The Telos Channel

Telos recently led a ReStory US trip to the city of Charleston, South Carolina. Through our ReStory program we are working together to repair our home by knowing, owning, and writing a more honest American story. This conversation with Dr. DeSean Dyson and Dr. Otis Pickett unpacks some of the unique history of Charleston, and lessons, insights, and stories that can help our work of ReStorying our own communities, regardless of where we live. Our conversation touches on the history of Christian implication in injustice as well as Christian resistance to it, the importance of seeking out diverse historical narratives, and why history is critical to understanding the context today. With it, we can own our agency to act in imaginative and creative ways in pursuit of true and lasting peace.Read and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsFrom DeSean and Otis:40 Acres and a LiePurpose That Prevails (Dr. Otis' podcast)Liberia, South CarolinaVoices of Black South CarolinaBlack CharlestoniansIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Cities across America have boulevards named after him. The nation celebrates his life and legacy every year in January. Washington, D.C. boasts a massive monument of his likeness. Even so, most Americans have no idea that Martin Luther King Jr. was widely despised during this life and decades after his death. On this MLK Jr. Day, it's important to go "beyond the quotable King," as historian and author Jemar Tisby, PhD compels us.In this conversation, Jemar unpacks that history and his newest book, "The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance." In it, we also talk about the "great man myth" and the centrality of Coretta Scott King, not only to Martin's activism, but also to the broader civil rights movement. And we end with an important conversation on the opportunities before all of us today to pursue justice in the moment we're entering.--Purchase "The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance" by Dr. Jemar TisbyLeave a rating and review of The Telos Channel on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos Newsletter

What roles can and should women play in peacemaking movements? How can we connect the struggle for justice across contexts in a way that furthers the work of mutual flourishing and collective liberation? What does it mean to be an effective ally, advocate, and friend?This week, we are joined by our friend, author, preacher, trainer, liturgist, activist Sandra Van Opstal. Sandra is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Chasing Justice, a movement led by people of color to mobilize a lifestyle of faith and justice. Sandra recently joined the And Still We Rise Conference put together by our friends at CMEP, a conference intentionally created by and for women. After two trips to the region this year, one with Telos in May, and this recent one in November, Sandra shares with us what it looks like to be an effective advocate for our friends in Israel/Palestine, especially in this horrific moment. --Learn more about Chasing Justice If you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

No one could have predicted what happened in Syria last week. After more than half a century of rule and thirteen years of a bloody war, the Assad regime fell.Across the world, Syrian communities erupted in celebration at seeing the brutal, dictatorial regime end, many quickly filling the roads back to Damascus and the city squares across large portions of the country to gather in freedom for the first time in decades.Many of us watching are asking: what does this mean for the region? Who is this group taking power? And what if this means things are going to get worse? This week, we hosted a conversation between guest host Sarah Sturm and two Syrian-Americans to discuss the events—including their reactions to hearing the news, what it might mean for them and their communities, and how to support Syrians as they embark on a journey of writing a new future for their country.Our first guest is Syrian-American musician, novelist, and political commentator Paul Nabil Matthis, and our second is actually your host - David Katibah!--Follow Paul on Instagram A faction cheat-sheet by Paul Nabil MatthisSyria Live MapIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

With Christmas on the horizon, what does it look like to not just take the Advent stories seriously, but also the land out of which they came?In this episode, we invite our listeners who come from the Christian tradition to encounter a new lens on Advent that recognizes the geographic, political, and economic landscapes out of which it emerged—landscapes whose terrain echoes across millennia to bring us to today, a Holy Land enveloped in war, occupation, and a desperate need for hope.Kelley Nikondeha, author of the brilliant book, "The First Advent in Palestine: Reversals, Resistance, and the Ongoing Complexity of Hope," joins us to invite us into this new lens. She helps us ask essential questions, like what was the story behind the story of the Advent narratives, how can they help us understand and engage with the modern realities of injustice and violence facing the Bethlehem community today, and how can we ask that most crucial question of the narratives: whose peace, and at what cost? --Purchase “The First Advent in Palestine” by Kelley Nikondeha If you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

