Advertise on podcast: One on One with Robert Ellsberg

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Joseph Healey, M.M. as they discuss Small Christian Communities in Eastern Africa Small Christian Communities in Eastern Africa: History and Evaluation, by Joseph G. Healey, MM, contains a complete history and evaluation of Small Christian Communities (SCCs) in the nine countries of the AMECEA Region in Eastern Africa from 1961 to 2026. In four volumes (20 chapters) the book offers a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the growth of SCCs in Eritrea, Ethiopia,? Kenya, Malawi, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia, describes how SCCs promote missionary outreach and family and marriage ministry in the Region, tracks the growth of your people and SCCs, and examines the role of SCCs in the Synodal Church in Africa. Appendixes contain extensive annotated listings of digital materials, books, articles, and media resources on SCCs in the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa. Joseph G. Healey is a Maryknoll priest and the former Coordinator of the Mission Awareness Committee (MAC) of the Religious Superiors Association of Tanzania based in Dar es Salaam. His books include Once Upon a Time in Africa and Towards an African Narrative Theology. He is a member of the St. Charles Lwanga SCC in Dar es Salaam and the St. Jude Thaddeus SCC in Musoma. Get your copy today: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H9LTB24C?binding=audio_download&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_taud #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #EasternAfrica #JosephHealey #Community #Christianity

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with James Finley  as they discuss Teresa of Ávila and (Turning to the Mystics) https://orbisbooks.com/products/teresa-of-avila This series, Turning to the Mystics, is based on a much-loved podcast in which James Finley gently accompanies listeners into the wisdom of the Christian mystical tradition. This volume explores the teachings of Teresa of Avila, the sixteenth-century Spanish mystic and Doctor of the Church.   In this volume, Finley invites readers into a close, meditative reading of Teresa’s classic, The Interior Castle. Guiding us toward the living presence of God at the center of our own souls. Throughout the book, Kirsten Oates, cohost of the podcast, joins Jim in reflective conversations that help draw Teresa’s wisdom into contemporary life. James Finley, a psychotherapist, retreat leader, and spiritual director, is part of the Core Faculty of the Center for Action and Contemplation in New Mexico. A former monk under Thomas Merton at the Abbey of Gethsemani, he is the author of Merton’s Palace of Nowhere. His other books include his bestseller, The Healing Path: A Memoir and an Invitation, and a previous volume in this series, Thomas Merton. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/teresa-of-avila #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #JamesFinley #TeresaofAvila #Mystics #Christianity #Wisdom

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Joshtrom Kureethadam as they discuss Ecological Sin: Rupture of Relationships https://orbisbooks.com/products/ecological-sin-rupture-of-relationships The ecological crisis results at a deeper level from the rupture of the primal relationships that weave and sustain human existence. This book frames and explicates the concept of ecological sin as the rupture of fundamental relationships with the Creator, among ourselves, and with the rest of the community of creation. The first part of the book offers a relational understanding of the groaning of creation, weaving together the physical, moral, and spiritual dimensions of the contemporary ecological crisis. The second part explores at length the origin and nature of these relational ruptures in terms of seven ecological sins. Kureethadam presents ecological sin as the rupture of our fundamental and constitutive relationships with God, with our brothers and sisters, and with Mother Earth. The third part of the book explores how the rupture of basic relationships caused by ecological sin can be repaired through a transformative journey of healing by following the path of ecological conversion. Joshtrom Kureethadam is full professor (Chair of Philosophy of Science) and director of the Institute of Social and Political Sciences in the Faculty of Philosophy at the Salesian Pontifical University in Rome. Kureethadam served as the Coordinator of the Sector of “Ecology & Creation” at the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development from 2017-2023 and continues to assist the efforts of the global Church in responding to Pope Francis’ passionate appeal to care for our common home. Kureethadam has been especially associated with the study and diffusion of Laudato Si’, and his commentary on the encyclical has been published in nearly two dozen languages. Among his many published works, Kureethadam is the author of Creation in Crisis. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/ecological-sin-rupture-of-relationships #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #ethics #JoshtromKureethadam #Ecology #Christianity

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with David P. Gushee as they discuss Job In Exile: A Guide for Spiritual Refugees https://orbisbooks.com/products/job-in-exile-a-guide-for-spiritual-refugees Noted ethicist David Gushee reveals Job as a model of moral agency and courage, wrestling honestly with unjust suffering while his community’s religious orthodoxy, and perhaps even his God, fails the moment. As Job refuses to deny what he knows—or silence what he must say—he risks both divine and human condemnation. David P. Gushee, widely regarded as one of his generation’s most significant Christian moral thinkers, earned his PhD in Christian ethics from Union Theological Seminary and serves as Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University as well as Chair in Christian Social Ethics at Vrije Universiteit (Free University), Amsterdam. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/job-in-exile-a-guide-for-spiritual-refugees #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #ethics #DavidGushee #Morality #Christianity

