Life After Doom

Meet Brian D. McLaren

Brian D. McLaren is an author, speaker, activist, and public theologian. A former college English teacher and pastor, he is a passionate advocate for “a new kind of Christianity” – just, generous, and working with people of all faiths for the common good. He is a core faculty member and Dean of Faculty for the Center for Action and Contemplation and a podcaster with Learning How to See. He is also an Auburn Senior Fellow and is a co-host of Southern Lights. His newest books are Faith After Doubt (January 2021), Do I Stay Christian? (May 2022), and Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart (2024). His co-authored children’s book Cory and the Seventh Story was released in 2023.

Born in 1956, McLaren graduated from University of Maryland with degrees in English (BA, 1978, and MA, 1981). His academic interests included Medieval drama, Romantic poets, modern philosophical literature, and the novels of Dr. Walker Percy. In 2004, he was awarded a Doctor of Divinity Degree (honoris causa) from Carey Theological Seminary in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and in 2010, he received a second honorary doctorate from Virginia Theological Seminary (Episcopal).

A frequent guest on television, radio, and news media programs, he has appeared on All Things Considered, Larry King Live, Nightline, On Being, and Religion and Ethics Newsweekly. His work has also been covered in Time, The New York Times, Christianity Today, The Christian Century, The Washington Post, Huffington Post, CNN.com, and many other print and online media.

He has taught or lectured at many seminaries and at denominational and interfaith gatherings.

Brian is married to Grace, and they have four adult children and five grandchildren. His personal interests include wildlife and ecology, fly fishing and kayaking, music and songwriting, and literature.

Rev. Mira Sawlani-Joyner is a dedicated pastor, preacher, educator, and public theologian, whose ministry is deeply influenced by her immigrant heritage. She holds a Master of Divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary, where she was honored with awards for Excellence in Public Theology and Community Life.

Rev. Mira’s commitment to justice and advocacy is shaped by her decolonized perspective and her experience as a “third culture kid” with Philippine and Indian roots, raised in Hong Kong. Her ministry journey spans diverse multicultural communities across Australia and the United States. As a mother of three daughters, she is passionately driven to create a more just world, striving to make God’s kin-dom a reality on earth.

Currently, Rev. Mira serves as the Minister of Justice, Advocacy, and Change at The Riverside Church in New York City. In this role, she works closely with organizations such as GreenFaith, the Poor People’s Campaign, Interfaith Commission on Housing Equality, and Action Corps, bringing a faith-rooted approach to the pursuit of justice and social transformation.

After a career spanning more than thirty years in financial management, John Elwood began a second life on matters closer to his heart. He and his wife Barbara established a 50-acre organic produce farm, which today serves more than 700 cooperative members; chaired the board of a mission sending agency operating on four continents; served on the boards of three prominent Christian environmental advocacy organizations; and helped lead resistance to the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines. In 2019, he turned his focus to the theological implications of the ecosystem crisis, earning an M.A. in Ecotheology from Union Theological Seminary. He now serves on the Steering Committee of the Eden Vigil Institute for Environmental Leadership at William Carey International University. 

Ben Yosua-Davis serves on The BTS Center staff team as Director of Applied Research, where he shapes the organization’s posture of “rigorous and reverent curiosity,” focused on research that supports and shares the wisdom of on-the-ground practitioners working in a climate-changed world. He is a graduate of Drew Theological Seminary and Colby College.

Previously, he lived in Haverhill, MA, where he co-planted a new church called The Vine, one of the earliest mainline missional church expressions in the country, and hosted a podcast entitled, “Reports From the Spiritual Frontier,” which chronicled the day-to-day lives of leaders innovating new forms of spiritual community.

Ben is a Maine native and now lives on Chebeague Island, Maine with his wife, Melissa, his son Michael, and his daughters, Genevieve and Emeline; where he directs the community chorus and delivers tins of cookies to unsuspecting neighbors.