Western Friend Podcast
38. Artificial Intelligence and Spirituality
Podcast release – 9/7/2024
In this interview with Brylie Oxley, Western Friend's webmaster, Friends talk about the place of new technologies in society and the role that Friends can play in discerning the future course of technological developments.
37. Keynote talk by ,O - Transformation
Podcast release – 8/17/2024
In this presentation to Pacific Yearly Meeting 2024, health and wholeness visionary ,O calls Friends to embrace our identity as agents of transformation in the co-creative universe of love.
36. Barry Crossno - The Water We Swim In
Podcast release – 7/6/2024
Barry Crossno’s 2024 keynote talk to Intermountain Yearly Meeting on the economic and social context that challenge the vitality of Quaker meetings in the twenty-first century.
35. Prison Ministry in Colorado
Podcast release – 6/1/2024
An interview with Elaine Granata and David Poundstone about their work with the Prison and Visitation Support program. Both are members of Mountain View Friends Meeting in Denver, Colorado.
34. Sr. Confianza del Señor – The Power of Prayer
Podcast release – 5/4/2024
Sr. Confianza del Señor recounts her journey from a childhood of Methodist service to her current life of monastic prayer in Limón, Honduras. She also describes the personal growth and healing she derives from prayer.
33. Zae Illo – The Laundry Ministry
Podcast release – 4/6/2024
Zae Illo talks with us about his work with Youth Spirit Artworks, the Bible study and street outreach ministries he conducts through Glide Church, and the biweekly laundry ministry he recently started at the San Francisco Friends Meeting.
32. Nancy Marshall – Friendly Truth to Power
Podcast release – 3/2/2024
Nancy Marshall shares some of her experiences working as a defense attorney and using Friendliness to confront abuse of power in public office. She has incorporated much of this experience in her novel A Dry Hate, which she has recently re-released and which she discusses.
31. Andrew Franklin – Quakers and Indigenous People
Podcast release – 2/17/2024
We talk with Andrew Franklin, a Friend who helped guide Sierra-Cascades Yearly Meeting of Friends (SCYMF) in making a large financial gift to Indigenous Alaskans in January 2024. He talks about the power of acting now, in the moment, to create the beloved community we want.
Podcast release – 1/6/2024
At the outset of the new year 2024, we travel back to 2018 to revisit a panel of speakers discussing the topic of “Unity is not Unanimity,” examining ways to keep our communities together despite disputes and disagreements within. Special focus is turned on conflict, decision-making, and eldering.
29. Roscoe Mathieu – A Quaker Rosary
Podcast release – 12/2/2023
Episode 29 of the Western Friend Podcast presents a conversation with Roscoe Mathieu, exploring ways that the "empty forms" of spiritual practices can free a person's awareness to access a larger reality. Matthieu draws on several spiritual traditions and a deep knowledge of early Quaker writers.
28. Keith Runyan – Finding Unity for Earthcare
Podcast release – 11/4/2023
Episode 28 of the Western Friend Podcast features the keynote presentation at the 2023 Annual Session of Pacific Yearly Meeting by Sophia Faith Cantu and Nora Lisette Cooke, guiding a community conversation about engaging with change.
27. Dr. Richard Grossman – Abortion and Community
Podcast release – 10/7/2023
In Episode 27, Dr. Richard Grossman, a recently retired OBGYN and Friend from Durango Meeeting, discusses abortion and community. Dr. Grossman continues to work on several population-centered projects and shares about his work and his life's purpose.
26. Intergenerational Panel – Centering Voices of the Next Generation
Podcast release – 9/16/2023
Episode 26 of the Western Friend Podcast features the keynote presentation at the 2023 Annual Session of Pacific Yearly Meeting by Sophia Faith Cantu and Nora Lisette Cooke, guiding a community conversation about engaging with change.
25. Intergenerational Panel – Meeting at the Corner of Wisdom and Power
Podcast release – 8/5/2023
Episode 25 of the Western Friend Podcast features an intergenerational panel of speakers at the 2023 Annual Session of North Pacific Yearly Meeting, sharing experiences of building a faith community across generations today.