What does it take to be humanely happy? Perhaps it's the very journey of the peacemaker that helps us discover the answer to this question, and it might not be the journey you would expect. Theologian, author, and peacemaker Andrew DeCort details this journey in his new abundantly profound and copiously beautiful book, “Blessed Are the Others: Jesus' Way in a Violent World."Through the nine-part movement known as the Beatitudes—the introduction to Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount—Andrew helps us see that the pathway to "human happiness" is actually the pathway to peacemaking, but it doesn't come without a cost. Through his own experiences of building a massive peacemaking movement to having to flee a country that had become his home as it plunged into civil war, he helps us learn how to walk this path with him—not in fear, but in new purpose and joy. It's a chillingly challenging but beautifully grounding episode you don't want to miss. --Purchase “Blessed Are the Others” by Andrew DeCort Listen to our interview with Andrew on other first book, "Flourishing on the Edge of Faith."Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

Before we can hope to heal our world, we must first learn to see it how it actually is. By listening to understand, we cultivate our curiosity while surfacing the motivations and views that underlie the issues that divide us. But what does this look like in practice?Over the past weeks, we've focused on individuals and organizations who model how holding perspectives in tension allows us to engage the views and experiences of others, even and especially, when they do not reconcile with our own. Today, we pick up on when and how to add our voices to the conversation. Our guest this week is Ashlee Eiland. Ashlee is a thought leader, writer, and Bible teacher who exists to join in God's redemptive work on earth. Her new book, “Say Good: Speaking Across Hot Topics, Complex Relationships, and Tense Situations,” invites us to discover the power of stewarding our unique voice, through a four-part discernment process—through passion, accountability, influence, and relationship—to understand the spaces, ways, and times where our words are needed. --Learn more about "Say Good" and get a copy of the bookRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Before we can hope to heal our world, we must first learn to see it how it actually is. By listening to understand, we cultivate our curiosity while surfacing the motivations and views that underlie the issues that divide us. But what does this look like in practice?Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our Learning Corps series on individuals and organizations who recognize that my story is not the only story, and model how holding perspectives in tension allows us to engage the views and experiences of others, even and especially when they do not reconcile with our own. Our guest this week is Ayanna Behin. Ayanna is the Director of Training and Conflict Consulting at the New York Peace Institute, an organization committed to promoting peace in communities and doing work around mediation, conflict coaching, group facilitation, and restorative justice. In our conversation, Ayanna shares about the New York Peace Institute's work equipping communities with the skills necessary to transform conflict from something destructive to a process where ultimately communities emerge strengthened. --Visit the New York Peace Institute WebsiteRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Before we can hope to heal our world, we must first learn to see it how it actually is. By listening to understand, we cultivate our curiosity while surfacing the motivations and views that underlie the issues that divide us. But what does this look like in practice?Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our Learning Corps series on individuals and organizations who recognize that my story is not the only story, and model how holding perspectives in tension allows us to engage the views and experiences of others, even and especially when they do not reconcile with our own. Our guest this week is Sami DiPasquale. Sami is the Founder and Director of Abara, a nonprofit based in El Paso, Texas serving both sides of the US-Mexico border. In our conversation, Sami shares about Abara's work inspiring connections beyond borders through mutual understanding, education, and meaningful action. --Visit Abara's websiteRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

It’s been a whole year. A whole year since the region was upended by the violent attacks of October 7, and the 365 days of onslaught on Gaza. Now expanded into Lebanon. What has it meant for our friends in the region? And what can we do in this moment to support them? This week, we hear from our dear friend Robi Damelin, who is a peacemaker, internationally renowned speaker, and mother. Robi shares with us what she’s been up to in this past year with the Parents Circle, how we can support their work, and some of the places she’s finding inspiration and hope, without shying away from the difficulty and despair of the moment. --Check out the new Parent's Circle resource "Listening from the Heart"Read and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

