The podcast of the Sacred Inclusion Network

Are you spiritual, but not religious? Or grounded in a traditional religion but are seeking something more? Or interested in exploring new approaches for integrating spirituality in business and other aspects of life ? If you answered "yes," to any of these questions, check out the podcast of the Sacred Inclusion Network. We interview experts, share our take on diversity and spirituality, and let you know what's going on with the Network. You can learn more about us by going to www.sacredinclusion.com

Lucas Johnson on the Power of Nonviolence and Spiritual Activism 10/24/2023

Lucas Johnson on the Power of Nonviolence and Spiritual Activism Host Angelo John Lewis and guest Lucas Johnson engage in a powerful conversation about spirituality and social justice. Lucas Johnson, an ordained minister and Executive Vice President for Social Healing for the On Being Project, shares his deep global experience in conflict resolution and community organizing. Drawing from his global experience, Johnson shares examples of nonviolent activism from around the world. From South Africa's truth and reconciliation process to the American civil rights movement, he highlights how nonviolence can effectively bring about positive social change. Key Takeaways: Nonviolence as a Strategy for Social Change: Johnson emphasizes the importance of nonviolence as a powerful strategy for social change. He believes that nonviolence allows for broader participation in campaigns and protests, leaving room for opponents to grow and change their views. Nonviolence is not just a tactic, but a spiritual orientation to life that recognizes our interdependence with others. Inner Work and Healing: Johnson underscores the significance of inner work and collective healing in the pursuit of social justice. Nonviolence requires personal and collective healing to create conditions that make it possible for others to choose nonviolence. Viewing opponents as sick and in need of healing can shift attitudes and promote reconciliation. Spirituality and Social Justice: Johnson's upbringing in diverse religious traditions, his connection to the black Christian tradition, and his personal experiences have shaped his understanding of the interplay between spirituality and social justice. He credits his family, particularly his grandmother, for instilling in him the values of justice, care, and community. Finding Joy and Gratitude: Amidst the complexities of the world, Johnson emphasizes the importance of finding joy and gratitude. He shares his spiritual practices of experiencing joy, being in the company of loved ones, and sitting with silence. These practices help him stay spiritually grounded and navigate the challenges of the world. Links Links: t Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/28411757

Spirituality and Social Justice Symposium 10/24/2023

Spirituality and Social Justice Symposium This Spirituality and Social Justice Symposium explores the intersection of spirituality and activism. Host Angelo John Lewis engages in a dynamic discussion with guests Shariff Abdullah, Lucas Johnson, and Cat Zavis about their experiences in social activism and successful projects. The panelists highlighted the significance of inner work and personal transformation in effective activism. They emphasized the need for individuals to engage in self-reflection, challenging systems of oppression while practicing empathy and kindness. They agreed that the collective exploration of solutions and the cultivation of curiosity and dialogue are essential for creating meaningful change. Further into the symposium, they delved into the concept of leadership and its role in social justice movements. They express the need for leaders to prioritize love, compassion, and the well-being of the community over power and financial gain. While they acknowledge the complexity and nuance of leadership, they advocated for a shift in consciousness and a reimagining of leadership that fosters inclusivity, empathy, and care. Johnson shared his involvement in representing nonviolent activists at the Human Rights Council in Geneva, while Rabbi Cat Zavis discussed her experience advocating for women prisoners in Alaska and improving their living conditions. Shariff Abdullah discussed his involvement in the Sarvodia Peace Action Plan in Sri Lanka, and emphasized the role of grassroots movements in promoting peace and unity. Abdullah is the founder of Commonway.org, who in the early 1960s he helped found the Black People’s Unity Movement (BPUM), an organization dedicated to self-help and development in the inner city of Camden. Johnson is the Executive Vice President of the On Being project and a human rights advocate and public theologian with deep, global experience in conflict resolution and community organizing. Zavis is the Executive Director of the Network of Spiritual Progressives, and a long time activist in social change work. The event was sponsored by the Sacred Inclusion Network, and was held April 23, 2023. The panelists emphasize the importance of community and collective efforts in their work, highlighting the power of inclusivity and connection. Links: Abdullah's The The Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/28411742

The Intersection of Faith and Activism: Cat Zavis on Spirituality and Social Justice 10/24/2023

