A Chat with a Humanist Celebrant

This is a quick thank you and goodbye as we wrap up the first season of this podcast with 13 nuggets of wisdom; a piece of advice from each one of our guests.  What does it mean to be a good person? - let's see what each of our guests thought.We’ll be back early 2023 with our next season, but for now this short episode is dedicated to everyone who has listened and supported this podcast since its launch in 2020. THANK YOU!If you'd like to support this podcast as we develop the next season, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode. And if you're interested in sponsoring Season 2, please email [email protected] you!

What does it mean to be good according to a Moral Philosopher?In this episode, I talk with Professor of Moral Philosophy, Jeff McMahan. Jeff McMahan is Sekyra and White’s Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Oxford. He has written extensively about issues concerning harming, killing, and saving, such as war, abortion, euthanasia and the evaluation of death. He is also the co-editor of the Journal of Controversial Ideas.In this conversation, Jeff introduces us to the plurality that exists when it comes to being good according to moral philosophy, as well as sharing his more personal views about moral goodness.This is a great interview for the times we're living in as we cover what it means to act morally in times of conflict and uncertainty, and most importantly how we engage and remain morally good when talking with those we disagree with.If you'd like to support this podcast, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode. Thank you!

For this Bitesize Episode*, we’re taking some advice from Daoist Monk Yun Rou that “there's always a door number 3 to things”.Whenever we find ourselves in a challenging situation or even a conflict of some kind, Monk Yun Rou suggests we look for Door #3 – a third option that is available to us when we feel limited in our choices. This episode is all about how considering the variety of options available to us in any given moment gives us a greater sense of freedom and helps us get more creative in how we can manage and manoeuvre in any circumstance. Enjoy!If you'd like to support this podcast, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode.Thank you!*In Bitesize Episodes, we take a few minutes to focus on a theme, topic, or piece of advice related to “How to be Good” that’s come up in our interviews. We'll talk about how we can put advice from our interviews to practical use in our daily life

What does it mean to be a good person according to a Daoist Monk? We ask Daoist Monk Yun Rou (his name means Soft Cloud) to share his opinions on being good according to the view of Daoism. Daoism - also known as Taoism - originated in China close to 2,000 years ago, and as Monk Yun Rou describes, it centres on living in harmony with nature, and everything in existence. Ordained as a Monk at the Chun Yang (Pure Yang) Daoist Temple in Guangzhou, China, Yun Rou is a Daoist Monk, Author and Tai Chi Master. His award-winning books bridge fiction, spirituality, philosophy, and history, and his work has appeared across the globe, including in publications like Vogue, Vanity Fair and The Wall Street Journal.This conversation goes into beautiful depth about what it means to be a Daoist – with all its layers – while staying connected to the simplicity that is always at the heart of this podcast. If after listening to that you’d like to learn more about Monk Yun Rou, you can visit www.monkyunrou.com.And if you'd like to support this podcast, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode. Thank you!

For this Bitesize Episode* we’re taking a few minutes to focus on judgement.Judgement is an integral part of our everyday life; it’s about making considered decisions to come to sensible conclusions, and in many ways it’s essential to keep us safe and functioning. But, as many of our podcast guests have highlighted, when it comes to judging others and – especially judging the good, or bad, in others - we have to be careful. This is a 7-minute reflection on judgement and the impact it has on our day-to-day happiness.If you'd like to support this podcast, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode.Thank you!*In Bitesize Episodes, we take a few minutes to focus on a theme, topic, or piece of advice related to “How to be Good” that’s come up in our interviews. We'll talk about how we can put advice from our interviews to practical use in our daily life 

What does it mean to be a good person according to an atheist? We ask Andy Phillips, Board Member of Atheism UK, to share his opinion on being good according to atheistic thought.Andy hosts the Atheism UK podcast, facilitating conversations about atheism and shining a light on some of the misconceptions that often come along with the term. In this conversation, Andy talks about some of the differences between theists (those who believe in God) and atheists (those who don’t).If you enjoy this podcast, please consider supporting it at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness. It is researched, produced, edited and hosted by one person (in every minute of her spare time) so any support is appreciated!If, after listening, you'd like to learn more about atheism, you can visit Atheism UK and listen to the podcast here. You can also visit the Atheist Alliance.

