Best Hillary Lester Podcasts (2025)

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241: Unabridged Interview: Sharon McMahon 1:15:29

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11h ago1:15:29

1:15:29

This is our unabridged interview with Sharon McMahon. Have you ever wished someone would explain the inner workings of America’s political landscape — without taking sides or fueling the outrage machine? With over 1.3 million Instagram followers, Sharon McMahon, known affectionately as “America’s Government Teacher,” has spent her career doing exac…

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241: What Stayed With Us: Conversations That Shaped 2025 52:32

4d ago52:32

52:32

Some moments stay with us long after the episode ends. In this special episode, Lee C. Camp and Jakob Lewis revisit the conversations from 2025 that changed them—clips that still echo with courage, tenderness, and the invitation to live well. Key Ideas: Focus on What You Can Do. Sharon McMahon reminds us that while none of us can fix everything, ea…

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240: Unabridged Interview: Munther Isaac 1:11:21

6d ago1:11:21

1:11:21

This is our unabridged interview with Munther Isaac. Imagine you're in charge of pastoring a congregation amidst a war. What does it mean to love your enemies when violence is outside your window, and visceral images of your congregation’s devastation fill your phone? How would you find hope and carry on? Palestinian Lutheran pastor Munther Isaac j…

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The Subtext: We Are (Estranged) Family 48:19

9d ago48:19

48:19

Family estrangement is rising, but the cultural story behind it is far more complex than “cutting off toxic people.” In this episode, Savannah and Lee unpack the social, psychological, and technological shifts that quietly reshaped our expectations of family. and why forgiveness, repair, and humility might be the most countercultural practices left…

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240: Munther Isaac: Palestinian Christian Pastor on War, Hope, and Love 52:07

12d ago52:07

52:07

Imagine you're in charge of pastoring a congregation amidst a war. What does it mean to love your enemies when violence is outside your window, and visceral images of your congregation’s devastation fill your phone? How would you find hope and carry on? Palestinian Lutheran pastor Munther Isaac joins Lee C. Camp from his home in the West Bank to di…

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239: Unabridged Interview: Jeff Chu 57:41

13d ago57:41

57:41

This is our unabridged interview with Jeff Chu. Change can come in the most unlikely places. For Jeff Chu, he found meaning and purpose in a pile of compost. At the peak of his journalism career — writing for Time and Fast Company, perched 29 floors above Manhattan — Jeff Chu stared out his office window and asked a question he could no longer avoi…

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The Subtext: Your Favorite Musician Isn't Real 56:51

17d ago56:51

56:51

AI is reshaping the music industry at a breakneck pace. AI musicians are topping charts, landing record deals, and attracting massive corporate investments. What does this mean for artists? How might this challenge us to think about embodiment, creativity, labor, and what it means to actually be human? When AI musicians start topping the music char…

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239: Jeff Chu: Finding Meaning, Courage, and Beauty in the Dirt 52:13

19d ago52:13

52:13

Change can come in the most unlikely places. For Jeff Chu, he found meaning and purpose in a pile of compost. At the peak of his journalism career — writing for Time and Fast Company, perched 29 floors above Manhattan — Jeff Chu stared out his office window and asked a question he could no longer avoid: “What is this all for?” That moment of vocati…

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238: Unabridged Interview: Hillary McBride 1:07:33

20d ago1:07:33

1:07:33

This is our unabridged interview with Hillary McBride. At sixteen, Lee C. Camp drove five miles over the speed limit and was seized by terror. In his mind, if he died breaking the law, he was going to hell. That childhood fear, shaped by a theology steeped in shame and judgment, is the kind of spiritual residue clinical psychologist Hillary McBride…

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The Subtext: Wicked: For Good 54:32

22d ago54:32

54:32

What if the real magic of Wicked isn’t the spells, but the way friendship, shame, and belonging shape who we become? In this episode, Savannah and Lee dive into the deeper themes of Wicked: For Good, from dreams that come true but don’t satisfy, to the power of propaganda, to the power of shame with an in-group/out-group mentality. They also unpack…

