Contemplify
The Contemplify podcast kindles the examined life for contemplatives in the world. Through artful musings & conversations with scholars, creatives, and master teachers each episode delivers a subtly intoxicating* exchange on the contemplative lifestyle with practical takeaways to emulate in daily life.
Host, Paul Swanson, is a husband, father and contemplative educator at the Center for Action and Contemplation and co-host of Another Name for Every Thing with Richard Rohr**.
*Contemplify is best served with a pint in hand. Please listen responsibly.
** All shenanigans, tom foolery and bally-hoo posted on Contemplify are my own. Contemplify is not representative of the Center for Action and Contemplation or Richard Rohr on any matter.
- Update frequency
- every 16 days
- Average duration
- 46 minutes
- Episodes
- 175
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
(MiniSeries, Episode 3) Practice Without Preaching: Creating a Family Spirituality with Ali Kirkpatrick
Ali Kirkpatrick is a writer, speaker, retreat leader, part-time university instructor and business owner. But if i was going to name her post in the world it would be as an ambassador of love.
Ali is…
(MiniSeries, Episode 2) Practice Without Preaching: Creating a Family Spirituality with Ali Kirkpatrick
Ali Kirkpatrick is a writer, speaker, retreat leader, part-time university instructor and business owner. But if i was going to name her post in the world it would be as an ambassador of love.
Ali is…
(MiniSeries, Episode 1) Practice Without Preaching: Creating a Family Spirituality with Ali Kirkpatrick
Ali Kirkpatrick is a writer, speaker, retreat leader, part-time university instructor and business owner. But if i was going to name her post in the world it would be as an ambassador of love.
Ali is…
(MiniSeries, Introduction) Practice Without Preaching: Creating a Family Spirituality with Ali Kirkpatrick
Ali Kirkpatrick is a writer, speaker, retreat leader, part-time university instructor and business owner. But if i was going to name her post in the world it would be as an ambassador of love.
Over t…
Mystic Soul Project and the Essence of Deep Spirituality with Teresa Pasquale Mateus
My guest today is Teresa Pasquale Mateus, a trauma specialist, contemplative practice teacher, author and co-founder of Mystic Soul Project, an organization that engages in a People of Color (POC) -…
Ordinary Mystic & Contemplative Shoveler (Mark Longhurst Interviews Host Paul Swanson)
If you are a regular listener to the Contemplify podcast, you might be scratching your head and wondering why I am pairing a drink with this conversation. Let me explain. My pal Mark Longhurst runs t…
A Handbook to Midlife: Philosophical Tools, Wisdom & Avoiding the Midlife Crisis with Kieran Setiya (author of Midlife: A Philosophical Guide)
"Written with charming simplicity and wry humor, Midlife is a philosophically rich source of what might be called 'the higher life hacks' – reflective ways of dissolving the sense of emptiness and re…
Enlightenment Through Endarkment, or Bumbling Our Way to Possible Magic with Teddy Macker (Author of 'This World')
“Who touches this touches a man. Incredibly moving, risk-taking, original, and deep. I was in tears a number of times while reading it. Magnificent.”
- Barry Spacks
Teddy Macker is a guileless poet …
Teddy Macker Reads "A Poem For My Daughter"
“Mark, reading the poetry of Teddy Macker who I will interview on Monday. His poetry stops time. Equal parts Wendell Berry, Gary Snyder, St. Francis and yet completely his own man. I can't recommend …
Be Open to the Unexpected and Find Pure Presence with Tracy Cochran (Editor at Parabola Magazine)
The winding road of life leads you to beautiful vistas and the shallows of hardship. Tracy Cochran shares her experiences of the vistas and the shallows in our conversation. We touch on the practices…
Cal Newport on Kindling an Examined Life Through Deep Work (author of Deep Work)
“Cal Newport is a clear voice in a sea of noise, bringing science and passion in equal measure. We don’t need more clicks, more cats, and more emojis. We need brave work, work that happens when we re…
(Bonus Episode!) Dr. Barbara Holmes from 2016 in Celebration of the Revised Edition of Her Book, Joy Unspeakable
Barbara Holmes served as president of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, as well as professor of ethics and African American religious studies. She was ordained in the Latter Rain Aposto…
Mindfulness in the Christian Tradition with Dr. Amy Oden (author of Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness)
Dr. Amy Oden is a Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality at the Saint Paul School of Theology. In her latest book Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness Amy draws up…
Blueprint for an Authentic Life with Jeff Johnson (180 South, Bend to Baja)
Jeff Johnson has surfed distant shores, climbed mountains you’ve never heard of and travelled to corners of the world most people couldn’t place on a map. All of this is impressive, but what is most …
The Enneagram as a Tool for Excavating Your Essence with Chris Heuertz (Author of The Sacred Enneagram)
“The Sacred Enneagram is not a just book about an ancient personality framework with a funny name. It is a roadmap to self-understanding written by one of the great spiritual practitioners of my gene…
Exploring the Silence and Laughter of Eternity with Carl McColman
‘What Richard Foster and Dallas Willard were to my generation – prime tour guides to the spiritual life – I hope and believe Carl McColman will be for the next generation. If you don’t know about him…
Thomas Merton, Wisdom Sophia and a Dash of Pink Floyd with Christopher Pramuk
‘Christopher Pramuk’s latest work, At Play in Creation, offers a truly stunning introduction to the long-held but often forgotten Wisdom tradition. Priming our theological imaginations with the rich …
Tasha Wahl on Discovering a God of Love in ‘The Shack’
Tasha Wahl is the founder and creator of The Butterfly Effect whose mission statement is so lovely I want to share it here...The Butterfly Effect is an underground movement redefining philanthropy on…
Ecstatic Experiences for the Spiritually Mediocre with Jules Evans (Philosopher and Author of The Art of Losing Control: A Philosopher’s Search for Ecstatic Experience)
My guest today is the multifaceted Jules Evans and trying to encapsulate Jules in a brief bio is near impossible, but let me start by sharing some his accolades: his first book, Philosophy for Life a…
The Wendell Berry Way of Seeing: Filmmaker Laura Dunn on ‘Look & See: A Portrait of Wendell Berry’
Laura Dunn is the documentary filmmaker behind the film The Unforeseen, which took home the Independent Spirit Truer Than Fiction Award and was executive produced by Robert Redford and Terrence Malic…