Nomad Podcast

By Nomad

For more than 15 years, Nomad Podcast has been an independent, listener-supported space for open-hearted conversations about faith, doubt, and belonging, offering a British perspective shaped by voice... more

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How many episodes does Nomad Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 415 episodes available.

Best of Nomad Podcast

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: Pádraig Ó Tuama – Desire, Anger and Becoming Almost New (N376)
Pádraig Ó Tuama returns to Nomad for a conversation about the stories we inherit, the desires we’re taught to mistrust, and what happens when religious language gets tangled up with shame. We talk about scripture, poetry, anger, masculinity, friendship and the strange ways God can remain present even after religion has caused harm. Along the way, Pádraig reflects on exorcisms and reparative therapy, the body’s capacity to know before the mind catches up, and why anger can become a creative energy rather than something to fear. We also explore what it means to become “almost new” — not through a neat story of healing, but through friendship, attention, prayer, birds, and the slow work of learning how to live differently. After the interview, Nomad hosts Tim and Anna pick up some of the threads Pádraig left dangling: what do we do with anger once it stops being something to fear, why can faith remain strangely compelling even after it has caused harm, and what might our images of God reveal about us? Interview starts at 12m 22s Books, quotes, links → The creation of Nomad’s thoughtful, ad-free content is entirely funded by our equally thoughtful and wonderful listeners. By supporting us, you gain access to Nomad’s online spaces—like the Beloved Listener Lounge, Enneagram Lounge, and Book Club—as well as bonus episodes such as Nomad Contemplations, Homegrown Conversations, and Nomad Revisited. If you’d like to join our lovely community of supporters, head over to our Patreon page. You might even be rewarded with a Nomad pen or our coveted Beloved Listener mug! If a monthly commitment isn’t possible right now, a one-off donation is always deeply appreciated—you can do that here. Looking to connect with others nearby? Check out the Listener Map or join our Nomad Gathering Facebook group. And if you're up for sharing your own story, we regularly post reflections from listeners on our blog—all with the hope of fostering deeper understanding, connection and supportive relationships. If you'd like to share your story on the blog, contact us for more information here.
September 11, 20261h 30min
Number 2: Bart Ehrman – Are We All Followers of Jesus? (N375)
In this conversation, bestselling historian Bart Ehrman argues that ideas we now take for granted—caring for strangers, helping those in need and expanding our moral concern beyond family and tribe—were anything but obvious in the ancient world. Bart has spent much of his career challenging traditional Christian beliefs. But in Love Thy Stranger he makes a surprising historical case for Christianity's positive legacy, while remaining candid about the harm the church has also caused. Along the way we explore Jesus' relationship to Judaism, why the early church may have changed his teaching on forgiveness, whether Christianity transformed the moral imagination of the West, and what—if anything—we stand to lose as faith continues to decline. After the interview, Nomad hosts Tim and Nick wrestle with what it means to be shaped by Jesus’ moral vision while no longer holding all the beliefs that once came with it. Interview starts at 11m 44s Books, quotes, links → The creation of Nomad’s thoughtful, ad-free content is entirely funded by our equally thoughtful and wonderful listeners. By supporting us, you gain access to Nomad’s online spaces—like the Beloved Listener Lounge, Enneagram Lounge, and Book Club—as well as bonus episodes such as Nomad Contemplations, Homegrown Conversations, and Nomad Revisited. If you’d like to join our lovely community of supporters, head over to our Patreon page. You might even be rewarded with a Nomad pen or our coveted Beloved Listener mug! If a monthly commitment isn’t possible right now, a one-off donation is always deeply appreciated—you can do that here. Looking to connect with others nearby? Check out the Listener Map or join our Nomad Gathering Facebook group. And if you're up for sharing your own story, we regularly post reflections from listeners on our blog—all with the hope of fostering deeper understanding, connection and supportive relationships. If you'd like to share your story on the blog, contact us for more information here.
August 24, 20261h 25min
Number 3: Swami Padmanabha – Truth, Tradition and the Courage to Question (N373)
How do you hold onto a spiritual tradition after being deeply disappointed by the people who represent it? That's a question Swami Padmanabha — a Hindu monk, teacher and author of Evolution in Divine Love — has had to wrestle with more than once. Rather than walking away, those experiences led him into a deeper exploration of authority, uncertainty, love and the possibility that healthy traditions are those that continue to evolve. In this conversation, Tim and Swami explore what it means to stay rooted without becoming rigid, to question without becoming cynical, and to remain open to wisdom wherever it is found. Along the way they discover some surprising resonances between Hinduism and Christianity, and ask whether the future of religion might depend less on having all the answers and more on learning how to keep growing. After the interview, Tim is joined by Nick to reflect on what stayed with them