The Sacred Play Podcast

What if the behaviors we’ve been taught to question are actually expressions of wisdom? In The Many Ways a Human Nervous System Can Sing, we step beyond awareness into a deeper, more compassionate understanding of autistic lives. Through movement, sensation, language, and rhythm, autistic people reveal the many beautiful ways a human being can find balance, joy, and connection. This is not a story...

The Polite Republic of Bellies is a whimsical Wonderverse tale about a village that treats one tiny bodily sound like a grand scandal, until a traveler from the Marsh of Honest Creatures asks the question no one has asked in centuries: “Excuse me… for what?” A playful, magical story about etiquette, shame, and the beautifully absurd things humans forget to question. The post The Polite Republic of...

Welcome to Sacred Play Practice: a pocket-sized devotion to aliveness. Not supernatural, just deeply human. We make room for the whole weather of being human, then we keep opening windows with wonder, beauty, and small acts of delight. The post Sacred Play Practice first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

When the world gets foggy and loud, morality isn’t a cape you grab in a crisis, it’s a muscle you build in ordinary moments. The Moral Fire Drill is a Sacred Play reflection (with a lantern-lit fable) on practicing courage, truth, and compassion now, before the stakes climb, and on refusing to let cruelty become “normal.” The post The Moral Fire Drill first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

The sign on the door has changed, but the lantern light is the same. In this whimsical (and quietly serious) long-form post, I explain why we’re now calling this space The Church of Sacred Play and what that name really means: wonder without worship, meaning without dogma, and a compassionate kind of skepticism that still leaves room for awe. Come for the pixie-lantern vibes, stay for the gentle r...

Who owns winter: the sun, Jesus, the Maccabees, the Unconquered Sun, or the people lighting dumplings and pomegranates at midnight? 🌟 In this slightly sparkly tour of Yule, Saturnalia, Christmas, Hanukkah, Yalda, Dongzhi, Diwali, Kwanzaa and more, we follow humanity’s favorite coping strategy for long nights: candles, feasts, resistance, and ridiculous amounts of hope. Come for the history, stay...

“The Light We Don’t Withhold” is a Church of Tinkerbell reflection for HIV/AIDS Awareness Month, … The post The Light We Don’t Withold: HIV/AIDS Awareness Month first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

Honoring Native American Heritage Month means more than a land acknowledgment once a year—it’s a commitment to learning the true history of this land, amplifying Native voices, supporting tribal sovereignty, and celebrating the beauty and brilliance of living Indigenous cultures every day, not just in November. The post Native American Heritage Month: More Than a Month of Gratitude first appeared...

Intersex Awareness Week (Oct 26–Nov 8) is a call to learn, listen, and act. This post explains what intersex means, why prevalence estimates vary, the harms of non-consensual surgeries, real progress from hospitals to the U.N., and—through two true-to-life stories—how each of us can support bodily autonomy, dignity, and joyful belonging. The post Intersex Awareness Week: What It Means, Why It Matt...

A gentle, wonder-soaked meditation on mortality as a teacher—not an enemy. In this Evernight finale, we dance with Death to return our attention to what matters: love, repair, presence, and everyday courage. Come for the fireflies and candlelight; leave with a pocketful of gratitude and a simple rite to live more fully—today. The post Evernight: Dancing with Death — Embracing Mortality to Fully Li...

In Evernight 6: Candles Against the Dark, we widen the lens from inner shadow work to shared resilience. A simple candle walk becomes a ritual of togetherness—neighbors choosing one another, turning fear into warmth, and practicing the ordinary courage that carries us through longer nights. The post Evernight: Candles Against the Dark first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

In this luminous midpoint of the Evernight journey, autumn becomes a mirror for transformation. Pumpkins, Transformation, and the Light Within invites readers to see how even in darkness, creativity carves space for hope to shine. A story of courage, renewal, and the quiet magic that comes from turning our hollow places into lanterns of light. The post Evernight: Pumpkins, Transformation, and the...

