What is SpeakEasy?

SpeakEasy is a spiritual community for the creatively active and the spiritually thirsty. Led by Maureen Muldoon, the Sunday morning experience has been compared to a Spiritual Ted Talk followed by a conversation. Our music is lead by Cathy Richardson of Jefferson Starship. We also have a vibrant music tribe.

We gather to speak easily about spiritual truths and practices. We sit heart to heart and knee to knee where all are welcomed to share their wisdom, worries, and wit. Or you can come to just soak it all in and remain silent.  We trust you, we are open and we are all teachers. 

Maureen is an internationally recognized teacher of A Course in Miracles, a licensed practitioner of New Thought, and an ordained minister who identifies as a Celebrant. Her personal way of being is to celebrate all things as is. She also has deep roots in Catholicism, 12-step, and the spirituality of creativity. 

A Place To Grow

We ask that you come with an open heart, and mind and that you don’t leave your brain, beliefs or baggage at the door. We don’t have all the answers, but we love the questions.  

If you feel called to co-create, we have a media team, choir, and Sunday morning production group that support the optimal experience for all. Plus we are proud of our outreach efforts. Check out the GIVE page for all the ways we have been able to give back to our community. 

Do I have to be religious or spiritual?

We are not interested in being another religion or attempting to create a universal theology. We celebrate diversity and seek a universal experience of Love. Truth is our passion, love is our religion, care is our currency and peace is our goal. No matter where you’ve been, what you believe, or who you love, you are welcome.

Our community is a diverse tapestry of people who identify as Athiest, Catholic, Christian,  Buddist, Jewish, Hindu, Protestant, New Thought and agnostic, to name a few. We also have people of varying political affiliations. We welcome everyone.

Are you Bible Based?

The source used for our conversations are as diverse as the community. You are likely to hear stories and quotes from A Course in Miracles, the Bible, 12-Step, Budha, Edgar Caycee, Martin Luther King, the New York Times, Facebook,  Ralph Waldo Emerson… an advertisement for fast food, a Beatles song. 

We find God in the most interesting places. 

Are there dues or fees?

SpeakEasy Spiritual Community is a non-profit corporation registered in the state of Illinois. 

At each gathering, we pass a basket for collection. Additionally, we are able to receive online giving. Several times a year we organize fundraisers. All donations are tax deductible. We are a wealth conscious community and we tithe 10% of our collection to places where we have been spiritually fed.

Voice Box Stories

Cathy Richardson of Jefferson Starship performs a featured song, which also supplies the theme for all the evening’s stories. After each storyteller, Cathy performs another song inspired by the story. The stories and songs get woven into an amazing show that will have you laughing and singing along. After the guest storytellers are finished, audience members are encouraged to contribute their stories, which are either five sentences or two minutes in length.

It’s a story, a slam, a song, a serenade, a surrender. A place to be heard and hear about the human condition, its community, it’s alive, it’s entertaining and elevating. It’s the old school front stoop, it’s the modern day confessional. Where folks like us who need to create come out and connect to spin and weave and unfurl; to encounter artistry and escape into inspiration. A song leads to a story and a story leads to a song and the beat goes on and out and up. Your feet tap to the rhythm, your head nods in agreement, your hands meet in appreciation, and your heart pounds in anticipation for the chance to share your voice.