Rector’s Cupboard Podcast

The Pilgrimage of Philanthropy with Mark Petersen

Rich or poor or somewhere in-between, our sense of security and identity can often have to do with money. Who we are, how we relate to others, and how we feel about our well-being is impacted, for good or ill, by whether we feel we have enough money.  
Mark Petersen has lived much of his life in the world of money and philanthropy. He has also taken up multiple spiritual pilgrimages as a way of asking the big questions of identity and meaning.  
We are pleased to speak with Mark about his experience with his family foundation, his journey on the Camino (you can find his blog about his Camino pilgrimages here) , and his thoughts about charity and fundraising. 
Mark has written a book relating the world of philanthropy to the journey on the trail. It is called Love Giving Well and it offers insight into what compels people to give and how decisions about giving are often made. 

Change in Church and Community with Tim Dickau

We are pleased to be joined by Tim Dickau of CityGate and The Centre for Missional Leadership. He is also the author of Forming Christian Community in a Secular Age.
Tim speaks with us about his vision for how faith and church should be blessing in the world. Tim was pastor of Grandview Calvary in Vancouver for many years and has helped facilitate numerous community projects addressing needs around housing and other areas of need.
Tim offers thoughtful considerations of hopeful ways forward for faith and church.

Christmas Special 2022: Then and Now

How do you remember Christmas? What traditions are essential to make it really feel like Christmas?
So much of how we experience Christmas is based in nostalgia, an understanding and, often, idealization of the past.
The Cupboard hosts gathered to enjoy a Christmas tasting (recipe below), share memories, and discuss the of role nostalgia at Christmastime. There’s a term we just discovered, “imagined future nostalgia,” wanting to make memories now that will hold meaning in the future, which can place additional pressure on preparations for Christmas.
We hope that you are able, in spite of the uncertainties or pressures you may be experiencing, to know and experience that Christmas can be informed by the future, which is good, rather than a longing or recreation of the past. Merry Christmas from all of us at Rector’s Cupboard!
 
Materials Referenced:
Day 9: The Magic of Less ‘Holiday Magic’ - New York Times, December 9, 2022Masks, mops and ‘ugly sticks’ – a look at Newfoundland’s tradition of mummering – Macleans, December 12, 2022Land of My Sojourn – Rich MullinsGravy – Rhona McAdam in Larder
 
Tasting Notes:
Our tasting for this episode was a Snowflake cocktail using gin and Figgy Puddin’ liquor from Copperpenny Distilling Co. in North Vancouver.
Snowflake Cocktail
1.5 Oz Gin1 Oz Figgy Puddin’ Liqour3 Oz Eggnog
Served over ice and topped with nutmeg or cinnamon

“Truth is Alive, Facts are Dead”; The Importance of Story with Jonathan Wright

Story is the universal human language. We learn who we are and how to make sense of the world through story. It can also be a means through which we can engage with and encounter others. Story can communicate truth in a way that other forms of communication cannot.
 
In this episode, we spoke with fellow podcaster, Jonathan Wright, from the podcast Hello Unknown. Jonathan is a former tax lawyer but has left the practice of law to write and tell stories. Jonathan talked to us about how he came to podcasting and of the importance of story in his own life.
 
The first season Hello Unknown is out now and the second season is in the works. We would highly recommend checking it out. It’s available anywhere you get your podcasts.

Rest and Vocation with Julian Davis Reid

In so many ways, we often feel ground down, in the words of this episode’s guest, “disintegrated.” Julian Davis Reid speaks to us about rest. This is more and better than simply disengagement or a break from the grind; rest is an essential part of what it means to be human, in the image of God.
 
Julian starts from a recognition of the profound restlessness that marks much of our lives and moves us towards the promise of the final and complete resting in God. Along the way, we talk about what theology and aesthetics, music and culture have to do with rest. We hold on to the promise that we might know rest, rest for our soul.
 
Julian’s website has links to all his music, both his solo work and  work with the JuJu Exchange, his retreat work, as well as his newsletter where you can get more of his thoughts on rest.
Articles referenced in this episode: 
Do You Really Want a New Kitchen Counter - The Atlantic, November 18, 2022 
 
A Parent’s Typical Day, As Envisioned By My Child’s Preschool - McSweeney’s, November 10, 2022 

Yakety Yak, Depth and Breadth of Life with Jerremie Clyde

We conclude our 3 part Calgary road trip with a visit to Jerremie Clyde from Alberta Yak Co and Little Loaves Farm (check out their Instagram page for some amazing yak photos @littleloavesfarm).
 
