The Contemplative Pastor
Practicing the Way
For the pastor who longs to embody a less hurried, less overwhelmed, less CEO-like form of leadership, and to recover the ancient path of pastoring in the way of Jesus.The Contemplative Pastor features insightful teachings from guides and sages on key topics within spiritual formation, along with practical conversations on those teachings between Bryan Rouanzoin and Bethany Allen, pastors from Canopy Church and Bridgetown Church, followed by guided prayers and reflections to help you sit with the rich wisdom of each episode. Our aim? To shape a new, yet ancient, kind of pastor—more unhurried, more prayerful, more peaceful—and to see the formational role of the local church flourish once again.Welcome to The Contemplative Pastor.---To find more resources and experiences tailored just for you—the pastor—visit practicingtheway.org/pastor.This podcast and its episodes are free, thanks to the generosity of The Circle and other givers. You can learn more about The Circle or contribute toward future resources like this podcast at practicingtheway.org/give.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 26, 2026 • 39min
Relational Spirituality: Part 2 (Q&A with John Mark Comer and Dr. Todd Hall)
John Mark Comer, pastor and author who teaches contemplative practices, and Dr. Todd Hall, psychologist specializing in attachment and spiritual formation, answer pastors' questions. They tackle vulnerability with boundaries, where leaders find safe relationships outside power dynamics, cultivating psychological safety on staff, and how embodiment and implicit knowing complement teaching.
14 snips
Mar 19, 2026 • 52min
Relational Spirituality: Part 1 (Featuring Dr. Todd Hall)
Dr. Todd Hall, a relational spirituality researcher who teaches attachment and contemplative formation, shares how relational history shapes spiritual life. He explores the connection crisis, attachment patterns, two ways of knowing, and practical practices like contemplative prayer and deep relationships. Conversations include technology’s role, misguided strategies, and how loving contrast can reshape attachment.
14 snips
Mar 12, 2026 • 56min
A Rule of Life (Featuring Gemma Ryan)
Gemma Ryan, author and pastor who focuses on spiritual formation and communal rhythms, explores how everyday domestic practices and shared patterns shape Christian life. She traces the rule of life from monastic roots to communal adoption. Topics include cultivating longing before disciplines, leadership modeling, slow implementation, and practical ways churches form people through proximity and apprenticeship.
19 snips
Mar 5, 2026 • 53min
The Narrow Path of Formation (Featuring Rich Villodas)
Rich Villodas, pastor and author known for spiritual formation and contemplative practices, offers a brief teaching on inner transformation. He contrasts the narrow path of Jesus with worldly pace. He calls leaders to root identity in baptismal belonging, become a calm, differentiated presence, and lay down burdens for a slower, sustained way of ministry.
10 snips
Feb 26, 2026 • 46min
Church Around the Table
Dana Dooley, a worship leader who practices table-shaped gatherings, and Chris Weinand, a church planter focused on small, meal-centered discipleship. They discuss centering community life around shared meals. They cover planting reproducible table communities, including children at messy family tables, cultivating vulnerability and formation, and practical rhythms for weekly communal meals.
5 snips
Feb 19, 2026 • 1h 22min
A Conversation Between Father Ronald Rolheiser and John Mark Comer
Father Ronald Rolheiser, a Catholic priest, theologian, and bestselling author, reflects on decades of ministry and spiritual formation. He discusses how confronting illness sharpened gratitude and presence. He outlines three stages of discipleship, the need for initiation rites, the dangers of cultural distractions, and how forgiveness and steady spiritual practices sustain a lifelong interior life.
43 snips
Feb 12, 2026 • 1h 2min
A Theology of Pastoral Ministry (Featuring John Mark Comer)
John Mark Comer, author and pastor focused on spiritual formation, teaches on pastoral ministry as suffering love. He critiques celebrity clergy culture. He urges envisioning a long, sustainable ministry, living with mortality awareness, and cultivating character over programs. He recommends rules of life, community accountability, and lifelong formation toward moral beauty.
64 snips
Feb 2, 2026 • 1h 19min
Spiritual Formation in the Life of the Leader (Featuring John Ortberg)
John Ortberg, pastor and author who teaches spiritual formation, offers a concise vision for leaders’ inner life. He discusses leading with soul-level formation, resisting pastoral pressures that warp character, and cultivating practices that bring daily joy, resilience, and authenticity. Short talks on solitude, honest friendships, restorative hobbies, and living the life you invite others into.
59 snips
Jan 26, 2026 • 1h 9min
Spiritual Formation in the Future of the Church (Featuring John Mark Comer)
John Mark Comer, pastor and author known for spiritual formation work, delivers a major teaching about renewing discipleship in local churches. He traces formation’s history, argues for moving from information to embodied practices, and outlines five pastoral shifts to prioritize long-term Christlikeness. He invites practical experiments, a modern rule of life, and communal apprenticeship as the path forward.
Jan 23, 2026 • 2min
Welcome to The Contemplative Pastor
Introduction to a vision of slower, prayerful pastoring that resists CEO-style ministry. A look at Western discipleship decline and why pastors feel exhausted. A provocative redefinition of pastoring as suffering love rather than performance. A challenge to prioritize faithfulness over numerical results and an invitation to recover the church’s formative role.
