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The Dawn Chorus blends birdsong with human voice in 'musical wake-up call'
Assistant professor of religion Alexander Hampton and opera singer Nicole Percifield teamed up at the University of Toronto to launch the Dawn Chorus project — incorporating birdsong recorded by students into a composition sung by Percifield, to celebrate and raise awareness of the wildlife existing within urban centres.
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The Dawn Chorus: tuning in to nature
Assistant professor of religion Alexander Hampton and opera singer Nicole Percifield teamed up at the University of Toronto to launch the Dawn Chorus project — incorporating birdsong recorded by students into a composition sung by Percifield, to celebrate and raise awareness of the wildlife existing within urban centres.
The 'Religions Geek' on how COVID has impacted religious awareness
Brian Carwana calls himself The Religions Geek. He’s the Executive Director of Encounter World Religions. And he says despite Canada’s rich religious diversity, much of the population remains “religiously illiterate” — a condition the pandemic has simultaneously exacerbated and alleviated.
How COVID rewired religion
For churchgoers, COVID brought some big adjustments. Lockdowns and social distancing meant that many believers stayed at home — either sleeping in, or watching the service over Zoom. But a few pastors responded to the moment by seizing it. They built new churches in virtual reality. Plus: how the pandemic has shaped religious practices — for the worse, but also for the better.
A faith to call her own: writer Bunmi Laditan's search for connection with God
Bunmi Laditan is a writer and poet best known for her satirical Twitter account @HonestToddler. She retraces her spiritual path from her family’s Yoruba Christian faith to her conversion to Judaism and beyond, and shares heartfelt selections from her book, "Help Me God, I'm a Parent: Honest Prayers for Hectic Days and Endless Nights".
Russian missiles struck his seminary in Kyiv. That only strengthened this priest's faith
Weeks into the war, Russian missiles struck the Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary in Kyiv, where Reverend Ivan Rusyn is president. He says that while his faith in God has only gotten stronger, he has a different perspective on pacifism than he did before the war.
Where is God in a time of war?
Reverend Ivan Rusyn is the president of the Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary in Kyiv. Russian missiles struck the seminary in early March, causing extensive damage. That only strengthened Rev. Rusyn's faith in God — but the war has shaken his perspective on pacifism.
The Big Dipper and the Dene traveller legend — how Indigenous teachings can change views of the night sky
Mi'kmaw astronomer Hilding Neilson and Dene Chief Fred Sangris have brought their Indigenous perspectives to the study of astronomy. Neilson says applying these different lenses when looking at the stars can help create a better and more inclusive field of study.
Why this author believes finding happiness is an aggressive act
In her book, Aggressively Happy: A Realist's Guide to Believing in the Goodness of Life, author Joy Clarkson reveals how she came up with the title by embracing a teasing insult on Twitter.
Happiness and humour for hectic times
Is your ‘emotional weather forecast’ sad with a chance of passing happiness, or joy, with only a scattered bit of melancholy? Authors Joy Clarkson, Jennifer Grant and Bunmi Laditan offer tips and tools for finding warmth and sunlight in life's often harsh conditions.
Toronto Raptors chaplain explains why he doesn't pray for wins
Toronto Raptors and Argos chaplain Herbie Kuhn believes he has an immense duty to the players he supports. And sometimes that means he can’t ask God to intervene – even in the diciest games.
Sports, exercise and the spirit within
Toronto Raptors and Argos chaplain Herbie Kuhn believes he has an immense duty to the players he supports. And Carine Abouseif had to reassess her relationship to exercise over the pandemic.
'Why are we here?' and other questions for an astrophysicist-folklorist
With a double-major from Harvard in astrophysics and folklore, Moiya McTier bills herself as the 'folklorist to the stars' and the 'astrophysicist for the folks'. And she believes being an expert in both disciplines serves the perfect one-two punch for her job as a science communicator.
Stories and the stars: Part two
With a double-major from Harvard in astrophysics and folklore, Moiya McTier bills herself as the 'folklorist to the stars' and the 'astrophysicist for the folks'. Later, Chief Fred Sangris, an elder of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, reflects on traditional Dene wayfinding – navigating by way of the stars.
How this astronomer learned to 'embrace the void' through cosmic horror
When thinking about the universe or delving into dark fantasy, astronomer Leo Alcorn believes the prime directive should be to “embrace the void” and “love what you don’t understand.”
Stories and the stars: Part one
Leo Alcorn approaches her work as astronomer in the same way she tackles the cosmic horror of HP Lovecraft. Hilding Neilson likes to say that every star tells a story.
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Inshallah, good things are coming
Abdullah Shihipar discusses the implicit balance between faith and agency in the Arabic word “inshallah.” And we hear from those celebrating Ramadan this year about words that matter most to them.
EPISODE
Finding the line between faith and agency
Abdullah Shihipar discusses the implicit balance between faith and agency in the Arabic word “inshallah.” The word means “god willing” and he’s encouraging everyone — including non-Muslims — to use it. Also, biochemist Beronda Montgomery thinks we have a lot to learn from the natural world about slowing down.
A 'good enough' life can be better than striving for the impossible, says author
Kate Bowler is an author and Duke University professor, who after a sudden crisis had to reassess what it means to live a good life.
Christianity may not have all the answers, but it may offer meaning, says professor
In his latest book, Can I Believe?: Christianity for the Hesitant, John G. Stackhouse admits his faith offers plenty of fuel for skeptics. But he also argues there’s something to Christianity worth considering.
Finding faith in creative acts
Reverend Paula Hollingsworth outlines the evolution of faith in Jane Austen’s novels and her personal life. And writer Amy Shearn, is on a quest to better understand why we take on long-term projects and what keeps us going through the process.
How technology may be robbing you of more than just your attention
Technology is designed to grab your attention — but that's not all you end up paying, according to philosopher James Williams. And for the French philosopher Simone Weil, the act of paying attention was a moral imperative — so much so that some argue it cost her her life.
500 years ago: Pope gives permission to conquer Indigenous people
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz explains how papal bull edicts from the fifteenth-century gave permission for Europeans to conquer the world's Indigenous peoples.
Stranger things: what we can learn from people we don't know
Strangers can change our lives every day in sometimes small ways, and in other times, ways that leave a legacy. Colleen Kinder is the editor of Letter to a Stranger: Essays to the Ones Who Haunt us, a collection of letters to those strangers who are hard to forget.
Feeling overwhelmed with the non-stop news? You're not alone.
Cynthia Wallace asks what today is a pretty universal question: how can you follow the news cycle while protecting your own mental health? She’s an English professor at the University of Saskatchewan.
