The Sacred Slope

Alexis Rice

Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender — those searching for healthier expressions of our global Christian faith and deconstructing harmful theology. Listen to conversations with pastors, priests, reverends, scholars, artists, and public voices from multiple denominations, cultures, backgrounds, and genders. Come to be challenged, healed, and begin again.

  1. 4d ago

    53. Dr. Samantha Bise (Lutheran, ELCA) Tongue in Church, a Liberating Primer on Christian Vocabulary

    53. Dr. Samantha Bise (Lutheran, ELCA) Tongue in Church, a Liberating Primer on Christian Vocabulary What if the Christian words you have heard your entire life do not mean exactly what you were taught? Dr. Samantha Bise joins Alexis Rice to unpack the history, translation, culture, and power hiding inside familiar words like virgin, salvation, gospel, Savior, and born again. An author, educator, researcher, and adult convert to Christianity, Samantha studies how language shapes belief. Her new book, Tongue in Church: A Liberating Primer on Christian Vocabulary, asks Christians to slow down and learn what our own words have meant across thousands of years, cultures, empires, and translations. Together they explore: • How “young woman” became “virgin” in the story of Mary • Why questioning Mary’s virginity does not have to unravel your faith • How salvation became primarily about escaping hell, even though its biblical roots include healing, liberation, safety, and freedom from oppression • Why Lord, Savior, Son of God, and gospel were politically charged words in the Roman Empire • How “born again” became an identity marker in American evangelicalism • What mission trips can teach us about Christianity, colonization, and conversion • Why churches that control women often disregard the earth too • The difference between faith that manipulates through fear and faith that makes room for mystery • Why “the Bible is clear” is rarely as clear as people claim Samantha also shares her unexpected path from outspoken atheist to ELCA Lutheran, the church that fed Appalachian Trail hikers without trying to convert them, and the painful altar call at her grandmother’s funeral that inspired this book. This is not a conversation about tearing down scripture. It is an invitation to take scripture and its language seriously, loosen our grip on false certainty, and discover a faith spacious enough for questions. As Samantha says, “There’s not one pure Christianity.” From the beginning, Christians have debated, negotiated, wrestled, and wondered. That wrestling is part of the tradition. ✨ Guest • Dr. Samantha Bise: Author, educator, researcher, professor, co-host of Church Chatter, and ELCA Lutheran | IG: @dr.bise 📚 Book & Resources Mentioned • Tongue in Church: A Liberating Primer on Christian Vocabulary by Dr. Samantha Bise | @thepilgrimpress https://thepilgrimpress.com/products/tongue-in-church-a-liberating-primer-on-christian-vocabulary • Evangelical Lutheran Church in America @elca • The Sin of Certainty by Pete Enns @peteenns • Don’t Sleep, There Are Snakes by Daniel Everett • Marcus Borg on salvation #TongueInChurch #Christianity #Deconstruction #Exvangelical #ProgressiveChristianity #Bible #ELCA #Faith Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  2. 6d ago

    52. A Different Side of Miss Peppermint: Growing Up in Church, Activism & Christian Nationalism’s Impact on the Trans Community

