Peace Catalyst Podcast

Mae Elise Cannon - Churches for Middle East Peace

Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon is the Executive Director of Churches for Middle East Peace. She is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church and the author of several books, including Just Spirituality: How Faith Practices Fuel Social Action, Social Justice Handbook: Small Steps for a Better World, Beyond Hashtag Activism: Comprehensive Justice in a Complicated Age, and Forgive Us: Confessions of a Compromised Faith. She holds a Ph.D from the University of California Davis and a D.Min from Northern Theological Seminary.   LINKS: Churches for Middle East Peace website: https://cmep.org Just Spirituality: How Faith Practices Fuel Social Action https://www.amazon.com/Just-Spirituality-Practices-Social-Action/dp/0830837752/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=mae+elise+cannon&qid=1664848010&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=mae+elise+cannon%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-3 Social Justice Handbook: Small Steps for a Better World https://www.amazon.com/Social-Justice-Handbook-Better-Bridgeleader/dp/0830837159/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=mae+elise+cannon&qid=1664848010&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=mae+elise+cannon%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-1 Beyond Hashtag Activism: Comprehensive Justice in a Complicated Age https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Hashtag-Activism-Comprehensive-Complicated/dp/0830845895/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=mae+elise+cannon&qid=1664848010&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=mae+elise+cannon%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-2 Forgive Us: Confessions of a Compromised Faith https://www.amazon.com/Forgive-Us-Confessions-Compromised-Faith/dp/0310515963/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=mae+elise+cannon&qid=1664848010&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=mae+elise+cannon%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-5 A Land Full of God: Christian Perspectives on the Holy Land https://www.amazon.com/Land-Full-God-Christian-Perspectives/dp/149829880X/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=mae+elise+cannon&qid=1664848010&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=mae+elise+cannon%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-4 Our podcast episode with Greg Khalil and Todd Deatherage from Telos: https://peacecatalystpodcast.podbean.com/e/greg-khalil-and-todd-deatherage-reconciling-seemingly-intractable-conflict/ Network of Evangelicals for the Middle East: https://neme.network/about/#:~:text=The%20Network%20of%20Evangelicals%20for%20the%20Middle%20East,Jews%2C%20Christians%2C%20and%20Muslims%20in%20the%20region.%20Vision%3A Mike Pence speech before Israel’s Knesset: https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Full-transcript-of-Pences-Knesset-speech-539476   Edited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit AtillaSupport the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast

Czeslaw Kusmider - Ukrainian Refugees Come to Poland

This week we’re talking with Pastor Czeslaw Kusmider from the town of Przemysl, Poland, just west of the border with Ukraine. Pastor Kusmider was called by his local community & government leaders at the beginning of the Ukraine crisis to help with the refugees that were coming from Ukraine into Poland, and he ended up converting his entire church into a refugee care center. In this episode, he tells us what that has been like and what we can all do to help. Edited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit AtillaSupport the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast

Andy Larsen - A Surprise Meeting With Iraqi Muslim Leader Ali al-Sistani

Andrew Larsen, a devoted peacemaker and long-time friend of Peace Catalyst, joins us to talk about a recent trip to Iraq and an unexpected personal meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, as well as his own approach to bridge-building in the Middle East and the U.S. Andy has worked as a consultant to churches and nonprofit groups seeking to understand “the other,” particularly Muslims. He empowers peacemaking initiatives through photography, personal relationships, and building a network among Muslim, Christian, and advocacy groups to build bridges between divergent communities.   Edited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit AtillaSupport the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast

Greg Khalil and Todd Deatherage - Reconciling Seemingly Intractable Conflict

Today we talk with Greg and Todd, Co-Founders of fellow peacemaking organization The Telos Group.  Before founding Telos, Greg lived in Ramallah, the West Bank, where he advised the Palestinian leadership on peace negotiations with Israel. He’s lectured widely on the Middle East and has been published by outlets like the New York Times, and he’s also an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s graduate school of journalism. Todd spent 16 years in senior positions in the Executive and Legislative branches of the U.S. government, and from 2005-2009 he was Chief of Staff in the Secretary of State’s Office of Policy Planning. He also spent two years as Senior Advisor in the Department’s Office of International Religious Freedom, where he specialized in religious freedom in the Middle East, and worked for 10 years in the U.S. Congress.The Telos Group: https://www.telosgroup.org/   Edited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit AtillaSupport the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast

