the river on my brother-in-law's farm or most places in nature.

Janelle's site: www.journey-through-grief.com

Real People, Real Lives, Real Spirituality

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Name: Diana Charabin

What you do as a vocation or avocation? I have created an inspiring company called Tiny Devotions ww.tinydevotions.com that spreads the awareness about mala beads and setting intentions.

A spiritual lesson you hope to learn? How to be in the flow no matter where you are.

A place in the world where you feel spiritually "connected?" Gold Coast, Australia.

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