The world is overwhelming. Every day we’re bombarded with noise, outrage, and content designed to distract, numb, or divide us. It’s changing us...and not always for the better.We created the Sacred Podcast as a response to the chaos. It’s more than a podcast - it’s a space to slow down, reflect, and listen deeply. A place to practice empathy, curiosity, and understanding in a world that often rewards the opposite.In each episode, we sit down with someone who has a public voice and ask them: What’s sacred to you? We explore their ideas and practice genuine curiosity and engagement. No rage bait or arguing. Along the way, we’re learning to build our tolerance, understanding, and empathy for people who see the world differently to us.If you feel you need this too, come join us at The Sacred 💛🔔 Make sure you're subscribed to us to never miss an episode!🤝 Find us on IG: / sacred_podcast 🎥 Liike Agency Keywords:The world feels overwhelming right now, too much noise, too much division, too many opinions. Many of us are searching for calm, meaning, and a deeper kind of strength. The Sacred Podcast is a space to slow down, listen deeply, and reconnect with what truly matters. It’s for anyone feeling anxious about the state of the world, craving stillness, or seeking emotional and spiritual resilience. This film shares our vision: to find steadiness amid chaos, to rebuild empathy, and to remember our shared humanity. If you’re longing for grounding and hope in uncertain times, you’re in the right place.Echoes of the Rift by Author Fields of Ethera, licensed under Track Club by Marmoset LLCEclipse" by Khamsin, licensed by The Music Bed LLC

How can you reconcile all parts of your identity in an increasingly polarised landscape?

After a mystical experience in a Sydney bar, David Bennett found himself shifting from queer theory and student politics towards a surprising new centre of gravity: the Christian faith. Today he describes himself as a gay celibate Christian, someone living between two tribes often assumed to be incompatible.In this deep and tender conversation, theologian David speaks with Elizabeth Oldfield about his long wrestle with desire, queer identity and Scripture; why he believes celibacy can be liberating rather than repressive; and how he hopes to build bridges across an increasingly polarised landscape.They explore what happens when your story becomes symbolic in the culture wars, how to refuse weaponisation from both left and right, and what it means to live as a pilgrim - someone always on the way, always becoming.---🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast 📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/ 💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/ 👉 Follow David: https://www.instagram.com/davidacbennett/?hl=enChapters:00:00 - Intro

00:48 - What is Sacred to you? David Bennett answers02:00 - Growing Up and Not Fitting In

05:00 - Coming Out & the Shockwaves at Home

08:00 - Searching for Meaning: A Tour Through Belief Systems

11:00 - Encountering God: The Moment Everything Shifted

17:00 - Queer and Christian: Living in the Tension

20:00 - Queer Side A and B Explained

23:00 - Love, Honesty, Humility: The Values That Ground Him

26:00 - Navigating criticism from Progressives and Conservatives

29:00 - Living authentically with both identities

32:00 - Final Reflections: Hope, Courage & Spiritual Belonging

49:00 - David's message to the LGBTQI+ community58:30 - Elizabeth's reflectionsKeywords:David Bennett, gay Christian, celibate gay Christian, Side B Christianity, Side A vs Side B, queer Christianity, queer theology, queerness and faith, LGBTQ and religion, gay and Christian, Christianity and sexuality, Christian celibacy, re-sublimation of desire, same-sex attracted Christian, spiritual pilgrimage, faith and identity, culture war debates, progressive vs conservative Christianity, gay celibacy debate, queer identity and church, sexual ethics in Christianity, Romans 8:20 interpretation, Christian views on sexuality, LGBTQ inclusion in church, modern Christian ethics, religious trauma, faith deconstruction, faith reconstruction, conversion experience, encountering God, Christian testimony, reconciling faith and sexuality, Christian community rejection, building bridges across divides, Christian identity struggles, Oxford theology, queer theory and Christianity, celibacy as vocation, Christian friendship and community, Augustine and pilgrimage, Christian witness, culture wars and faith, LGBTQ spiritual journeys, progressive Christian critique, conservative Christian critique, Christian ethics of desire, healthy celibacy, alternative Christian vocations, strangeness of God’s love, living between two tribes

Award-winning journalist and filmmaker Mobeen Azhar and Elizabeth Oldfield to talk about his extraordinary career telling hidden and untold stories - from interviewing white supremacists, extremists, drug dealers, and killers; exposing police corruption, cults, and cover-ups; and told raw stories from inside prisons, mosques, and nightclubs.

