The Blue Room with MaryAnn McKibben Dana

What a blast. Thanks to everyone who joined Edward Goode and me for our first of four (or more?) conversations about Andor. We talked about gender, power and privilege; the “cost of discipleship”; accelerationism as faithful strategy (or not?); and more. Spoilers for all of Andor season 1, plus season 2 episodes 1-3, and the movie Rogue One, and a brief reference to The Last Jedi. See you next wee...

A bonus pod! Season two of Andor premieres on Disney+ this week, and to celebrate, here’s a standalone pod featuring conversations recorded two years ago during season one of the television show. Special thanks to Derrick Weston and Marthame Sanders for these conversations. A few spoilers for season one of Andor, but the spoilers are mainly thematic. Enjoy! ~ Contact MaryAnn McKibben Dana at marya...

A few thoughts on Sen. Cory Booker’s filibuster. I didn’t mention this in the video, but it’s somehow fitting that this is taking place on April Fool’s Day. There’s a kind of reckless foolishness at work here. But as the Franciscan blessing says, “May God bless you with just enough foolishness to believe you can make a difference in the world, so you will do what others say cannot be done.” And he...

Join me for my next live video in the app This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit maryannmckibbendana.substack.com/subscribe

We did it! Thank you to Ed Goode of Imago Scriptura for trying something new with me, and for the wonderful chat. Watch the recording right here, or check out the episode of What Now with Trevor Noah which inspired our conversation. I appreciated Ed’s connecting Putnam’s work with Peter Block, and am now thinking about the triad concept as a model for ministry. What would it look like to say we do...

Join me for my next live video in the app This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit maryannmckibbendana.substack.com/subscribe

“The way we make change is as important as the change we make.” -Valarie Kaur This moment feels different than eight years ago, and I reflect a bit on why that might be. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit maryannmckibbendana.substack.com/subscribe

Whew, y’all. What a tough couple of days. Sending love to my friends in SoCal. Some thoughts about finding light wherever we can. Steady on. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit maryannmckibbendana.substack.com/subscribe

A few thoughts about an Internet scam, and the incoming head of the Office of Management and Budget. How we get hooked, how we can do better. I think it’s worth your time, even though I kept saying it was Tuesday and not Wednesday 🤦‍♀️🤣 Here’s the article I mentioned by Thomas Zimmer: Steady on… This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus...

Hey there, I’ve had something nagging in my brain for the last week or more. Rather than take the time to write it out, given that I have a book to write, I decided to record my thoughts on video (my first live video on Substack!). This is not going out to subscribers, but for anyone who finds it, I submit it as musings that I hope you’ll engage with, consider, and correct and challenge where need...

The Blue Room podcast is back--sort of--with something new this week! I’ve been wanting to play around with audio here on Substack, the platform that hosts the Blue Room. I thought I’d give it a try using the audio from last Sunday’s sermon. Nothing fancy in this prototype, not even an intro or outro, just the sermon audio. Let me know how it works for you! The scripture text: Mark 4:26-34 Jesus a...

It’s the season two finale! Today, we wrap up our series of conversations about Hope: A User’s Manual. Section six of the book is Hope Beyond Hope. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. This section is a bit of a catch-all, wrap-up section. It’s about how we persevere amid everything or despite ever...

Today, we continue our series of conversations about Hope: A User’s Manual. Section five of the book is The Practice of Hope. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. Section five is the get-your-hands-dirty section, so what could be more fitting than a conversation about gardening with Derrick Weston!...

Today, we continue our series of conversations about Hope: A User’s Manual. Section four of the book is Hope Travels in Story. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. Today, MaryAnn’s guest is Patrice Gopo. Patrice is an award-winning essayist and the author of books for adults and children. Her essay...

Today, we interrupt our regular season with a bonus episode! Sandhya Jha is someone I’ve known through various professional networks, and I’m an avid reader of Sandhya’s wonderful Thursday newsletter, called Joy in Social Justice. I love their work and wanted you to get to know Sandhya as well. We talk about Sandhya’s approach to anti-racism and anti-oppression work, how we find hope in the strugg...

Today, we continue our series of conversations about Hope: A User’s Manual. Section three of the book is Hope Lives in the Body. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. Today, MaryAnn’s guest is the Rev. Lynn Horan, an interfaith theologian and leadership consultant specializing in women’s leadership...

Today, we continue our series of conversations about Hope: A User’s Manual. Section two of the book is What Hope Is. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. Today, MaryAnn’s guest is Marilyn Finch Williams, LCSW, Psychotherapist, Neurofeedback Practitioner and Founder of the MEDIAN Center for Resilien...

Welcome to season two! Today, we begin a series of conversations that stand alongside the sections of Hope: A User’s Manual. Section one of the book is What Hope Is Not. If you’ve read the book, we hope this conversation will enhance that section. If you haven’t read it, the conversation stands on its own. Today, MaryAnn speaks with Marthame Sanders. Marthame is an Atlanta-based podcaster, produce...

MaryAnn's sabbatical begins in two weeks and two days! We finish out our season of Hope Notes with a preview of her book, Hope: A User's Manual, which comes out in August. Available now for pre-order. Make sure you're subscribed to the podcast and following MaryAnn on YouTube --we will be dropping some bonus goodies this summer as well. Pre-order Hope: A User's Manual from Amaz...

Today, a replay of a Hope Notes conversation from a few months ago in which I talk about art that equips us for hard times. Maybe the hardest of times. Maybe even apocalyptic times. First, we talk about music for the end of the world. Then, a short detour into the book and TV series Station Eleven, which you don't need to have read or seen in order to follow the discussion. Finally, I explore...

Pre-order HOPE: A User's Manual here or wherever books are available online! ~ During 2021, I hosted a series of online conversations looking at various works of art and pop culture, with an eye toward what these works have to teach us about hope. What does hope look like during a global pandemic? What tools do we need as we find our way? How do we find the strength to persevere? I called the...

During 2021, I hosted a series of online conversations looking at various works of art and pop culture, with an eye toward what these works have to teach us about hope. What does hope look like during a global pandemic? What tools do we need as we find our way? How do we find the strength to persevere? I called these conversations Hope Notes. Today, a reflection on tick, tick...BOOM!, last year’s...

During 2021, I hosted a series of online conversations looking at various works of art and pop culture, with an eye toward what these works have to teach us about hope. What does hope look like during a global pandemic? What tools do we need as we find our way? How do we find the strength to persevere? I called these conversations Hope Notes. Today, we revisit a conversation with my brother Matthe...

During 2021, I hosted a series of online conversations looking at various works of art and pop culture, with an eye toward what these works have to teach us about hope. What does hope look like during a global pandemic? What tools do we need as we find our way? How do we find the strength to persevere? I called these conversations Hope Notes. Today we're doing things a little differently! Thi...

During 2021, I hosted a series of online conversations looking at various works of art and pop culture, with an eye toward what these works have to teach us about hope. What does hope look like during a global pandemic? What tools do we need as we find our way? How do we find the strength to persevere? I called these conversations Hope Notes. Today, we bring you part 2 of my conversation with my f...