17 | The Sacred Threshold: A Conversation With Dr. Sarah Kerr

Alive Again

What if death isn’t an ending—but a sacred transition? In this deeply moving episode of Alive Again, we sit down with Dr. Sarah Kerr, a death doula, ritual healing practitioner, and founder of The Centre for Sacred Deathcare. With a PhD in Transformative Learning and decades immersed in cross-cultural and Indigenous traditions, Sarah helps individuals and families navigate dying and grieving as spiritual rites of passage.

She guides us through the concept of liminality—the space between worlds, where the old self dissolves and something new begins. Drawing parallels to the Hero’s Journey, Sarah reframes illness, trauma, and loss as initiatory paths, calling us to grow into the version of ourselves these afflictions ask us to become.

Her insights challenge the limits of the "Western box"—a worldview that often dismisses the unseen and the intuitive. Instead, Sarah invites us to listen deeply to our "spiritual DNA" and honor the inner guidance that emerges in life’s most tender transitions. As she puts it, "the purpose of death is the release of love."

This conversation resonates with many of our guests—from Eric Larsen to Anne Bayford—who recognize that their greatest trials became the soil for transformation. Dr. Kerr reminds us that healing is not about erasing pain, but integrating it, cooperating with the unavoidable, and finding grace in the mystery.

Produced by Dan Bush

For more about Dr. Kerr and her work, visit https://sacreddeathcare.com/

* If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story. Please email us at [email protected]

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