In an age of outrage and dehumanisation, Mobeen's journalism combats hate and demonisation with empathy and understanding to reveal the human story beyond the headlines.

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🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

👉 Follow Mobeen: https://www.instagram.com/mobeen_azhar/?hl=en-gb

Keywords:

His award-winning documentaries include Small Town, Big Riot (BBC), uncovering how racism and misinformation fuelled a violent protest in Merseyside; The Battle for Britney, going inside the global #FreeBritney movement; The Satanic Verses: 30 Years On, exploring faith, art, and offence; Hometown: A Killing, investigating a murder in his own community; The Men Who Sell Sex; The Mosque Next Door; The Black and White Killing; The Soldiers That Saved Britain; and The Kandahar Killings. In this episode of The Sacred, journalist and documentary filmmaker Mobeen Azhar talks about racism, faith, and moral courage. Known for BBC documentaries like Small Town, Big Riot, Hometown: A Killing, and The Battle for Britney, Mobeen shares what it’s like to be a Muslim journalist in Britain interviewing racists, extremists, and people on the margins of society. He discusses empathy over outrage, understanding hate, and finding transcendence on the techno rave dance floor. This powerful conversation explores race, religion, identity, decency, and compassion in a divided world — and asks how we can stay human in the face of injustice and polarisation.

Grief, peace, and the search for steadiness of soul - comedian, writer and Griefcast host Cariad Lloyd joins Elizabeth Oldfield to talk about the gift and absurdity of grief.

Cariad opens up about her father’s death, comedy as survival, and the small, sacred acts that keep her grounded. She also shares what it means to raise her kids with honesty about loss and how humour helps us stay human in the face of death.

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🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

👉 Listen to Cariad's Griefcast Podcast: https://cariadlloyd.com/griefcast

Chapters

00:00 Intro

01:42 What is Sacred to you? Cariad Lloyd answers

11:43 Growing up spiritual

18:30 Grief, Spirituality and Doubt

24:32 Grief becomes a part of you

27:14 The Role of Comedy in Grief

35:00 Sharing Grief Stories

38:52 How to be there for people who are grieving

44:07 Are there gifts in grief?

50:02 Death in children's books?

Keywords:

Cariad Lloyd interview, The Sacred podcast, Elizabeth Oldfield, grief podcast, grief and loss, dealing with grief, how to talk about death, finding peace, mental health, anxiety, parenting, motherhood, faith, spirituality, meaning, purpose, finding what’s sacred, inner peace, steadiness of soul, moral courage, emotional resilience, grief and comedy, using humor to heal, British comedian, Griefcast host, You Are Not Alone book, Where Did She Go book, grief for children, death in children’s books, coping with bereavement, mindfulness, self-compassion, anxiety and rest, the power of rituals, modern spirituality, finding calm, spiritual grounding, how to support someone grieving, death and culture, secular spirituality, community and loss, talking about death honestly, creative process, storytelling and healing, grief and art, grief and performance, how to live with loss, moral honesty, authenticity, being a decent human, emotional honesty, spiritual strength, learning from pain, comedy and tragedy, British podcasts about meaning

Why honest conversations about race, class and power make us defensive - and why should we face them anyway.

Author, teacher and broadcaster Jeffrey Boakye joins Elizabeth Oldfield to talk about truth, joy, race and power and why he believes we can’t fix what we’re too scared to face.

