SOUL FRIENDSHIP & THE CONTEMPLATIVE PATH | Free Radical Podcast ep71 | Carl McColman 6/3/26

About this episode

This episode features a conversation with Carl McColman about soul friendship and the contemplative path within spirituality.

Join us for an adventurous episode of the Free Radical Podcast, featuring spiritual director, teacher, retreat leader, and author Carl McColman. Carl McColman is a lay practitioner under formal spiritual guidance from sisters and monks associated with the Trappist Monastery of the Holy Spirit. His formation in Christian contemplative spirituality and contemplative leadership was shaped through the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, and he also received training in the practice of spiritual direction through the Institute of Pastoral Studies. He is also the author of more than a dozen books, alongside contributions to publications such as Huffington Post and Evie of the Arts, and he continues to travel widely leading retreats and speaking on contemplative spirituality. Alongside this deep grounding in the Christian contemplative tradition, Carl’s path has moved through the luminous terrain of goddess spirituality, nature-centered practice, and interfaith encounter. His early studies in comparative spirituality, along with a lasting engagement with the Christian mystics, have shaped a sensibility attuned to the hidden depths running beneath all religious forms—the presence…

People in this episode

Host: Swami Padmanabha

Guest: Carl McColman

Topics covered

• soul friendship
• contemplative spirituality
• Christian mysticism
• interfaith encounter
• goddess spirituality
• nature-centered practice

Keywords

• soul friendship
• contemplative path
• spiritual direction
• Christian spirituality
• goddess spirituality
• interfaith dialogue
• mysticism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Trappist Monastery of the Holy Spirit, Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, Institute of Pastoral Studies, Huffington Post, Evie of the Arts

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