    52. A Different Side of Miss Peppermint: Growing Up in Church, Activism & Christian Nationalism’s Impact on the Trans Community What changes when we simply listen? In this moment in history, listening and empathy are essential. Miss Peppermint joins Alexis Rice for a joyful, vulnerable conversation about faith, storytelling, tea, Christian nationalism, and what the trans community needs from allies now. Raised in Presbyterian and Southern Baptist churches, Miss Peppermint remembers the music and community, as well as anti-LGBTQ teachings from the pulpit. Though she is no longer a practicing Christian, she explains why she chose this conversation. Together they explore: • How anti-LGBTQ theology affects queer and trans people • How Christian nationalism weaponizes faith, fear, power, and violence • What it means for a church to be truly open and affirming • Why rainbow branding and shared identity are not enough • Housing, healthcare, food, safety, employment, and workplace protections • Why churches, labor movements, and LGBTQ+ communities should organize together • Drag Race, Broadway, Survival of the Thickest, Love Is Blind, scary movies, sports, and mint chocolate chip ice cream She also shares the story behind Transcendence, the color-changing tea she created with @moody.teas. A portion of every purchase supports @transequalitynow and its work for trans rights and essential resources. Transcendence: https://shop.moodyteas.co/shop/transcendence-color-changing-joy-blend-with-miss-peppermint-3415 This conversation does not ask Miss Peppermint to defend her humanity. It makes room for Christians to hear how our faith has affected her and decide what love of neighbor requires from us now. ✨ Guest • Miss Peppermint: Actress, singer, Broadway performer, activist, @glaad and @aclu_nationwide board member, and @nycpride Grand Marshal | IG: @peppermint247 📚 People, Projects & Resources Mentioned • Moody Teas @moody.teas | Advocates for Trans Equality @transequalitynow • John Fugelsang, Separation of Church and Hate @johnfugelsang • Andrew Whitehead, American Idolatry @andrewwhitehead • The Necessary Conversation @thenecessaryconversationpod • Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde @mariannbudde | James Talarico @jamestalarico • Rev. Brandan Robertson, Queer & Christian @brandanrobertson • Timothy Schraeder Rodriguez, Conversion Therapy Dropout @timothy.s.rodriguez • Kathy V. Baldock, Forging a Sacred Weapon @kathyvbaldock • Rocky Roggio, 1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture @1946themovie • Rev. Jim Keat @revjimruns | Riverside Church @riversidenyc • Michelle Buteau @michellebuteau | Netflix @netflix Survival of the Thickest • Lance Bass @lancebass | Joey Fatone @realjoeyfatone | Cocktail Wars @cocktailwarstv • Zohran Mamdani @zohrankmamdani | AOC @aoc | Kristin Chenoweth @kchenoweth | Don Lemon @donlemonofficial • RuPaul’s Drag Race @rupaulsdragrace Footage courtesy of Netflix and E! #MissPeppermint #TransRights #ChristianNationalism #Christianity #Deconstruction #ProgressiveChristianity #LGBTQ Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  3. Aug 27

    51. Same Faith. Different Beliefs. Still Christian. (Part 2) – Rev. Gerlyn Henry (Anglican, Canada), Pastor Paul Drees (ELCA Lutheran, USA) & Pastor Joe Smith (Post-Evangelical, USA)

    🎙️ 51. Same Faith. Different Beliefs. Still Christian. (Part 2) – Rev. Gerlyn Henry (Anglican, Canada), Pastor Paul Drees (ELCA Lutheran, USA) & Pastor Joe Smith (Post-Evangelical, USA) What were you taught you had to believe in order to be a Christian? And what happened when you started asking questions? In Part 2 of this conversation, Alexis Rice returns with Rev. Gerlyn Henry, Pastor Paul Drees, and Pastor Joe Smith to finish the viral “Put Your Finger Down: Christian Edition” experiment that revealed just how differently Christians can be formed—even while following the same Jesus. This time, the questions move into some of the places where faith, politics, identity, and fear collide. Together they explore: • Abortion, reproductive rights & whether there is one “Christian” position • Evolution, creation & science • The assumption that Christians should vote Republican • Christian nationalism, political power & the American Church • Biblical literalism, inerrancy & how seminaries teach Scripture • What happens when questioning theology costs you relationships • Why doubt may not be the opposite of faith • Purity culture, shame & sexuality • What Christians from different traditions can learn from one another Joe shares what happened when he began publicly questioning biblical inerrancy—and friendships with people he had loved for years simply disappeared. Paul talks about discovering ideas that challenged his politics not by abandoning the Bible, but by reading it more deeply. And Gerlyn offers another framework entirely: faith was never meant to mean certainty. Doubt, mystery, wrestling, trust, and seeking understanding can all belong inside a faithful Christian life. The conversation ends with a challenge that may be more important than debating what someone believes today: Ask what they were taught. What was church like when they were a child? What were they told they had to believe? What were they afraid to question? What happened if they did? Because if we want to understand the divisions inside Christianity—and the rise of Christian nationalism—we need to understand how people were formed. ⛪ Guests • Rev. Gerlyn Henry — Anglican Church of Canada | IG: @gerlynhenry • Pastor Paul Drees — ELCA Lutheran | IG: @pastorpauldrees • Pastor Joe Smith — Post-Evangelical / Disciples of Christ | IG: @therealjoe.smith 📚 People & Resources Mentioned • Andrew Whitehead — American Idolatry | IG: @andrewwhitehead • John Fugelsang | IG: @johnfugelsang • C.S. Lewis • Luther Seminary • Columbia Theological Seminary And yes—if you stay until the end, the pastors reveal their celebrity crushes. 😂 A huge thank you to Pastor Paul Drees, Pastor Joe Smith, and Rev. Gerlyn Henry for the vulnerability, humor, pastoral care, and generosity they brought to this two-part conversation. May we become more curious about one another’s formation—and a little less certain that our version of Christianity is the only one. #Christianity #Deconstruction #ProgressiveChristianity #ChristianNationalism #Faith #ReligiousTrauma #Bible Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  4. Aug 24

