The Telos Channel

This week, the largest Christian Zionist lobbying organization is hosting its annual conference. Featuring politicians, commentators, and religious leaders, the Christians United For Israel annual summit will represent the convictions and policy interests of more than 10 million Christians in the US, according to the CUFI website.  We’re here to talk about it. Who is CUFI, what do we need to know...

What will it take to address gun violence in America, and what might peacemaking have to say about it? These last few weeks, we have taken some time to hear from visionary peacemakers addressing the issue in creative, imaginative ways.  In the last podcast of this series, we are joined by our good friends from the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth, and Reconciliation. Ainka Sanders Jackson and L...

What will it take to address gun violence in America, and what might peacemaking have to say about it? These next few weeks, we’re taking some time to hear from visionary peacemakers addressing the issue in creative, imaginative ways.  Our second guest is Michael Allen, co-founder and co-CEO of Together Chicago, a cross-sectional organization that exists to be a catalyst for lasting change by redu...

Telos’ Co-founder and President Greg Khalil is spending the rest of 2024 on a sabbatical from Telos. In this conversation, we get the chance to hear from him one last time before the long break.  He speaks honestly about the crisis continuing to unfold, its risk of escalation, and the horror that it has brought on everyone in the region, particularly on those in Gaza. He also inspires us to be a p...

What will it take to address gun violence in America, and what might peacemaking have to say about it? These next few weeks, as we close out Gun Violence Prevention Month this June, we’re taking some time to hear from the visionary peacemakers addressing the issue in creative, imaginative ways.  Our first guest is Mike Martin, the Founder and Executive Director of RAW Tools. RAW Tools turns guns i...

On June 11th, many of us from the Christian tradition gathered together for an evening of lament and repentance in Washington, DC. A night to grieve, but also to transform our grief into the work of imagining a new world and beginning to build it together. We heard prayers of lament, participated in a corporate confession, and opened our hearts to hear an important message from Rev. Dr. Munther Is...

Nearly 8 months after October 7, what message do the Palestinians and Israelis living in the land have for those of us watching from the US? A group of about a dozen faith leaders traveled with Telos last week to meet with our partners on the ground—to mourn with them, to stand in solidarity and compassion with them, and to return with fresh courage to embrace the work of peacemaking and bring the...

With the nation embroiled in debates over the campus protest movement, we sat down with a few experts and eye witnesses to discuss: what are our misconceptions about the protests, how can we become better advocates for the flourishing of all (including our local neighbors), and how might we respond to our own communities’ divisions while keeping our focus on what’s happening in the region?  This e...

Welcome to the Learning Corps podcast, the newest show on the Telos Channel! Together, we’ll excavate the core issues of conflict with experts from around the world, to uncover the path forward toward creative action in our communities.  In this Learning Corps conversation, we were joined by Dr. Joy Banner, the  Co-Founder and Co-Director of The Descendants Project. The Descendants Project is a no...

Massive student protests at Columbia University in solidarity with Gaza were met with swift and intense repression by university administrators and NYPD over the weekend, leading to the arrests of more than 100 students. Greg Khalil, President and Co-founder of Telos, was present for some of the events over the weekend as an adjunct professor at Columbia. He shares what he saw, what he has heard f...

After Israel’s strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Iran launched a barrage of 300 missiles at Israel from sites around the Middle East. While around 99% of the projectiles were intercepted before landing, the retaliatory response represented an escalation in a moment already fraught with risk of greater war. Then, overnight last Friday, Israel responded with a strike near an Iranian nucle...

After an Israeli strike killed IRGC leaders in Syria, the region has waited with baited breath for a response from the Iranian regime. Could regional war be on the horizon? We explore: What (and who) is a proxy?  How does the US-Israel alliance shape Iran’s engagement in the region?  What does the strike mean for the ongoing negotiations to end the war?  We hear the perspectives of two accomplishe...

