The Cosmic We with Barbara Holmes and Donny Bryant

"When I think of the tapestry of the cosmos, I see all sentient beings as threads woven together—one energy running through us all." - Felicia Murrell

In today's episode, author Felicia Murrell joins the Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant in conversation to offer a new vision of living gracefully and with connection. In this conversation, we're diving deep into what it means to be woven together and yet be gloriously unique in this stimulating conversation and about belonging, identity, privilege and our national and cosmic identity. 

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How do you remind yourself that we are one—even with those we struggle to like? 

On this episode, Dr. Donny Bryant and Dr. Barbara Holmes are joined in conversation by Dr. Liza J. Rankow. Together they explore the concept of mysticism and its relevance to social justice and the uncertainties of our world. Dr. Rankow emphasizes the importance of direct experience with the divine and how that experience can inform and sustain our work for a more just world; highlighting that the current state of the world demands a shift from oppositional dualism to a paradigm of reverence, kinship, and belonging to the wholeness of life.

Dr. Liza J. Rankow is an interfaith minister, educator, activist, and writer. Her lifework centers the deep healing that is essential to personal and social transformation. Liza is the founder and former executive director of OneLife Institute, supporting the well-being of frontline activists and caregivers. She has provided counseling and offered classes in healing and spiritual development for over three decades.

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When was the last time you deeply listened to someone’s story?

On this episode, Dr. Donny Bryant and Dr. Barbara Holmes are joined in conversation by Alison McCrary exploring the very real impact of how we listen, speak, and show up in the world. 

A former nun and tireless advocate, guest Alison McCrary reminds us, “We’re all called to be holy beings—to be the eyes, ears, heart, and being of God in the world.” How will you embody the eyes, ears, and heart of God in the world today? 

Alison McCrary, a Georgia-born, New Orleans-based social justice lawyer and spiritual worker, bridges justice and spirituality in her work. With roots in the U.S. South, she serves as a transformative justice practitioner, strategist, and mediator. Passionate about healing trauma and repairing harm, Alison is a Spiritual Advisor on Louisiana’s Death Row. Formerly a Catholic nun, she remains active in her parish and indigenous community, advocating for criminal justice reform, environmental justice, human rights, and cultural preservation.

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How can we cultivate resilience and hope, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges and ongoing chaos?

In this episode Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant talk with Rev. Otis Moss III about Dancing in the Darkness: Spiritual Lessons for Thriving in Turbulent Times, and how we can build resilience by consecrating chaos through prophetic grief and liberation listening.

Otis Moss III built his ministry on community empowerment and social justice activism. As senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, Illinois, Dr. Moss spent the last two decades practicing and preaching a Black theology that unapologetically calls attention to the problem of mass incarceration, environmental justice, and economic apartheid. Hailed as one of the "twelve most of effective preachers in the English-speaking world" by Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary, he has been cited by Chicago Magazine as one of the city's thirty most influential people. He is an NAACP Image Award recipient, award-winning filmmaker, poet, and professor of homiletics at Mercer University McAfee School of Theology. He is married to Monica Brown, and they are the proud parents of two children.

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Envision a future brimming with peace, joy, and creativity. What does that look like for you? 

In the final episode of “The Cosmic We” season 4, Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant discuss the importance of envisioning a future that bridges the ordinary and the eternal.   

As Dr. Holmes explains: “We are unique and ordinary mystics in the making, flowing from one state of existence to the other, inhabiting the ordinary and touching the eternal. We are embedded in the continuum of life, related to the divine, the earth, and our neighbors.”  

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How do we heal while traumatic events continue to happen?   

“As we sit with what is and what never should have been, our feet remember the call of drums and we allow the spirit within us to soar.” – Dr. Barbara Holmes

In this episode, learn more about the essential expression of joy as Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant explore the themes of the 5th chapter, Healing, in Crisis Contemplation.

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What does life look like in our modern-day village?  

Based on the next chapter in Crisis Contemplation, The Village Response, in this episode, Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant explore the role our communities play in shaping our humanity, our self-expression, and our healing.

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Who do you consider part of your village? 

In this episode, both Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant helps us make sense of our community wounds and explore the next chapter of Crisis Contemplation, Wounds. Dr. Barbara Holmes explains why unwelcome events are often essential to true transformation: “Wounds are portals. They are entryways to somewhere else within you. Sometimes things happen in your life that make you realize you have allowed a scar to form over something that was festering. It needed to be broken open.” 

 Have you gone through an unwelcome event that ushered in profound healing? Share your experience with us.  

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Do you have a time-tested contemplative practice for moments of crisis?  

In this episode, Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donald Bryant offer us this thought: “When crisis has you in its grip, contemplation offers the ability to stop striving. It allows you the space to grieve your losses and then let go. It lets you know that it is okay to withdraw from ordinary pursuits for a while and let the Spirit lead.”  

This episode is based on second chapter of Crisis Contemplation: Contemplation.

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Are you experiencing a crisis? How would you recognize it? 

On the 4th season of The Cosmic We, we are taking a pause from our normal format to explore the themes of Dr. Barbara Holmes' book Crisis Contemplation. Together, Dr. B and Dr. Donny explore ways we can apply it to the realities we face in our daily lives. This first episode is based on the themes of Chapter 1: Crisis.

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