It’s been one year. A whole year since the region was upended by the violent attacks of October 7, and 365 days of merciless onslaught on Gaza, now expanded into Lebanon. What has it meant for our friends in the region? And what can we do in this moment to support them? This week, we hear from former Telos Israel/Palestine Director and dear friend of ours, Jack Saba. He shares with us his reflections on the past year, and challenges us to remain the kinds of people who act in hope in the midst of crisis. Leave a rating and review on Apple podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking Learn more about Hilweh Market

This week, we were joined by the pastor of City Bible Church of Beirut, Marwan Aboul-Zelof. He gives us an on-the-ground perspective of what's happening in Beirut right now (recorded Friday Sept. 27, before the Israeli invasion or the Iranian strikes on Israel). Pastor Aboul-Zelof has been living in Lebanon for eight years, and his church was the closest church to the Beirut port explosion. He offers witness to the immense suffering the Lebanese people have experienced over many years, especially over the past few weeks. And he shares with us the opportunity we have as Americans to participate in the work of justice and peace.We know the situation on the ground is changing in real time. We will have further conversations with other experts on the issue to come. --Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingFollow Marwan Aboul-Zelof on Twitter and Instagram

Women are often at the forefront of effective nonviolent movements for peace and justice across the world. But their stories are often not the ones being told in mainstream spaces.Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our next Learning Corps series on women who embody what it means to embrace nonviolence as a courageous and countercultural way of life. We’ll tell the stories of individuals committed to the work of nonviolence, which we describe as “creative and clear resistance to injustice” rooted in an ethic of love—both Israeli and Palestinian.Our guest this week is Rula Salameh. Rula is a veteran journalist, community organizer, and the Education and Outreach Director in Palestine for Just Vision, an organization that fills a media gap on Israel-Palestine through independent storytelling and strategic audience engagement. Rula discuses Just Vision's film "Naila and the Uprising" and the power of storytelling when it comes to centering the roles women have historically played in Palestinian nonviolence movements. By diving into the stories of the past, we gain new imagination about the roles women can play in the present and future as we cultivate imaginations of what nonviolence can look like, as we commit to transforming the immediate violence on the ground. -- Watch Naila and the UprisingCheck out Just Vision's ResourcesRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

We have an invitation for you, your church, and your faith communities. Join us Sunday, October 6th for a Global Sunday of Mutual Flourishing. After almost an entire year of witness and reflection, the time is now to speak with a collective voice for the sake of peace. Todd Deatherage is joined by Telos alum Mike Goldsworthy to discuss how you can join us to use your platforms and pulpits, your prayers and liturgies, your voices and instruments, to honor the victims of war, lament the indignity of violence, and plant the seeds of peace.--Learn more about the Global Sunday of Mutual FlourishingLeave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

