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I'm Christa Tippett. Up next, my unedited conversation with the storytelling poet, Marilyn Nelson.

There is, as always, a shorter produced version of this wherever you found this podcast.

So, good evening, everybody. My name is Rick Chess. I am the director of the Center for Jewish Studies at UNC Asheville.

And I'm also a member of the Department of English. And I'm standing here with my dear friends and colleagues and sources of inspiration and co-organizers of the Faith in Literature Festival,

Evan Gurney, who is in the office right across the hall from mine. And I'm the luckiest person at UNC A to have Evan as my neighbor across the hall.

And Fred Bonson from Wake Forest University School of Divinity. And I'm also the luckiest person in the world who have gotten to teach Fred's book multiple times in a number of my classes that Fred come up.

And very generously meet with my students and work with them and give them great ideas about writing.

And we are really happy to welcome you to this very special evening at the end of what's been an extraordinary day.

For those of you who had an opportunity to come to some of the other readings, I think you know how much talent is in this room.

And how much good talk about art, faith, and spirituality is actually happening not only in America, but right here in Asheville, North Carolina, on the campus of UNC Asheville.

And the great energy, the great discussions, the great readings are going to continue all day tomorrow.

And tomorrow night we'll be back again for another evening with Christa Tippett. And tomorrow evening's guest.

But now we're going to move on with this evening's program. And so I'd like to call on our Provost, our wonderful Provost who's been so supportive of me and all of my work since the day he arrived at UNC Asheville.

And I've never said this to you, Provost Ergo, but I really look at you as a kind of mentor, even though I'm kind of in the late stages of my career, I'm not too old to have a mentor.

So I'm very happy to have you at another mentor in my life. I'm going to call Provost Ergo and he'll immediately be followed by Dean Gail O'Day from Wakefarrer's University School of Divinity, with whom we feel so fortunate to have been able to partner on this event.

So Provost Ergo followed by Dean O'Day.

I don't think I would presume to mentor Rick Chess, but I will see what I can do.

This has been a tremendous day for contemporary writers of the spirit. It started at 1.10 this morning when Leonard Cohen's new album was released.

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