We speak about:

👊🏾 Jeffrey's fusion of Black British identities from growing up in Brixton

✏️ The role of a teacher and finding his voice in a mostly white education system

⚡ Learning how to challenge dominant power structures like whiteness, class and Britishness

This is a conversation about courage, fear, and how we can talk about race, class and identity without tearing each other apart.

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🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

👉 Follow Jeffrey Boakye: https://x.com/jeffreykboakye

Chapters:

00:00 - Intro

01:06 - What is Sacred to you? Jeffrey Boakye answers

06:23 - Growing up in Brixton as a Ghanaian Catholic

15:30 - Cultural Identities: Black Britishness and Jamaican youth culture

26:00 - “I became a white woman” teaching while Black

33:00 - Why conversations about race make us defensive and what to do about it

42:00 - Power, fear, and the culture wars

50:00 - Why it’s race and class - not race or class

55:47 - Class and it's connection to the slave trade

56:27 - Anti-immigrant propaganda targeted at the working class

57:54 - Reflection by Elizabeth

Keywords:

Jeffrey Boakye delves into the complexities of power dynamics and the importance of challenging power through truth and joy. He explores cultural identity, drawing from his experiences growing up in Brixton, and discusses the intersectionality of race and class within the education system. The conversation touches on societal structures, the role of religion and community, and the need for empathy in public discourse. Boakye highlights the influence of Caribbean culture and the significance of language in shaping identity. As a teacher, he emphasises the importance of education as a tool for social change, advocating for educational reform and equity. The discussion also covers themes of privilege, patriarchy, white supremacy, colonialism, homophobia, and misogyny, while celebrating the richness of Black British culture and multiculturalism. Through storytelling and narrative, Boakye shares his personal values and life philosophy, encouraging social justice, diversity, and inclusion. The episode invites listeners to reflect on social norms, personal growth, and the power of dialogue, understanding, and compassion in fostering human connection and systemic change. With a focus on critical thinking, reflective practice, and educational equity, Boakye inspires empowerment, creativity, and collaboration, urging us to embrace curiosity, exploration, and authenticity in our pursuit of knowledge and wisdom

What can an ancient tradition like Druidry teach us about living well today?

In this episode of The Sacred Podcast, Elizabeth Oldfield speaks with Philip Carr-Gomm, psychologist, author, and longtime leader of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids.

They explore how trees and nature are sacred, the meaning of magic in everyday life, and why ancient wisdom traditions might be exactly what we need in an age of ecological crisis and polarisation.

🌳 Why trees, forests, and nature are sacred

🤝 Why Buddhism felt more appealing than Christianity in his early years

✨ What “magic” really means in psychology and spirituality

🌍 How ancient wisdom, Celtic spirituality, and eco-spirituality can guide us today

This conversation touches on modern druidry, earth-based spirituality, mindfulness, interfaith dialogue, and spiritual growth with insight into how we can find the sacred in everyday life and respond with wisdom to our times.

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🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

🌀 Follow Philip Carr-Gomm's work: https://philipcarr-gomm.com/

Chapters

00:00 Intro

01:10 What is Sacred to you? Philip Carr-Gomm answers

03:00 Why Trees Hold the Secret to Spiritual Enlightenment

09:00 The Influences of a Druid's Childhood

18:00 Diversity and Inclusivity in Druidry

27:00 Art and Nature Collide: The Untold Story of Druidry

36:00 Magic and The Transformative Secrets of Druidry

45:00 Masculine and Feminine Energies

54:00 Druidry's Historical Tapestry

01:03:00 The Divine Child: A Controversial Bridge Between Faiths

01:12:00 Gender in Spirituality: The Debate That’s Changing Everything

01:21:00 Can Spiritual Dialogue Break Down Barriers?

