David Brooks on finding faith later in life

David Brooks on finding faith later in life

June 16, 2026 · 58 min

About this episode

David Brooks discusses his journey of finding faith later in life with host James Martin, S.J.

David Brooks is known as one of America’s leading public intellectuals, a longtime columnist for The New York Times and now a staff writer at The Atlantic. He joins James Martin, S.J., on “The Spiritual Life” podcast to share how he went from a mostly cultural Jew, to a “Jew-y” Christian in the land of faith. Timeline: 0:00 Traveling to the land of faith 6:20 Our social and political problems are spiritual ones 10:04 Understanding the America’s religious revival 11:46 Religious but not yet spiritual 14:05 David’s movement to faith 19:05 Dorothy Day and St. Augustine influences 28:15 Unpacking David’s mystical experiences 34:35 A new frontier in the Christian faith 37:33 Three Jewish women that paid attention: Simone Weil, Edith Stein, Etty Hillesum 47:50 Audience Question: How do we maintain hope in bleak times? Brooks is the bestselling author of several books including: How to Know a Person: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/652822/how-to-know-a-person-by-david-brooks/ The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/217649/the-second-mountain-by-david-brooks/ The Road to Character…

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