Yesterday, after three attempts vetoed by the US, the U.N. Security Council successfully passed a resolution calling for an immediate and “lasting” ceasefire in Gaza, with the US abstaining. We discuss: What does this reflect about the US’ ongoing relationship to the region? What difference will the resolution make on the ground, and for the protection of international norms of human rights? And w...

UPDATE!! This morning, the International Court of Justice issued its ruling on the provisional measures of South Africa's case against Israel at The Hague, after it accused it of failing its commitments to the Genocide Convention in its campaign in Gaza. This ruling is potentially a world-pivoting event. Listen to find out why... BUT FIRST, be sure to listen to our previous episode discussing...

All you need to know about South Africa's case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. South Africa's complaint accuses Israel of breaching its commitments to the Genocide Convention in relation to its 100+ day war against the people of Gaza, in which more than 24,000 people have been killed. The significance of this case could not be higher. What difference wi...

This week, we take a deeper dive into the ongoing conversations and questions around language that have surfaced in our nation (and across the world) since October 7. We discuss how to speak in both honest and yet invitational ways that keep mutual flourishing at the center. We’ll hear from Eli, who joins us from Jerusalem, and touch on how we – as peacemakers – can hold multiple perspectives in t...

** Since we recorded this podcast, we received the news that Israel and Hamas had reached a deal regarding a release of hostages and a 4-day ceasefire. Check out our Instagram for our response. As such, this conversation reflects a previous reality but includes helpful discussion we think is still worth sharing. ** 40 days after October 7, what are realities on the ground for Israelis and Palestin...

In the midst of so much sorrow and grief, we released Peace Songs, a record in partnership with Good Shepherd Collective on our Principles and Practices of Peacemaking. When it was planned to be released at the end of October, we didn't know it would come as a timely dose of beauty and hope in a time of so much sorrow. But we are glad it has. Listen to a conversation with David Gungor and Kat...

This week, we answer some of your most frequently asked questions on what's happening in Israel and Gaza, how we got here, and what it will take to get out, including questions like: - Why did the US veto a UN Security Council resolution for a humanitarian pause? - What will a ceasefire actually accomplish?    - If it's a 6000 year old conflict (hint, that's a myth), will it ever ac...

This past weekend, Hamas launched a surprise attack in Southern Israel. Hundreds of Israelis have been killed, dozens taken hostage, and thousands wounded. Israel responded with airstrikes in Gaza. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, thousands wounded, and hundreds of thousands displaced. Our hearts are breaking.  We hosted a live conversation with our team reflecting on what happened and i...

After eight and a half years, beloved Telos team member Jack Saba, Israel/Palestine Program Director, is transitioning into a year-long sabbatical from Telos starting in September. He joined David Gungor on the show to reflect on his time with Telos and what's next. Sometimes, peacemaking can be perceived as “neutrality” or “passivity.” Jack reminds us that actually, peacemaking is tough and...

What do we do when it feels like we take one step forward toward peace and justice, but two steps back? When the temptation to nihilism is strong, is there room for hope? In the newest single in the Peace Songs album, Kate Gungor, John Guerra, and Diana Gameros explored the possibility of hope in the face of nihilism. They declare with us that hope is not a feeling, but an action. It is something...

Last week, the Israeli Knesset passed a law that has the international community, and large portions of Israeli society, asking: what’s happening to democracy in Israel?  We discussed the law, the months-long protest movement against it, and what it all means for peace, justice, and human rights for all people in the region—both Israeli and Palestinian. And to make things even more interesting, we...

On June 29th, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in cases against the University of North Carolina and Harvard University that race-conscious admissions practices, otherwise known as affirmative action, are unconstitutional, as they violate the 14th Amendment requirement of equal protection under the law. In this episode, we opened a conversation on our team about this ruling. We discuss...

You may not know it, but you’ve probably seen Joan Trumpauer Mulholland’s mugshot. Or the back of her head in the world-famous photo of the Woolworth’s sit-in in Jackson, MS as civil rights activists were harassed and assaulted by a mob of white segregationists.  Joan was an activist in the Civil Rights movement who by the age of 23, had spent two months on death row at Parchman prison for partici...