In June 2018, Academy Director Johnny Sears, visited with his friend and mentor, Parker Palmer, at the Palmer home in Madison, WI, and we were lucky enough to get to record it! Parker and Johnny talked about everything from vulnerability to what makes a good leader, to how to sustain the work of The Academy for the next 35 years. What follows is an offering from their conversation on spiritual friendship and shared vocation in hopes that their mutual dialogue about life, love, work, passion, leadership, and spirituality might enrich your own lives and the conversations that comprise them.

The episode picks up with Johnny asking Parker about his friendship and connection with John Mogabgab (founding member of The Academy and editor of Weavings: A Journal for the Christian Spiritual Life) and Henri Nouwen. The friendship between Parker, Henri, and John served as a catalyst, an inspiration, and a motivation for the beginnings of The Academy 35 years ago.