My name is Dustin Kensrue and I’ve always been fascinated by the REALLY BIG questions. I’ve spent my life as a songwriter (in Thrice and on my own) wrestling through those big questions, but now I’m starting a new phase of that exploration. I’d love for you to join me on the Carry The Fire podcast, where we dig deep into those big questions through the lens of the good, the true, and the beautiful as we speak with people from a wide variety of backgrounds, beliefs, and professions; together we will all glimpse the world anew through their unique perspectives. Carry the fire with us today!
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Today on the show we are joined by Tuhina Verma Rasche . Tuhina is a second-generation Indian-American raised in a devout Hindu household, and in our discussion, she unpacks some of her journey from that background to her present-day gig as a Lutheran minister. In our conversation, she shares about how she finds grounding while inhabiting liminal spaces, and we end our conversation by talking about the beauty of donuts and their connection to her father’s passing. Like what you hear? Get exclusi...
Today we are joined by José Olivarez . José is an award-winning poet and is also an educator, developing writing courses and poetry workshops. He recently released his debut book of poetry Citizen Illegal, which is fantastic and which pulls the reader into the liminal and hyphenated spaces José has inhabited growing up in Chicago as the son Mexican immigrants to the US. In our conversation we talk about the power of poetry both in and out of formal poems, we discuss poetry’s relation to the good...
Today on the pod we are joined by Kaitlin B. Curtice . Kaitlin is an author, speaker, storyteller, and poet. She has a new book coming out soon which is titled Native: Identity, Belonging, and Rediscovering God. Among other things, in our conversation we compare ideas about ecology, community and the divine through the lens of both her Christian upbringing and her Native Potawatomi heritage, we discuss the nuance and care needed to avoid cultural appropriation and talk a bit about the recent con...
Today we are joined by Mike McHargue , aka Science Mike. Mike is an author, speaker, podcaster and public educator who uses empathy and deep scientific insights to navigate the most difficult parts of the human experience. He worked for years as a founding member of The Liturgists and continues to host his own podcast called Ask Science Mike. His second book You Are A Miracle (And a Pain in the Ass) will be released April 28th! Among other things, in our conversation today we discuss the way tha...
Today on the podcast we are joined by Makoto Fujimura . Makoto is an internationally renowned painter, arts advocate, writer, and speaker. In our conversation, we discuss the concept of Slow Art, Makoto shares about the confluence of Japanese and Western culture in his own art and also about the importance of artists in times of crisis. Makoto also shares about the ways that his Christian faith prompts him to lead in efforts to engage in what he calls Culture Care instead of the Culture Wars tha...
Today on the pod we are joined by REZA ASLAN . Reza is an internationally renowned writer, commentator, professor, television producer, and scholar of religions. In our conversation, we discuss the ubiquity of religious thinking across time and culture and about how all religion IS a language of sorts. Reza shares about why he has found the framework of Islam most helpful in his own spiritual practice, he gives us a bit of a peek into an upcoming TV project he is involved with that aims to de-ex...
Hey everyone. Today on the pod we have Dan Koch . You’ll remember Dan if you’ve listened to the intro episode of Carry the Fire. Dan is a former host of the Depolarize! podcast and the current host of the amazing podcast You Have Permission where he seeks to give people permission to seek answers to good questions that may have been out of bounds in their formative faith communities. Our conversation was wide-ranging and meandering in the best way. We talk about certain similarities in any mass ...
Today we are joined on the pod by my long time friend, Jesse Bryan . Jesse is very smart, well and widely read, a deeply thoughtful person, and not surprisingly one of my very favorite people to talk to. Jesse is the founder and executive creative director of Belief Agency, an award-winning advertising company based in Seattle. As you’ll hear, instead of lying to consumers, they do this really weird thing where they focus on helping their clients tell the truth. You’ll get an interesting look in...
Today on Carry the Fire Podcast we have Cindy Wang Brandt . Cindy is an author, a podcaster, and a public speaker. She’s written a book, Parenting Forward : How to Raise a Children with Justice, Mercy, and Kindness, and has a podcast by the same name. A former conservative Christian missionary, Cindy underwent a phase shift and now speaks and writes about how that has impacted her life and how it impacts the often overwhelming and bewildering tasks of raising children. In our conversation, Cindy...
