Faith

We each have our own importantly different visions of flourishing life and these visions are a crucial part of any work we might want to do together.

We offer the reflective space of Grace Farms and opportunities for dialogue to explore the nature of flourishing and purposeful life. In pursuit of more grace and peace in the world, we bring together leaders and educators for workshops to engage with the world’s ancient and modern philosophies, beliefs, and faiths.

Impact

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Hours of public engagement and dialogue through our Life Worth Living academic course, in collaboration with Yale Center for Faith & Culture, and mindfulness workshops by Copper Beech Institute

Members of the U.S. Army Chaplains Corps explored how to serve soldiers with authenticity and grace, alongside our Faith Initiative

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Participants in For the Life of the World: Theology that Makes a Difference and What’s Worth Wanting programs

What is the shape of flourishing life?

Approach

By openly engaging one another in matters of profound importance—especially where we disagree—the programs in our Faith Initiative provide access to perspectives that encourage dialogue and reflection about what it means to live meaningful, purposeful lives.

Books on Faith & Meaning

These presentations introduced selections from the Grace Farms Library. Spanning multiple religious and philosophical traditions, both ancient and contemporary, these texts encourage us to think critically about the meaning in our lives.

Karen Stohr | Choosing Freedom: A Kantian Guide to Life.

Philosopher, Georgetown professor, and author Karen Stohr discusses her latest book which provides an accessible introduction to Kant’s ethical thought.

Emily Austin | Living for Pleasure: An Epicurean Guide to Life

Philosopher Emily Austin discusses her latest book, which explores strategies for diminishing anxiety, achieving satisfaction, and relishing joys.

Matthew Croasmun | The Hunger for Home

Matthew Croasmun discusses The Hunger for Home, which he co-authored with Miroslav Volf, and how shared meals become sites of nourishing mutual encounter.

Nicolas Bommarito | Seeing Clearly

Nicolas Bommarito discusses his new book exploring the central elements of Buddhist philosophy and practice.

Christan Wiman | 100 Poems with Christan Wiman

Poet and editor Christian Wiman discusses his most recent collection of evocative poems and prose fragments about home, and home’s deep theological, literary, philosophical, historical, political and social dimensions.

Keri Day | Notes of a Native Daughter

Professor Keri Day discusses her book and asks how can we bear witness to more liberating, decolonizing, and inclusive futures in theological education.

Susan Wolf | Meaning in Life and Why it Matters

Professor Susan Wolf discuss her recent work, a clear and compelling text explores human motivation and differentiates meaningfulness from happiness or morality.

Steve Angle | Growing Moral

Philosopher Steve Angle builds a case for modern Confucianism as a way of life worth the attention of reflective modern readers with a discussion of his most recent book.

Cole Arthur Riley | This Here Flesh

The creator of Black Liturgies tells stories of her family, what they revealed to her, and how they unlocked her spirituality.

Lynn Casteel | On Vanishing

Minister, chaplain, and essayist Lynn Casteel Harper discusses her personal, philosophical, and scientific examination of dementia that encourages us to reexamine our fears of disappearance, death, and mortality.

Leah Sarna | Pirkei Avot

Rabbanit Leah Sarna, Associate Director of Education and Director of High School Programs at Drisha, discusses this key ancient text of Rabbinic Judaism exploring the ethics of everyday human interaction, as well as statements about the relationship of God and humanity.

Meghan Sullivan & Paul Blaschko | The Good Life Method

Notre Dame professors Meghan Sullivan and Paul Blaschko discuss their recent book that invites us to wrestle with questions like what justifies our beliefs, whether we should practice a religion, and what sacrifices we should make for others.

Dr. Asha Shipman I The Bhagavad Gita

Dr. Asha Shipman, the Director of Hindu Life and Hindu Chaplain at Yale University, discusses this classic text.

Humanity’s Place in a Wounded World | Norman Wirzba

Dr. Norman Wirzba discusses his latest book.

Dr. Martin Nguyen | Modern Muslim Theology

Dr. Martin Nguyen discuss his latest work.

Tim Lilburn | Living in the World as if it Were Home

Tim Lilburn, a Canadian poet, essayist, and professor at the University of Victoria, discusses his collection of meditations steeped in mysticism and ecological poetry.

Steve Angle | The Analects of Confucius

Professor Steve Angle is a philosophy writer and researcher specializing in Chinese Philosophy, Confucianism, Neo-Confucianism, and comparative philosophy.

