Crossroads from Washington National Cathedral (Washington National Cathedral)

The Rev. Jo Nygard Owens is joined by the Dean of the Cathedral, The Very Rev. Randy Hollerith, to discuss the theme of the Cathedral's new podcast - the intersection of sacred and civic.

Tune in for a rich conversation between Dean Randy Hollerith and Francis S. Collins, MD, former director of the National Institutes of Health, former Director of the Human Genome Project, and New York Times-bestselling author. They reflect on faith, trust, and how we can move forward and together during these deeply polarizing times.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ep-19-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• https://www.francisscollins.com/
• https://deratethehate.com/
• https://braverangels.org/

From our stained glass and carvings to leadership in worship, women have been important in the life of the Cathedral from the beginning. The Cathedral’s Provost, Jan Cope, Director of Creative Engagement, Mimi McNamara, and host Jo Nygard Owens highlight the women who have forged a path at the Cathedral.

Submit your question for our Ask Me Anything episode: https://cathedral.org/podcast

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Ep-26-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Crossroads episode discussing Smithsonian Folklife Festival: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dch7FHOSlN8

With the advent of AI and other incredible technological advances, we are ever closer to a world where we can have whatever we want right when and where we want it. But what are the ethical implications? Join us for a thought-provoking conversation with Dr. Robert Wolcott, Chair of The World Innovation Network (TWIN Global), the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, the Cathedral’s Pastor for Digital Ministry, and Dr. Sonia Coman, the Cathedral’s Director of Digital Engagement.

Additional Resources:

Proximity - Columbia University Press: https://cup.columbia.edu/book/proximity/9780231207584

The World Innovation Network: https://www.twinglobal.org/

Talk by Dr. Geoffrey Ling: https://www.twinglobal.org/multimedia/articles/lorem-ipsum-dolor-sit-amet-consectetur-5#

Cozy up with our Crossroads Christmas episode as the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Canon Vicar Dana Corsello, and Chorister Director Julie DeBoer share what it takes to welcome 30,000 guests to Cathedral services and concerts.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ep-20-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• "O Come, All Ye Faithful" Chord

Tune in for a conversation with award-winning educator, author, and speaker Rebecca Roberts and Our Chief Public Affairs Officer, Kevin Eckstrom, on the complex legacy of First Lady Edith Wilson and her and President Wilson’s ties to the Cathedral.

Additional Resources:

• https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/696995/untold-power-by-rebecca-boggs-roberts/
• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-edith-wilson-kept-herselfand-her-husbandin-the-white-house-180981712/
• https://mydigimag.rrd.com/publication/?m=46623&i=824264&p=14&ver=html5

Joining the Cathedral's Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry, and Rev. Leonard Hamlin, Canon Missioner, is Dr. Kate Ott, Professor of Christian Social Ethics at Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL, for a rich conversation on today's digital revolution and the role of Christian ethics in AI, social media, and all things digital. This is the third of a series of episodes on ethics and AI that have featured Dr. Robert Wolcott, Dr. Joseph Yun, and the Cathedral's Dr. Sonia Coman.

"Christian Ethics for a Digital Society" by Dr. Kate Ott: https://www.amazon.com/Christian-Ethics-Digital-Society-Kate/dp/1442267372

The new Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Sean Rowe, and host Jo Nygard Owens discuss Bishop Rowe’s unique start and vision for the church in our digitally connected age.

Submit your question for our Ask Me Anything episode: https://cathedral.org/podcast

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Ep-27-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Seating of Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe: https://www.youtube.com/live/XrKQ-cbT2uc?si=uWupZ0o3NOjh4j3U

Join the Rev. Canon Jan Cope, Provost, the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry, and the Rev. Spencer Brown, Priest Associate, for an open conversation on anxiety, disappointment, and finding common ground. In these challenging times, our clergy explore how each of us can live faithfully together.

