Touching Grass: Why I Gave Up My Homestead Dream
Brave New Us: Choosing Human in the Age of Biotechnology
What if the answer isn’t escaping modern life, but learning to inhabit it differently?In this season finale, Samantha reflects on her own attraction to the homestead ideal — and why she ultimately reconsidered what it means to live sustainably, faithfully, and attentively in the place God has already given her.This episode marks the beginning of a summer pause for Brave New Us and an invitation to continue the conversation through gardening, stewardship, and cultivation on YouTube.In this episode:The appeal and limits of the homestead dreamStewardship versus escapeGardening as an embodied spiritual practiceAn invitation to grow where you’re plantedSummer Update: Brave New Us will return after a seasonal break. In the meantime, join Samantha on YouTube for garden stories, practical growing, and reflections on embodiment, limits, and care for creation.Buy the book:Grow Where You’re Planted: Reclaming Eden in Your Own BackyardYouTube
About Podcast
From gene editing and artificial wombs to brain implants and digital immortality—what does it mean to be human in a world trying to remake us?
Brave New Us explores how emerging technologies are reshaping what it means to be human. Hosted by Catholic bioethicist and author Samantha Stephenson, the podcast sits at the crossroads of faith, science, and ethics, featuring expert interviews and incisive commentary on biotechnology, AI, transhumanism, reproductive technologies, human enhancement, and the moral questions they raise.
Whether you're questioning the ethics of cutting-edge science, navigating a rapidly changing technological world, or simply seeking clarity in an age of unprecedented innovation, Brave New Us will help you think critically, live intentionally, and choose what is deeply human.
Samantha Stephenson holds master's degrees in theology and bioethics, served as a Paul Ramsey Fellow at the Center for Bioethics and Culture, and taught for the McGrath Institute at the University of Notre Dame. She is the author of several books helping readers grow in faith and navigate the spiritual and ethical questions shaping our rapidly changing world. In addition to hosting the Brave New Us podcast, Samantha writes the Choosing Human newsletter on Substack where she explores faith, family, and the future of being human. Learn more at www.snstephenson.com.
Subscribe now—and stay human in an age that’s forgetting how.