Contemplify

Dr. Amy Oden is a Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality at the Saint Paul School of Theology. In her latest book Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness Amy draws upon the roots and connection points of mindfulness found in the Christian Tradition. In this episode, Amy shares what 'mindfulness' means to her, her own practices to cultivate mindfulness, and the bril...

Jeff Johnson has surfed distant shores, climbed mountains you've never heard of and travelled to corners of the world most people couldn't place on a map. All of this is impressive, but what is most striking about Johnson is his authenticity. This genuineness comes across in his photography, his film 180 South and his book Bend to Baja . He is not dazzled by the flash of today, but seeks the wisdo...

"The Sacred Enneagram is not a just book about an ancient personality framework with a funny name. It is a roadmap to self-understanding written by one of the great spiritual practitioners of my generation. Read it now and you can thank me later." –  Jonathan Merritt  (Contributing writer for  The Atlantic ) How well do you know yourself? Are you able to name your basic desire or fear? The questio...

'What Richard Foster and Dallas Willard were to my generation – prime tour guides to the spiritual life – I hope and believe Carl McColman will be for the next generation. If you don't know about him and his work, you should.' - Brian D. McLaren Have you ever had a dream that shook you to your core? Or been given a book at the exact time you needed it? I know I have and if either of those ring tru...

' Christopher Pramuk's latest work,  At Play in Creation, offers a truly stunning introduction to the long-held but often forgotten Wisdom tradition. Priming our theological imaginations with the rich and sensuous language of poetry and with Merton's poem Hagia Sophia as a guide, Pramuk opens us to the divine music hidden in each of our encounters and allows us to glimpse the unseen Reality whom M...

Tasha Wahl is the founder and creator of The Butterfly Effect whose mission statement is so lovely I want to share it here... The Butterfly Effect is an underground movement redefining philanthropy one "butterfly" at a time by providing individuals the opportunity to give to a cause close to their heart. Harnessing the power of social media, we create a ripple effect of contagious generosity throu...

My guest today is the multifaceted Jules Evans and trying to encapsulate Jules in a brief bio is near impossible, but let me start by sharing some his accolades: his first book, Philosophy for Life and Other Dangerous Situations was a Times Book of the Year in 2013 and was integral to the revival of Stoic philosophy that you see happening today, he is a research fellow at the Centre for the Histor...

Laura Dunn  is the documentary filmmaker behind the film  The Unforeseen , which took home the Independent Spirit Truer Than Fiction Award and was executive produced by Robert Redford and Terrence Malick. Laura's latest film,  Look & See: A Portrait of Wendell Berry   in which she teams up Redford and Malick again, is the focus of this conversation. Put this stunningly beautiful documentary on you...

Hey everyone, welcome to another episode of Contemplify, the basecamp for budding contemplative whose pursuit is to kindle the examined life through conversations with creatives, scholars and practitioners. My guest today is Andrew Hinton, filmmaker and co-director of the sublime Emmy-nominated documentary film, Tashi & the Monk. If you haven't seen Tashi & the Monk, I can't recommend it enough. I...

Who is there that can make muddy water clear? But if allowed to remain still, it will gradually become clear of itself. Who is there that can secure a state of absolute repose? But let time go on, and the state of repose will gradually arise.' - Lao Tzu It's graduation season. It is all too likely that someone in your circle is graduating from an esteemed institution, be it a university or local h...

'This is a magnificent book [The Buddha Walks Into the Office] that just happens to be truly fun to read. Accessible, urgent, and life-changing.' - Seth Godin Lodro Rinzler  is a practitioner and teacher in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage, the founder of the MNDFL meditation studio (which New York Magazine just named the best place to learn meditation in NYC ) and the author of numerous books inclu...

