Elizabeth Oldfield: Tending to Our Souls in Turbulent Times
May 28, 2024
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Elizabeth Oldfield, host of The Sacred podcast, discusses tending to our souls in turbulent times using the framework of the seven deadly sins. She explores the importance of resilience, kindness, and empathy in a divisive world. The podcast touches on reframing sin, embracing simplicity, and navigating difficult emotions for personal growth.
Resilience and kindness are key in turbulent times for personal growth and connection with others.
Understanding sin as disconnection and embracing vulnerability lead to genuine human interactions and spiritual growth.
Deep dives
Discovering the Theological Beer Camp
The podcast hosts share excitement about being invited to the Theology Beer Camp event in Colorado. They discuss the academic and nerdy nature of the gathering, which includes diverse keynote speakers and podcasts. They mention the early bird discount for registration and offer a code for a discount, encouraging listeners to participate and potentially join a gravity gathering during the event.
Navigating Turbulent Times and Choosing to Be Fully Alive
The podcast guest, Elizabeth Oldfield, explores the concept of turbulent times and how it affects individuals differently. She discusses the existential anxiety caused by global events and the challenge of balancing engagement with self-care. Oldfield emphasizes the importance of finding inner peace and connection in the midst of chaos, highlighting the need to focus on immediate relationships and community to foster a sense of aliveness.
Unpacking the Notion of Sin and Human Flourishing
Elizabeth Oldfield delves into the concept of sin as disconnection and tragedy rather than mere violation of rules. She shares insights on rediscovering the theological significance of sin and its impact on human relationships. Oldfield emphasizes the potential for restoration and grace when addressing sin and highlights the narrative shift from legalistic views to relational perspectives.
Reclaiming Fullness of Life through Deep Human Connection
The podcast explores the transformation from numbing behaviors to experiencing ecstasy through deep connections and relational encounters. Guests discuss the journey from superficial consumption to intimate experiences of love and connection. The emphasis shifts towards embracing vulnerability, emotional depth, and finding meaning in genuine human interactions, ultimately leading to spiritual growth and genuine aliveness.
In a world experiencing turbulent change, we need people who are resilient, kind, open, generous, and brave. How do we become those kinds of people? In Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times, popular podcaster Elizabeth Oldfield uses the seven deadly sins as a framework to explore this question.
Elizabeth Oldfield hosts The Sacred, a podcast about our deepest values, the stories that shape us, and how we can build empathy and understanding between people who are very different. She has a regular column for UnHerd and has appeared on BBC One, Radio 5Live, Radio 4, and The World Service. Her work has appeared in The Financial Times, Prospect, The Times, CNN, The Guardian, and beyond. Oldfield is also a contributing editor at Comment magazine, a guest lecturer at the University of Birmingham, and former director and now senior fellow at Theos, the UK's leading religion and society think tank. She lives in London, England.