Listen to This Conversation
In this episode of Rumors of Doing Good, Rob Schellert speaks with Jack Holloway, founder of Despair Sanctuary in Brooklyn, New York, USA. What began as a moment of despair over taxes owed unexpectedly grew into a vision for creating vigils for the weary—a sanctuary where sorrow is honored and lament is made sacred.
Jack shares the story behind Despair Sanctuary, the heart and vision that sustain it, and his love for drone music—slow, heavy, sustained soundscapes that create space for grief, stillness, and faithful lament. Together, they explore what it means to grieve faithfully in a world that often rushes past pain.
If you enjoyed today’s conversation, please consider sharing this podcast with your friends as well as subscribing and leaving a review on your favorite podcast platform.
Intro/Outro music by skinfiltr8r.
About Jack:
Jack Holloway is a writer, music-producer, film director, minister, activist, and creative based in Brooklyn, NY. Originally born in Portland, Oregon and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Jack’s journey has taken him through Southern California, Southwest Florida, Richmond, Virginia, and finally to New York City.
Jack holds a Bachelor of Arts from Regent University (2013) and a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary (2018). During his academic formation, he engaged deeply with theology, critical theory, philosophy, social justice and popular culture—mixing Zeppelin riffs and Walter Benjamin with liberation theology and ministry.
Beyond Despair Sanctuary, Jack is the author of Hands of Doom: The Apocalyptic Imagination of Black Sabbath, and serves as Founder & Creative Director of the collective Morbid Instinct. His creative output spans songwriting (with over a hundred original songs), film-direction (short film “The Prisoner”), activism (notably prison abolition and anti-racism work), ministry roles (including elder at Old First Reformed Church in Park Slope) and dog-walking on the side.
Jack’s personal journey is shaped by his upbringing in evangelical culture, his turn to critical thinkers and radical theology, and a sense that faith must engage the world rather than detach from it. He names his middle name “Amos” as a sign of his commitment to prophetic witness and speaking truth to power.
Outside the studio, stage, and church, Jack loves gardening, baking, walking dogs in Greenwich Village, listening to heavy riffs, and creating spaces where lament and hope can live side by side.
Links:
- Jack’s website: https://www.
jackamosholloway.com - Jack’s drone metal band, Chthonic Rites: chthonicritesnyc.bandcamp.com
- Jack’s heavy metal/dark wave band, The Heavens: theheavensmusic.bandcamp.com
- Jack’s book: https://www.
jackamosholloway.com/hands-of- doom - Despair Sanctuary: https://www.morbidinstinct.com/despair-sanctuary