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Life with God · Episode 296

Kathleen Norris — A Sister’s Reflections on Disability

Nathan speaks with renowned author Kathleen Norris about writing about her sister in her new book, Rebecca Sue: A Sister’s Reflections on Disability, Faith, and Love.


Kathleen Norris is the award-winning poet, writer, and author of the New York Times bestselling books The Cloister Walk, Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer’s Life, Dakota: A Spiritual Geography, Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, The Virgin of Bennington, and several volumes of poetry. Exploring the spiritual life, her work is at once intimate and historical, rich in poetry and meditations, brimming with exasperation and reverence, deeply grounded in both nature and spirit, sometimes funny, and often provocative.

Widowed in 2003, Kathleen Norris now divides her time between South Dakota and Honolulu, Hawaii, where she is a member of an Episcopal church. She travels to the mainland regularly to speak to students, medical professionals, social workers, and chaplains at colleges and universities, as well as churches and teaching hospitals. For many years she was the poetry editor of Spirituality & Health magazine. She serves as an editorial advisor for the monthly Give Us This Day from Liturgical Press, and writes for a weekly e‑newsletter, Soul Telegram: Movies & Meaning with her friend Irish storyteller Gareth Higgins.

You can explore Kathleen Norris’s new book Rebecca Sue here, and preorder on Amazon.

Published on May 9, 2025
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Kathleen Norris
About the Guest
Kathleen Norris

Kathleen Norris is the award-winning poet, writer, and author of the New York Times bestselling books The Cloister Walk, Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer’s Life, Dakota: A Spiritual Geography, Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, The Virgin of Bennington, and several volumes of poetry. 

Nathan Foster
About the Host
Nathan Foster

Nathan Foster is an author and host of Life With God, a Renovaré Podcast. Formerly, he was an Associate Professor of social work and served as the Andrews Chair in Spiritual Formation at Spring Arbor University. He was also a licensed clinical social worker and certified addictions counselor. Nathan has published two books, including The Making of an Ordinary Saint: My Journey from Frustration to Joy with the Spiritual Disciplines.