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with David M. Neuhaus as they discuss Conquest or Leaven: Reflections of a Catholic Priest in Palestine/Israel https://orbisbooks.com/products/conquest-or-leaven-reflections-of-a-catholic-priest-in-palestine-israel Writing from Jerusalem, an Israeli Jesuit priest brings his unique experiences to bear, weaving together theology, history, and political analysis with care and compassion. Conquest or Leaven challenges Christians and all people of good will to grapple with questions of violence and nonviolence, peoplehood and land, partition and dialogue, history and community, society and marginalization. David M. Neuhaus, SJ, is a member of the Society of Jesus (Near East Province) and is a member of the Jesuit community in the Holy Land. He teaches scripture at the Seminary of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in Beit Jala, at Bethlehem University, at the Salesian Theological Institute in Jerusalem, and in numerous other frameworks. From 2009 to 2017, he served as Latin Patriarchal Vicar for Hebrew Speaking Catholics in Israel and as coordinator of the Pastoral Among Migrants within the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/conquest-or-leaven-reflections-of-a-catholic-priest-in-palestine-israel #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #Christianity #DavidNeuhaus #Jerusalem #Palestine

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Kin Sheung Chiaretto Yan as they discuss My Chinese Dream: Dialogues and Encounters with Christianity https://orbisbooks.com/products/my-chinese-dream-new-encounters-and-dialogues-with-christianity Since the first introduction of Christianity to China, many in both the East and West have explored the compatibility of Chinese culture with the Gospel. As a Chinese scholar, educated both in China and in Italy, Chiaretto Yan dreams of a new basis for encounter and dialogue, respectful of both church teaching and the deep wells of Chinese wisdom. In this book he attempts to find points of agreement between the Christian culture of unity and the Chinese culture of harmony, drawing on both biblical themes and insights from Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. This encounter is then extended to practical questions, including the promotion of integral ecology, “fraternity and social friendship,” the alleviation of poverty, and issues of social justice and religious freedom.  Kin Sheung Chiaretto Yan (甄健湘) is visiting professor at the University of Saint Joseph-Macau and the National Seminary of the Catholic Church in China. He holds a doctorate in practical theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, another doctorate in philosophy from the Sophia University Institute in Loppiano, and is the author of Evangelization in China: Challenges and Prospects (Orbis Books) and Seasons for Relationships. He is a consecrated member of the international Focolare movement. Get your copy today:  https://orbisbooks.com/products/my-chinese-dream-new-encounters-and-dialogues-with-christianity #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #Christianity #ChiarettoYan #China #CatholicChurch #Culture

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Beverly Lanzaetta as they discuss Birthing a New Mysticism: A Contemplation in Ten Parts https://orbisbooks.com/products/birthing-a-new-mysticism-a-contemplation-in-ten-parts Beverly Lanzetta, a leading contemplative scholar and theologian, has spent decades at the edges of spiritual tradition, charting the terrain where contemplative paths converge and the soul's evolution continues. Now, in ten contemplations, she offers language for what so many are sensing: we are not witnessing the decline of the sacred but its next emergence. A book for seekers- within our traditions and beyond them - who long for a spirituality deep enough to hold the via feminina, the intercontemplative path, the soul's seasons of transformation, and the anguish of global suffering. Lanzetta companions and invites readers to participate as the quickening pulse of holy matter is beating toward a new mysticism. Beverly Lanzetta, PhD, is a theologian, spiritual teacher, and author of many books on constructive mysticism, global spirituality, the new monasticism, and feminist theology, including Emerging Heart: Global Spirituality and the Sacred and Radical Wisdom: A Feminist Mystical Theology. Dedicated to theological openness and spiritual nonviolence, her work has been praised for its wisdom, eloquence, and mystical insight. She lives in Tucson, Arizona. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/birthing-a-new-mysticism-a-contemplation-in-ten-parts #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #Christian #BeverlyLanzaetta #Feminism #Spirituality