Today on Carry the Fire Podcast we are joined by the esteemed professor John Cobb Jr. Dr. Cobb is an American theologian, philosopher, and environmentalist. Cobb is often regarded as the preeminent scholar in the field of process philosophy and process theology. He is also the author of over 30 books and he just celebrated his 95th birthday. He was the first theologian elected to the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences for his interdisciplinary work in ecology, economics, and biolo...
Today on Carry the Fire Podcast we have Jared Yates Sexton . Jared is a writer and political analyst. He’s the author of multiple books and also the associate professor of creative writing at Georgia Southern University. In our conversation we get into why writing is good for you, we explore the myth of American exceptionalism, we discuss toxic masculinity and its links to problems at the national level, and more. FEATURED LINKS Jared Yates Sexton Official Jared Yates Sexton Twitter The Muck Rak...
Today on the podcast our guest is Summer Ash . Summer has worked as a rocket scientist and an astrophysicist and is currently harnessing her powers for science communication to share her love of the universe as an educational specialist. She’s also a freelance science writer and communicator and has had her work featured in a wide variety of scientific publications. Summer and I discuss supermassive black holes, the possibility of alien life, her love for space-themed clothing, and much more. Su...
Today on the podcast we have Sarah Heath . Sarah is a pastor in the United Methodist Church, a public speaker, a podcaster, an author, a designer, and more. But, whatever she is up to at any given time she always delights in helping people see the potential beauty that already exists in their own spaces. On the podcast today we talk about authenticity; what it means and why it’s important. We discussed the struggles of what it means to be ordained and a woman. And Sarah shares some of the ways t...
On Carry the Fire Podcast today we welcome Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg . Rabbi Danya is an award-winning author and writer. She has been mentioned by Newsweek and The Daily Beast as one of 10 “Rabbis to watch.” Aside from writing for a wide variety of media outlets, she is also the author and editor of multiple books including, Nurture the Wow and Surprised by God. On top of all that Danya is also one of my very favorite people to follow on Twitter. On the show today the subtle and insidious ways Chr...
Today we are joined by stand-up comic, Dustin Nickerson . Dustin and I talk about the connection between absurdity o and beauty. We consider correlations between comedians, jazz musicians, and mathematicians. And, strangely, Dustin really wanted you to know that he is smarter than a dolphin. Overall, this is a very fun but also deep conversation about the way that comedy intersects with the good, the true, and the beautiful. FEATURED LINKS Dustin Nickerson Official Dustin Nickerson Instagram Dus...
Today on Carry the Fire Podcast we are joined by David Le’aupepe. The singer of the amazing band, Gang of Youths . We talk about processing through pain and loss and finding your way back to love. And the way that honesty about the human condition is part of that process. we talk about belief as an emancipatory force versus and accent to a proposition. We talk about God, Nietzsche, fathers, church, prisons, hugs, and a whole host of other things. Be warned, David is from Australia so he curses, ...
Want an exclusive Christmas song never before performed by Dustin Kensrue? Christmas is right around the corner and we’ve created a goal in order to provide you with a limited-edition holiday reward! If we reach 425 Patrons by Christmas Day (Dec. 25, 2019), all patrons will receive a link to a video of me (Dustin Kensrue) performing a classic Christmas song that I've not yet recorded anywhere. Click Here to Join our Patreon Community. We are coming up to the end of the year and we have a few thi...
We are pleased to welcome Dr. Robyn Henderson-Espinoza on the podcast today! Dr. Robyn occupies many places in the borderlands, identifying as a public theologian, a transqueer activist, and a Latinx scholar. They recently released a new book called Activist Theology , which is great, and the book itself and the idea of activist theology seemed to want to defy any neat categorization. We discuss all of this and as well as touching on the relationship of thought and experience, the way that story...
Today we are joined by Jamie Tworkowski on Carry the Fire Podcast. Jamie is an author, speaker, founder and creative director of the non-profit, To Write Love on Her Arms . Today on the show we talk about the importance of friendship. We discuss the creative urge of what it means to try to translate an experience into something you can share with others. And I ask Jamie how can we hold onto hope and care for ourselves and others in the middle of so much heaviness and darkness. FEATURED LINKS TWL...