    50. Same Faith. Different Beliefs. Still Christian. (Part 1) – Rev. Gerlyn Henry (Anglican, Canada), Pastor Paul Drees (ELCA Lutheran, USA) & Pastor Joe Smith (Raised Evangelical, USA)

    50. Same Faith. Different Beliefs. Still Christian. (Part 1) – Rev. Gerlyn Henry (Anglican, Canada), Pastor Paul Drees (ELCA Lutheran, USA) & Pastor Joe Smith (Raised Evangelical, USA) What if something you were taught you had to believe to be Christian was something millions of other Christians were never taught at all? That question exploded after a Sacred Slope “Put Your Finger Down: Christian Edition” video reached more than a million views across platforms. The comments were filled with Christians from different traditions essentially asking one another: Wait…you were taught WHAT? So Alexis Rice reunites with Rev. Gerlyn Henry, Pastor Paul Drees, and Pastor Joe Smith for the conversation a two-minute video couldn’t hold. Alexis and Joe were formed in American evangelical and fundamentalist Christianity. Gerlyn is an Anglican priest in Canada. Paul is an ELCA Lutheran pastor in the U.S. They share a faith - but they were formed with remarkably different assumptions about what Christians must believe. In Part One, they compare notes on Genesis and the talking snake, biblical literalism, evolution, the sinner’s prayer, salvation, hell, baptism, confession, grace, and universalism. For Alexis and Joe, some of these beliefs once carried enormous stakes: Believe this. Pray this. Get this right. Your salvation may depend on it. For Gerlyn and Paul, some were never requirements at all. The result isn’t a debate over who is the “right” Christian. It’s an honest, funny, sometimes painful conversation about what happens when we become curious about the Christianity outside the one that formed us - and discover that questioning something we inherited doesn’t necessarily mean abandoning Jesus. Same faith. Different beliefs. Still Christian. 💬 In This Episode • “Wait - you weren’t taught that?” • Genesis, talking snakes & biblical literalism • Creation, evolution & reading Scripture differently • Is the sinner’s prayer required for salvation? • Hell, baptism, confession & grace • Universalism & hopeful universalism • Religious trauma & the fear of questioning • Deconstructing certainty without abandoning Jesus • Saving people from hell vs. bringing heaven to earth • Discovering Christianity beyond the version you inherited ⛪ Meet the Pastors • Rev. Gerlyn Henry - @gerlynhenry - Anglican priest, Canada  • Pastor Paul Drees - @pastorpauldrees - ELCA Lutheran pastor, USA  • Pastor Joe Smith - @therealjoe.smith raised Free Will Baptist/evangelical; Disciples of Christ pastor, USA 📚 People & Resources Mentioned • Pete Enns - @peteenns - The Sin of Certainty • Pastor Meredith Anne Miller - @meredithannemiller - Wonder & Woven • Brian Recker - @berecker - Hell Bent • Bradley Jersak - @bradley.jersak - A More Christlike God • C.S. Lewis - “true myth” • Nadia Bolz-Weber - @sarcasticlutheran • Dolores Williams • Brené Brown - @brenebrown • Church Clarity - @churchclarity • AllianceQ • 1946 @1946themovie 🎧 Part One of a special two-part Sacred Slope conversation. Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  5. Aug 6