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Ursula Baatz as they discuss Jesuit and Zen Master: A Life of Hugo M.Enomiya-Lassalle https://orbisbooks.com/products/jesuit-and-zen-master-a-life-of-hugo-m-enomiya-lassalle Hugo Lassalle (1898-1990), who later took the name Enomiya-Lassalle, was a German Jesuit stationed in mission to Japan. There he survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and became deeply engaged in the exploration and practice of Zen, which he believed was compatible with Christian faith. He became the pioneer of this dialogue, giving rise to a whole school of Christian-Zen dialogue/practice and, despite many struggles, winning approval from the Vatican. Ursula Baatz received her PhD in philosophy from the University of Vienna, where she is currently a research fellow at the Institute of Religious Studies.  Certified as a Zen teacher. She is also the author of Hugo M. Enomiya-Lassalle. Life Between Worlds. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/jesuit-and-zen-master-a-life-of-hugo-m-enomiya-lassalle #OrbisBooks #HugoLassalle #Zen#Christian #UruslaBaatz #Jesuit

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with James Robinson as they discuss Beyond Factory Farming: A Contemplative-Prophetic Approach to Food https://orbisbooks.com/products/beyond-factory-farming-a-contemplative-prophetic-approach-to-food How can our meals reroot us in the soils of creation? How can our foodways uproot and replace the desecrating system of factory farming? The contemplative-prophetic approach to food that is found in these pages weaves together religious, scientific, and culinary wisdom for our relationships with food, meals, and each other. James Robinson directs the Deignan Institute for Earth and Spirit, Iona University, where he serves as a clinical lecturer in religious studies. He received the university's Catherine McCabe Award for Innovation and Excellence in Teaching in 2023. Jim is a GreenFaith Fellow and is actively involved in a number of lay Catholic communities committed to embodying ecology and social justice, including Agape Community, Hardwick, MA, Benincasa Community, Guilford, CT, and Maryhouse Catholic Worker, New York City. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/beyond-factory-farming-a-contemplative-prophetic-approach-to-food #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #JamesRobinson #Farming #contemplative

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Alfonse Borysewicz as they discuss Painting Prayer: Why Faith Needs Art - and Art Needs Faith https://orbisbooks.com/products/painting-prayer-why-faith-needs-art-and-art-needs-faith Both a spiritual resource for thoughtful Christians and creatives, and a meditation on the relationship between faith and the arts, in this book artist Alfonse Borysewicz explores the complex relationship between art’s push against boundaries and the church’s respect for the boundedness of faith, tradition, and theology. In a freshness of approach and voice, Borysewicz showing how creative experience can benefit people of faith and how timeless faith offers much to creative expression. Drawing on theologians, philosophers, novelists, and fellow artists, Borysewicz reflects on faith itself in a messy world offering limited certainty.  Alfonse Borysewicz is a Brooklyn-based painter. A Detroit native, he has a BA from Sacred Heart Seminary and an MA from St. John's Provincial Seminary. He attended the Studio School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, MA and is a recipient of two Pollock-Krasner Foundation fellowships (1987, 1992), a Guggenheim Fellowship (1995), and Templeton Religion Trust grant. His work has been featured in The New York Times and Art in America. This is his first book. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/painting-prayer-why-faith-needs-art-and-art-needs-faith #OrbisBooks #RobertEllsberg #AlfonseBorysewicz #Creative #Faith #Christian #Theology #Art

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with James Finley as they discuss Thomas Merton (Turning to the Mystics) https://orbisbooks.com/products/thomas-merton-turning-to-the-mystics This new series, Turning to the Mystics, grows out of the much-loved podcast in which James Finley gently accompanies listeners into the wisdom of the Christian mystical tradition. Each volume offers a contemplative reading of one or two mystics, weaving their wisdom together with Finley’s reflective commentary and simple practices for prayer. These mystics become living guides, offering room to notice how grace is already moving in the reality of our own lives and revealing the ever-present intimate nearness of God. In this volume, he delves into the mystical insights of Thomas Merton, the renowned Trappist monk, whom Finley first knew as his novice master at the Abbey of Gethsemani. James Finley, a psychotherapist and renowned retreat leader and spiritual director, is part of the Core Faculty of the Center for Action and Contemplation in New Mexico. A former novice at the Trappist Abbey of Gethsemani, he is well known for his classic, Merton’s Palace of Nowhere. His other books include his recent bestseller, The Healing Path: A Memoir and an Invitation. He lives in California. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/thomas-merton-turning-to-the-mystics #OrbisBooks #JamesFinley #RobertEllsberg #Mystics #Catholic #Christian #Wisdom

