147 episodes

A podcast about reimagining the good life through the lens of disability, faith, and culture. Host Amy Julia Becker interviews guests in conversations that challenge assumptions about the good life, proclaim the inherent belovedness of every human being, and help us envision a world of belonging. 

Reimagining the Good Life with Amy Julia Becker Amy Julia Becker

    • Religion & Spirituality
    • 5.0 • 57 Ratings

A podcast about reimagining the good life through the lens of disability, faith, and culture. Host Amy Julia Becker interviews guests in conversations that challenge assumptions about the good life, proclaim the inherent belovedness of every human being, and help us envision a world of belonging. 

    Reimagining Church Leadership and Disability with Andrew Draper

    Reimagining Church Leadership and Disability with Andrew Draper

    Why does it matter that most churches don’t welcome people with disabilities in leadership? If a church excludes people with disabilities, is it really a church? Rev. Dr. Andrew Draper, coauthor of Disabling Leadership, talks with Amy Julia Becker about:
    Ways in which churches exclude and marginalize people with disabilitiesWhy it’s essential to centralize people with disabilities in church life and leadershipHow disability inclusion benefits the whole congregationReimagining church employment practices to create opportunities for people with disabilitiesWhy churches are tempted to pursue efficiency and productivity, and the invitation to a different wayHow to minister in the midst of humannessSUBSCRIBE to Amy Julia's weekly emails (Registration coming soon for Reimagining Family Life With Disability workshop)

    EVENT: Festival of Faith & Writing
    __
    Guest Bio:
    Rev. Dr. Andrew T. Draper (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is founding teaching pastor at Urban Light Community Church in Muncie, Indiana, and adjunct theology faculty at Anderson School of Theology and Winebrenner Seminary. He is the author of A Theology of Race and Place, Christian Mission and Poverty, and numerous articles on race, disability, and the church. He is the coauthor of Disabling Leadership: A Practical Theology for the Broken Body of Christ.
    _
    Connect Online:
    Read Andrew's blog.Follow him on Twitter: @AndrewTDraper_
    On the Podcast:
    Disabling Leadership: A Practical Theology for the Broken Body of Christ by Andrew T. Draper, Jody Michele, and Andrea MaeBrian BrockI Corinthians 12Friendship House (Western Theological Seminary)Friendship House (Aberdeen)_
    TRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com/andrew-draper/
    _
    YouTube: video with closed captions
    _
    Let’s reimagine the good life together. Find out more at amyjuliabecker.com.


    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 53 min
    Flannery O'Connor and the Prophetic Imagination with Jessica Hooten Wilson

    Flannery O'Connor and the Prophetic Imagination with Jessica Hooten Wilson

    Why would a Christian author immerse her stories in darkness? Why would she use violent imagery that directly relates to Christianity, race, class, disability, and illness? And how can this darkness guide us toward the importance of love in the flesh, of personal connection and vulnerability? In this conversation, Dr. Jessica Hooten Wilson, author of Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Work in Progress, and Amy Julia Becker explore:
    Flannery O'Connor's unique perspective on faith and darknessThe portrayal of disability in O’Connor’s storiesLove in the abstract versus love in the fleshChallenges of publishing an unfinished manuscriptHow the prophetic imagination in O'Connor's work confronts the dominant culture's illusions about the good lifeRegister for the Festival of Faith & Writing
    __
    Guest Bio:
    Jessica Hooten Wilson (PhD, Baylor University) is the Fletcher Jones Endowed Chair of Great Books at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. She is the author or editor of eight books, including Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Work in Progress, Reading for the Love of God, The Scandal of Holiness (winner of a Christianity Today 2023 Award of Merit), and Giving the Devil His Due: Demonic Authority in the Fiction of Flannery O’Connor and Fyodor Dostoevsky (winner of a 2018 Christianity Today Book of the Year Award). Wilson speaks around the world on topics as varied as Russian novelists, Catholic thinkers, and Christian ways of reading.
    __
    Connect Online:
    Website: https://jessicahootenwilson.com/Instagram: @drjessicahootenwilsonFacebook: @JessicaHootenWilsonTwitter: @HootenWilsonOn the Podcast:
    Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Work in ProgressRegister for the Festival of Faith & WritingTRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com/jessica-hooten-wilson
    __
    Let’s Reimagine the Good Life together through the lens of disability, faith, and culture. Find out more at amyjuliabecker.com.
    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 45 min
    Disability and the Language We Use with Andrew Leland

