Uploaded September 2023 | Updated September 2026, 13 minutes ago
We love the theologian Kate Bowler's allergy to every platitude and her wisdom and wit about the strange and messy fullness of what it means to be in a human body. She's best known for her 2018 book Everything Happens for a Reason (And Other Lies I've Loved) — a poetic and powerful reflection on learning at age 35 that she had Stage IV colon cancer.
From a reset on how to think about aging, to the new reality in our time of living with cancer as a chronic illness, to the telling of truths to our young, this beautiful conversation is full of the vividly whole humanity that Kate Bowler singularly embodies.
(Also, as you'll hear, if she hadn't become a theologian, she might have been a stand-up comedian.)
Krista and Kate spoke as part of the 2023 Aspen Ideas Festival (@aspeninstitute).
Animation by: Neon Zoo, @weareneonzoo
ABOUT THE ON BEING PROJECT
An adventure in the mystery and the art of living
A home for shaping your presence in a tender, tumultuous world
A companion to the pleasure in thinking deeply with others
A calling to be part of the generative story of our time
THE PODCAST
Twenty years of culture-shifting classics: Mary Oliver, Desmond Tutu, Thich Nhat Hanh, and many many more.
We can be found in ears, and in conversations that matter, around the world.
On Being with Krista Tippett: onbeing.org/series/podcast
STAY CONNECTED
Instagram: instagram.com/onbeing
Facebook: facebook.com/onbeing
The Pause Saturday email newsletter: onbeing.org/newsletter
#KristaTippett #OnBeing #Podcast #Conversation #Aging #Love #Grief #ChronicIllness #Meaning
We love the theologian Kate Bowler's allergy to every platitude and her wisdom and wit about the strange and messy fullness of what it means to be in a human body. She's best known for her 2018 book Everything Happens for a Reason (And Other Lies I've Loved) — a poetic and powerful reflection on learning at age 35 that she had Stage IV colon cancer.
From a reset on how to think about aging, to the new reality in our time of living with cancer as a chronic illness, to the telling of truths to our young, this beautiful conversation is full of the vividly whole humanity that Kate Bowler singularly embodies.
(Also, as you'll hear, if she hadn't become a theologian, she might have been a stand-up comedian.)
Krista and Kate spoke as part of the 2023 Aspen Ideas Festival (@aspeninstitute).
Animation by: Neon Zoo, @weareneonzoo
ABOUT THE ON BEING PROJECT
An adventure in the mystery and the art of living
A home for shaping your presence in a tender, tumultuous world
A companion to the pleasure in thinking deeply with others
A calling to be part of the generative story of our time
THE PODCAST
Twenty years of culture-shifting classics: Mary Oliver, Desmond Tutu, Thich Nhat Hanh, and many many more.
We can be found in ears, and in conversations that matter, around the world.
On Being with Krista Tippett: onbeing.org/series/podcast
STAY CONNECTED
Instagram: instagram.com/onbeing
Facebook: facebook.com/onbeing
The Pause Saturday email newsletter: onbeing.org/newsletter
#KristaTippett #OnBeing #Podcast #Conversation #Aging #Love #Grief #ChronicIllness #Meaning
