Podcasts for human flourishing
Malcolm Gordon, Associate Minister at First Church of Otago in Dunedin has produced two podcasts, each exploring issues related to human flourishing in the context of faith – forgiveness and grief.
Reflecting on Patterns of Living
‘Justice in action’ is often visible in acts of solidarity or offering support in the midst of vulnerable social situations. Another aspect to this work is providing resources which enable people to reflect on their own patterns of living or learned responses to what life offers them. Are these patterns and responses life-giving and enabling us to flourish? Or are there things we might want to re-examine, to re-set in our thinking, our faith, our patterns of behaviour in order to live in life-giving ways within our communities?
““Forgiveness and grief shape us—how we engage with them can determine whether we heal or harden.””
A Field Guide to Forgiveness
This podcast story is one example of the creation of helpful resources for life’s journey.
In 2023 Rev Malcolm Gordon, Associate Minister at First Church of Otago created a podcast series, with the support of a grant from the Justice-Compassion Trust of Aotearoa New Zealand called A Field Guide to Forgiveness. Over ten episodes Malcolm interviewed people from various backgrounds and worldviews about why forgiveness is essential and how we might get there.
The podcast was charted as the most popular NZ podcast on spirituality at times during its first season, and led to an Op-Ed written by Malcolm on the topic of forgiveness for the Otago Daily Times which was shared more than 700 times.
““…forgiveness opens new possibilities for the future, for both victim and perpetrator.””
Dear Sophie – Letters on Grief
Encouraged by this response, in 2024 Malcolm wrote a new podcast series called Dear Sophie – Letters on Grief which also received financial support from the Justice-Compassion Trust of Aotearoa New Zealand. The topic was prompted by the grief experiences of several members of The Common, a new faith community at First Church. It also drew on Malcolm’s doctoral work around the Hebrew spirituality of suffering, exploring lament and protest in the face of suffering.
The Dear Sophie podcast uses the format of letters being written to a friend who lost her mother to cancer and explores how to navigate grief in a way that honours our experiences, whilst keeping the lines of communication with God open.
Malcolm hopes that the Dear Sophie podcast will help people explore their experience of grief in helpful and healthy ways in company with Jesus Christ, sometimes described as ‘the man of sorrows’. He saw it as a resource which could help to build the community of The Common, the new faith community at First Church Otago, providing a space for people who are curious about faith to gather and consider how to make the best of the privilege of being alive. His podcast also aims to help people address the grief that can otherwise plague their lives, resulting from the loss of loved ones, or a way of being, or a life that is not available to them anymore.
Resources
Contact for Malcolm Gordon: malcolm@firstchurchotago.org
A Field Guide to Forgiveness Podcast (10 episodes): https://nzpod.co.nz/podcast/a-field-guide-to-forgiveness
Dear Sophie - Letters on Grief: https://nzpod.co.nz/podcast/dear-sophie-letters-on-grief