The Intersection of Faith and Activism: Cat Zavis on Spirituality and Social Justice Cat Zavis discusses her personal journey and insights on integrating spiritualism and activism. Zavis is Executive Director of the Network of Spiritual Progressives Cat and her colleague, Rabbi Michael Lerner, have worked tirelessly to build a Religious left movement in Israel, countering the religious right movement. They recognize the trauma and PTSD experienced by both Israelis and Palestinians and understand that Israel, as the dominant power, has the responsibility to address the unjust and inhumane situation created through the occupation. Having personally witnessed the devastating situation in the occupied territories, Cat emphasizes the need for healing, repair, acknowledgment, and transformation to move towards justice. Trauma plays a significant role in both Israeli and Palestinian reactions, reinforcing a cycle of domination and imposing trauma on others. This episode was recorded as a precurser to the April 2023 Sacred Inclusion Network Syposium on Spiritualty and Social Justice. Zavis shares her journey of discovering her passion for social justice. Although she always felt a spiritual connection as a secular Jew and explored various spiritual paths she didn't find answers that integrated her outrage and passion until she discovered Judaism's powerful blend of spirituality and social justice. She highlights the tension between the domination worldview, which promotes power and oppression, and the love worldview, rooted in connection and care. Social change movements often reflect these contrasting ideologies, and the work of social justice extends beyond fights for specific issues to raising consciousness. The conversation delves into the importance of prophetic empathy as a bridge between these worldviews. While activism can sometimes conflict with spiritual beliefs, it is necessary to heal the world. Zavis draws inspiration from the story of Moses, who was sent to overthrow the consciousness of oppression. Engaging in social justice work can be profoundly spiritual, challenging, and transformative. The episode concludes by discussing the importance of embracing people of different faith traditions while acknowledging historical trauma associated with oppressive religious practices. It is vital for activists to have a spiritual center to ground themselves and sustain their work, and younger generations are recognizing the need for spiritual support in their activism Links: Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/28411673

"Art as a Sacred Calling": An Interview with Tasleem Jamila Firdausee 10/06/2023

Talismans and Lucid Dreaming 08/13/2023

"What it means to be human": an interview with Bob Dunham 05/30/2023

Sleep Medicine: the Practice of Yoga Nidra 11/21/2022

Restoration, Dreams and Navigating Dark Spaces 10/17/2022

Restoration, Dreams and Navigating Dark Spaces Integrative restoration and dream educator, and yoga facilitator Jennifer Piercy here talks about yoga nidra, the importance of sleep and restoration practice, and the "wake-centric" bias of contemporary culture. Rather than view sleep as a necessary evil, Piercy suggests approaching it as a kind of spiritual practice and an invitation to explore the unknown. "Part of being at home in the unknown is that we literally need to practice being at home in the dark. And sleep and rest are both literally and metaphorically inviting you into that. I think of it as a superpower that people forget they even have," she says. Piercy's sleep meditation tracks on the Insight Timer App have been listened to more than an astonishing 21 million times. Piercy is on a kind of mission to help people view sleep and restoration in a more holistic light. One of her favorite quotes of from Dr. Rubin Naiman, a pioneer in integrative sleep and dream medicine, and the man who coined the "wake-centrism" term. "We are oblivious to a profound and pervasive bias in our perception, that waking is our sole, primary form of consciousness. Consequently, we tend to view sleep and dreams as secondary, subservient states of being. Wake-centrism is a kind of flat earth consciousness that discourages us from approaching the edges of our awareness. It is not a blind spot but a loss of peripheral vision. Wake-centrism is not a way of seeing, but a way of NOT seeing the bigger picture — the world behind the world," Naiman wrote. In this podcast, Piercy talks about the path that led her to become a restoratation and dream educator, shares some practical suggestions for those struggling with sleep issues, and talks about the dangers of an overly medical approach to sleep disorders. Piercy will facilitate the Sacred Inclusion Network's 11/19/22 event, . Links: Article on (see Chapter 15, Dreams and Multidimensional Reality) Piercy's 11/19 Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's -- Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/24710802

