Exvangelical Blake Chastain
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- Religion & Spirituality
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Exploring the world inside and outside the evangelical subculture, one conversation at a time.
"Exvangelical" is a shared starting point with many destinations; it acknowledges the impact (predominantly white/white-led) evangelicalism has had on our lives, but does not dictate our current or future beliefs & practices. On this podcast, you'll hear stories of people who've left evangelicalism for other branches of Christianity, for other spiritual traditions, and for none at all. All paths are valid. Wholeness > Holiness.
Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Support the show at just $5/month or $50/year at postevangelicalpost.com. 25% of net proceeds are donated to the Religious Exemption Accountability Project and White Homework.
Find show notes and archives at exvangelicalpodcast.com
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://www.postevangelicalpost.com/about
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Matthew Sheffield on Mormonism & Evangelicalism, RW Media, and the 2024 Election
This week I'm joined by Matthew Sheffield from Flux. We discuss Mormonism & evangelicalism, his experiences in right-wing media, and the 2024 election. It's a broad-reaching conversation that I hope you enjoy.
Follow Matthew's work at Flux, including the podcasts Theory of Change, Doomscroll, and So This Just Happened.
Links:
I appeared on Theory of Change last October, check it out here.
We discuss the findings from this CNN article re: the SC GOP primaries and Matthew's piece about authoritarianism.
Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Support my work with a paid subscription at $5/month or $50/year at postevangelicalpost.com
Follow Blake on Threads @brchastain_
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The Good Books (Re-Release): The Making of Biblical Womanhood with Beth Allison Barr
This week I'm re-releasing my conversation with Beth Allison Barr, author of the book The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth. I'm joined by two guest co-hosts, Emily Autenrieth and Laura Agase.
The theology and practice of complementarianism in conservative Christian circles has shaped the lives of millions of women. For over a century, it has oppressed women and become a requirement for involvement and belonging in conservative churches. Dr. Barr's expertise in church history illustrates that - despite the claims of complementarianism's proponents - this is a newer understanding of Christian history and scripture, and not an unchanging, millennia-long orthodox belief.
This is a book that has spurred conversation inside and outside the church. You can purchase the book here or from A Seat at the Table Books.
Follow Dr. Barr on Threads: @bethallisonbarr
Order books from A Seat at the Table Books.
Follow Blake on Threads @brchastain, and follow the podcast on Twitter & Instagram @exvangelicalpod.
Exvangelical is part of Irreverent Media Group. Learn more at irreverent.fm.
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The Good Books: Psalms of My People with Lenny Duncan
Today's guest is Lenny Duncan, author of the new book Psalms of My People: A Story of Black Liberation as Told through Hip-Hop.
This is a wide-ranging conversation, and I can't wait for you to listen.
This conversation is another entry in my new series, The Good Books. A new feed should be available soon.
To support this show, head over to postevangelicalpost.com and subscribe for free or $5/month. The site is currently hosted on Substack, but I am exploring options to move to a new platform.
Drop me at line at contact@exvangelicalpodcast.com
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The Good Books: What Makes You Bloom with Kevin Garcia
Hello, 2024!
Today I'm overjoyed to share my conversation with Kevin Garcia about their new book, What Makes You Bloom: Cultivating a Practice for Connecting with Your Divine Self. This book is all about establishing new spiritual practices after leaving rigid fundamentalism, and I hope you check it out after listening to our chat.
This episode has a longer intro explaining the multiple hiatuses in 2023, finishing my manuscript, my plans for a new show called The Good Books, and updates about eventually moving from Substack. The interview starts at around the 4:30 mark (dynamic ads may affect that start time).
Learn more at postevangelicalpost.com
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Laura Anderson, author of When Religion Hurts You
This week's guest is is Dr. Laura Anderson, author of the book When Religion Hurts You: Healing from Religious Trauma and the Impact of High-Control Religion. We talk about the definitions of trauma and abuse, what drew her to this work, the importance of embodiment, and more.
Find all the ways to follow Laura online at https://drlauraeanderson.com/
Support this podcast with a subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post newsletter. Subscribe for free or upgrade to $5/month or $50/year to get ad-free podcast feeds. Learn more at postevangelicalpost.com
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As noted in the intro, I want to acknowledge that two days after my last episode was published, the war in Gaza began. I'm not the person to listen to in this moment. Here are some essays that have spoken to me and helped me understand this moment:
"a lot of things are true." by Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg
"Speech and Speechlessness," by Talia Lavin
"The Children Are Ours," by Camille Hernandez
Churches for Middle East Peace, October 12th letter.
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Holy Runaways, with author Matthias Roberts
It's been a minute--well, more than a minute. Almost 4 months. Glad to be back to share this interview with Matthias Roberts, author of the new book Holy Runaways: Rediscovering Faith After Being Burned by Religion.
We talk about Matthias' story, the language we use to describe our experiences, 'progressive fundamentalism,' and the reality of ~ the slippery slope ~.
Let me know what you think - email me at contact@exvangelicalpodcast.com
Learn more about Matthias's work at matthiasroberts.com.
You can support my work by subscribing to my newsletter, The Post-Evangelical Post; subscribe for free, or upgrade to a paid subscribscription at $5/month at postevangelicalpost.com/subscribe. Paid subscriptions get ad-free podcast feeds and subscriber-only content.
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I did continue to write during my hiatus. Here are some updates:
The Extreme Self
The Impossibility of Fallow Periods Online
An update on Exvangelical & Beyond
The Comfort of Fictional Religions: The Spark
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Customer Reviews
This is the podcast I’ve needed!
I left my faith because I was so disturbed by evangelical loyalty to Trump. I couldn’t believe that people with the Holy Spirit indwelling them would destroy their witness for the dumbest golden calf ever. It was a cataclysmic event in my life that I will doubtless continue to struggle with for years. This podcast has helped me know that I am not alone. Thank you!
Room for improvement
Not a bad show, but the host’s questions ramble on so long that he ends up talking more than the person he’s interviewing. I’d like more time to hear from guests.
Excellent podcast
An excellent podcast! No matter what stage of deconstruction you are in, Blake’s podcast logically speaks to every listener. Keep up the great work.