aijcast

Marthame reflects on the sense of Christian solidarity that brought him and Elizabeth to Palestine in the first place, and what that solidarity means to our sisters and brothers in Christ there. Read the reflection here.

Marthame shares a reflection from Christmas Eve, 2000, when he and Elizabeth made the pilgrimage to Bethlehem to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace. Read the reflection here.

Marthame shares a story from 2001 that, for him, illustrates the arbitrary cruelty of the Israeli Occupation, while wondering what role hope might play at this moment. Read the reflection here.

With the ever-alarming death toll among children in Gaza continuing to rise, this particular reflection on the grief surrounding the death of a child seems all too fitting. Read the reflection here.

With Christian leaders in the Holy Land announcing the cancellation of major Christmas celebrations, Marthame shares this timely reflection written in 2000 about the upheaval Palestinians regularly face. Read the reflection here.

Marthame looks back at precious time spent among the trees during the Palestinian olive harvest, a fitting reflection for Thanksgiving week here in the U.S. ⁠⁠Read the reflection⁠ ⁠Watch the Salt of the Earth film series

Looking back - again - at his time in Palestine, Marthame shares a reflection on the daily challenge of being in such close proximity to suffering. ⁠⁠Read the reflection⁠ ⁠Watch the Salt of the Earth film series

With our attention turned to the Middle East, we continue sharing reflections from Marthame’s time lived in the Northern West Bank. In this essay, Palestinian friends share what they want Americans to hear from them. ⁠Read the reflection⁠ ⁠Watch the Salt of the Earth film series

We continue releasing content from when Marthame and his wife lived in the Northern West Bank (2000-2003). In this reflection, they comment on the world’s duplicity when comparing the Serbian and Palestinian uprisings of 2000. You can read this reflection here. Watch Exile from Salt of the Earth .

As the crisis in Israel and Palestine - especially in Gaza - continues to unfold, we here at aijcast are partnering with Marthame’s production company to release content from when he and his wife lived in the Northern West Bank, 2000-2003. You can read this reflection here.

Host of aijcast, Marthame Sanders, offers his own reflections on the anger and heartbreak that come with loving Palestine and Israel.

We wrap up our collaboration with Cara Fears Johnson and Carlton Johnson ( Presbyterian Mission Agency ) reflecting on the process leading to our song We Are One , the complexity (and simplicity) of music in church, and what fills us. Listen to part three of our collaboration. Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration.

The song We Are One is the result of our collaboration with Cara Fears Johnson and Carlton Johnson ( Presbyterian Mission Agency ). Listen in on our creative process as this song of inclusion and welcome comes to life! Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration. Listen to the song.

We continue our collaboration with Cara Fears Johnson ( Georgia Resiliency Program ) and Carlton Johnson ( Presbyterian Mission Agency ) imagining a song about hospitality, sources of inspiration, and about the importance of self-acceptance.

We begin our collaboration with Cara Fears Johnson and Carlton Johnson ( Presbyterian Mission Agency ) talking about our cultural empathy gap, the mixed bag of technology, and the importance of music to the two of them. Listen to our previous aijcast conversation with Carlton.

We wrap up our process with visual artist and pastor Darci Jaret ( Park Avenue Baptist Church , Art in the Image ) speaking about our song, the importance of taking artistic risks, and the life-giving act of collaboration. Listen to part three of our collaboration. Listen to part two plus of our collaboration. Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration.

Our collaboration with Darci Jaret ( Park Avenue Baptist , Art in the Image ) has led to Weelaunee (Soft Forest Bed) , a protest song about Atlanta’s proposed Cop City development and the forest defenders who oppose it. Listen to part two plus of our collaboration. Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration. Listen to the song: Original version. Pop punk versi...

We are releasing a bonus episode of our collaboration with Darci Jaret ( Park Avenue Baptist Church , Art in the Image ) simultaneous with our conversation. Due to scheduling challenges, this bonus episode features our conversation with Darci and their delightful son Luis! Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration.

We continue our collaborative process with visual artist and pastor Darci Jaret ( Park Avenue Baptist Church , Art in the Image ) speaking about Atlanta’s Stop Cop City movement, why art matters, and the wisdom of Howard Thurman. Listen to part one of our collaboration.

Host Marthame Sanders shares a reflection for Holy Week, his journey with hope, and how aijcast becomes community.

We begin our collaborative process with visual artist and pastor Darci Jaret ( Park Avenue Baptist Church , Art in the Image ) speaking about the practice of Trauma-Informed resiliency, how the call for justice can feel overwhelming, and the wisdom of Mr. Rogers. Listen to our past aijcast conversation with Darci.

The podcast tables turned as Marthame Sanders was the guest on MaryAnn McKibben Dana ’s podcast The Blue Room . MaryAnn is a pastor, author, and improviser. Her latest book is Hope: A User’s Manual . Listen to our past aijcast conversation with MaryAnn.

We wrap up our collaboration with Amina McIntyre , reflecting on our play meditation, the wonderful openness of those who participated, and what it might look like to have leisure goals. Listen to part three of our collaboration. Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration.

Our collaboration with Amina McIntyre continues as we create a meditative play experience together - both virtually and IRL - including Lego blocks, Jenga, and the nostalgia of animal crackers in cardboard boxes. Listen to part two of our collaboration. Listen to part one of our collaboration. Experience our meditative play.

We continue our collaborative process with playwright-pastor-scholar Amina McIntyre as we imagine what it would look like to create a playdate for grown-ups together. Listen to part one of our collaboration.