Tapestrywith Mary Hynes

Jason Shron won’t finish building the model railroad in his basement - a scaled down replica of the Toronto-Montreal route circa 1980 - until he is 95 years old. But that’s OK: for him, model railroading is a kind of spiritual practice. Brian Bachand was passionate about his work as a Catholic priest in Boston, but he made the decision to leave. Lena Felton shares expert advice on when and how to quit a book, a relationship, or a dream.

As a feminist theologian and the daughter of a pastor, Rachel Meyer has thought a lot about matters of the spirit, but when it came time to pass on her knowledge to her son - she was at a loss at how to teach him about religion without inflicting spiritual trauma.

Rachel Meyer is a theologian and the mother of a six-year-old boy. She speaks to Mary Hynes about how she’s trying to pass on the best of her Lutheran upbringing, yoga and Buddhist philosophy, and an ecofeminist appreciation for nature to her son, while ditching the more toxic elements. Musician Daniela Andrade on navigating the conflicting taboos and expectations about being Latina and arriving at her own strong sense of womanhood.

Dr. Manuel Matas has spent four decades working as a clinical psychiatrist. He’s had several mystical experiences during his life, and he believes we need to remove the stigma from what he says is a relatively common phenomenon.

When David Yaden was a university student, he had a mystical experience he says he’ll never forget. Today, Yaden’s work as a researcher focuses on documenting and understanding spiritual experiences just like his.

Veteran psychiatrist Manuel Matas on his mission to destigmatize paranormal experiences. A profound mystical experience leads scientist David Yaden to devote his life to researching spiritual experiences. Journalist Jordan Kisner tries to find out why, despite any conclusive explanation, Reiki works.

Despite being a certified Reiki teacher, journalist Jordan Kisner still struggles to explain how and why this Japanese method of energetic healing actually works. But if the patient feels better, isn’t that what counts?

Michael Schur, creator of NBC comedy The Good Place, gambled that viewers were hungry for discussions about ethics and philosophy, even if they didn't know it at the time. His gamble paid off, making The Good Place a hit show.

If you were to play ‘where are they now’ about pop stars from the 1980s - you’d couldn’t do much better than Richard Coles. Back then, he was a member of the British pop duo The Communards, with a #1 hit single. Today he’s a parish priest in England.

Robert Thurman was the first Westerner to be ordained by the Dalai Lama. He no longer wears the robes but he has been a guide to Tibetan Buddhism for many people and has some fascinating views on how to live a spiritual life in this very hectic world.

“I never expected a guy fresh out of prison to be rubbing a kitten’s belly.” One day, a scraggly cat showed up outside the door at the Native Men's residence, a shelter in Toronto. Some of the men at Na-Me-Res decided to look after the kitten. They called her Smudgey. This is their story.

The Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, Desmond Tutu, and now, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks. The Templeton Prize is given annually to someone who has made a profound spiritual contribution to the world. Rabbi Sacks received the honour this year for working to end religious violence and affirming the spiritual dimension of life.

Salman Ahmad is a Pakistani-American musician best known for his Sufi rock. He describes his sound as "Led Zeppelin meets Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan."

According to Patricia Pearson, about fifty percent of the bereaved sense the presence of the dead. Her book is called, Opening Heaven's Door: What The Dying May Be Trying to Tell Us About Where They're Going.

Dr. Francis Collins is the geneticist who directed the Human Genome Project mapping DNA, which he calls the "first glimpse of our own instruction book, previously known only to God." He was an atheist until a simple question from a patient changed everything he believed.

Ijeoma Oluo, author of So You Want To Talk About Race, wants to change the conversation about racial oppression. She says that racism is about much more than overt acts of hate.

Andrea Chiu sometimes struggled to get her white wife to understand her perspective on race. Then they read Ijeoma Oluo’s best-selling book, So You Want To Talk About Race.

At this time of physical isolation and uncertainty, music can offer a powerful balm. Tapestry is crowdsourcing songs that will lift your spirits and calm your nerves.

Ijeoma Oluo talks to host Mary Hynes about race — namely, how hard and needed those conversations are. Oluo, author of So You Want to Talk About Race, discusses where these conversations go wrong.

When Bryan Stevenson was asked to come up with a seven-word bio for a public appearance recently, he offered this: "Broken by poverty, injustice, condemnation. But hopeful." He is the author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption.

Throughout Canada, physical distancing restrictions are lifting and more people are venturing out and visiting friends and family. But trying to be a good person in the new normal can be challenging and disorienting. Philosopher Alice MacLachlan and moral psychologist Azim Shariff offer some ethical guidance.

When you’re feeling trapped or demoralized by the pandemic, scholar Joy Clarkson says fictional characters on quests — like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings — can inspire bravery. Clarkson says it’s more than wilful blindness; having a vision of heroism can be a guide in hard times.