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238: Hillary McBride: Healing the Hidden Wounds of Spiritual Trauma 52:10

26d ago52:10

52:10

At sixteen, Lee C. Camp drove five miles over the speed limit and was seized by terror. In his mind, if he died breaking the law, he was going to hell. That childhood fear, shaped by a theology steeped in shame and judgment, is the kind of spiritual residue clinical psychologist Hillary McBride sees in her work every day. Clinical psychologist and …

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237: Unabridged Interview: Tara Brach 1:10:54

27d ago1:10:54

1:10:54

This is our unabridged interview with Tara Brach. How do you accept yourself fully, just as you are? And if you did, would you ever grow? “Being at peace with how we are in the moment is the precondition to transformation,” says psychologist and meditation teacher Tara Brach. In this episode she provides us with a simple practice to find peace and …

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237: Three Practices to Give You Hope 51:17

1M ago51:17

51:17

When the headlines numb and the culture wars grind us down, what if hope isn’t a mood at all—but a practice you can do with your body, your friends, and your city? In this holiday special, Lee revisits four conversations to find practices of hope: meditation teacher Tara Brach on healing the “trance of unworthiness,” songwriter Tom Paxton on the fo…

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236: Unabridged Interview: Lara Love Hardin 1:08:45

1M ago1:08:45

1:08:45

This is our unabridged interview with Lara Love Hardin. What if the opposite of addiction isn’t sobriety—but connection? How does a woman go from 32 felony charges to the New York Times bestseller list, lunches with Oprah, and a life devoted to healing?Lara Love Hardin—literary agent, author, and prison-reform advocate—recounts her descent into opi…

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The Subtext: The Gospel According to Billie Eilish 54:53

1M ago54:53

54:53

In this episode, Savannah rounds up several posts her algorithm served her this week: an influencer from The Bachelor warning Christians not to watch Love Island, a pastor speaking about slavery in the Bible, Billie Eilish calling out billionaires, and a thread about SNAP benefits. Plus, a little conspiracy chat to close things out, courtesy of Kim…

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236: Lara Love Hardin: The Power of Community and Second Chances 51:58

1M ago51:58

51:58

What if the opposite of addiction isn’t sobriety—but connection? How does a woman go from 32 felony charges to the New York Times bestseller list, lunches with Oprah, and a life devoted to healing?Lara Love Hardin—literary agent, author, and prison-reform advocate—recounts her descent into opioid and heroin addiction, the shame that followed, and t…

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235: Unabridged Interview: Rick Steves 1:08:16

1M ago1:08:16

1:08:16

This is our unabridged interview with Rick Steves. When Rick Steves was 14 years old, he stood in a park behind the Royal Palace in Oslo, watching families dot the grass in joyful togetherness. That was the moment. A dawning awareness that love — deep, sacrificial, attentive love — was not unique to his own family, but radiated across the globe. “T…

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The Subtext: Nobody Wants This 51:19

1M ago51:19

51:19

In this episode, Savannah and Lee dive into the Netflix series Nobody Wants This, a smart and surprisingly tender rom-com about an agnostic podcaster (Kristen Bell) and a rabbi (Adam Brody) trying to make love work across lines of faith and conviction. The conversation unfolds into bigger questions: How do we love people whose choices we disagree w…

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235: Rick Steves: Travel as Spiritual Practice, Political Act, and Global Kinship 51:54

2M ago51:54

51:54

When Rick Steves was 14 years old, he stood in a park behind the Royal Palace in Oslo, watching families dot the grass in joyful togetherness. That was the moment. A dawning awareness that love — deep, sacrificial, attentive love — was not unique to his own family, but radiated across the globe. “This world is filled,” he remembers realizing, “with…

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234: Unabridged Interview: Pádraig Ó Tuama 1:07:59