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Mary Fontana as they discuss Strangers in the Province of Joy: Practicing Radical Hospitality on the US - Mexico Border https://orbisbooks.com/products/strangers-in-the-province-of-joy-practicing-radical-hospitality-on-the-us-mexico-border This is the story of America writ small—a nation founded by immigrants and its shifting, oft-contradictory attitudes toward them. Since 1978, El Paso’s Annunciation House has welcomed over half a million people: migrants and refugees, doing what humans have always done to find sustenance and safety, and volunteers seeking meaning and purpose. Through this chronicle of their individual journeys, Mary Fontana exposes the forces driving global migration and challenges readers to confront the borders in their own hearts. Mary Fontana has supported migrant hospitality efforts in El Paso for over two decades. She has written about the border for America, BorderLore, and Consequence. Learn more at maryfontana.com. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/strangers-in-the-province-of-joy-practicing-radical-hospitality-on-the-us-mexico-border #OrbisBooks #MaryFontana #RobertEllsberg #Migrants #CatholicChurch #Refugees #US #Mexico

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Phyllis Zagano as they discuss The Vatican and Women Deacons https://orbisbooks.com/products/the-vatican-and-women-deacons In The Vatican and Women Deacons, Phyllis Zagano explores the history, theology, and ongoing debate surrounding women in ordained ministry within the Catholic Church. Drawing from years of scholarship and direct involvement in Vatican discussions, Zagano examines the role of women deacons in the early Church, the contemporary questions facing the Vatican, and what the restoration of the female diaconate could mean for the future of Catholic ministry and leadership. Phyllis Zagano is an internationally recognized Catholic scholar and author specializing in contemporary spirituality and women’s roles in the Church. She served on Pope Francis’ 2016 Study Commission on the Women’s Diaconate and has written extensively on ministry, ecclesiology, and Church history. Get your copy today: https://orbisbooks.com/products/the-vatican-and-women-deacons #OrbisBooks #PhyllisZagano #RobertEllsberg #WomenDeacons #CatholicChurch #Theology

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Andrew T. Vink as they discuss  Common Evil: Political Economy and the Ethics of Liberation https://orbisbooks.com/products/common-evil-political-economy-and-the-ethics-of-liberation Common Evil: addresses a malignant hopelessness that has overtaken our society through a theological analysis that emphasizes concrete manifestations of ideology in history. Part of the struggle of understanding the malaise of our society is a difficulty in connecting the abstract concepts of sinful social structures such as racism, sexism, and neoliberal capitalism to the concrete realities that we experience daily. The common evil, developed from Ellacuría’s theological work, provides a language to start making these connections. As we become able to identify and understand these connections, we are able to participate in critical praxis towards alleviating the suffering created by common evil. Andrew T. Vink holds a PhD in systematic theology from Boston College and master’s degrees in theology and philosophy from Marquette University. A Roman Catholic, Vink has served as adjunct professor at Mount St. Mary’s University and lecturer at Marymount University. Get your copy today:  https://orbisbooks.com/products/common-evil-political-economy-and-the-ethics-of-liberation #OrbisBooks #AndrewTVink  #RobertEllsberg #Ethics #Politics #Liberation

Join Robert Ellsberg, publisher of Orbis Books, in this One On One interview with Wes Howard-Brook as they discuss  Creation or Empire: A Choice of Religions in the Bible and Beyond https://orbisbooks.com/products/creation-or-empire-a-choice-of-religions-in-the-bible-and-beyond “If we study Wes’ brilliant insight to the Bible, we will not only want to join the biblical lineage of nonviolent resistance to empire with all our hearts, but discover anew the living God of universal love and peace who calls us to a new world of peace.”—Rev. John Dear, author, The Gospel of Peace   “This book is a clarion call and a summons. To choose Creation over Empire is not a moral decision. It is to decide what kind of world will live in us. The gospel is not neutral—it is a jailbreak, a holy uprising against every system that cages the imagination that belongs to God. Creation or Empire extends that vision to the whole world.”—Rev. Lynice Pinkard, UCC Philadelphia area pastor   “Creation or Empire delivers a template showing how Christians can live a religion of creation story today!” —Angela N. Parker, PhD, Mercer University Wes Howard-Brook is the author of several award-winning books, including “Come Out, My People!” God’s Call out of Empire in the Bible and Beyond and Empire Baptized: How the Church Embraced What Jesus Rejected, 2nd-5th Centuries. He collaborates in the ministry Abide in Me with his wife Sue Ferguson Johnson. His YouTube channel, Radical Bible (https://radicalbible.net), is a word-by word, video biblical commentary. Get your copy today:  https://orbisbooks.com/products/creation-or-empire-a-choice-of-religions-in-the-bible-and-beyond #OrbisBooks #WesHoward-Brook  #RobertEllsberg #Religion #Bible