For me, queerness and contemplation or the contemplative path are just such a natural union… the Christian contemplative tradition began with a lot of weirdness in third and fourth century deserts. — Cassidy Hall

Debonee and Skye have a joyful and insightful conversation with Cassidy Hall, author of Queering Contemplation: Finding Queerness in the Roots and Future of Contemplative Spirituality, invoking Alan Watts, Pamela Lightsey, Ram Dass, Lerita Coleman Brown, Richard Rohr, Cody Sanders, Grant Morrison, and The Book of Common Prayer.

Along the way we discuss the uses and limitations of labels, the evolution of the word “queer” from its Scottish origins to use as a slur to the reclamation of it in recent years, the relationship between definitions and cultures of domination, the history of HIV activism (incidentally, the phrase “We’re here, we’re queer, get used to it” dates back to about 1990), and the “answerless questions” that the contemplative tradition beautifully embodies.

Queerness belongs to all of us… There is something unique, odd, strange, oblique about all of us. — Cassidy Hall

Hi friends, our latest Radical Mystics podcast is what we hope will be the first in a long series of interviews — friendly conversations with fellow seekers, mystics, contemplatives, perennialists, punks, ferals, radicals, and whoever else happens to happen along.

Our inaugural RadMystConvo took place on September 28, 2026, as Debonee and Skye sat down with Lisa Colon Delay of the legendary Spark My Muse podcast. We divided our conversation into two parts: the first part, hosted by Spark My Muse, features Lisa interviewing us on our vision for this Radical Mystics newsletter and podcast; we took over the host responsibilities for the second part, where we invite Lisa to share insights into her new book, The Way of the Desert Elders: How the Wisdom of Ancient Christians Sustains Us Today.

Click here to listen to part one of this podcast! (and Subscribe to Spark My Muse).

As the title suggests, it is a dive into the spirituality and literature of the desert mothers and fathers — radical mystics of the ancient world. Lisa’s perspective on these ancient hermits and spiritual directors is insightful and helpful whether you’re new to the desert elders or have been hanging out with their words for many years.

So check out Lisa’s book as well as her podcast…

* Spark My Muse on Apple Podcasts

* Spark My Muse Interviews Radical Mystics

* Spark My Muse Interviews Carl McColman:

* Episode 129: Calibrating Your Heart

* Episode 143: An Invitation to Celtic Wisdom

* Episode 176: Unteachable Lessons

* Episode 200: Eternal Heart

* Episode 224: The New Big Book of Christian Mysticism

In this episode of our Radical Mystics podcast, Skye and Debonee reflect on their experiences at the 2026 Wild Goose Festival, the spirituality, justice and creativity festival that happens in North Carolina every summer. We tell a few stories, drop a few names, and reflect on the spirituality of community and why this festival inspires a sense of hope for the future.

The 2027 Wild Goose Festival will take place in Harmony, NC on September 2-5, 2027. Mark your calendars — and we hope to see you there!

It was a dark and stormy night… but in an antebellum house-turned-office building in downtown Decatur, GA, Debonee and Skye explained some of the movies that they feel embody the radical mystic ethos.

Take a whirlwind tour with us from Japan to India to Germany to Austria; from the deep panentheism of Shinto to the nonduality of Vedanta and the sacrifice-it-all devotion of Catholic mysticism; from the longing of an angel to the power of family and finally to the surprising link between death and dance.What movies do you think belonged on this list, but we left out? Which of our selections excites you? Infuriates you, opens up the curiosity of your heart? Let us know — the comments section isn’t going to fill up by itself, you know.

Scroll on to see the trailers for each of the movies we discuss.

P.S. There are plenty of books that can be linked to these movies, but we’ll offer you just one for now: Star Child by Claire A. Nivola (see C’mon C’mon).

Hello friends — we have been wanting to launch a podcast for many months now, and today we are officially out of the gate. We hope this inaugural episode will help you get to know us a bit better, and give you a glimpse into why we are calling this Substack/Podcast “Radical Mystics,” and maybe even find out how both of us love music and snark….

Please… share with all your friends!