Conor Conway is a coffee connoisseur, top notch trumpeter, and spiritual conversationalist. Since he is a co-owner of Epoch Coffee in downtown Moncton, I have known of Conor for years now, but this in-depth conversation was long overdue. We dip into his early days with Canadian pop music sensation The Weeknd, drink three marvelously prepared cups of coffee, and dive DEEP into not only his own experiences of God in general and Judaism in particular, but also some of the (good and less-good) ways Judaism & Christianity have historically interacted.
I learned a lot in this conversation, not least about Sistema and Reconstructionist Judaism. I also learned (hopefully) how to do a better job recording a pod in-person rather than online… next time. Please, your patience for the audio-quality is requested! Most importantly, though, I learned that while it is obviously difficult to talk about difficult things, it can be worth doing so with safe people, even if you stumble pretty hard over your own words. I truly appreciated Conor’s grace to me throughout our chat, but especially in the back quarter when we get into one of the hottest of the hot topics (in my world, at least).
During this episode I referenced Carmen Joy Imes’ books. Here’s a link to the podcast I recorded with her: Episode 31
I also referenced my love for David Desteno’s “How God Works” podcast. Here’s a review I wrote of his book: How God Works
If I had thought about it, I would have referenced this previous podcast I recorded with Dr Matt Friedman, who is himself both Jewish & Christian: Episode 36
Chapters:
04:47 // Gesha Village Coffee
08:07 // Multicultural Upbringing and Tasting Differences
13:12 // From Music to Coffee: Conor's Journey
18:50 // Conor's Experience with The Weeknd
30:04 // Religious Identity and Reconstructionist Judaism
37:47 // Coffee Tasting and Cultural Exploration
38:26 // Walking through an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood
39:49 // Orthodox Judaism and the Importance of Community
41:18 // Observing Shabbat and Jewish Law
42:48 // Reconstructionism: Individual Interpretation of Jewish Practices
43:18 // Questioning and Wrestling with Faith
54:53 // The Power of Participating in Ritual
1:07:15 // The Book of Job: Wrestling with Suffering and Seeking Truth
1:14:08 // The Exclusivity of Christianity and the Benefits of Applying Oneself to a Religion
1:24:15 // Navigating the Complexities of Supporting Israelis and Palestinians
1:35:49 // The Rise of Anti-Semitism and the Importance of Difficult Conversations
Keywords:
coffee, flavor, coffee industry, music industry, multicultural, religion, Reconstructionist Judaism, community, religion, Orthodox Judaism, reconstructionism, language, beliefs, questioning, wrestling with faith, book of Job, religion, Christianity, exclusivity, truth claims, applying oneself, benefits, Israel, theological viewpoints, support, Palestinians, anti-Semitism, Jewish community
Coffee, Music, God: Conversation w/ Conor Conway