So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 10 - The Great Open Dance: A Better Story of God

What if faith isn’t dying—it’s growing up? Jon Paul Sydnor joins us for a wide-ranging conversation about a spirituality you can actually live in your body and your real life. We talk about love as the thread that ties us together (he calls it “loving inseparability”), why God isn’t a cosmic puppeteer, and why the best kind of church is backstage: honest, safe, unpolished, and full of people learning to carry one another toward healing and flourishing.

Jon Paul Sydnor is Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at Emmanuel College, theologian-in-residence at Grace Community Boston, and a podcaster at The Progressive Sacred. He studied at the University of Virginia, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Boston College, where he received his PhD. He practices theology in conversation with other religions, especially Hinduism and Buddhism.

To find out more about Jon Paul, join his substack the Great Open Dance:Progressive Christian Theology (https://jonpaulsydnor.substack.com/) or you can buy his latest book, "The Great Open Dance: Progressive Christian Theology (https://www.amazon.ca/Great-Open-Dance-Progressive-Christian/dp/1666775150) .To explore nondualism, read the book edited by Jon Paul Syndor and Anthony J. Watson entitled: "Nondualism: An Interreligious Exploration" from Lexington Books.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 9 of ‘So What’ as Brent Saccucci joins Michael and Trevor as they explore the big ideas of practicing discomforto as to be accomplices with personal and social change to bring liberation and healing and joy to the world. Is it hard or easy? Find out as you listen!

Brent Saccucci has worked as a K-12 teacher and equity consultant in schools and universities across Canada for over a decade. He is now a faculty member in the Faculty of Education at the University of Lethbridge, where he teaches courses in the social, cultural, and political contexts of education as well as critical media literacy. Before UofL, Brent taught social justice and literacy education at both the University of British Columbia and the University of Alberta. Brent is a Senior Research Fellow at the Canadian Institute for Far-Right Studies and serves as Faculty Advisor of the inaugural Leading Social Change in Schools Cohort for over 60 teachers looking to make change in Southern Alberta schools and communities. He is also a doctoral student at Western University in social justice education, where he studies theocratic government’s curriculum censorship of queer and trans voices. Brent is also writing an open-access, multimodal textbook with queer and trans students as a way to combat misinformation on ‘gender ideology’ in education; and he co-created a new cross-faculty course on “Misinformation” with six other faculty on the UofL campus to help equip undergraduate students with the tools needed for an increasingly polarized information world. Most recently, Brent was recognized as the 2025 Alberta Human Rights Champion by the John Humphrey Centre for Peace & Human Rights.

You can find more from Brent at https://www.learningwithbrent.com/about-brent

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 8 of ‘So What’ as Tori Owens joins Michael and Trevor as they explore the big ideas of Julian Norwich an English anchoress of the Middle Ages who lived through the Black Death.

Tori Owens is a full-time therapist and spiritual director, a part-time doctoral student in Open and Relational Theology, most definitely an everyday mystic, just trying to blend it all in such a way that it might be a little healing. You can find her writing at Love, Tori (toriowens.substack.com).

Tori co-hosts a series of conversations with public theologians, writers, and creatives with Jonathan Foster on Substack (https://fosterj.substack.com/). She is an ordained minister and serves on the board for the Open Table Network (opentable.network). She recently joined the advisory board for SPARKS, a creative initiative of the Center for Process Studies (ctr4process.org), launching this fall.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 7 as we join Michael and Trevor from the balcony, like Statler and Waldorf from the Muppets - as they explore the last episode’s big ideas and why they matter. This week Michael and Trevor explore the amazing ideas of Stacey Madden is the founder of Mindful Somatic Wellness and a certified Somatic Movement Educator and Mind Body Therapist and of what it means to really inhabit these 'big' ideas about the body and somatics.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on Podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 6 of ‘So What’ as Stacey Madden joins Michael and Trevor as they explore the big idea Somatics.

Stacey Madden is the founder of Mindful Somatic Wellness and a certified Somatic Movement Educator and Mind Body Therapist. She specializes in helping people reconnect with their bodies, emotions, and nervous systems through curiosity and compassion—not correction. Stacey brings a grounded, trauma-informed approach to everything she does, from one-on-one sessions to international workshops. She had a blast joining So What? to talk all things somatics, nervous system care, and the magic of moving at the speed of trust.

You can find more of her work at:

Website: www.mindfulsomaticwellness.com

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@mindfulsomaticwellness?si=42L0doJIpVh3eiUT

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/15LsdFF2bp/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindfulsomatics?igsh=MWU2OHphYWJ6cmR1ZQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 5 as we join Michael and Trevor from the balcony, like Statler and Waldorf from the Muppets - as they explore the last episode’s big ideas and why they matter.

This week Michael and Trevor explore the amazing ideas of author, educator, and podcaster Michael Brennan of what it means to really inhabit these 'big' ideas about inclusive love as a queer ally.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 4 of So What as Michael Brennan joins Michael and Trevor as they explore the big idea of inclusive love as a queer ally.

Michael is an author, educator, and podcaster passionate about amplifying voices, fostering meaningful conversations, and inspiring growth through storytelling and education. For over 20 years, he has taught high school English, helping students find their voice and cultivate their creativity. His work explores the intersections of faith, identity, and resilience, drawing from lived experiences and a deep commitment to open and relational theology

Michael writes: “I know conversations about LGBTQIA+ affirmation, faith, and theology sometimes feel heavy—especially when we’ve been told there are only two sides to the story. My hope is not to tell you what to think, but to invite you into deeper reflection about love, harm, and what faithfulness really looks like.”

You can find more of HIS writing at michaeljosephbrennan.com, or subscribe to HIS Substack, Theodivergent, where he post essays, reflections, and audiobook chapters from my book Flourish: An Open and Relational Queer Theology. The book is his attempt to share how the God of love I’ve come to know is inclusive, liberating, and actively working toward the well-being of all creation—including LGBTQIA+ people.

Resources for Your Own Reflection

If you’re wrestling with how to think well about LGBTQIA+ affirmation, here are some resources Michael would recommend—starting with those that have helped him the most:

Affirming and Life-Giving Resources:

• Matthew Vines, God and the Gay Christian– A careful, biblical engagement on sexual orientation and affirmation.
• James Brownson, Bible, Gender, Sexuality– Rigorous theological work on what Scripture actually says (and doesn’t say).
• Austen Hartke, Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians– Beautiful, practical, and full of compassion.
• Keegan Osinski, Queering Wesley, Queering the Church– A fantastic exploration of how queer theology and Wesleyan theology intersect.
• Richard O. Prum, Performance All the Way Down. An interdisciplinary exploration of how biology and queer feminist theory intersect to challenge the traditional binary understanding of sex and gender.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.

So What? Exploring Big Ideas and Why They Matter

Welcome to Episode 3 as we join Michael and Trevor from the balcony, like Statler and Waldorf from the Muppets - as they explore the last episode’s big ideas and why they matter.

This week Michael and Trevor explore the amazing ideas of Author/Activist Rivera Sun on Nonviolence from Episode 2. Views from the balcony are an exploration of what it means to really inhabit these 'big' ideas.

If you enjoy this episode, please like it, subscribe, consider rating it, and sharing it with family and friends. This podcast can also be found on podbean, Spotify, Apple, and other platforms.

Thanks to Jim for production and Rebekah for the voice behind the scenes.

This podcast is produced by McKillop; Living Sacred Relationships.