Emergence Magazine Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Imagining Burial – Lia Purpura Feb 07, 2019

Show notes

In this narrated essay, writer and poet Lia Purpura delves into the horrified wonder and holiness of death, exploring burial practices that are intended to nourish the earth, as it has nourished us.

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Hallowed Ground – Chelsea Steinauer-Scudder Feb 07, 2019

Show notes

The roots of religious belief and the sacredness of nature were once closely entwined: the ancient yew grows in the churchyard; the forest monks of Thailand follow the Buddha’s example of meditating beneath trees. Chelsea Steinauer-Scudder profiles theologian Martin Palmer and his work to engage faith-based communities in recovering narratives of love and care for local ecologies.

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Myrtle's Medicine – Kinitra Brooks Feb 07, 2019

Show notes

In a world where the cosmologies of black women are continually erased and excluded from knowledge traditions, Kinitra Brooks seeks connection with her late great-grandmother, Mama Myrt, who first introduced her to rootworking traditions and inspired her life’s work. Kinitra’s essay, "Myrtle’s Medicine," reflects on the meaning and beauty of embodied ways of knowing.

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On the Road with Thomas Merton – Fred Bahnson Feb 07, 2019

Show notes

In the summer of 1968, Christian mystic Thomas Merton undertook a pilgrimage to the American West. Fifty years later, writer Fred Bahnson set out to follow Merton’s path, retracing the monk’s journey across the landscape. This narrated essay offers an intimate meditation on Merton’s life and the relevance of the spiritual journey today.

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Born was the Mountain – Chelsea Steinauer-Scudder Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

In this in-depth investigative story, Emergence Magazine staff writer Chelsea Steinauer-Scudder explores the collision of values unfolding on the summit of Mauna Kea, the proposed site for what would be the largest telescope in the world.

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Magic and the Machine — David Abram Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

David Abram is a cultural ecologist and philosopher. In this essay, he reflects on our undying urge to recreate a primal experience of intimacy with the surrounding world, offering notes on technology and animism in an age of ecological wipeout.

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Corn Tastes Better on the Honor System – Robin Wall Kimmerer Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a writer, scientist, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is author of the acclaimed book "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants." In this essay, Robin reflects on the ancient technology embedded in our relationship with maize, recalling that a grinding stone, an irrigation system, and an ear of corn are also technology.

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When You Meet the Monster, Anoint His Feet – Bayo Akomolafe Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

Bayo Akomolafe is a writer and lecturer from western Nigeria. In the age of the Anthropocene and entrenched politics of whiteness, this essay brings us face-to-face with our own unresolved ancestry, as it becomes more and more apparent that we are completely entwined with each other and the natural world.

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The Great Work: Alchemy and the Power of Words – Paul Kingsnorth Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

Paul Kingsnorth is a writer living in rural Ireland. Recalling a visit from a dark figure in a dream, who reappeared in his novel "The Wake," Paul reflects on writing as an alchemical process, one involving transformation, discipline, and purification.

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Myth of Progress — An Interview with Paul Kingsnorth Nov 02, 2018

Show notes

In this interview, writer Paul Kingsnorth discusses some of the central themes explored in his work. The conversation centers on the "myth of progress," the failure of technology to deliver the "good life," and how both have led us into the environmental crisis. He describes how old myths offer a way to be with the uncertainty embedded in our time, and how we can listen for new stories.

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