    49. Matthew Paul Turner – (Author, When I Thank God) Giving Our Kids a Faith They Don’t Have to Heal From

    49. Matthew Paul Turner – (Author, When I Thank God) Giving Our Kids a Faith They Don’t Have to Heal From New York Times bestselling children’s author Matthew Paul Turner joins The Sacred Slope for a conversation about the stories we tell children about God—and the ones many adults are still learning to tell themselves. Alexis and Matthew explore why children don’t get to choose their first picture of God, how children’s books can become unexpected spaces of healing for adults deconstructing harmful theology, and what it means to raise kids with a faith rooted in love, belonging, gratitude, justice, and the teachings of Jesus. Matthew shares the story behind his new book, When I Thank God, illustrated by David Catrow, and why gratitude has remained one of the few spiritual practices that stayed with him through fundamentalism, deconstruction, coming out, and rebuilding his faith. They also talk honestly about Christian nationalism, the Americanization of Christianity, why humility and justice are central to following Jesus, LGBTQ+ inclusion, and what Christians can actually do to make their communities more loving. And Matthew reflects movingly on his friendship with the late Rachel Held Evans, finishing the children’s books she left behind, and why her legacy continues to change lives. 💬 In This Episode • Giving children a picture of God they won’t have to heal from • Why children’s books can help deconstructing adults heal • When I Thank God and gratitude as a spiritual practice • Following Jesus in an age of Christian nationalism • Deconstructing whiteness and Americanized Christianity • Why humility, justice, compassion, and belonging matter • LGBTQ+ inclusion and showing up visibly for your neighbors • The Growing Wall of Love at World Pride Amsterdam • Matthew’s friendship with Rachel Held Evans • Finishing Rachel’s children’s books after her death • What Is God Like? and the upcoming Who Is Jesus? • Rebuilding a Christianity centered on making things better, more hopeful, and more loving 📚 Matthew Paul Turner Matthew is the bestselling author of When God Made You, When God Made Light, You Will Always Belong, and the new When I Thank God. Follow Matthew: @matthewpaulturner 👥 People & Resources Mentioned • Rachel Held Evans – @rachelheldevans • Sarah Bessey – @sarahbessey • Meredith Anne Miller – @meredithannemiller • Rocky Roggio / 1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture – @rockyroggio • Jarko de Witte van Leeuwen / The Growing Wall of Love – @thegrowingwalloflove • David Catrow – @davidcatrow illustrator of When I Thank God • Danny McBride / The Righteous Gemstones @therighteousgemstones 📖 When I Thank God releases August 18 Pre-Order from The Sacred Slope Book Reccos List: https://bookshop.org/shop/thesacredslope Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  6. Jul 30