Additional Resources:

• https://cathedral.org/blog/an-invitation-to-a-better-way/
• https://cathedral.org/blog/a-better-way-to-find-common-ground/

The Rev. Jo Nygard Owens interviews Cathedral friend Peter Wehner, Senior Fellow at The Trinity Forum, former speechwriter for the administrations of three Republican US presidents, and contributing opinion writer for the New York Times. Tune in for a nourishing conversation on re-centering ourselves after this year’s momentous election and on the eve of Thanksgiving.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ep-18-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Peter Wehner, "The Death of Politics"
• C.S. Lewis, "Surprised by Joy"
• Vaclav Havel, "Disturbing the Peace: A Conversation with Karel Huizdala"
• Francis Collins, "The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust"

Our growing series exploring today’s disruptive technologies through the lens of ethics and faith continues! In this episode, Rev. Jo Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry, and Dr. Sonia Coman, Director of Digital Engagement, sit down with innovator Sam Glassenberg, Founder & CEO of Level Ex, to discuss the transformative potential of video games and AI for medical training and life-saving advances in the medical field.

Additional Resources:

• https://www.levelex.com/
• https://glassenberg.com/
• https://cathedral.org/discover/3d-virtual-tour/

Embrace the new year and new beginnings as the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens and bestselling author Emily P. Freeman discuss checking in with our inner selves, decision making, and other practical advice to start 2025. You can learn more about Emily and her two bestselling books How to Walk Into a Room and The Next Right Thing on her website: https://emilypfreeman.com/

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Ep-21-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

- https://www.instagram.com/emilypfreeman/ - https://www.facebook.com/emilyfreemanauthor/ - https://x.com/emilypfreeman

Martin Luther King III and his wife, Arndrea Waters King, will join the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens and the Rev. Canon Leonard Hamlin to share how he is working to make his father’s dream a reality by building understanding, empathy and unity between people and communities.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Ep-24-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Realize the Dream: A movement to uplift and transform communities in America and the world.
• Martin Luther King, Jr.'s sermon at the Cathedral
• Martin Luther King III's sermon at the Cathedral
• Yolanda King's sermon at the Cathedral

Marjorie Hunt, Academy Award-winning director of the documentary The Stone Carvers, joins the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens and Chief Public Affairs Officer Kevin Eckstrom on a deep dive into the rich, captivating legacy of stone carving at the Cathedral.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Ep-22-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• View the Academy Award-winning short film: https://www.folkstreams.net/films/stone-carvers
• Current Cathedral Stonemasons will be featured at the upcoming Smithsonian Folklife Festival in July 2025: https://festival.si.edu/2025/looking-forward
• Marjorie's book can be found here: https://a.co/d/2VI6uQC
• Crossroads episode featuring the Cathedral's stonemasons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Emvo0hcMm58

Tune in for the Cathedral's first conversation on AI and ethics. Whether you are enthusiastically embracing it, reluctantly trying it out, or anxious about its consequences, AI has taken our world by storm and according to the experts, it is here to stay. Dr. Joseph Yun, CEO of Bluefoxlabs.ai and AI architect for the University of Pittsburgh, the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, the Cathedral's Pastor for Digital Ministry, and Dr. Sonia Coman, the Cathedral's Director of Digital Engagement discuss the state of AI, its risks, and the hope it can bring to the world.

Additional Resources:

De-Mystifying Generative AI: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwhzB9x69b4

Sermon by Sam Wells: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18_Uil7YmRM

In this episode, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of women’s ordination in the Episcopal Church. Joining The Rev. Jo Nygard Owens is The Rev. Rose Logan Duncan, Canon for Worship and The Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas, Canon Theologian and Dean of Episcopal Divinity School at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. They reflect on the challenges that women have faced in ministry and explore the intersectionality of gender, race, and sexual orientation in the struggle for equal standing in the priesthood.

