the holy ordinary

exploring the contemplative dimensions of everyday life
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The Holy Ordinary is a "pop-up" podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Host Mark Longhurst interviews authors, activists, artists, and thinkers who help illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the ordinary. Learn more and follow Mark's Substack newsletters at marklonghurst.substack.com. Connect with Mark on Instagram at @ordinary.mystic. marklonghurst.substack.com

Episodes

  1. 12/14/2025

    An Ordinary Life, Fully Awake

    The Holy Ordinary Podcast is a “pop-up” podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Every so often, host Mark Longhurst interviews authors, thinkers, and activists who illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the midst of the ordinary. This episode is a re-release of an interview with Lerita Coleman Brown (1954-2025). Brown was a retreat leader, a spiritual director, and the author of the book “What Makes You Come Alive: A Spiritual Walk With Howard Thurman.” Brown spent years studying the life and wisdom of Howard Thurman, and she shared her learning in a way that impacts our everyday quest for God. Topics covered include: Thurman’s nonviolence, his influence on Martin Luther King Jr., and how he understood mysticism as a creative response of life. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    48 min

  2. 11/09/2025

    Josue Perea on Contemplation, Blackness, and Culture

    The Holy Ordinary podcast explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Host Mark Longhurst interviews authors, thinkers, and activists who illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the midst of the ordinary. This episode’s guest is Josue Perea. Josue is the Director of the Black Lives and Contemplation project for the Center for Spiritual Imagination, an organization that we both are active in through the new monastic Community of the Incarnation. He’s also the Executive Director of the Afrolatin Forum, which is a research and resource center that centers Blackness within Latinidad. This conversation covers contemplation and Josue's love for Black literary artists such as James Baldwin and bell hooks, spirituality and comic books, and more. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    49 min

  3. 08/09/2025

    Matthew Fox on Prayer as a Radical Response to Life

    This episode of "The Holy Ordinary" pop-up podcast is part one of a conversation with spiritual theologian Matthew Fox. Matthew is one of my heroes, someone who I consider to be a courageous, creative, spiritual genius. He is the author of 35 books, a leading proponent of creation theology, original blessing instead of original sin, and has had an enormous role in helping recover appreciation of the historic Christian mystics for our lives today, people like Meister Eckhart, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, and more. This first part of our conversation is about his book Prayer: A Radical Response to Life, one of his very first books, which I still think has so much resonance and wisdom for today. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    25 min

  4. 06/08/2025

    Loving Broken Bodies with Sister Julia Walsh

    The Holy Ordinary podcast is a "pop-up" podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Host Mark Longhurst periodically interviews authors, thinkers, and activists who illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the midst of the ordinary. In this episode, Mark speaks with author and Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Mercy Julia Walsh. Sister Julia is the host of the Messy Jesus website and podcast. This episode discusses her book For Love of the Broken Body, which is a spiritual memoir that tells the story of Julia's recovery from a horrific, near-death accident and her call to the sisterhood. Mark says that "I loved Julia’s joyful, authentic spirit and am deeply inspired by her journey - and I hope you might be, too." You can follow Mark's writing at marklonghurst.substack.com. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    30 min

  5. 03/16/2025

    Howard Thurman and What Makes You Come Alive with Lerita Coleman Brown

    The Holy Ordinary Podcast is a "pop-up" podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Host Mark Longhurst interviews authors, thinkers, activists who illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the midst of the ordinary. This episode's guest is Lerita Coleman Brown. Coleman Brown is a retreat leader, a spiritual director, and the author of the book "What Makes You Come Alive: A Spiritual Walk With Howard Thurman." Coleman Brown has spent years studying the life and wisdom about Howard Thurman, and she shares her learning in a way that impacts our everyday quest for God. Topics covered include: Thurman’s nonviolence, his influence on Martin Luther King Jr., and how he understood mysticism as a creative response of life. Learn more about Lerita Coleman Brown's work at https://leritacolemanbrown.com/. This podcast is released as a companion to host Mark's book "The Holy Ordinary." Follow Mark's writing on marklonghurst.substack.com, and on Instagram @ordinary.mystic. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    48 min
  6. The Planet You Inherit with Larry Rasmussen

    01/21/2025

    The Planet You Inherit with Larry Rasmussen

    The guest of this podcast episode is Larry Rasmussen, a longtime Christian environmental ethics teacher and the Reinhold Niebuhr Professor Emeritus of Social Ethics at Union Theological Seminary. In 2022, he released the marvelous book “The Planet You Inherit,” which is a series of letters to his grandchildren about the planetary crises we all face. I’ve long been impacted by Rasmussen’s work, from his book “Bonhoeffer: Reality and Resistance,” to his hefty manifesto “Earth Honoring Faith.” He has mentored and taught a generation of theological and ecological ministers, thinkers, and activists. We cover many topics in this interview: climate change, cultivating a practice of recognizing the holy in the ordinary, Larry's student activism days, and a fairly deep dive into what we can learn today from the German theologian and Nazi resistor Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    55 min
  7. Mirabai Starr on Ordinary Mysticism

    10/13/2024

    Mirabai Starr on Ordinary Mysticism

    "The Holy Ordinary" podcast is a pop-up podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Author of The Holy Ordinary, host Mark Longhurst interviews writers, thinkers, and activists who help illuminate the sacred, the beautiful, and the just in the ordinary. In this episode, Mark speaks with Mirabai Starr, author of the exquisite book Ordinary Mysticism: Your Life as Sacred Ground. Starr is a beloved translator of mystics such as John of the Cross and Julian of Norwich and a writer and co-creator of the online spiritual community Wild Heart. Like Mark, Mirabai Starr is deeply interested in encouraging us to awaken to the divine presence in regular life. Learn more about Mirabai Starr's work at mirabaistarr.com, on Instagram @mirabaistarr and Facebook. Follow Mark on Substack at marklonghurst.substack.com, on Instagram @ordinary.mystic and Facebook. Get full access to the holy ordinary by Mark Longhurst at marklonghurst.substack.com/subscribe

    34 min
  • 7 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The Holy Ordinary is a "pop-up" podcast that explores the contemplative dimensions of everyday life. Host Mark Longhurst interviews authors, activists, artists, and thinkers who help illuminate the sacred, the just, and the beautiful in the ordinary. Learn more and follow Mark's Substack newsletters at marklonghurst.substack.com. Connect with Mark on Instagram at @ordinary.mystic. marklonghurst.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    exploring the contemplative dimensions of everyday life
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2025
  • Episodes
    7
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Mark Longhurst
  • Show Website
    the holy ordinary