    48. John Fugelsang – (Aspiring Christian) Separation of Church and Hate: Reclaiming Jesus from Christian Nationalism

    48. John Fugelsang –  (Aspiring Christian) Separation of Church and Hate: Reclaiming Jesus from Christian Nationalism John Fugelsang returns to The Sacred Slope for a deeper conversation about the book Alexis named the very first Sacred Slope Book of the Year: Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person’s Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds. Together, they explore why so many Christians and non-Christians alike have embraced the book, what it means to distinguish the teachings of Jesus from Christian nationalism, and why reclaiming Christianity from fear, power, and authoritarianism matters now more than ever. John reflects on growing up with faith, writing a New York Times bestselling book that speaks to believers and skeptics alike, and why he believes Jesus remains one of history’s most radically compassionate voices. Alexis and John also discuss biblical literacy, Matthew 25, Christian resistance throughout history, and how ordinary Christians can push back against the weaponization of faith without becoming consumed by hatred themselves. Whether you’re deconstructing, reconstructing, politically exhausted, or simply longing for a Christianity that looks more like Jesus than power, this conversation offers hope, humor, and practical ways to engage difficult conversations with compassion and courage. 📚 Listeners outside the U.S.: Separation of Church and Hate is now available internationally! 💬 In This Episode • Why Separation of Church and Hate became The Sacred Slope’s first Book of the Year • What surprised John most after the book became a New York Times bestseller • Why Christians, atheists, and agnostics are embracing the book • Christianity versus Christian nationalism • Following Jesus versus simply following the Bible • Matthew 25 and the teachings Jesus actually emphasized • Why Jesus challenged power, wealth, and religious coercion • Christian resistance throughout history—from the abolitionists to Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. • Christian nationalism, fear, power, and authoritarianism • How to respond to difficult conversations using scripture with compassion rather than contempt • Why reclaiming Jesus matters for believers and non-believers alike Congratulations to This Year’s Book of the Year Nominees! 📖 Braving the Truth – @rachelheldevans & @sarahbessey 📖 Hell Bent – @berecker 📖 We Can Be Brave & I Can Learn to Be Brave – Bishop @mariannbudde 📖 Live Laugh Love – @kkdumez 📖 The Small and the Mighty & We Are Mighty – @sharonsaysso 📖 Separation of Church and Hate – @johnfugelsang 📖 American Idolatry – @ndrewwhitehead 📖 Queer & Christian – Rev. @brandanrobertson 📖 Awake – @jenhatmaker 📖 Wonder – Pastor @meredithannemiller 🏆 The Sacred Slope Book of the Year John Fugelsang Separation of Church and Hate Congratulations, @johnfugelsang, and thank you to every author who shared your wisdom with The Sacred Slope community this year. 👥 People & Resources Mentioned • Mayor Zohran Mamdani – @zohrankmamdani & @nycmayor  • Simon Moya-Smith – @simonsaidtakeapic  • Julie Francella – @juliefrancella  • Jordan Klepper – @jordanklepper  • The Daily Show – @thedailyshow Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  7. Jul 21

    47. Rev. Jim Keat, Rev. Reilly Paige, & Rev. Dr. Chris Davies (United Church of Christ) – Preaching Camp: The Ties That Bind

    47. Rev. Jim Keat, Rev. Reilly Paige, & Rev. Dr. Chris Davies (United Church of Christ) – Preaching Camp: The Ties That Bind Alexis sits down in person at Project Proclaim Preaching Camp with Rev. Reilly Paige, Rev. Dr. Chris Davies, and Rev. Jim Keat for a funny, moving, and deeply hopeful conversation about the ties that bind us - to Jesus, to one another, and to a faith larger than fear, fundamentalism, or the loudest version of American Christianity. Together, they explore what keeps them following Jesus and what happens when Christians from evangelical and mainline traditions learn to speak across very different theological languages. Reilly shares what it means to be the pastor they needed growing up and why the word “Christian” now requires follow-up questions. Chris describes Jesus as friend, teacher, organizer, prophet, and a model for resisting empire. Jim reflects on Christianity as the spiritual language he inherited - and how digital ministry can create genuine church community far beyond a sanctuary. Whether you are deconstructing, rebuilding, missing church, or wondering whether you can fall in love with Jesus again, this conversation offers a vision of Christianity rooted in relationship, curiosity, courage, belonging, and genuinely good news. 💬 In This Episode • What keeps Rev Reilly, Rev Dr Chris, and Rev Jim following Jesus • The ties that bind us to faith and one another • Falling in love with Jesus beyond fear and fundamentalism • Evangelical and mainline Christian “languages” • The rapture, hell, Bible literalism, sexuality, and forbidden questions • Being the pastor you needed growing up • Queer Christian leadership • Reclaiming the word “Christian” • Preaching as the proclamation of good news • Why progressive pastors need to show up online • Digital ministry, online communion, and real church community • A closing prayer for anyone deconstructing, healing, or searching for home 👥 People & Resources Mentioned • Rev. Reilly Paige – @rangerreilly • Rev. Dr. Chris Davies – @jesuslovesdinos • Rev. Jim Keat – @revjimruns • Project Proclaim – @project_proclaim • Southern New England Conference UCC – @sneucc • United Church of Christ – @unitedchurchofchrist • The Riverside Church – @riversidenyc • Bible in a Minute – @bibleinamin • Pastor Cody Deese – @codydeese • April Ajoy – @aprilajoy • Rev. Bethany Peerbolte – @rev.bethany • Rocky Roggio director of 1946 the movie - @rockyroggio •  1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted A Culture - @1946themovie Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