What does it mean to be a good person according to Sikhism? We ask Sikh Human Rights Activist, Simran Singh, to share his opinions on being good according to the Sikh way of life. In keeping with his Sikh faith, Simran engages in human rights broadly and has a long history of working within the corporate world too. He is a lifelong Senior Fellow at the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute and a member of the Rumi Forum's Advisory Council in Washington, DC, and a Fellow at the Royal Society of Arts in London.Simran was honored to be the first ethnic European in history to sing at the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs, and in 2021 opened the first all-encompassing interfaith events in Guatemala and Costa Rica's history.Simran is kind, compassionate and full of incredible insight. His openness in this interview makes for a beautiful conversation covering some fundamentals about the Sikh faith alongside the importance of self-love and forgiveness in our personal journeys. You can find out more about Simran on Instagram at @simran5.0, and you can find out more about Sikhism at SikhNet.com.And if you'd like to support this podcast, please visit https://www.buymeacoffee.com/exploregoodness - we appreciate you listening and supporting each episode. Thank you!

For our bitesize edition this month, we’re taking a few moments to celebrate!Not only was our most recent interview with Humanist Jane Blackman all about the joy of celebration, but we also found out earlier this month that this podcast has made it to the finals of the International People's Choice podcast awards. As today is International Podcast Day, and the People’s Choice Podcast award ceremony is this evening, we’re taking a moment to celebrate. And we’re celebrating each one of our listeners. We’re so grateful for all of you listening. We’re in the award finals because of you. It’s not an easy time to celebrate, with so much bad news across the globe – so let’s keep it small for now. For our “How to be Good” challenge this time, we want you to spend 60-seconds of your day today having a mini-celebration, just by yourself. 

What does it mean to be a good person according to a Humanist?We ask Humanist Jane Blackman to share her opinion on being good according to her non-religious beliefs.Jane is an award-winning Humanist Celebrant, performing non-religious weddings, funerals, naming ceremonies and other non-religious rituals. Last year, Jane was voted best celebrant in the country – she’s based in the UK - at the 2020 Wedding Industry Awards.As a former head teacher, Jane is passionate about education and freedom of choice. She strives to treat others and all living things with care and compassion, and believes in us making the very most of every precious day that we have. In this conversation, Jane explains how humanism is all about people, relationships and human interactions. This episode teaches us more about non-religious beliefs and what it means to be a humanist in today's world.  If, after listening, you'd like to learn more about humanism, you can visit humanists.uk. And if you want to find out more about Jane Blackman, please visit janeblackmanweddings.co.uk.

What does it mean to be a good person according to a member of the First Nations? We ask Melanie Goodchild, Moose Clan, to share her opinion on being good according to Indigenous teachings.Melanie is Anishinaabe (Ojibway or Chippewa) from Biigtigong Nishnaabeg and Ketegaunseebee First Nations in northern Ontario, Canada. She is a senior indigenous research fellow and associate at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. Currently studying for her PhD in social and ecological sustainability, Melanie is also the founder of the Turtle Island Institute, an Indigenous social innovation think & do tank - a teaching lodge – that is working to enable transformative change.In her work, Melanie weaves together her unique perspectives of Anishinaabe gikendaasowin (knowledge) with systems thinking/complexity theory and social innovation to address society’s most intractable problems. She believes in the teaching methods of her ancestors, in “coming to know” on the land, and so she supports initiatives that seek to connect people to ceremony, story, art, language and the land.Melanie is an incredible person with such a wealth of knowledge, coupled with a real depth of kindness and compassion. She starts this interview by introducing herself in Anishinaabemowin – the language of her ancestors – so you can hear more about where she’s from in her own words.If, after listening, you'd like to learn more about Melanie Goodchild, please visit Turtle Island Institute and you can also read her recent paper on Relational Systems Thinking.