[ep 085] Dean Morris on finding religion, our true spiritual nature & holding space for others

Dean Morris is a very good man. It’s a feeling you get immediately—he feels like the human version of an all-encompassing, welcoming hug. A longtime educator, he found his way to being a pastor, an athlete and lululemon ambassador and now co-host of the podcast A Little More Good & A More Good Media cofounder. 

He grew up in Richmond, on an acre property in the middle of the city. It was a quintessential childhood, running free and exploring the outdoors—he was always curious about how things worked and wanted to understand the world around him. In high school, his class was tasked to research their heroes, leading him to find leaders like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., both of whom looked up to Jesus as a guiding light. Religion was not a foundation of his household, but Dean had friends who were part of a church and, in his curiosity and despite some skepticism, met with a pastor to ask about Jesus. He started to go to church, with some wise words from his father: keep your brain turned on. 

When his parents divorced after his high school graduation, Dean went through a huge transformation within and began to truly understand the spiritual nature of who he was. He began working at church, where he did some music and teaching and eventually went to seminary and got his masters in ministry leadership and culture.       

In this conversation, we explore topics from ownership versus belonging; his desire for social justice; reconciling with his ability to carry the weight and hold space for many others; the tools he uses to regulate his nervous system and triggers; religious doctrine & Christianity and how it's moved away from the original values of pure love and acceptance; the advent of ‘new religions’; how his relationship with running and his physical body has changed recently; and more.

[TIMESTAMPS]

5:46 - His childhood

19:29 - The thing in his life that changed his perspective 

26:52 - How he deals with dis-regulation in the body

31:59 - His spiritual path

1:05:36 - What religion means to people nowadays

1:17:05 - His university path

1:19:59 - What is he unlearning

1:29:29 - What holding space means to him

1:31:31 - Final question 

1:35:17 - Where to find him

[TODAY'S SPONSORS]

Before Company: https://beforecompany.com/discount/CRAFT10 - get 10% off your entire order; one-time use per customer; no expiry date

otō healing: https://www.instagram.com/otohealing/ - email otohealing at gmail.com to get 10% off your initial sound therapy session

Before Company: https://beforecompany.com/discount/CRAFT10 - get 10% off your entire order; one-time use per customer; no expiry date

otō healing: https://www.instagram.com/otohealing/ - email otohealing at gmail.com to get 10% off your initial sound therapy session