24. Jon Watts – Becoming Quakers the World Needs
Podcast release – 7/1/2023
Episode 24 of the Western Friend Podcast features the keynote talk that Quaker media producer Jon Watts presented to Intermountain Yearly Meeting in June 2023. His topic was "Becoming Quakers the world needs."
23. Philip Clayton – Ecological Civilization
Podcast release – 6/3/2023
Episode 23 of the Western Friend Podcast features a community conversation with Philip Clayton, president of the Institute for Ecological Civilization. Participants explore questions about what it actually means to live simply.
22. Bill Durland Interview – Martyrs for Truth
Podcast release – 5/6/2023
Episode 22 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with attorney, peace activist, author, and educator Bill Durland, who shares stories of his own life and of others who paid a high price for truth's sake.
21. Panel Presentation – Quaker Leadership of the Future
Podcast release – 4/1/2023
Episode 21 of the Western Friend Podcast features a recording of the panel presentations to an online working session among Friends in the West, who were considering ways for Quaker meetings to better support new leaders.
20. Tom Ewell Interview – Persistent Activism and the Sound Defense Alliance
Podcast release – 3/4/2023
Episode 20 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with Tom Ewell and other residents of Whidbey Island in Washington State, who have worked to end flights of the Navy's Growler jets there.
19. Barbara Birch Interview – Elizabeth Fry: A Quaker Mess
Podcast release – 2/4/2023
Episode 19 of the Western Friend Podcast features a wide-ranging interview with Barbara Birch, who is a member of Strawberry Creek Meeting in Berkeley, California. Barbara discusses her research on Elizabeth Fry, embodied spirituality and its relevance to Quakers today, as well as Friendly 12-Step recovery.
18. Barbara Phillips Interview – Botany on an Endangered Planet
Podcast release – 1/7/2023
Episode 18 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with Barbara Phillips, a lifetime botanist and a member of Flagstaff Friends Meeting. Barbara discusses her life-long fascination with the outdoors, what it means to be a botanist, and some of the challenges facing us and the planet in these complex times.
17. Frank Granshaw Interview – Science for Justice, Equity, and Stewardship
Podcast release – 12/3/2022
Episode 17 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with Frank Granshaw – Friend, geologist, educator, and climate activist. Frank tells about his involvement with COP27 and about broader questions, including the fundamental natures of science and religion.
16. Gretchen Castle Interview – Quaker Call to Action for Democracy
Podcast release – 11/5/2022
Episode 16 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with Gretchen Castle, a member of the national steering committee of Quaker Call to Action, an invitation to a national dialogue about the current, urgent threats to our democracy.
15. Julie Harlow Interview – Friends House Moscow
Podcast release – 10/1/2022
(Link has been disabled due to security concerns that emerged in March 2023.) Episode 15 of the Western Friend Podcast features Julie Harlow, a founding member of Friends House Moscow. Julie talks about a her intercultural experiences abroad and the importance of seeing and hearing others where “if you can see their faces, you can imagine being friends."
14. Pacific Yearly Meeting 2022 Keynote Panel
Podcast release – 9/3/2022
Episode 14 of the Western Friend Podcast features a keynote panel about Beloved Community. Marlene Coach-Eisenstein of Honolulu Meeting, Keith Runyan of Santa Cruz Meeting, and Peni Hall of Strawberry Creek Meeting explore questions of inclusion and welcome in Quaker community.
13. Carl Magruder to North Pacific Yearly Meeting 2022
Podcast release – 8/6/2022
In Episode 13, Carl Magruder delivers the keynote talk to North Pacific Yearly Meeting 2022, then engages in a follow-up interview. Carl is a palliative care chaplain with an MA in Divinity and a member of Strawberry Creek Monthly Meeting. His talk was titled, "Deep Hope in Optimystical Times."
