Dearest Wendy: A Story of Faith and Friendship

The Not Old Better Show, Author Interview Series

Welcome to The Not Old Better Show, Art of Living author Interview series on radio and podcast.  I’m Paul Vogelzang, and today’s show is brought to you by POM Wonderful; 100% Pomegranate Juice is “health in a bottle.” We have an excellent holiday program about a surprising story of faith and friendship.

Thank you so much for listening. As I say, we’ve got a great guest today, who, after reading his new book, I’ve been looking forward to for a while and whom I’ll introduce in just a moment…But, quickly, if you missed any episodes, last week was our 680th episode, and I spoke with physicist, NASA scientist, author, and Smithsonian Associate Les Johnson about A Traveler’s Guide to the Stars: The Possibilities of Interstellar Exploration

Two weeks ago, I spoke to Smithsonian Associate Clay Jenkinson about Gulliver’s Travels and the fascinating story within a story, not just for children.  Wonderful stuff…If you missed those shows, along with any others, you can go back and check them out with my entire back catalog of shows, all free for you there on our website, NotOld-Better.com…and if you leave a review, we will read it at the end of each show…leave reviews on Apple Podcasts for us.

Many people, as I did, first came to know Sr. Wendy Beckett in the 1990s through her popular television program, “Sister Wendy’s Odyssey.” She was an unlikely celebrity: diminutive, dressed in a medieval-looking black habit of her own design, her lively and intelligent features offset by large spectacles. Yet countless viewers became entranced by her tour of famous galleries around the world and by her incisive and empathetic commentary on the works of art she encountered along the way.

In 2018 Sister Wendy Beckett passed away.  Several years prior to Sis Wendy’s passing, she began corresponding with our guest today, author Robert Ellsberg.  The book Dearest Sister Wendy . . . A Surprising Story of Faith and Friendship that resulted from those letters, emails, conversations and contact is out now, I’ve read it, and we’ll be talking with Robert Ellsberg about it today on The Not Old Better Show on radio and podcast.

That, of course, is our guest today, author, and publisher Robert Ellsberg reading from his new book, which he’s co-written, entitled: Dearest Sister Wendy…A Surprising Story of Faith and Friendship. We’ll hear more today from Robert Ellsberg about his new book, and his hope that those who read it and these letters will discover the person, in Sister Wendy, behind the television persona: a modern mystic, a genius of the spiritual life, a person of far-seeing sensitivities, a great lover of God whose capacity for love she was still discovering at the end of her life. And perhaps they will feel included in her final apostolate of friendship.

Please join me in welcoming to The Not Old Better Show on radio and podcast, author Robert Ellsberg.

We are listening to ‘Monastery Bells’ from Smithsonian Folkways today My thanks to the Smithsonian team for all they do to support the show.  My thanks to Robert Ellsberg for his time today. Again, Robert Ellsberg’s new book, Dearest Sister Wendy…A Surprising Story of Faith and Friendship. is available now.  My thanks to you, my wonderful Not Old Better Show audience on radio and podcast…please be well and be safe, which I’m mentioning in every show because I want to bring attention to the issue of assault rifles, which aren’t safe, in anyone’s hands but the military and law enforcement.  Assault rifles are killing our children and grandchildren in the very places they learn: schools!  Please, let’s work together to eliminate assault rifles, and let’s do better.  Let’s talk about Better…the Not Old Better Show on radio and podcast; thanks, everybody.