Father Greg Boyle

Father Gregory Boyle, a Jesuit priest and founder of Homeboy Industries, shares his journey of fostering love and compassion for those involved in gangs. He discusses how empathy can transform lives, emphasizing the importance of seeing individuals as doing their best, even in challenging circumstances. Boyle shares insights on setting healthy boundaries and motivating others through joy. He also explores an inclusive notion of God, highlighting the profound impact of tenderness and kindness in healing communities and overcoming societal divisions.

Journalist Sigal Samuel and Father Greg Boyle join the conversation on balancing contemplation and action in spiritual life. Samuel outlines the historical tension between active and contemplative spirituality, while discussing how meditation can enhance altruism. Father Boyle shares his transformative work with Homeboy Industries, emphasizing the importance of compassion over empty piety. Both guests advocate for integrating mindfulness into everyday actions, illustrating how presence can improve our capacity to help others in meaningful ways.

Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Bakery, shares his incredible journey of transforming lives through compassion. He discusses founding Homeboy Industries amid gang violence and his belief in the inherent goodness of every individual. Father Boyle highlights the life-changing services offered, such as therapy and tattoo removal, and shares inspiring personal stories of redemption. He emphasizes love as a powerful force for healing and unity in a divided world, reminding us of the importance of community and belonging.

Father Greg Boyle, the Founder of Homeboy Industries, shares his profound experiences working with former gang members in Los Angeles. He emphasizes the importance of seeing unshakable goodness in others, highlighting the transformative power of compassion and community. Boyle discusses how healing can replace punishment within the carceral system and the joy that arises from genuine connections. Their conversation punctuates the significance of unconditional love and the role of empathy in overcoming shame and trauma, fostering a deeper understanding of faith and joy.

As more Americans move away from organized religion, the moral and emotional needs once met by faith communities remain. What can secular society borrow from spiritual traditions — ritual, meaning, belonging and moral imagination — to nourish the human spirit and strengthen our shared civic life? In this conversation, recorded live at the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival, Dave explores how sacred wisdom can still guide character, compassion, and community in a post-religious age with Krista Tippett, Father Greg Boyle, and Rabbi Shira Stutman.Krista Tippet is the creator and host of the award winning podcast On Being and an awardee of the National Humanities medal. Father Greg Boyle is the founder of Homeboy Industries, a gang intervention, rehabilitation, and re-entry program in Los Angeles and author of the New York Times bestseller, Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion. Rabbi Shira Stutman is the founder of Mixed Multitudes, an organization that exposes diverse groups of Jews and fellow travelers to Jewish life, tradition, and conversation, and author of the acclaimed book The Jewish Way to a Good Life.