    Disability and the Language We Use with Andrew Leland

    Is blindness an incidental characteristic, like hair color? Or is it an identity? What language should we use to talk about disability, and why does it matter? Andrew Leland, author of The Country of the Blind, joins Amy Julia Becker on the podcast for a conversation examining:
    Blindness and identityThe importance of language and the use of metaphors in relation to disabilityHow the experience of disability can involve beauty, power, and lossThe role of allies in advocating with disabled individualsHow Andrew has reimagined the good life_
    Amy Julia’s upcoming events
    _
    Guest Bio:
    Andrew Leland is a writer, audio producer, editor, and teacher living in Western Massachusetts. His first book, The Country of the Blind: A Memoir at the End of Sight, about the world of blindness (and figuring out his place in it), was published in July 2023 by Penguin Press. You can find links to order a copy here.
    _
    Connect Online:
    Website: www.andrewleland.orgInstagram: @quailty_
    On the Podcast:
    Amy Julia’s upcoming eventsLeland’s New Yorker essay “How to Be Blind”National Federation of the BlindSara Hendren’s book and podcast episode with Amy JuliaAmy S. F. Lutz’s Chasing the Intact MindDeath Panel podcastJohn McWhorter’s NYT essay: “When We Do, and Don’t, Need a New Phrase to Describe Reality”Disability Language Style Guide TRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com/andrew-leland/
    _
    YouTube: video with closed captions
    _
    Reimagine the Good Life with me through the lens of disability, faith, and culture as we challenge assumptions about the good life, proclaim the inherent belovedness of every human being, and envision a world of belonging. Find out more at amyjuliabecker.com.
    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 1 hr 1 min
    Reimagining the Good Life

    Reimagining the Good Life

    This podcast has a new name: Reimagining the Good Life. If you’re asking, “Why a name change?” and “Why now?”—I have answers! Author and teacher Patricia Clarke talks with me about:
    How disability challenges assumptions about the good lifeAccepting limitations and finding freedom within themHow faith and culture shape our understanding of the good lifeThe power of reimagining what’s possibleWhat all of this has to do with changing the podcast name!_
    GUEST BIO:
    Patricia Clarke is a speaker, teacher, and writer who brings people from different backgrounds together to talk about faith. She holds a master’s degree in English Literature, a Barnabas Counseling Certificate, and is currently enrolled in the Master of Theology program at Fuller Theological Seminary. In her new workbook, Lifted by Love, Clarke weaves her personal faith, love of storytelling, and teaching skills together to bring the wisdom of the Bible into daily life. She currently lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband and four children. For up-to-date information, follow her on Instagram @patriciaclarkestudies or visit her website to subscribe to her updates: patriciaclarke.org.
    _
    On the Podcast:
    Patricia Clarke’s book Lifted by LoveSteve Perkins at Greenhouse CoachingAmy Julia’s book White Picket FencesAndrew Leland’s book Country of the BlindMicha Boyett’s book Blessed Are the Rest of UsTreasures in the Dark by Katherine Wolfe and Alex WolfJohn McWhorter’s misunderstanding of disability Subscribe to Amy Julia’s updates_
    TRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com/podcast-reimagining-good-life/
    _
    YouTube Channel: video with closed captions
    _
    Reimagine the Good Life with me through the lenses of disability, faith, and culture. Find out more at amyjuliabecker.com.
    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 30 min
    The Gifts of an Evolving Faith with Sarah Bessey