2M ago1:07:59

1:07:59

This is our unabridged interview with Pádraig Ó Tuama. Pádraig Ó Tuama joins us for part three of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. What…

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The Subtext: All is Fair in Love And (Culture) War 51:10

2M ago51:10

51:10

When Turning Point USA launches an “All-American Halftime Show” to rival Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance, it’s more than a musical critique, it’s a signal of a culture war. In this episode, Savannah and Lee unpack why something as ordinary as a halftime show can feel like a referendum on faith, family, and freedom. From the backlash that followe…

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234: Pádraig Ó Tuama: Poetry, and Making Peace, Bearing Witness and Being Human - Poetry Against the Dark 51:30

2M ago51:30

51:30

Pádraig Ó Tuama joins us for part three of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. What possibly might human flourishing mean in such a contex…

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233: Unabridged Interview: Haleh Liza Gafori 1:13:05

2M ago1:13:05

1:13:05

This is our unabridged interview with Haleh Liza Gafori. Haleh Liza Gafori joins us for part two of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. Wh…

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The Subtext: Liver King: Masculinity in Crisis 47:59

2M ago47:59

47:59

When the “Liver King” built an empire on raw meat, steroids, and slogans about being “a real man,” what if he wasn’t selling a message based on muscles but mortality? In this episode, Savannah and Lee dig into how the fear of death shapes our obsession with control, strength, and self-sufficiency. Drawing from Untold: The Liver King, Scott Galloway…

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233: Haleh Liza Gafori: The Poetry of Rumi, Theology, and Social Critique - Poetry Against the Dark 51:14

2M ago51:14

51:14

Haleh Liza Gafori joins us for part two of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. What possibly might human flourishing mean in such a contex…

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232: Unabridged Interview: Joy Harjo 1:00:33

2M ago1:00:33

1:00:33

Joy Harjo joins us for part one of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. What possibly might human flourishing mean in such a context? And w…

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The Subtext: God and Gilmore Girls 42:49

2M ago42:49

42:49

In this episode, Savannah and Lee celebrate the 25th anniversary of Gilmore Girls and use Melissa McCarthy’s viral story about Yanic Truesdale’s “fake” French accent as a springboard to talk about authenticity, faith, and what we’ve been trained to hear as “real.” From Luke’s Diner to the Sermon on the Mount, this episode asks: how do we tell the d…

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232: Joy Harjo: Poetry and the Pursuit of Justice, Truth, and the Common Good - Poetry Against the Dark 51:11

2M ago51:11

51:11

Joy Harjo joins us for part one of a three-part series asking the question posed by poet Christian Wiman: What is poetry’s role when the world is burning? It’s not a metaphorical question. We’re living through wars, climate collapse, collective burnout, and political fragmentation. What possibly might human flourishing mean in such a context? And w…

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231: Unabridged Interview: Garrett Graff 1:04:54

2M ago1:04:54

1:04:54

This is our unabridged interview with Garrett Graff. What can it possibly mean to flourish in our tech saturated world? In the early 2000s, the internet felt like a civic miracle in the making, with profound possibilities for human flourishing and civic progress. Facebook gave voice to protestors in Egypt’s Tahrir Square. Twitter helped bring down …

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The Subtext: The Life of a Showgirl (Lee’s Version) 56:36

2M ago56:36

56:36

When a Christian influencer warns moms that Taylor Swift will lead their daughters astray, the conversation has moved beyond pop music and into culture. In this episode, Savannah and Lee trace how the church has wrestled with cultural artifacts, including Niebuhr’s Christ and Culture, and what frameworks can help us understand modern reactions to c…

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231: Garrett Graff: Social Media, Politics, and the Failure to Flourish 51:29

2M ago51:29

51:29

What can it possibly mean to flourish in our tech saturated world? In the early 2000s, the internet felt like a civic miracle in the making, with profound possibilities for human flourishing and civic progress. Facebook gave voice to protestors in Egypt’s Tahrir Square. Twitter helped bring down dictators. The web seemed poised to enhance democracy…