most. From caring for God as though God were a child, to learning from other faith traditions without losing your own roots, they explore where Swami's vision resonated, where it challenged them, and the questions they're still left pondering. Interview starts at 12m 48s Books, quotes, links → The creation of Nomad’s thoughtful, ad-free content is entirely funded by our equally thoughtful and wonderful listeners. By supporting us, you gain access to Nomad’s online spaces—like the Beloved Listener Lounge, Enneagram Lounge, and Book Club—as well as bonus episodes such as Nomad Contemplations, Homegrown Conversations, and Nomad Revisited. If you’d like to join our lovely community of supporters, head over to our Patreon page. You might even be rewarded with a Nomad pen or our coveted Beloved Listener mug! If a monthly commitment isn’t possible right now, a one-off donation is always deeply appreciated—you can do that here. Looking to connect with others nearby? Check out the Listener Map or join our Nomad Gathering Facebook group. And if you're up for sharing your own story, we regularly post reflections from listeners on our blog—all with the hope of fostering deeper understanding, connection and supportive relationships. If you'd like to share your story on the blog, contact us for more information here.
July 24, 20261h 30min
Number 4: Abi Millar - Meaning, Mystery and Spirituality After Faith (N370)
Abi Millar grew up in a charismatic evangelical church where faith once felt vivid, immediate and full of certainty. But as questions about science, belief, heaven and hell began to press in, that certainty slowly unravelled. In this conversation, Tim talks with Abi about what it cost to leave, the freedom and loss that followed, and the spiritual hunger that eventually re-emerged after a long season of atheism. They also talk about some of the practices Abi explores in her book The Spirituality Gap — including yoga, ayahuasca, tarot and meditation — and the tension between scepticism and openness that runs through her journey. Along the way, the conversation touches on rootedness, community, cultural integrity, and the question of whether spirituality can truly flourish without a shared story or tradition. Following the interview, Nomad hosts Tim and Nick reflect on the burden of heaven and hell, the freedom and loss of leaving evangelical faith, and the search for meaning beyond certainty. They also explore what Abi’s journey raises about psychedelics, tarot, rootedness, and the limits of highly individual spirituality. Interview starts at 10m 34s Books, quotes, links → The creation of Nomad’s thoughtful, ad-free content is entirely funded by our equally thoughtful and wonderful listeners. By supporting us, you gain access to Nomad’s online spaces—like the Beloved Listener Lounge, Enneagram Lounge, and Book Club—as well as bonus episodes such as Nomad Contemplations, Homegrown Conversations, and Nomad Revisited. If you’d like to join our lovely community of supporters, head over to our Patreon page. You might even be rewarded with a Nomad pen or our coveted Beloved Listener mug! If a monthly commitment isn’t possible right now, a one-off donation is always deeply appreciated—you can do that here. Looking to connect with others nearby? Check out the Listener Map or join our Nomad Gathering Facebook group. And if you're up for sharing your own story, we regularly post reflections from listeners on our blog—all with the hope of fostering deeper understanding, connection and supportive relationships. If you'd like to share your story on the blog, contact us for more information here.
June 08, 20261h 24min
Number 5: Mark Vernon - Silence and the Search for God (N368)
What if the deepest encounters with the divine are not dramatic or ecstatic, but quiet, steady, and hidden in ordinary life? Mark Vernon returns to Nomad to explore silence, mysticism, and the search for God after disillusionment. Reflecting on his own journey through priesthood, contemplative practice, psychotherapy and spiritual direction, Mark speaks about finding a form of Christianity rooted less in performance or certainty, and more in attention, presence and the inner life. In this conversation, Tim and Mark discuss The Cloud of Unknowing, Julian of Norwich, William Blake, spiritual homelessness, and why the mystical tradition may still have something vital to offer those who feel drawn to Christ but no longer fit easily within institutional church life. Following the interview Nomad hosts Tim and Anna reflect on their own relationship with mysticism, and the way it has shaped their evolving faith. Interview starts at 12m 48s Books, quotes, links → The creation of Nomad’s thoughtful, ad-free content is entirely funded by our equally thoughtful and wonderful listeners. By supporting us, you gain access to Nomad’s online spaces—like the Beloved Listener Lounge, Enneagram Lounge, and Book Club—as well as bonus episodes such as Nomad Contemplations, Homegrown Conversations, and Nomad Revisited. If you’d like to join our lovely community of supporters, head over to our Patreon page. You might even be rewarded with a Nomad pen or our coveted Beloved Listener mug! If a monthly commitment isn’t possible right now, a one-off donation is always deeply appreciated—you can do that here. Looking to connect with others nearby? Check out the Listener Map or join our Nomad Gathering Facebook group. And if you're up for sharing your own story, we regularly post reflections from listeners on our blog—all with the hope of fostering deeper understanding, connection and supportive relationships. If you'd like to share your story on the blog, contact us for more information here.
May 11, 20261h 25min