How Not to be Afraid: Seven Ways to Live When Everything Seems Terrifying

Event Description

An evening with Dr. Gareth Higgins, internationally-renowned peacemaker, writer and activist at the intersections of spirituality, justice and art.

The world seems terrifying. Whether your fears are about violence, shame, illness, money, meaning, or the collapse of certainty, you are not alone.

Growing up near the troubled city of Belfast, Gareth Higgins was schooled in suspicion, mistrust, and paranoia. Years after the Troubles ended, he wrote How Not to Be Afraid, identifying how fear feeds on stories of scarcity, negativity and othering. In the book, Gareth delves into the mechanisms of fear, as well as the quiet, immense strength of individuals and communities who refuse to let it reign.

Grounded in personal experience and expertise on violence, conflict transformation and trauma recovery, Higgins points to vulnerability as strength to address seven common fears that plague each of us at some point in our lives. By examining fears of isolation, scarcity, violence and death, he invites us into habits of hope rooted in Celtic spirituality and the mysteries of love.

In the rich spiritual activist and literary traditions of John O’Donohue, Walter Wink and Kathleen Norris, Higgins points us toward tenderness, empathy, and gentle encounter with each other, and with our deepest and most relentless fears. He doesn’t suggest that we can cure or transcend fear, but that we can transform it through the stories we tell. Gareth will lead us in exploring ways to foster tenderness in the midst of harsh conditions, and to find audacious courage and creativity in our lives and communities.

Cost: $25.00 general admission; $10.00 students and $15.00 limited income. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Early-bird registration $12.00 before 27 March 2025.

Co-hosted by the Peter A. Allard School of Law and the Vancouver School of Theology and supported by SSHRC.

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Speaker

Gareth Higgins was born in Belfast in 1975, grew up during the Northern Ireland Troubles, and now lives in the US. He writes and speaks about the power of storytelling to shape our lives and world, peacemaking and justice, and how to take life seriously without believing your own propaganda. He has been involved in peacebuilding and violence reduction in Northern Ireland and helping address legacies of conflict. Gareth has a Ph.D. in Sociology from Queen’s University Belfast and helped teach the world’s first graduate course in Reconciliation Studies at Trinity College Dublin. He also helped found the Wild Goose, New Story and Movies & Meaning festivals. Gareth leads retreats in North America and Ireland; he also founded The Porch Magazine.

Gareth’s beloved book How Not to be Afraid has been called “necessary” by Kathleen Norris and “beautiful” by Brian McLaren. Micky ScottBey Jones calls it “a much-needed resource for skill-building through our fear and trauma, so that we might create the belonging and communities we desire.” Pádraig Ó Tuama says “Gareth Higgins is a friend. This book is too.” Find out more at www.hownottobeafraid.com. Gareth’s newest book, co-authored with Kathleen Norris, is A Whole Life in Twelve Movies: A Cinematic Journey to a Deeper Spirituality. Lee Isaac Chung, director of Twisters and Minari says “I wish there was more writing… like it.” Fr James Martin says it’s “endlessly fascinating”; writer-director Scott Teems says it’s “a treasure”, and Kaitlin Curtice says “Please read this book…you’ll be so glad you did."