{"id":10245,"date":"2026-04-23T20:41:05","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T00:41:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/?post_type=cjp_podcast&#038;p=10245"},"modified":"2026-04-23T21:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T01:32:12","slug":"ep-21-spike-coleman-faith-trauma-and-building-beloved-community","status":"publish","type":"cjp_podcast","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/podcast\/ep-21-spike-coleman-faith-trauma-and-building-beloved-community\/","title":{"rendered":"21. SPIKE COLEMAN: FAITH, TRAUMA, AND BUILDING BELOVED COMMUNITY."},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"EP. 21 Spike Coleman: Faith, Trauma, and Building Beloved Community\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-jmSVq1ZhkQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In this episode of the Peacebuilder Podcast, host Diego Crespo sits down with Pastor Spike Coleman, a longtime pastor in Charleston, South Carolina, to explore the intersection of faith, trauma, and community healing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Spike reflects on his 28 years serving at St. Andrew\u2019s Presbyterian Church and his work as a crisis chaplain for first responders, including his response to the 2015 Mother Emanuel AME Church shooting, where nine people were killed. He shares what it was like arriving on the scene without knowing the full context, supporting families through the aftermath and trial, and witnessing the community\u2019s struggle to process collective trauma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The conversation also dives into Charleston\u2019s complex identity, where histories of beauty and cultural richness exist alongside deep racial harm, and how that context shapes peacebuilding work. Spike emphasizes the importance of recognizing \u201cmany stories\u201d rather than a single narrative when engaging communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Drawing from his experience at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP), Spike describes how the program helped him process years of ministry, trauma exposure, and burnout. He highlights practices like circle processes, trauma awareness (STAR), and community-based healing as essential tools he now brings back to his congregation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, his work focuses on building \u201cbeloved community\u201d in Charleston through initiatives like community meals, healing circles, and partnerships rooted in listening, trust-building, and reconciliation, especially in a city marked by historical division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Guest(s)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-peacebuilder-online-profiles-block wp-block-profiles col-1\"><div class=\"profile profile-0\"><div class=\"profile-media\"><div class=\"no-profile-image\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"profile-content\"><h3 class=\"profile-name\">GEORGE &#8220;SPIKE&#8221; COLEMAN<\/h3><p class=\"profile-bio\"><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Transcript<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":312,"featured_media":10251,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","season":[1734],"class_list":["post-10245","cjp_podcast","type-cjp_podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","season-season-four"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cjp_podcast\/10245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cjp_podcast"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cjp_podcast"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/312"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10245"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10251"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"season","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/peacebuilder\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/season?post=10245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}