What if the center of Jesus' teaching isn't the cross but the Sermon on the Mount? Father John Dear, peace activist, author, and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, has spent four decades living out that claim and challenging the church to take nonviolence seriously. In this conversation, Dear shares his journey from witnessing jets drop bombs over the Sea of Galilee to facing 20 years of incarceration for hammering on an F-15 fighter jet. Now leading the Beatitudes Center for the Nonviolent Jesus and hosting "The Nonviolent Jesus Podcast," Dear continues to build a community around Gospel nonviolence. We talk about his book The Gospel of Peace, the cost of his convictions, and what ordinary people can do to follow the nonviolent Jesus.

Show Notes:

• The Beatitudes Center for the Nonviolent Jesus (https://beatitudescenter.org)
• The Nonviolent Jesus Podcast (https://johndear.org/podcasts)
• Books (https://johndear.org/books)
  • Universal Love: Surrendering to the God of Peace (February 2026)
  • The Gospel of Peace: A Commentary on Matthew, Mark & Luke from the Perspective of Nonviolence (October 2023)

Send a text

Artificial intelligence is forcing engineers to define concepts that philosophers and theologians have wrestled with for centuries: consciousness, personhood, and morality, to name a few. The technology may be new, but the questions it poses are ancient. In this conversation with Mark Graves, Research Director at AI and Faith, we discuss what AI development reveals about humanity and what we can learn from the conversation between religion and technology.

Show Notes:

• AI and Faith (https://aiandfaith.org/)

Send us a text

Michael Trice combines theological training with an executive MBA to engage business leaders, nonprofits, and diverse religious communities. As founding director of Seattle University's Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement, he works at the intersection of faith traditions and public life. Our conversation explores what "public theology" means in practice and the tensions inherent in pluralistic engagement.

Show Notes:

• Encountering Cruelty: The Fracture of the Human Heart (https://brill.com/display/title/18104?rskey=cf10gy&result=1)

Send us a text

The religiously unaffiliated, often called "nones", represent one of the fastest-growing segments of populations across North America, Europe, and beyond. Jonathan Evans, Senior Researcher at Pew Research Center and lead author of a groundbreaking 22-country study, joins us to discuss surprising findings about what "nones" believe, how they practice (or don't), and what their growth means for religious life around the world.

Show Notes:

• Many Religious ‘Nones’ Around the World Hold Spiritual Beliefs (https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2025/09/04/many-religious-nones-around-the-world-hold-spiritual-beliefs/)
• In U.S., familiarity with religious groups is associated with warmer feelings toward them (https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2019/10/31/in-u-s-familiarity-with-religious-groups-is-associated-with-warmer-feelings-toward-them/)
• Pew Research Center, Religion (https://www.pewresearch.org/topic/religion/)

Send us a text

In September 2025, Vicki Garlock set a Guinness World Record by visiting 185 places of worship in Chicago in just one month. But this wasn't just about breaking a record—it was about experiencing the extraordinary religious diversity of one American city and promoting religious literacy. Join us as we explore what she learned, the communities she encountered, and how this ambitious project connects to her broader mission of cross-religious understanding and education.

Show Notes:

• World Religions for Kids website (https://worldreligions4kids.com)
• World Religions for Kids Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/worldreligions4kids)
• World Religions for Kids Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/WorldReligions4Kids)

Send us a text

Dr. Damon Berry, associate professor of religious studies at St. Lawrence University, regularly consults with federal law enforcement agencies including the FBI and FBI’s BAU-1 (Behavioral Analysis Unit One) on cases involving religious extremism and alt-right movements. In this conversation, we explore the challenges of translating academic research into practical guidance for investigators, including the difficult work of understanding belief systems and worldviews that are dangerous and toxic to pluralistic society. Berry discusses what law enforcement agencies understand well about these movements and how empathetic scholarship can inform counter-extremism efforts.

Dr. Berry's Books:

• Blood and Faith: Christianity in American White Nationalism (https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/256/blood-and-faith/)
• Christianity and the Alt-Right: Exploring the Relationship (https://www.routledge.com/Christianity-and-the-Alt-Right-Exploring-the-Relationship/Berry/p/book/9780367340551)
• The New Apostolic Reformation, Trump, and Evangelical Politics (https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/new-apostolic-reformation-trump-and-evangelical-politics-9781350179431/)

Show Notes:

• Life After Hate (https://lifeafterhate.org/)

Send us a text

In this episode, Institute for Religious and Cultural Understanding Director Chip Gruen becomes the guest as producer Christine Flicker poses questions drawn from audience feedback. The conversation explores the methodological approaches, underlying assumptions, and programming decisions that shape the Institute's work in fostering religious understanding and a healthier public conversation on religion. Listeners get an inside look at how the Institute navigates the complexities of religious diversity in public life and the intentional choices behind its programming initiatives.

Send us a text

Esoteric elements are present in many religious traditions, where discourses of secrecy help reinforce identity and fulfill important social and cultural roles within religious communities. Our guest, Hartley Lachter, author of "Kabbalah and Catastrophe," explores how Jewish mystical thought developed in response to historical trauma and community crises. We discuss the broader social and cultural functions of secrecy in religious life, examining how discourses of revealed knowledge create power structures, strengthen community bonds, and inspire innovative responses to calamity.

Show Notes:

• Kabbalah and Catastrophe: Historical Memory in Premodern Jewish Mysticism (https://www.sup.org/books/history/kabbalah-and-catastrophe)
• Kabbalistic Revolution: Reimagining Judaism in Medieval Spain (https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/kabbalistic-revolution/9780813568751/)

Send us a text