On the podcast today we are joined by the good Dr. Tripp Fuller. Tripp is super smart, extremely nerdy, a ton of fun, and very much out of his mind (in the best way). He’s the host of Homebrewed Christianity , the #1 theology podcast on the internet, and he also recently moved to Scotland to accept a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. In our conversation, we talk about the 5 kinds of postmodern consciousness, why Tripp doesn’t buy into C.S. Lewis’ famous trilemma, and he dro...
Today on the podcast we are joined by Dennis Lyxzén. Dennis is the singer of the legendary and groundbreaking punk band, Refused . We recorded this while we in the back of our tour bus while our bands were out together recently in Europe. In this episode we discuss why Dennis has a bone to pick with capitalism. We discuss his views on the roles and responsibility as an artist. And the relationship of music to what one might call the soul. We dig into his nuanced feelings about religion in genera...
Today on the show we have research scientist and author, Janelle Shane . She just released her knew book on artificial intelligence called, You Look Like a Thing and I Love You. Be sure to listen to the podcast to hear where that title came from. We discuss the similarities between evolutionary algorithms and evolution in the natural world. We also discuss some of the quirky pitfalls and shortcomings of AI at the moment, and why Skynet isn’t coming for you anytime soon. FEATURED LINKS Janelle Sh...
Today on the podcast I am joined by the incredibly talented hip-hop artist, poet, and activist Propaganda, AKA Jason Petty. We discuss some weightier issues like intersectionality and systemic racial injustice, as well as talking about skateboarding and the difference between emceeing and performing poetry. Jason also has his own podcast with his wife, the Red Couch Podcast which I recommend checking out. FEATURED LINKS Propaganda Official Website Red Couch Podcast Crooked - Propaganda SHOW LINK...
On this week’s episode of Carry the Fire, Author and Professor, Dr. James P. Carse joins us. Dr. Carse does not consider himself a religious person per se. But, he is the author of numerous books on religious topics and he taught religious history and literature for 30 years at NYU. His widely read book, Finite and Infinite Games , came out in 1987 and is having a recent resurgence in influence. In our conversation, we talk about mysticism in various traditions, Dr. Carse's framing of what he ca...
On today's episode, we are joined by Hillary McBride . Hillary is a therapist, researcher, speaker, and author. She’s co-host on The Liturgists podcast. She also holds an M.A. in Psychology and recently earned her Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia in Counseling Psychology. In our conversation, we get into a wide variety of topics including embodiment and mental health. We discuss why we are so often disconnected from our bodies and what we can do about it. We explore connections betwee...
Welcome to Carry the Fire Podcast. Qasim Rashid is a political candidate running for office as a Democrat for the Virginia Senate. Qasim is an author, attorney, and human rights activist. He is a Muslim of a branch of Islam you might not have heard of before. He also has a podcast with a friend where one of their goals is to remind us all that Muslims, Christians, and Jews used to get along better than we seem to lately. Qasim is a big believer in the power of dialogue between different kinds of...
Brian McDonald, author of "Invisible Ink," joins Dustin Kensrue to explore the profound impact of storytelling. They delve into the concept of a story's "armature" as its invisible thematic backbone, its application across various mediums, and the importance of telling the truth about human behavior to create resonant narratives. McDonald also shares a powerful personal story about forgiving his brother's killer, highlighting how an understanding of systemic issues can transform perspectives on justice and empathy in society.
Welcome to Carry the Fire. Our guest Sameer Gadhia is the singer of the band, Young the Giant. Sameer and I both hail from Irvine, CA, but strangely enough had never met before we sat down for this conversation. We go deep pretty quickly and dive into the dynamic Hindu philosophical concept of Maya and one of its meanings which is often understood to be the illusion of truth. We discuss the confluence of Sameer’s love for both science and literature, and Sameer shares 3 little words that he beli...
Dustin Kensrue introduces the new Carry the Fire podcast, explaining its aim to explore profound questions through the lens of the good, the true, and the beautiful. Joined by Dan Koch, Dustin delves into his personal journey with big questions, emphasizing the importance of intellectual humility and the process of inquiry over definitive answers. The show promises to foster empathy and wonder by engaging with a wide variety of guests from diverse backgrounds and beliefs.
