Pride is usually imagined as swagger, ego, and self-importance. But in this episode, the conversation goes deeper: pride may be the invisible cage of certainty — the belief that we already know, already see, already understand.

In this season finale of Converging Paths, Eric, Brian, and Esther explore the subtle difference between healthy selfhood and spiritual inflation, the danger of humility language for those who have been taught to disappear, and the challenge of becoming “bustable” — able to admit when we are wrong.

A rich and surprising final conversation on pride, humility, curiosity, apology, and wonder.

What is the difference between lust and love? In this episode of Converging Paths, Rev. Eric Elnes, Rabbi Brian Mayer, and Esther Freinkel-Tishman explore lust not simply as sexual desire, but as grasping, control, and objectification — and love as mutuality, spaciousness, and the freedom to let another person be fully real. Drawing on Christian, Jewish, and Buddhist wisdom, the conversation moves from Bathsheba and the Song of Songs to crushes, covenant, perfectionism, leadership, and the deep human longing to be seen. Thoughtful, funny, and surprisingly practical, this episode uncovers why lust may be far more than temptation — and why love asks something radically different of us.

Why does “more” so often leave us miserable?

In this episode of Converging Paths, Rev. Eric Elnes joins Rabbi Brian Mayer and Zen teacher Esther Tishman to explore gluttony not as simple overeating, but as the deeper spiritual burden of “too muchness” in a culture that never stops asking for more.

More consumption.

More achievement.

More information.

More certainty.

Drawing from the biblical story of manna in the wilderness, Buddhist teachings about self-forgetting, Jewish traditions of gratitude, and Christian spiritual practice, this conversation reframes gluttony as a loss of trust — and temperance as the rediscovery of sufficiency.

Along the way, a surprising nod to Gilligan’s Island helps illuminate how even paradise can feel like scarcity when we forget what is enough.

You’ll discover:

• Why overconsumption often masks anxiety and distrust
• How “enoughness” opens the door to generosity and ease
• What mindfulness teaches about the “correct portion”
• Why temperance is not deprivation — but freedom

What if satisfaction isn’t found in more… but in enough?