Activating Egyptian Spirituality (Excerpt) 10/07/2022

Activating Egyptian Spirituality 10/07/2022

Archiving the Impossible 02/19/2022

Archiving the Impossible Within the halls of academia, the exploration of paranormal activity is for the most part off-limits to serious scientific inquiry. There are a variety of reasons for this, says religious scholar Jeffrey J. Kripal: the rise of behaviorism; the belief that the brain is in essence a biological computer; and the concurrent belief in physicalism - that there is nothing over and above the physical dimension of life. Kripal here explains why he’s devoted his professional life to taking this phenomenon seriously. He’s one of a small, but increasing number of scholars who believe it’s as important to look at reality from the inside out as it is to examine it from the outside in. Kripal, the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University, is the author of eight books, including Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion, and Authors of the Impossible: The Paranormal and the Sacred. Here he explains his latest project, Archives of the Impossible, which is both an actual archive of paranormal materials and a March 2022 Rice University conference. He also details the evolution of his own interest in the paranormal; his view on the importance of the humanities; and what-he-calls “the flipped” experiences of materialists who changed their perspective to embrace the view or that mind or consciousness is primary and the material world is secondary. The plenary speakers at the March 2022 Archives of the Impossible conference include Jacques F. Vallée, PhD, the founder of Documatica Research; Leslie Keen, author of the best-selling Surviving Death: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for an Afterlife and UFOs; Whitley Strieber, author of Communion and many other books; Diana Pasulka, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington; John Phillip Santos, Rhodes Scholar, writer, journalist, and documentarian; Edwin C. May, president and founder of the Laboratories for Fundamental Research, Palo Alto, California. and Sebastiano De Filippi, Italian-Argentinian musician, author and scholar. Links: (conference page) Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's -- Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/22186943

Bridging Together Indigenous and Modern Science 01/31/2022

Bridging Together Indigenous and Modern Science The sacred pipe, the Raven, and a peyote ritual were three touchstones of the path of Dr. Apela Colorado, traditional cultural practitioner and indigenous scientist of French and Oneida descent. In this podcast, she shares stories of how each of these elements formed an essential part of her journey, from growing up as a mixed-race child in rural western Wisconsin to founding in 1989 the Worldwide Indigenous Science Network (WISN). As she relates in this podcast and in her recently published book, Woman Between the Worlds, she as a teenager followed her grandfather’s advice and attended college, an action that rare for native women at the time. But while climbing the academic ranks and eventually attaining a Ph.D. from Brandeis University, she always remembered another part of her grandfather’s counsel: “Remember the pipe,” he told her, another way of saying “remember your roots.” In this podcast, Colorado relates milestones from her remarkable journey, from her involvement in Indian Movement, through her encounters with indigenous elders in the south of France, Ethiopia, South Africa, and Central Asia. She also sheds light on native ritual and symbolism, such as the role of the sacred pipe in ceremony. She also shares some lessons she learned from elders along the way, and mystical encounters with real and allegorical ravens, and how a peyote ceremony transformed her perception of life. Dr. Colorado is in equal measure shaman and academic, and her accomplishments are many. She's a Ford Fellow, who in 1982 received a PhD from Brandeis University, and went on to create the world's first doctoral program in traditional knowledge at the California Institute of Integral studies. She also directed the Indigenous Mind Program, which for 20 years taught students into ways of exploring their ancestral and earth-based holistic consciousness within an academic framework. Links: (WISN) Woman Between the Worlds Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's -- Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/21940208

When Spiritual Practice Gets Messy 01/28/2022

When Spiritual Practice Gets Messy Author, teacher and coach Raphael Cushnir learned from hard experience that the results of spiritual practice aren't always warm and fuzzy or particularly pleasurable. In his case, they included kriyas, or very intense involuntary movements, sometimes accompanied by rapid breathing and non-nonsensical speech. These were challenging enough to handle in private, but were especially problematic when occuring in public, such as in a meeting with colleagues. Cushnir, the author of six books and a leading voice in the world of emotional intelligence, here tells a story he previously kept private. Sharing it now, he says, can help others more comfortably navigate the unexpected terrain of the mystical path. Cushnir here talks about his upbringing, his belief in the importance of integrating spiritual practice and psychotherapy, his work with sacred sexuality, and the surprising things he learned when interviewing professed spiritual teachers about their personal growth edges. Cushnir has shared his unique approach to personal and professional development with millions of readers in O, The Oprah Magazine, Beliefnet, Spirituality and Health, Psychology Today, and The Huffington Post. He is the author of six books, lectures worldwide, and is a faculty member of the Esalen Institute, the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, and the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies. In addition, he coaches individuals and teams at Fortune 100 companies, governments, religious organizations, and leading non-profits. The kriya experiences he shares here are elaborated in his most recent book, Surviving the Divine: A Memoir of Rude Awakening. This podcast was recorded in advance of Cushnir's 12/9/21 Sacred Inclusion Network Event, "Navigating Spiritual States." Links: Cushnir's Surviving the Divine Sacred Inclusion Network's Sacred Inclusion Network's -- Like the podcast? Support us on /episode/index/show/diversityspirituality/id/21746600