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230: Unabridged Interview: Anna Sale 1:12:51

3M ago1:12:51

1:12:51

This is our unabridged interview with Anna Sale. When Anna Sale launched Death, Sex & Money in 2014, she was 30 years old, newly divorced, living alone in a studio apartment in New York City, and trying to figure out what her life would become. She had covered politics as a reporter, but her personal world was unraveling. So she started asking stra…

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From Revisionist History: The Alabama Murders [ft. Lee Camp] 34:10

3M ago34:10

34:10

Here’s a preview of a new podcast series that Lee recently appeared in, The Alabama Murders from Revisionist History. Florence, Alabama. 1988. A preacher has an affair. A woman is murdered. One death cascades into more, stretching across decades and leaving no one untouched — victims, bystanders, perpetrators, and those just trying to help. On The …

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The Subtext: When Artists Fund the Military 42:03

3M ago42:03

42:03

When Spotify CEO Daniel Ek invests in a military AI startup, it raises a deeper question: how do we live with integrity in systems that profit from harm? In this episode, we explore the uncomfortable relationship between the best and brightest, money, and violence—from Deerhoof’s protest to Oppenheimer’s legacy, from Walter Wink’s “powers that be” …

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230: Anna Sale: Cultivating Courage to Talk About Hard Things, like Death, Sex, and Money 51:34

3M ago51:34

51:34

When Anna Sale launched Death, Sex & Money in 2014, she was 30 years old, newly divorced, living alone in a studio apartment in New York City, and trying to figure out what her life would become. She had covered politics as a reporter, but her personal world was unraveling. So she started asking strangers to talk about hard things, the questions sh…

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229: Unabridged Interview: Terence Lester 1:05:25

3M ago1:05:25

1:05:25

This is our unabridged interview with Terence Lester. It was three days before Christmas when Terence Lester’s family dropped him beneath a bridge in Atlanta. With no change of clothes and a biting winter cold, he began a month-long experiment in solidarity with the unhoused. Strangers offered blankets, socks, even stories around a firepit. It was …

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The Subtext: Friendship Recession 43:52

3M ago43:52

43:52

In this episode, Lee and Savannah explore why friendships are harder to form and sustain in today’s culture, despite living in the most “connected” era in history. They examine how technology and convenience have reshaped friendship from a priority into a luxury. They ask whether these shifts meet our deep human need for connection or quietly erode…

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229: Terence Lester: Human Flourishing, Self Development, and the Common Good 52:01

3M ago52:01

52:01

It was three days before Christmas when Terence Lester’s family dropped him beneath a bridge in Atlanta. With no change of clothes and a biting winter cold, he began a month-long experiment in solidarity with the unhoused. Strangers offered blankets, socks, even stories around a firepit. It was humbling, painful, and life-altering. And it was from …

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228: Unabridged Interview: Jen Hatmaker 1:07:25

3M ago1:07:25

1:07:25

This is our unabridged interview with Jen Hatmaker. Jen Hatmaker's world unraveled at 2.00 a.m. one night when she awoke to hear her husband of 26 years lying beside her in bed, voice-texting his girlfriend. That's the brutal story with which Jen begins her new memoir, Awake: A Memoir of Reinvention and Recovery. It was the start of a long, painful…

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The Subtext: America’s Sweethearts: Pom Poms and Pay Gaps 50:16

3M ago50:16

50:16

In this episode, Savannah Locke and Lee C. Camp dive into a critical discussion of the Netflix show "America's Sweethearts" and the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders' fight for fair wages. This sparks a broader conversation about the wealth gap, the commodification of labor—including human bodies—in professional sports, and the different types of justice…

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228: Jen Hatmaker: When Everything Breaks: Grief, Growth, and Human Flourishing 51:26