Keywords

In this conversation, Elizabeth Oldfield speaks with Philip Carr-Gomm, psychologist, author, and modern druid, about the wisdom of Druidry, Celtic spirituality, and the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids. They explore why trees are sacred, the role of nature in spirituality, and how ancient wisdom traditions can guide us today. Philip explains the meaning of magic, the connections between Buddhism, Christianity, and earth-based spirituality, and how practices of eco-spirituality, mindfulness, and nature connection can help us find the sacred in everyday life. This episode of The Sacred Podcast is for anyone curious about spiritual growth, interfaith dialogue, ancient traditions, modern druidry, psychology and spirituality, exploring faith, and spiritual wisdom in an age of ecological crisis and cultural polarization, polarisation.

Elizabeth Oldfield and Rod Dreher tackle one of the most urgent and contentious questions of our time: how should nations, and individuals, relate to migrants in our midst? How do we balance compassion for migrants with the protection of vulnerable citizens? How does Christianity shape responsibilities to strangers? And why do honest conversations about these issues so often spiral into demonisation and division?

🤝This bonus episode is taken from Midwestuary 2025 and models honest disagreement without dehumanisation, showing a different way to engage with hard topics in our societies.

🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

🎙️ Follow Midwestuary: https://www.midwestuary.com/

Keywords:

Immigration is one of the most divisive issues of our time, raising questions of compassion, fear, morality, and national security. In this conversation, Elizabeth Oldfield and Rod Dreher explore how Christianity shapes our response to the stranger, what it means to love our neighbor, and how to hold moral dilemmas around migration without demonizing each other. Together they model how to disagree well, listen across divides, and search for common ground in the middle of a polarized immigration debate, polarised immigration debate

In a world where half of young people UK dream of becoming influencers, Jade Bowler delves into the hidden costs of this career - from burnout and loneliness to the struggle for authenticity.

Jade Bowler (@UnJadedJade ) is an author, content creator, podcaster, and one of the UK’s first “StudyTubers.” Since starting her YouTube channel at 16, Jade has built a global audience and is shaping a generation interested in spirituality, self-discovery in your 20s, productivity and finding "casual magic" in your every day.

Elizabeth Oldfield and Jade Bowler talk about:

🎙️The hidden costs of being a content creator, the pressures of social media and the responsibility of influencers

🌿 How to live authentically online and build genuine connection when millions are watching

🌈Jade’s journey of coming out and navigating internalised homophobia

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🎙️ Follow The Sacred: linktr.ee/sacredpodcast

📖 Follow Elizabeth Oldfield: www.elizabetholdfield.com/

💡 Produced by the ‪@thinktanktheos‬ www.theosthinktank.co.uk/

✨ Listen to Jade's podcast @findingyourcasualmagic

Chapters

00:00 Intro

01:16 What is Sacred to you? Jade Bowler Answers

02:35 Craving connection and finding it online

08:30 Jade reflects on her parents’ contrasting influences

11:11 Bullied for being "too academic"

13:53 Starting StudyTube at

16:56 The weight of fame, influence and responsibility

20:15 Algorithmic pressure vs creativity

26:10 Authenticity vs. Performance online

32:15 Searching to fill the wisdom-gap

38:11 Coming out online and internalised homophobia

43:52 The hidden cost of being a creator

Keywords

Jade Bowler (known online as UnJaded Jade) is one of the UK’s first StudyTubers who built a global audience sharing study tips, motivation, and her journey as a student. In this episode of The Sacred Podcast, Jade reflects on what it’s really like to grow up online and live as a content creator in a world driven by algorithms, short-form video, and the pressures of social media.We dive deep into the hidden costs of being an influencer: from creator burnout, loneliness, and mental health struggles, to the constant pressure to stay relevant on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. Jade speaks honestly about the difference between being a StudyTuber at 16 and navigating life now as a young woman in her 20s.Jade also shares her coming out story as an LGBTQ+ creator, reflecting on her experience with internalised homophobia, the importance of authenticity online, and how to build genuine connection and community with an audience. She discusses what it means to be a Gen Z content creator, the challenges of making your personal life part of your brand, and how she finds balance, meaning, and even spirituality in the digital age.