Might we all be happier if we stopped taking ourselves too seriously? Singer-songwriters Andy Gullahorn and Antsy McClain describe how humor can make us comfortable enough to be vulnerable with each other.

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Are the “seven deadly sins” merely a medieval-era reflection upon divine finger-wagging? Rebecca DeYoung explains why the “seven deadly sins” is better understood as a diagnostic tool which may instead facilitate a joyful and flourishing life.

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Edith Hall offers timely commentary on the virtue ethics of Aristotle: and how contemporary society may be missing fundamental keys to living life well.

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Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries, the world's largest gang-member rehabilitation program, in one of our most beautiful interviews to date. “You don't go to the margins to make a difference. You go to the margins so that the folks at the margins make you different."

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Ever wonder about “everybody getting a trophy” and the cult of self-esteem? Kristin Neff discusses the potential dangers of self-esteem—like bullying and narcissism—and the preferred practice of self-compassion.

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Psychiatrist Curt Thompson joins Lee to discuss his book The Soul of Shame. They discuss the mechanism of shame, how it impedes joy, connection, creativity and human flourishing; and how vulnerability subverts shame. Don’t just listen to this one. Take notes, and try it…  But it’s not for the faint of heart.

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An interview with Angela Williams Gorrell, Professor of Practical Theology at Baylor University, and author of a new book entitled The Gravity of Joy: A Story of Being Lost and Found. Angela recounts her own experiences with the sudden, tragic, and nearly simultaneous losses of three family members; how America’s current crisis of despair can be traced and understood through suicide and addiction rates; and the surprising ways in which gateways to joy can be found in the midst of deep grief; plus, additional commentary from Angela’s former boss at Yale, Miroslav Volf, on the connection between joy and sorrow.

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Naomi Shihab Nye is the author and/or editor of more than 30 volumes, the Young People’s Poet Laureate, and as we used to say in Alabama, the winner of more awards than you can shake a stick at. In this sort of wisdom-of-the-ages interview, Naomi discusses kindness, the joy which accompanies sorrow, paying attention, and living life large.  She also shares two of her well-known poems:  “Kindness,” and “Gate A4.”

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