  8. Jul 13

    46. Meredith Miller (Non-Denominational Pastor, Author) – Wonder: Talking to Your Kids About God When You're Still Figuring It Out

    46. Meredith Miller (Non-Denominational Pastor, Author) – Wonder: Talking to Your Kids About God When You're Still Figuring It Out Alexis sits down with non-denominational pastor, author, and children's faith expert Meredith Miller for one of the most practical and hope-filled conversations yet about parenting after deconstruction and teaching the Bible to your kids when you're still figuring out your own faith. Author of Wonder: A Grown-Up's Guide to Exploring the Bible with Children and Woven: Nurturing a Faith Your Kid Doesn't Have to Heal From, Meredith has spent more than 20 years helping families cultivate emotionally healthy, curiosity-filled Christian faith. Together, Alexis and Meredith explore how to talk with kids about God, Genesis, evolution, Adam and Eve, a talking snake, Revelation, the rapture, hell, and difficult Bible passages without fear, shame, or pretending to have all the answers. Whether you're rebuilding your faith after evangelical fundamentalism, navigating deconstruction, or simply wondering how to introduce your children to Christianity in a healthier way, this conversation offers practical tools, deep encouragement, and a vision of faith rooted in trust, curiosity, compassion, and the teachings of Jesus. 💬 In This Episode • Meredith's book Wonder: A Grown-Up's Guide to Exploring the Bible with Children • Teaching the Bible to kids when you don't have all the answers • Parenting after deconstruction • Raising curious kids instead of fearful kids • Why Genesis is a poem, not a science textbook • Evolution and Christian faith • Talking to kids about Adam and Eve • How to answer difficult Bible questions • Hell, Revelation, and why the rapture isn't in the Bible • Bible literalism, curiosity, and healthy faith formation • Church hurt, evangelicalism, and rebuilding trust • Learning alongside our children instead of having all the answers • A beautiful closing prayer for anyone healing from religious trauma 👥 People & Resources Mentioned • Meredith Miller – @meredithannemiller • Wonder: A Grown-Up's Guide to Exploring the Bible with Children is available on The Sacred Slope Book Reccos List: https://bookshop.org/shop/thesacredslope • Woven: Nurturing a Faith Your Kid Doesn't Have to Heal From • Pastor Kristen Mockler Young – @kristenmockleryoung, Author: The Other Side of Certainty (coming soon!) • Fuller Youth Institute @fulleryouthinstitute  • Dr. Janet Kellogg Ray @janetkelloggray Support the show About The Sacred Slope Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity. Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion. 🎧 WATCH: YouTube / Spotify      LISTEN: Apple Podcasts + everywhere      FOLLOW: @thesacredslope (IG, FB, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Bluesky) 🔗 Connect 🎧 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope 🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice 🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence 📬 Nominate a guest: alexis@thesacredslope.com 🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿 Fruit of the Spirit:  ❤️ love • 💫 joy • ☮️ peace • 🕊 patience • 💝 kindness • 🌿 goodness • 🙏 faithfulness • 🤲 gentleness • 💪 self-control

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Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground. For the spiritually tender — those searching for healthier expressions of our global Christian faith and deconstructing harmful theology. Listen to conversations with pastors, priests, reverends, scholars, artists, and public voices from multiple denominations, cultures, backgrounds, and genders. Come to be challenged, healed, and begin again.

Information

  • Creator
    Alexis Rice
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    89
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Sacred Slope
  • Show Website
    The Sacred Slope