Miroslav Volf and Hurunnessa Fariad - What it Means to Embrace the Other

Dr. Miroslav Volf and Hurunnessa Fariad, two of our first ever Rick Love Peacemaker Award winners, join our President, Martin Brooks, for this conversation about  the "why" and "how" of embracing 'the other.' The conversation is based around Dr. Volf’s book, Exclusion and Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation.   LINKS: Peace Catalyst International website: www.peacecatalyst.org Rick Love Awards: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/rick-love-award-recipients Yale Center for Faith & Culture: https://faith.yale.edu/ Miroslav Volf's books: https://www.amazon.com/Miroslav-Volf/e/B001IGJSHG?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_10&qid=1660078768&sr=1-10 Exclusion & Embrace book: https://amzn.to/3BPKNv3 Multifaith Neighbors Network: www.mfnn.org Edited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit Atilla  

Steve Hackman - Peacebuilding in Hong Kong

Steve is a Hong Kong-based travel writer, educator, and speaker who has been the Head of Christian and Community Development at Yew Chung Education Foundation for more than a decade. Steve is an experienced adventurer, having completed numerous cross-country journeys including the 500 mile Camino de Santiago in Spain and the 1100 mile Via Francigena from England to Rome. He hosts the Beyond The Pale podcast, which explores living life and spiritual faith through the lens of pilgrimage.  LINKS: Beyond the Pale podcast Yew Chung Education Foundation Seeds of Hope program   Support the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast Edited by Nicole Gibson Music: Soulmates by Yigit Atilla

Julia Bacha - Pay Attention to Nonviolence

Julia Bacha is a Peabody and Guggenheim Award-winning filmmaker, media strategist, and Creative Director at JustVision, an organization that fills a media gap on Israel-Palestine through independent storytelling and strategic audience engagement. She has strategically used documentary film and multimedia to foster constructive conversation on some of the most divisive issues of our times. Julia’s work has been exhibited at the Sundance, Berlin, and Tribeca film festivals; has been broadcast on the BBC, HBO, and Al-Jazeera; and has screened at widely diverse settings from refugee camps and villages to the halls of the American Congress and European Parliament. Her TEDTalk, “Pay Attention to Nonviolence,” was selected as one of the best talks of 2011 by the TED curators and has been viewed by over half a million people worldwide.    LINKS Julia’s TEDTalk "Pay Attention to Nonviolence": https://www.ted.com/talks/julia_bacha_pay_attention_to_nonviolence Julia’s TEDTalk "How Women Wage Conflict Without Violence": https://www.ted.com/talks/julia_bacha_how_women_wage_conflict_without_violence JustVision: https://justvision.org/ Julia’s films: https://justvision.org/films Christian Peacebuilding Network: https://www.facebook.com/groups/christianpeacebuildingnetwork Support the podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcastEdited by Nicole GibsonMusic: Soulmates by Yigit Atilla

Keith Giles - Jesus Unarmed

After serving as a licensed and ordained minister for over 20 years, Keith left his full-time pastoral ministry to start a house church that gave away 100% of the offering to help the poor in their community. After 11 years, Keith and his wife Wendy moved to El Paso, TX, where they now work as peacebuilders in their local community. Keith is also a prolific writer and the author of many books, including Jesus Unarmed: How the Prince of Peace Disarms Our Violence.    LINKS: Keith's website: www.keithgiles.com Second Cup With Keith podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/second-cup-with-keith/id1595608177   Support the Peace Catalyst Podcast: https://www.peacecatalyst.org/peacemaking-podcast Peace Catalyst website: www.peacecatalyst.org Edited by Nicole Gibson Music: Soulmates by Yigit Atilla