Tune in for our latest episode featuring highlights from an in-person conversation with Jim Wallis, founding Director of the Georgetown University Center on Faith and Justice, and our Dean, the Very Rev. Randy Hollerith, on Wallis’s bestselling book, The False White Gospel.

The Cathedral is proud to be a founding partner of America250, a nonpartisan initiative working to engage every American in commemorating the 250th anniversary of our country, now through July 4, 2026. Rev. Jo Nygard Owens sits down with Rosie Rios, Chair of the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission and former Treasurer of the United States, as she reflects on her inspiring trajectory, our nation’s past, honoring the contributions of all Americans, and looking ahead toward the future we want to create for the next generation.

Learn More:

https://america250.org/

Join us for an inspiring and insightful conversation with the Honorable John H. Dalton, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy and Cathedral Canon; Raleigh Smith Duttweiler, Chief Impact Officer of the National Military Family Association; and Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry. Our guests reflect on how we can support the unique challenges of military life, military families, and our veterans, sharing their fascinating personal and professional trajectories in support of this essential mission.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ep-17-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/At-the-Helm/John-H-Dalton/9781637585153

Tune in as our Dean, the Very Rev. Randy Hollerith, interviews one of the leading conductors of our time, Marin Alsop, on her first performance at the Cathedral, exploring the power of music and the timely message of Beethoven’s iconic 9th Symphony.

Learn More:

• https://www.carnegiehall.org/Explore/Articles/2020/12/08/An-Interview-with-Tracy-K-Smith
• Cathedral.org/abetterway

Tune in for a special episode featuring highlights from a conversation between Former Congresswoman Liz Cheney and Canon Historian Jon Meacham, hosted by Washington National Cathedral. Our guests discuss how America’s leaders can put principles first, and how all Americans can find a better way to be in relationship with one another.

Watch full event stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mx-g3E4vAUo

Acclaimed columnist David Brooks and Dean Randy Hollerith discuss Brooks’ latest book, How to Know a Person, which delves into the art of human connection, exploring the intricacies of empathy, understanding, and the profound impact our relationships have on our lives.

Download transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Ep-23-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Watch the full event replay
• A Better Way
• How to Know a Person

Please join the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens for a fascinating interview with the Cathedral's Canon Historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Jon Meacham, on what it means to be canon historian, insights on U.S. presidents at the intersection of sacred and civic, and the public life of the Cathedral.

Please join us for a special episode as the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry, interviews the Most Rev. Michael Bruce Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church. Bishop Curry will reflect on his tenure in this period of transition and his teachings on spreading the good news and embracing love.

Additional Resources:

• A Case For Love
• Love is the Way: Holding on to Hope in Troubling Times
• The Power of Love Royal Wedding Sermon

In Crossroads’ latest episode, join the Rev. Leonard Hamlin, Canon Missioner, the Rev. Jan Naylor Cope, Provost, and the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens, Pastor for Digital Ministry for a fascinating conversation on how the Cathedral lives out its mission to be a house of prayer for all people by nurturing meaningful relationships across faith traditions. Our guests share poignant moments of interfaith cooperation and friendship from the Cathedral’s distant and more recent history that are not to be missed. 

Rev. Owens sits downs with our stone masons and carvers Joe Alonso, Brianna Castelli, and Sean Callahan to explore this fascinating profession and the Cathedral's unique carving style.

Additional Resources:

• https://cathedral.org/blog/celebrating-joe-alonso-cathedral-rock-star/
• https://www.instagram.com/cathedralstonemason/

Spiritual writer and teacher John Philip Newell joins the Rev. Jo Nygard Owens to discuss how each of us can interact with both ancient and modern wisdom to bring deep knowing to the surface, discovering ourselves and working toward a better world.

Submit your question for our Ask Me Anything episode: https://cathedral.org/podcast

Download Transcript: https://cathedral.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Ep-25-Transcript.pdf

Additional Resources:

• Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul - Retreat with John Philip at the Cathedral
• Earth & Soul Initiative
• The Great Search - Book Information