    The Gifts of an Evolving Faith with Sarah Bessey

    Is faith something that should always stay the same? Or is it something that evolves by necessity? Sarah Bessey, author of Field Notes for the Wilderness, talks with Amy Julia Becker about:
    Her evolving faith journeyHow to adapt and thrive in an evolving faithMaking room for change, in ourselves and othersNavigating the intersection of anger and joyHow to discover what we're hoping for, not just what we’re againstHow to embrace the gifts of an evolving faith__
    MY LENTEN RESOURCES:
    LENTEN DAILY DEVOTIONALLenten Small Group Guide & Video Series_
    Guest Bio:
    Sarah Bessey is the author or editor of five books, including the New York Times bestseller A Rhythm of Prayer. Her latest book is Field Notes for the Wilderness: Practices for an Evolving Faith.. She also leads Evolving Faith, a conference and online community for people who are reimagining their faith with hope. Bessey lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with her husband and their four children.
    _
    Connect Online:
    Website: sarahbessey.comInstagram: @sarahbesseyFacebook:@sarah.styles.bessey_
    On the Podcast:
    Jesus Feminist: An Invitation to Revisit the Bible's View of Women_
    TRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com/sarah-bessey/
    _
    YouTube Channel: video with closed captions
    _
    Season 7 of the Love Is Stronger Than Fear podcast connects to themes in my latest book, To Be Made Well, which you can order here! Learn more about my writing and speaking at amyjuliabecker.com.
    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 57 min
    How Advent Resists the Culture Wars with Tish Harrison Warren

    How Advent Resists the Culture Wars with Tish Harrison Warren

    Holiday culture wars and consumerism bring more chaos than joy to the world. But there’s hope. The countercultural season of Advent offers a different way to prepare for Christmas. Tish Harrison Warren, former New York Times columnist and author, talks with Amy Julia Becker about:
    How the practices of Advent disarm the culture warsWays that Advent helps us grieve and hopeWhy waiting to celebrate Christmas mattersPLUS why Tish chose to leave the New York TimesGive a book for Christmas!
    __
    Guest Bio:
    Tish Harrison Warren is a priest in the Anglican Church in North America. She is a former New York Times columnist the author of Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life (Christianity Today's 2018 Book of the Year) and Prayer in the Night: For Those Who Work, or Watch, or Weep (Christianity Today's 2022 Book of the Year and the 2022 ECPA Christian Book of the Year). Her latest book is Advent: The Season of Hope. She is a founding member of The Pelican Project and a Senior Fellow with the Trinity Forum. She lives with her husband and three children in Austin, Texas.
    __
    Connect Online:
    Visit Tish's website at tishharrisonwarren.comFollow Tish on Instagram: @tishharrisonwarren__
    On the Podcast:
    Advent: The Season of HopeMore of Tish's booksTish’s final essay at the TimesAmy Julia's books__
    TRANSCRIPT: amyjuliabecker.com//tish-harrison-warren/
    __
    YouTube Channel: video with closed captions
    __
    Season 7 of the Love Is Stronger Than Fear podcast connects to themes in my latest book, To Be Made Well, which you can order here! Learn more about my writing and speaking at amyjuliabecker.com.


    Connect with me:
    Instagram Facebook YouTube Website Thanks for listening!

    • 46 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
57 Ratings

57 Ratings

Jucampbe ,

Belonging

As a mother of a son with Down Syndrome, this podcast of belonging in our Christian community hits close to home. Dr. Kenny was raw and real and gave me language and understanding from a perspective I will never fully understand - my son’s perspective. It was helpful to hear as part of our journey of belonging.

mk<3happy ,

Soooooo good!

I can’t even remember how I accidentally found this podcast but I’m SO thankful that I did!! I started with the episode about crt and I could have wept while listening just because I loved how the focus was on peacemaking while also objectively looking at truth (as opposed to passionate ranting, polarization etc). I can’t wait to listen to more episodes - I’ve already shared this one with about 15 people!!

Capuchie ,

Very important!!

Wow, I love this podcast. Amy Julia does a fantastic job selecting and interviewing guests on hard and fascinating topics. I have learned so much and highly recommend this podcast to anyone interested in the gospel and racial justice, privilege, disability, and many other interesting issues.

Top Podcasts In Religion & Spirituality

The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Ascension
The Bible Recap
Tara-Leigh Cobble
Follow Him: A Come, Follow Me Podcast
Hank Smith & John Bytheway
Joel Osteen Podcast
Joel Osteen, SiriusXM
The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Ascension
Girls Gone Bible
Girls Gone Bible

You Might Also Like

Good Hard Story Podcast
Katherine Wolf
The Next Right Thing
with Emily P. Freeman
Rhythms for Life
Rebekah Lyons and Gabe Lyons
The Best of You
That Sounds Fun Network
The Allender Center Podcast
The Allender Center | Dr. Dan Allender
Don't Mom Alone Podcast
Don't Mom Alone Podcast