3M ago51:26

51:26

Jen Hatmaker's world unraveled at 2.00 a.m. one night when she awoke to hear her husband of 26 years lying beside her in bed, voice-texting his girlfriend. That's the brutal story with which Jen begins her new memoir, Awake: A Memoir of Reinvention and Recovery. It was the start of a long, painful journey—through grief, honesty with her self, and u…

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227: Unabridged Interview: Max Lucado 1:17:14

3M ago1:17:14

1:17:14

This is our unabridged interview with Max Lucado. Called “America’s Pastor," Max Lucado has sold more than 150 million products and authored over 40 nonfiction books. In this vulnerable career retrospective interview, Lee explores what led Max Lucado to become almost synonymous with grace, acceptance and forgiveness--namely some of his own wounds f…

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The Subtext: Keeping the Man in Superman 48:58

3M ago48:58

48:58

In this episode, we dissect the summer blockbuster Superman that flips the script by emphasizing vulnerability and humanity over untouchable power. Fans have praised the way the movie let Superman cry, lose, and even ask for help, while critics argue it made him too weak. We connect these reactions to questions of faith, asking what it means to wor…

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227: Max Lucado: “America’s Pastor” on How to Tame Your Thoughts 51:42

3M ago51:42

51:42

Called “America’s Pastor," Max Lucado has sold more than 150 million products and authored over 40 nonfiction books. In this vulnerable career retrospective interview, Lee explores what led Max Lucado to become almost synonymous with grace, acceptance and forgiveness--namely some of his own wounds from childhood experiences in a frugal, sometimes e…

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226: Unabridged Interview: Amy Sherman 1:08:12

4M ago1:08:12

1:08:12

This is our unabridged interview with Amy Sherman. What if the church were known not for culture wars or abuses of power, but for building parks, strengthening schools, advancing science education, and championing restorative justice? That’s the vision Amy L. Sherman lays out in her book Agents of Flourishing. In this conversation, Sherman invites …

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226: Amy Sherman: A Faith-Based Vision for the Common Good 50:56

4M ago50:56

50:56

What if the church were known not for culture wars or abuses of power, but for building parks, strengthening schools, advancing science education, and championing restorative justice? That’s the vision Amy L. Sherman lays out in her book Agents of Flourishing. In this conversation, Sherman invites us to imagine faith communities not as insular inst…

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225: Unabridged Interview: Parker Palmer (Part 2) 1:27:15

4M ago1:27:15

1:27:15

This is part two of our unabridged interview with Parker Palmer. “Things didn’t come together vocationally for me until I was 50.” At 86 years old, Quaker writer, speaker, and activist Parker Palmer has much to say about living a good life. And in his experience, a good life is often hard-won and counterintuitive. In this episode, Parker covers a l…

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225: Unabridged Interview: Parker Palmer (Part 1) 1:24:57

4M ago1:24:57

1:24:57

This is part one of our unabridged interview with Parker Palmer. “Things didn’t come together vocationally for me until I was 50.” At 86 years old, Quaker writer, speaker, and activist Parker Palmer has much to say about living a good life. And in his experience, a good life is often hard-won and counterintuitive. In this episode, Parker covers a l…

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225: Parker Palmer: Courage, Vocation, and Paradox (Best of NSE) 50:42

4M ago50:42

50:42

“Things didn’t come together vocationally for me until I was 50.” At 86 years old, Quaker writer, speaker, and activist Parker Palmer has much to say about living a good life. And in his experience, a good life is often hard-won and counterintuitive. In this episode, Parker covers a lot of ground, offering wisdom gleaned from a life lived with atte…

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224: Unabridged Interview: Anne-Laure Le Cunff 58:44

4M ago58:44

58:44

This is our unabridged interview with Anne-Laure Le Cunff. When Anne-Laure Le Cunff—then a high-achieving Google executive—was told to go to the hospital for a life-threatening blood clot, she found herself first checking her calendar. Her bizarre response told her something was wrong with her life and priorities. She left Silicon Valley, earned a …