John McEuen {Co-Founder of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band} The Life I’ve Picked An Evening with John McEuen and The Circle Band: John takes the audience on his trip with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, one that led to the incredible multi-platinum Will the Circle be Unbroken album which he initiated in 1972. John captured the […]

Lerone Martin SOUL FORCE: THE CHALLENGE OF MARTIN LUTHER KING Lerone Martin is an associate professor of religious studies at Stanford and an award-winning author. He has been recognized for his teaching and received numerous institutional teaching awards and nationally recognized fellowships.   In his most recent book, The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover, Martin discusses the historical […]

Dan Tepfer FROM BACH TO NATURAL MACHINES: ALGORITHMS AS THE SHAPERS OF MUSIC Dan Tepfer is a pianist-composer. He has recorded and performed around the world and composed for various ensembles. He believes the best music exists at the intersection of the spiritual and the algorithmic.   His performances incorporate improvisation at the piano accompanied by […]

Robert George RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND THE HUMAN GOOD Robert George is a McCormick professor of jurisprudence and the director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University. He is also a prolific author and editor, having written or contributed to 8 books and several publications.   He is passionate about religious […]

CAROLINE RANDALL SOUL FOOD AND THE COLLECTIVE CULTURAL MEMORY Caroline Randall Williams is an award-winning poet, young adult novelist, and cookbook author as well as an activist, public intellectual, performance artist, and scholar. She is constantly pushing the envelope with her poetry, cooking, and writing. Additionally, Williams is a writer-in-residence in medicine, health, and society […]

MATTHEW DESMOND POVERTY, BY AMERICA Matthew Desmond is a sociologist, MacArthur Fellowship recipient, and the founder and principal investigator of the Eviction Lab at Princeton University. He is the author of four books, each of which looks at socio-economic habits that perpetuate poverty and housing inequality. His most recent book, Poverty, By America is a New York […]

Djangophonique is an award winning project that delivers the infectious joy, and expressive freedom that is at the heart of Django Reinhardt’s jazz manouche. With respect for the tradition and a fearless creativity that bends the conventions of the style, Djangophonique is keeping the Hot Club revival alive and well. The result is a sound […]

KENDALL VANDERSLICE TABLE CONVERSATIONS: BUILDING COMMUNITY AS WE EAT Kendall Vanderslice is a baker, writer, and the founder of the Edible Theology Project, an educational nonprofit connecting the Communion table to the kitchen table. She earned her master’s of theological studies from Duke Divinity School and master’s in gastronomy from Boston University. She has committed […]

LYDIA DUGDALE THE LOST ART OF DYING: ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN FACING OUR MORTALITY Dr. Lydia Dugdale is an internal medicine primary care doctor and a medical ethicist. She’s also a Columbia University professor and director of the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics. Her scholarship focuses on end-of-life issues, medical ethics, and the doctor-patient relationship. In […]

NIALA BOODHOO LESSONS I’VE LEARNED FROM LISTENING Niala Boodhoo ’96 is an Axios journalist and podcast host, as well as guest host for 1A on NPR. She graduated from Calvin University in 1996 and has worked as a journalist for publications such as Reuters, the Associated Press, the Miami Herald, and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Her broadcast […]

TOMMY CALDWELL ROUTE FINDING FOR SUCCESS Tommy Caldwell is a talented rock climber, with numerous accomplishments in sport, traditional, and free climbing, big wall first ascents, and speed records. He’s known for his creative vision, skill, and fortitude. He reflects on his most harrowing expedition in the memoir The Push: A Climber’s Journey of Endurance, Risk, […]

FELICIA WU SONG RESTLESS DEVICES: CHRISTIAN FORMATION IN A DIGITAL WORLD Felicia Wu Song is a cultural sociologist who studies the place of digital technologies in contemporary life. She’s trained in history, communication studies, and sociology from Yale, Northwestern, and the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on the rapidly evolving digital technology industry and […]

JACOB GOLDSTEIN TECHNOLOGY, LUDDITES, AND THE FUTURE OF WORK Jacob Goldstein is an NPR correspondent and podcast host. His interest in technology and the changing nature of work has led him to stories on UPS, the Luddites, and the history of light. He graduated from Stanford University and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. His […]

DANIEL BOWMAN JR. NEURODIVERGENT STORYTELLING Daniel Bowman Jr. is a novelist, poet, and professor, who received an autism diagnosis at age 35 after experiencing crises in his personal and professional life. The diagnosis shed light on his experience in a new, life-giving way. Bowman shares his experience in On the Spectrum: Autism, Faith, & the Gifts […]

ABRAM VAN ENGEN, JOANNE DIAZ AND MARILYN NELSON A LIVE RECORDING OF THE PODCAST, “POETRY FOR ALL” WITH MARILYN NELSON Marilyn Nelson is a three-time finalist for the National Book Award and one of America’s most celebrated poets. She has written or translated 20 poetry books for adults and children and five chapbooks. Her poems embrace […]

TIM DALRYMPLE Timothy Dalrymple is a former national champion gymnast who turned to academia following an accident in college where he broke his neck. He’s studied at Stanford University, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, where he made suffering a key theme of his research and teaching in modern Western […]

PEARL SHANGKUAN TUNING OUR MINDS, EARS, AND HEARTS TO SING GOD’S GRACE: REFLECTIONS OF A CONDUCTOR Pearl Shangkuan is a highly sought-after conductor, lecturer, and clinician. She’s led performances, seminars, and workshops on six continents, and she is a beloved professor and the director of choral activities at Calvin University. She’s conducted multiple performances at […]

Melody Angel is the complete package: gifted guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, vocalist, arranger, and producer. Along the way Angel found time to launch a successful theater and film acting career and received international acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival in France. The Chicago Reader newspaper called her “The Future of the Blues.” The Southside Chicago […]