This bonus practice episode invites you to ground your being in contemplating the universe. This practice is from Nancy Ellen Abram's book, A God That Could Be Real (pp. 89 - 90)

'You will find that your beliefs are enriched by reading Abrams's [A God That Could Be Real]. I am thrilled that we have the creativity and originality that is exhibited in this book, and I recommend it highly to all, religious or secular, believer or atheist, who are ready to explore honestly their understanding of the divine in our beautiful, expanding universe.' - Desmond Tutu Nancy Ellen Abram...

'You get the sense that this guy practices what he preaches.  There's a confidence and peace that inspires.' - Modern Sage Magazine David Michie is a presenter, mindful safari guide and author, best known for his novel series The Dalai Lama's Cat .   In our conversation we focused on the importance of meditation through the lens of his book, Hurry Up and Meditate: Your Starter Kit for Inner Peace...

Scott Hartley is venture capitalist and author. In 2016 he was a finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company's Bracken Bower Prize for the best business book proposal by an author under 35. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Scott worked...

"Henry David Thoreau, by no means the most conventional man of his time, lamented on his death bed, "What demon possessed me that I behaved so well." He would have taken comfort in Holy Fools. They remind us of a deeper sanity that is sometimes hidden beneath apparent lunacy: the treasure of a God-centered life." - Jim Forest ( Praying with Icons ) Jim Forest is the author of numerous books, inclu...

Russell James Pyle (russelljamespyle.com) is a national touring Musician and Ecopsychologist based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Russell is one of a kind--an ambient folk troubadour,  Buddhist, ecopsychologist, flyfisherman, avid hiker, comic book enthusiast, and with deep roots in the Pamunkey tribe. You will find that all of these elements flow through Russell and are expressed articulately throug...

" The thing about Alana [Levandoski] is that she's gifted. She's not just gifted as a musician, which she is, but she's gifted as a lyricist...she teased these words, kind of like mantras, highly evocative mantras. She strung them together in a developmental expansion. So it was really a stroke of creative insight. It was really lovely how she brought it together." - James Finley (via interview wi...

Stephen Blackmer is founding executive director of Kairos Earth and chaplain of Church of the Woods . Steve comes to this with 30 years of conservation experience, having founded and built conservation organizations including the Five Rivers Conservation Trust, Northern Forest Alliance and Northern Forest Center. A midlife shift led him to Yale Divinity School and ordination as a priest in the Epi...

� Rev. Dr. Peter Traben Haas is the author of several books, including Centering Prayers: A One  Year Daily Companion for Going Deeper into the Love of God. Peter is steeped in the Christian contemplative tradition, passionate about bringing the contemplative mind into church communities and the sheer number of books mentioned in this episode could chart the course for your next year (or two) of r...

"Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders." - Henry David Thoreau Kevin Dann is a historian, naturalist, and troubadour, and author of ten books, including Expect Great Things: The Life and Search of Henry David Thoreau ;   Bright Colors Falsely Seen: Synaest...

"[Charlie] Parr may have been born during the Nixon era, but you can taste the grit of the Dust Bowl in his music."- Dusted Magazine In this episode, Charlie shares a reflection on Harlan and Anna Hubbard as they sought a simple life on the river and in the woods. You can learn more about Charlie and his music at  charlieparr.com .

Christine Koh is a music and brain scientist turned multimedia creative via channels as a speaker, writer, designer and consultant. She spent a decade in academia, during which time she was awarded prestigious fellowships from the National Institutes of Health to fund her Ph. D. research at Queen's University and joint-appointment postdoctoral fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard...

Christy Wampole is an assistant professor in the department of French and Italian at Princeton, and the author of "Rootedness: The Ramifications of a Metaphor" and "The Other Serious: Essays for the New American Generation." She has also written for the New York Times and the New Yorker.

"I have a crazy, crazy love of things." - Pablo Neruda Brie Stoner is a student, musician, and writer at becomingultrahuman.com . Besides contributing to the Center for Spiritual Resources and Contemplative Wisdom blogs, she contributed to the book Personal Transformation and a New Creation: The Spiritual Revolution of Beatrice Bruteau (edited by Ilia Delio). Brie is also my go-to for all things c...