As we kick off 2024, we focus on “Grace” and specifically looking at how we use it in dealing with division. As we head into what is likely to be an incredibly polarizing election year, there is worry that we will experience living in two worlds, completely separated from those with different political and social perspectives. 

Led by Rabbi Micah Greenstein, the group will discuss change and how it affects us in our daily lives. Music by Karen Smith, Dr. Ashley Davis and Kirk Whallum

From day-to- day, to our politics, to end of life and funerals. What is the funniest thing that has

happened in your role as a clergy person. How much does it matter that our next mayor has a sense of

humor? What is the funniest story you can tell on yourself?

This month's Mystic is a discussion of religious decline led by Rev. Dr. Lillian Lammers. What do you think are the primary drivers for US adults falling away from religious institutions?  What kinds of things can our religious institutions be doing differently that might slow or reverse this decline? Does the new Barbie movie offer any insight? 

How do you stay positive given the avalanche of daily tragedy, locally, nationally, and globally? No theological quick fixes. Heaven will be fine, earth is where all the problems are.  Beyond deep faith and prayer, what helps?What helps you to keep positive through the ages and stages of life?

This month, the Mystic panel discusses apologies, forgiveness, and the role of grace in our public and private lives.

If Dr. King were to be in Memphis in 2023, what would he want to do this week? I suspect he would still want to do God’s will. That of course begins with being committed to the truth—an ever-elusive thing for us to grasp. Writer Leo Tolstoy said, “Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold.” For so much of what we encounter, there is a lot of washing to be done. But I believe that the truth is to be found, and we can find it the same way that King was looking for it on the night of April 4, 1968.

Everyone in Memphis seems to be suffering from what could be labeled as “fear fatigue.”

We spent the past three years with some level of fear about getting sick from COVID. So many in our community have spent the last six months being afraid of being a victim of crime. Folks seem more on edge. Add this to the everyday fears that pop-up in our lives on a regular basis and you can get a sense that folks are tired of the additional energy they have been expending on fear, and the additional space it has taken up in their minds for a sustained time. This month's Mystic is an invitation to speak intelligently about a topic that we all keep bumping up against in conversations.

Fear has function in our lives. Sometimes, it is the powerful catalyst for demonstrations of courage. Sometimes it’s a tool for reminding us of our faith or provoking our imagination. Listen to this month's Mystic to learn more on this important topic.

In this episode of The Mystic, our panel discusses how the seasons of Lent affect our mind, body and spirit. Special musical guests are Ashley Davis and Keia Johnson.

So why do we make resolutions in the first place? And are they really that helpful? The panel explores the role of resolutions at the start of a New Year and try to make sense of the deeper needs, hurts, and desires that are behind our motivation to change. This episode we're led in music by Dr. Ashley Davis and Jonny Pineda.