Did you know that yaks purr? Or that they can survive at -64 degrees Celsius (for any American listeners that’s -83 Fahrenheit)? We certainly didn’t before visiting Jerremie. We got to take a tour of Jerremie’s farm and he was gracious enough to provide with lunch as well (yak tacos). So much of how Jerremie understands his work is relational. He spoke to us about the abundance of relationships at play on the farm, between himself, his family, and the yaks, the relationships that exist in the herd itself, and the many, many relationships that are happening in the ecosystem all around them.
 
Jerremie refers to the yaks on his farm as his coworkers and understands the way they farm as being one part in a much larger ecosystem, one where they can be active participants both in seeking to bring depth and breadth of life to creation as well as taking so much joy and fulfillment from these relationships.
 
Thanks for joining us as we’ve learned a lot about cows and soil and yaks, and about how, even as non-farmers, we can support farmers and actively participate in creation care with them.

Soil as The Least of These with Rod Olson

We continue our 3 part series of Rector’s Cupboard on the Road. In July several of us from Rector’s Cupboard headed to Alberta for a few days to speak with some farmers.
 
On this episode we spoke with Rod Olson. Rod works with several local organizations. He is a certified nutrition farmer with the organization Leaf and Lyre, planting and overseeing urban farms in people’s backyards. He also is a founding member of YYC Growers, a collective of independent farmers. Rod also works with Land of Dreams, a community farm which provides newcomers to Canada with land and resources to grow things.
 
We met Rod at the Land of Dreams farm where he took us on a tour of the farm, taught us about the importance of soil health, and spoke about some ways we can participate in helping to heal the land.

Leaving the World a Less Shitty Place with Marcus and Sarah Reidner

Rector’s Cupboard, on the road! We travelled to Calgary this summer and met some amazing farmers. In this episode we talk to Marcus and Sarah Reidner from Happiness By the Acre, a regenerative farm in Didsbury, Alberta. Marcus and Sarah have cows, chicken, pigs, and ducks but they say what they really grow is grass, because that’s what the land wants to do.
 
Along with meeting some great animals, we also talked about climate change, the necessity of death, and why Marcus and Sarah have chosen to farm in about the most difficult way possible. Hopeful Christian theology will help us towards a healthy relationship with the land. Marcus and Sarah taught us a lot, even in this short visit.
 
We cannot say enough about the hospitality and generosity that we encountered in Calgary. Marcus and Sarah welcomed us to their farm, answered all of our questions, were generous with their time, and even shared some of their amazing chicken and duck eggs. If you are in the Calgary area we highly recommend looking them up.

These Are The People In Our Neighbourhood

Who are the people in your neighbourhood? For some this might be geographical, your literal neighbours, for others it might include the more expansive community in which you find care and support, or perhaps an online neighbourhood where you connect with others.
 
As we begin season 4, we take some time to consider those in our neighbourhood. For Rector’s Cupboard, this includes people we have spoken to in previous episodes and season, guests we’re anticipating, as well as you, our listeners. We feel blessed to have learned from and with those in our neighbourhood. As we look forward to future conversations, we’re delighted to have our neighbourhood grow.
Articles referenced in this episode:
“A boy with cancer hoped to see monsters. Hundreds of strangers showed up in costume.” – The Washington Post, September 22, 2022

The Growing Season with Nelson Boschman

For the first episode of season 4, the Cupboard is pleased to welcome Nelson Boschman to speak with us about his book, The Growing Season, and to lead us in an informative wine tasting. A pastor, teacher, and musician, Nelson considers himself a wine enthusiast rather than an expert. He sees in the vineyard and wine-making the stuff of life and spirit.
 
We hear some of Nelson’s story, about concepts of identity and challenge and change that are present in wine-making and in the spiritual life. We see, in Nelson’s love of the vineyard and the process, that often the most enduring spiritual lessons come in paying close attention to the things that we love.
 
Tasting Notes:
We learned a great deal from Nelson about the ways we can experience and enjoy wine.
“80% of the wine experience is olfactory, it happens through the sense of smell. To look, swirl, sniff are the first three steps to taste.”
The wines we tasted on today’s episode are both available at BC Liquor Stores. The first was the 2018 Cairanne from Boutinot and the 2020 Gigondas from Dom Brusset, both from the Rhone region in France.