Peter Bouteneff | How to Be a Sinner

How can identifying as a sinner bring peace of mind, a clear conscience, and love for others? Dr. Peter Bouteneff discusses this and his latest work.

Rev. Dr. Angela W. Gorrell | The Gravity of Joy

Rev. Dr. Angela W. Gorrell discusses her latest work.

Anantanand Rambachan | A Hindu Theology of Liberation

The leading Hindu theologian explores how Hindu traditions have contributed to modern struggles for liberation.

Chris Stedman | IRL: Finding Realness, Meaning and Belonging in Our Digital Lives

Author and humanist leader Chris Stedman discusses his latest work.

Dr. Xavier Pickett | Howard Thurman's Jesus and the Disinherited

Professor Xavier Pickett from NC State University, explores Dr. Howard Thurman's theological treatise, a foundational work of non-violent resistance, and a vivid vision of flourishing life in the face of violent oppression.

WIllie James Jennings | After Whiteness: An Education in Belonging

Willie James Jennings describes insights gained from his extensive experience in theological education, examines how ideas of whiteness distort our understanding of community. and proposes new ways of belonging to one another.

Martin Hägglund | This Life: Secular Faith and Spiritual Freedom

Martin Hägglund argues that a sense of fragility and the possibility of loss makes our lives meaningful.

Gravity and Grace | Simone Weil

Dr. Deborah Casewell, a Simone Weil scholar, and lecturer in the Philosophy of Religion at Liverpool Hope University, as they discuss Gravity and Grace by Simone Weil.

The Cross and the Lynching Tree | James Cone

Through passages in James Cone's book The Cross and the Lynching Tree, Dr. Matthew Croasmun explores the parallel between the lynching tree and the cross of Christ, engaging with Cone's words for a deeper understanding of the unyielding hope of the black community.

The Ethics of Authenticity | Charles Taylor

Dr. Matthew Croasmun provides insight into The Ethics of Authenticity by Charles Taylor, and a framework through which to explore his book.

Faith Programming Gallery

Army Chaplains Ask Life’s Big Questions
U.S. Army Chaplains from around the world recently visited Grace Farms as part of their ongoing support of soldiers’ diverse spiritual needs. In their work, since 1775, The Chaplain Corps helps soldiers wrestle with questions like “What makes life most worth wanting?" Grace Farms offered a hopeful space to help chaplains serve soldiers with authenticity and grace.

What's Worth Wanting
The Yale Center for Faith & Culture looks back on Dr. Matthew Croasmun's lecture "What's Worth Wanting?" Sometimes the question dawns on us: What if what we want most isn’t actually worth wanting? Dr. Croasmun encourages identifying and focusing on the important questions guiding our actions and reflections, and open our minds to encourage new shifts in our thinking, our motivations and our values.

Our Impact

Since our inception in 2015, we have established programs and partnerships that allow us to engaged in dialogue that discerns the sorts of lives we deem worthy of our shared humanity.

2022
Books on Faith and Meaning, a series of conversations exploring texts from various religious and philosophical traditions, celebrated its 25th episode with Matthew Croasmun & Miroslav Volf's new book, The Hunger for Home.

2021
The first Life Worth Living Educators Workshop in collaboration with CAIS (Connecticut Association of Independent Schools) was held at Grace Farms.

2020
In the wake of COVID-19, Grace Farms and U.S. Army Chief of Chaplains Thomas Soljhem discussed how to better equip ourselves to cope with the challenges ahead.

2019
Appointed Dr. Matthew Croasmun as the Foundation’s first Faith Initiative Director, an Associate Research Scholar and Director of the Life Worth Living Program at Yale University, expanding opportunities for people of all faiths and backgrounds to reflect and explore the nature of flourishing life.

2018
Developed programing to provide deeper conversations around faith. Invited renowned journalists Michelle Boorstein (The Washington Post) and Wajahat Ali (CNN & The New York Times contributor) to discuss faith and media.

2017

Forged partnerships to foster multi-denominational and interfaith dialogue, including offering the Life Worth Living course under the direction of Dr. Miroslav Volf, Professor of Theology at Yale and Grace Farms Foundation Board Member.

2016

Invited broad audiences to explore open, gracious discourse around faith with Pastor Greg Zehner and guest speakers including Geshe Dhargey, a Buddhist Monk, and Dr. Kareem Adeeb, a Muslim Imam.

2015

Established Grace Farms as a welcoming environment for reflection and contemplation, set apart from the pace of our daily lives, but responsive to the realities of the world around us