12. Bridget Moix to Intermountain Yearly Meeting 2019
Podcast release – 7/2/2022
Podcast 12 features Bridget Moix speaking to Intermountain Yearly Meeting in 2019, when she was U.S. Senior Representative Peace Direct. In 2022, she became General Secretary of Friends Committee on National Legislation. The theme of this keynote talk is: "Faith, Fear, and Our Future."
11. Lucretia Humphrey and Molly Wingate Interview: Two Quakers Living with the Military
Podcast release – 6/4/2022
Episode 11 of the Western Friend Podcast features a conversation with two recent presiding clerks of Western yearly meetings, who discuss experiences and insights they have gained through decades of living as Quakers in "military towns" -- Colorado Springs, CO, and Great Falls, MT.
10. Michele Shields Interview: Dark Tunnels in Life
Podcast release – 5/7/2022
In Episode 10, Michele Shields talks with us about death, life, and everything in between. Michele is a member of the Honolulu Friends Meeting and the Director of Spiritual Care Services emerita and research scholar at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center.
9. Theresa Deibele Interview: In Search of an Honorable Bank
Podcast release – 4/2/2022
In Episode 9 of the Western Friend podcast, the hosts speak with Theresa Deibele, treasurer of Multnomah Monthly Meeting (Porland, OR). She talks about the meeting's year-long search for a bank that has values aligned with Quaker values.
8. Paula Palmer Interview: Right Relations with Native Peoples
Podcast release – 3/5/2022
In Episode 8 of the Western Friend podcast, the hosts speak with sociologist, writer, and activist Paula Palmer. A member of Boulder Friends Meeting (IMYM), Palmer co-coordinates “Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples,” a program of Friends Peace Teams.
7. Dan O'Connell Interview: In the Struggle
Podcast release – 2/5/2022
In this podcast, we chat with agrarian scholar and Visalia Friend Daniel O'Connell. We speak about his journey, his activism in California's Central Valley, his spiritual practice, and his book, In the Struggle: Scholars and the Fight Against Industrial Agribusiness in California.
6. Gabriela Portilla Alvarado Interview with Soul Force Ones
Podcast release – 1/8/2022
Our January 2022 podcast presents an interview between Gabriela Portillo Alvarado and the partners of Soul Force Ones, where they all dig deeper into the themes that Gabriela raised in their keynote talk (podcast episode five) and the poetry they shared.
5. Poetic Keynotes by Gabriela Portillo Alvarado and Avotcja Jiltonilro to PacYM 2021
Podcast release – 12/4/2021
Our December 2021 podcast centers on the poetry reading and keynote talk that Gabriela Portillo Alvarado and Avotcja Jiltonilro presented to the 2021 annual session of Pacific Yearly Meeting. These two poets spoke and shared poetry on the theme of: “Love and Justice: Heeding the Spirit’s Power Within and Among Us.”
4. Cherice Bock Interview with Soul Force Ones
Podcast release – 11/6/2021
Our November 2021 podcast presents an interview between Cherice Bock and the partners of Soul Force Ones, where they all digging deeper into the themes that Cherice raised in her keynote talk (podcast episode three).
3. Cherice Bock Keynote Address to NPYM 2021
Podcast release – 10/2/2021
Our October 2021 podcast centers on the keynote talk that Cherice Bock gave at the 2021 annual session of North Pacific Yearly Meeting. Cherice Bock works as a Creation Justice Advocate with Oregon Interfaith Power & Light. She spoke on the topic of: “Courage, Fear, and Care: Creating Resilient Communities to Meet Climate Justice.”
2. José Santos Woss Interview with Soul Force Ones
Podcast release – 9/4/2021
Our September 2021 podcast presents an interview between José Santos Woss and the partners of Soul Force Ones, where they all digging deeper into the themes of that José raised in his keynote talk (podcast episode one).
1. José Santos Woss Keynote Address to IMYM 2021
Podcast release – 8/7/2021
Our August 2021 podcast centers on the keynote talk that FCNL’s José Santos Woss gave at the 2021 annual session of Intermountain Yearly Meeting – “Race and Faith: A First Gen Journey to Justice.”