Two Conversations on Faith and Purpose

Liz Cooledge Jenkins and Will Mannon

Dear Friends,

As a Buddhist Chaplain-In-Training, I'm finding great joy to have conversations with spiritual friends. There’s two that happened in the past week:

• An interfaith conversation with Liz Cooledge Jenkins, a Christian author/preacher/minister/chaplain

• A podcast with Will Mannon, the co-founder of Write of Passage. (I’m returning as an editor for WOP in the upcoming cohort, by the way!)

Christianity and Buddhism Collide (Gently and Respectfully)

I've known Liz Cooledge Jenkins for a number of years and have admired her from afar, though never broached the topic of faith during our friendly gatherings. This is the first time I get to ask her all the questions I've been holding in! I asked Liz what she thinks about Buddhism, LGBTQIA+ communities, and how she expresses her faith through writing.

Liz is publishing a book soon tentatively titled “Nice Churchy Patriarchy,” as “a sort of memoir. and a sort of faith-based feminist manifesto.”

This is a fantastic conversation to listen to if you like intimate and direct discussions about Christianity and Buddhism, and I share how I integrate both faiths in my personal beliefs.

Neuroscience, Writing, and the Search for Meaning

Will Mannon and I had a heartfelt conversation where we dove into how writing helps us access our deepest sense of meaning….in Mandarin 😀

This was one of the most challenging things I’ve done in a long time, and I still feel sweaty from the experience. I speak Mandarin as a third language and Will is what I call a “Chinese parent’s perfect son”—he has mastered the Chinese language and culture in record time, and had to help me translate on the fly (I didn’t know how to say meditation or enlightenment… 😅) I also talk about Christianity and Buddhist faith integration, though in a much more clunky way.

This is a wonderful conversation to listen to if you want to…

• Geek out about the power of writing for finding one’s purpose

• Learn Mandarin or any other new language

• Watch two people interact in a whole new linguistic context!

Friendship Through Meaningful Conversations

It’s fun to talk to friends about meaningful subjects under the guise of “podcasts.” Given the ease of zoom recordings and youtube uploads, this method of connecting with others is easier than ever. It’s also a good mechanism to reflect on one’s responses and examine one’s beliefs, knowing they will be recorded and potentially resonate with a wider audience.

I hope you enjoy these conversations, and please reach out if you’d like to chat about faith and purpose in the future. :)

Warm Wishes,

Christin