Women are often at the forefront of effective nonviolent movements for peace and justice across the world. But their stories are often not the ones being told in mainstream spaces.Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our next Learning Corps series on women who embody what it means to embrace nonviolence as a courageous and countercultural way of life. We’ll tell the stories of individuals committed to the work of nonviolence, which we describe as “creative and clear resistance to injustice” rooted in an ethic of love—both Israeli and Palestinian.Our guest this week is Noam Shuster-Eliassi. Noam is an Israeli comedian and activist, who models why relationships across lines of difference are foundational to peacemaking, as she uses humor to call out violence and injustice. Noam shares about the challenges of being a peacemaker in this moment and invites us into an embodied vision for mutual flourishing where we have to be ready to continue advocating "the day after" the immediate violence ends. --Follow Noam on Instagram Watch the documentary about Noam, Reckoning with LaughterRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Women are often at the forefront of effective nonviolent movements for peace and justice across the world. But their stories are often not the ones being told in mainstream spaces.Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our next Learning Corps series on women who embody what it means to embrace nonviolence as a courageous and countercultural way of life. We’ll tell the stories of individuals committed to the work of nonviolence, which we describe as “creative and clear resistance to injustice” rooted in an ethic of love—both Israeli and Palestinian.Our guests this week are Rana Salman and Eszter Koranyi. They are the Palestinian and Israeli Executive Directors of Combatants for Peace, an organization of Palestinians and Israelis working in solidarity to end the occupation and all forms of oppression, guided by the values of nonviolent resistance, and showing themselves and the world there is another way possible. They share their personal stories of discovering the power of nonviolence to enact lasting change, about the costs of committing to nonviolence in a world that seeks easy answers, and about the possibility of mutual flourishing in the region—even right now. --Learn more about Combatants for PeaceRead and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Women are often at the forefront of effective nonviolent movements for peace and justice across the world. But their stories are often not the ones being told in mainstream spaces.Over the next few weeks, we’re focusing our next Learning Corps series on women who embody what it means to embrace nonviolence as a courageous and countercultural way of life. We’ll tell the stories of individuals committed to the work of nonviolence, which we describe as “creative and clear resistance to injustice” rooted in an ethic of love—both Israeli and Palestinian.Our first guest is Shadia Qubti, a Palestinian Christian who has worked in peace building and advocacy initiatives for 15 years. She is particularly focused on amplifying the voices and perspectives of women and other minorities in a variety of ways, one of which was in the Women Behind the Wall podcast. Shadia was born and raised in Nazareth, and has degrees from Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Trinity College Dublin, and Vancouver School of Theology.--Read and share the Principles and Practices of PeacemakingJoin the Telos Learning CorpsIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyLearn more about Women Behind The Wall PodcastLearn more about Shadia's researchRead Shadia's hymn, Keeper of Justice

Perhaps one of the most contested terms when it comes to talking about Israel/Palestine. Many in our network ask: What does “apartheid” really mean? Is it a fair word to use in this context? If so, why is there such a strong reaction to it? And how might it shape the engagement of peacemakers like us, who are working to build a future where Israelis and Palestinians can flourish in equal measure?This week, we brought in our Israel/Palestine team to discuss this important conversation. --Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking

This week, the largest Christian Zionist lobbying organization is hosting its annual conference. Featuring politicians, commentators, and religious leaders, the Christians United For Israel annual summit will represent the convictions and policy interests of more than 10 million Christians in the US, according to the CUFI website. We’re here to talk about it. Who is CUFI, what do we need to know about the ideology of Christian Zionism it is driven by, what difference does it make in the region, and what can those who come from Christian communities do to help build a posture on I/P rooted in love of God and neighbor.In this episode, we were joined by special guest Michelle Graham. Michelle is an ordained pastor, author, and hospital chaplain from Raleigh, North Carolina, who has joined Telos on a number of trips to Israel/Palestine and done graduate work on the questions around the theology of Christian Zionism.--Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or SpotifyIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Subscribe to the Telos NewsletterRead and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking Resources to learn more: See the Theology section of this list Christianity Today graphic

What will it take to address gun violence in America, and what might peacemaking have to say about it? These last few weeks, we have taken some time to hear from visionary peacemakers addressing the issue in creative, imaginative ways. In the last podcast of this series, we are joined by our good friends from the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth, and Reconciliation. Ainka Sanders Jackson and Lydia Chatmon share with us what these three values mean within the context of gun violence. They explain the racial and economic layers that are at the root of gun violence in America, and offer us a restorative pathway forward. Chatmon and Jackson call us to interrogate where we are complicit in these realities, but they also remind us of our agency and responsibility to be a part of the solution. While this conversation was recorded over a year ago, we think it remains a helpful resource for folks looking for accessible entry points into the conversation of gun violence. Read and share the Principles and Practices of Peacemaking Follow Telos on Instagram @thetelosgroupIf you’re enjoying the podcast, become a monthly donor to Telos!Leave a rating and review on Apple podcasts or SpotifySubscribe to the Telos NewsletterLearn more about the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth, and Reconciliation