Join psychologists, therapists, theologians, authors, ministers, researchers, thought leaders, survivors, patient advocates, caregivers, educators, and practitioners to explore areas of grief, Christian spirituality, and what it means to be tethered to hope that remains. Together we will examine the universal nature of grief, how it impacts our lives in body, soul, spirit, relationships, and community, and the invitation to be formed by Christ in the midst of difficulty.
"Grief invites us to a liminal space—a place to hold on to the comfort and presence of God while suspended between who you are and who you're becoming. Liminal spaces feel disorienting because they are. They demand our attention, not just as a means to an end but as a place of transformation." —Adriel Booker, Host of Tethered & Author of Grace Like Scarlett
Tethered will not explain away your grief or help you to “get over" it—quite the opposite. Tethered will help you open your heart to grief, listen to what it’s trying to teach you, and support you as you connect with the presence and promise of God while still in the midst of your journey to healing.
God cares about you as a whole person. We do too. This is about being undone and remade while staying tethered to hope.
You are experiencing what might be considered a"common" type of grief: perhaps the loss of a job, breakdown of a precious relationship, death of a loved one, or the end of a marriage.
You are experiencing a loss that doesn't involve death: this could be grappling with a diagnosis, caring for a parent with dementia, navigating infertility, living with financial insecurity, reckoning with the impact of substance abuse, living with a chronic illness, missing an estranged loved one, or even collapsed expectations and the uncertainty surrounding the global pandemic.
You are experiencing a loss that is socially neglected or stigmatized: this could be the death of a loved one by suicide or overdose, miscarriage and stillbirth, the remarriage or death of an ex-spouse, a pregnancy termination, loss of your support system due to a move, or family separation due to foster care.
You are experiencing anticipatory grief: perhaps you're coming to terms with the implications of a fatal diagnosis, caring for an aging family member with declining health, preparing to send a child off to college, a sense of worst-case-scenario when you think of the pandemic, or trying to stay hopeful during a pregnancy after loss.
You are experiencing grief stemming from—or intensified by—a crisis of faith, a fracture in your belief system, debilitating doubt, disillusionment with your experience at church or with Christian community, or betrayal by a spiritual figure you once trusted.
Humanity—The Gift that Keeps us Tethered to Christ
Adriel Booker
Disarming Our Knee-Jerk Reaction to Grief
Dr. Mekel Harris
Lament as an Offering
Lori Harris
Practicing Courage as a Virtue in Suffering
KJ Ramsey
Managing Expectations in Grief, Loss, and Disappointment
Nicole Zasowski
Understanding Racial Trauma, Healing, and Resilience
Sheila Wise Rowe
Humor when Life isn't Funny
Niki Hardy
Man Enough to be Honest about Suffering
Nate Pyle
Practices to Sustain through the Hardest Times
Caro Meers
Making Art in the Dark: Faith and Creativity in Times of Lament
Nathan Edgell
Surrender and Triumph in the Desert
Nancie Carmichael
Discovering Abundance in Lack
Meredith McDaniel
Learning to Walk in the Dark
Steve Mickel
Surrender as an Invitation
Vivian Mabuni
Waking Up from Addiction and Misplaced Adoration
Seth Haines
Growing Slow and Hope for the Waiting
Jennifer Dukes Lee
Reconstructing Faith and Finding a Spiritual Home
Meg Tietz
The Alchemy of Embodied Grief
Erika Morrison
Bipolar Faith and Navigating Mental Illness with Hope
Dr. Monica Coleman
The Healing Power of Touch
Lore Ferguson Wilbert
Sweating through Grief and Loss
Dorina Lazo Gilmore Young
The Ministry of Embodiment
Shannan Martin
Beauty, Redefined
Mia Kareen
The Rebirth of Hope after Trauma
Michaela Evanow
Permission to Grieve Differently to One Another
Jill Dzadey
Loneliness, Isolation, and Friendship after Loss
Jessica Herberger
Loving Your Spouse through a Season of Sorrow
Lisa Jacobson
The Myth of Comparative Suffering
Richella Parham
Nurturing Your Children through Grief and Crisis
Lisa Appelo
Learning to Love through Grief and Loss—A Couple's Conversation
Ryan Booker (with host Adriel Booker)
Seeking Shalom
Osheta Moore
The Gift of Communal Lament
Clint Watkins
Caring for the Carers
Tanya Flores
Becoming an Alongsider: The Art of Neighboring
Greg Russinger
Healing Around the Table
Devi Abraham
Story as a Currency of Grace
Linda Pesavento
Ubuntu: The Connectedness of Our Wellbeing
Becca De Souza
When Holidays Hurt
Bo Stern-Brady
Loss, Longing, and Light for Advent
Tsh Oxenreider
Hope in the Wake of a Loved One's Addiction
Deborah Beddoe
The Art of Dying
Clarissa Moll
Disarming Our Knee-Jerk Reaction to Grief and Loss
Dr. Mekel Harris
Companions in the Darkness of Doubt & Depression
Diana Gruver
I Love Jesus But I Want to Die
Sarah Robinson
Navigating Faith & Culture as an 'Orphaned' Believer
Sara Billups
Befriending Grief
Ronne Rock
The Way of the Wilderness
Marlena Graves
Engaging in Prayer when Words Fail
While Tethered is an online gathering, event organisers are based in Sydney, Australia. With gratitude and respect we acknowledge the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation, and we honour Elders past, present, and emerging as we collectively find our place within God's great story of humanity on our shores and to the ends of the earth.
Adriel Booker is an author, speaker, and advocate based in Gadigal Land (Sydney, Australia) who believes storytelling, beauty, and the grace of God will change the world. She’s become a trusted voice in areas of Christian spirituality, leadership, motherhood and parenting, grief care, and global women’s issues. Adriel is the founder of Our Scarlett Stories pregnancy loss community and Deep Dive peer support groups. She's also the creator of Tethered (summit and community)—a gathering to explore grief and loss, faith and doubt, wholeness and hope. Adriel is the author of Grace Like Scarlett and Tethered to Hope (2024 release).
Connect with Adriel across all social media platforms at @adrielbooker, her free Substack newsletter, The Foundry, or her website: www.adrielbooker.com
The Foundry is a workshop—a place to pour out and be in process of making something good, beautiful, or true. Together we explore themes of faith, doubt, hope, loss, relationships, identity, and what it means to be found and loved. Sign up for free here.
Nope. No hidden costs. Membership in the Tethered community is free and the All Access Pass is a one-time fixed price to unlock all of the video content and premium features.
All Access Pass holders can re-watch the sessions as many times as you'd like.
Please reach out to us if accessibility is an issue so we can serve you in this.
Yes, this is a faith-based community and resources. Our guests speakers come from from a wide variety of Christian faith traditions. We've purposely made this gathering ecumenical in nature by inviting a variety of folks to contribute. Please note: While this is a faith-based event, we hope anyone with spiritual curiosity will feel welcome here as we explore how grief and loss intersect with doubt and faith. Ultimately, this is about finding wholeness and hope. Please come as you are—may you feel welcome among us.
Questions? Contact the team.