In The Magic of Shadows, we step into the quiet partnership between light and dark — where mystery breathes, imagination stirs, and not knowing becomes a sacred art. This reflection invites you to honor the beauty of what can’t be fully seen, and to find wonder in the places where shadows whisper and light listens. The post Evernight: The Magic of Shadows first appeared on The Church of Sacred Pla...

In the candlelit hush of Evernight, shadows whisper truths we’ve buried deep. This Halloween, dare to meet the monsters within—and set them free. The post Evernight: The Monsters We Carry first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

Why do we seek out haunted houses, jump scares, and ghost stories when fear is something we usually try to avoid? In this reflection from the Sacred Play series, we explore the strange gift of chosen fear — how it awakens us, strengthens us, and even teaches us courage when we need it most. The post Evernight: The Gift of Chosen Fear first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

Step into Evernight, a lantern-lit town where October never ends. In this first Halloween reflection, we celebrate the joy of masks and costumes—the freedom to play, imagine, and reveal hidden parts of ourselves. Alongside the essay, discover a tiny tale: The Night of a Thousand Faces, where mirrors vanish and masks awaken a town to new possibilities. The post Evernight: Masks, Costumes, and the F...

On National Coming Out Day, we honor the courage of telling the truth—and the lifesaving power of being believed. This piece shares real stories, clears up myths vs. science, and offers simple, actionable ways to be the safe harbor someone deserves. The post The Door We Open Together: National Coming Out Day first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

The Silence Between Notes invites us to listen not only to the music of sound but also to the music of pause. Reflecting on rests, quiet moments, and the spaces that hold us, this piece explores how silence itself can be a source of beauty, transcendence, and sacred presence. The post Sacred Play: The Silence Between Notes first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

What if laughter itself is holy? In this reflection on the sacred role of humor, parody, and satire, we meet the Trickster—the mischievous guide who keeps us humble, joyful, and free. The post Sacred Play: The Holy Trickster – Why Humor Belongs in Spirituality first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .

We often think of imaginary friends as childhood quirks, but they carry deeper meaning. These companions—whether a child’s invented playmate or an adult’s inner voice—reveal truths about how we practice love, nurture resilience, and hold hope through imagination. This piece explores how the beings we create inside us help us become more fully alive. The post Sacred Play: Imaginary Friends and Real...

In this gentle allegorical tale, we follow the dance of fireflies to uncover sacred lessons about community, rest, rhythm, and the quiet power of sharing your light. The Gospel of Fireflies is a meditation on belonging, the beauty of cycles, and the invitation to blink not for show—but for connection. Let the rhythm carry you. The post Sacred Play: The Gospel of Fireflies first appeared on The Chu...

What if the rainbow was more than a symbol—what if it was scripture? In this meditative and poetic reflection, Sacred Colors: The Rainbow as Scripture explores the rainbow as a living sacred text written in light. Each color becomes a verse, each appearance a revelation. A celebration of beauty, diversity, queer pride, and the holiness of wonder. The post Sacred Play: Sacred Colors – The Rainbow a...

A Litany of Wonder is a poetic and meditative journey through the sacredness of everyday life. With reverent attention to the ordinary, this piece invites readers to rediscover awe, delight, and gratitude hidden in plain sight. It’s an offering of sacred play — a reminder that wonder is always near, if we choose to see. The post Sacred Play: A Litany of Wonder first appeared on The Church of Sacre...

Imagination isn’t an escape—it’s a compass. Every movement for love and justice began as a dream someone dared to believe. This post explores how fantasy and storytelling help us envision better worlds—and why reclaiming the right to dream boldly is an act of resistance. Every step toward justice begins in the imagination. What worlds are you daring to dream into being? The post Sacred Play: Dream...

The sacred isn’t always solemn. Sometimes it giggles, trips us up, and ties flowers in our hair. In the playful mischief of fairies, we discover that laughter and delight are every bit as holy as silence and reverence. The post Sacred Play: The Sacred Mischief of Fairies first appeared on The Church of Sacred Play .