LGBTQ+ Voices Episodes

My guest this week is Prof. Elizabeth Bridges. We talk about her childhood as a PK (pastor's kid), her struggles coming out, and the trouble seeing "how the sausage is made" in any faith community. Follow Elizabeth on Twitter @egbridges, and follow her blog at uncannyvalley.us. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain, the show on Twitter @exvangelicalpod, and support the show on Patreon at patreon.com/exvangelicalpod. Thank you, patrons! Intro: "Night Owl" by Broke for Free Interlude 1: "Three's Com...

This week I'm happy to re-release this conversation I had last year with Tori Williams Douglass (@ToriGlass on Twitter). She and I discuss her history, as well as how the death of Michael Brown altered her understanding of white evangelicalism. We also discuss her must-read blog post, "The Day I Learned White Christians Hate Me." Read it here: toriglassdotcom.wordpress.com/2017/08/08…s-hate-me/ This a frank discussion about race that centers Tori's experience. Follow her on Twitter @ToriGlass, a...

This week's guests are Hannah Paasch (@hannahpaasch) & Emily Joy (@emilyjoypoetry). We talk about the #churchtoo hashtag, what it seeks to address, and the blowback they've received regarding this campaign. CW/TW: This conversation contains discussions of sexual assault and abuse. Follow them on Twitter--check the usernames above--and hire them to come speak to your group! --- This episode is sponsored by · Charity Promotion: Democracy Works: This advertisement is part of a charitable initiati...

My guest this week is Laura Jean Truman. She blogs over at her blog, In/Between, which can be found at laurajeantruman.com. Laura Jean and I talk about her life, how the way we view our past changes over time, her experience being queer in a non-affirming church, and why she remains engaged with Christianity. It's a great conversation. My audio is rougher b/c my mic didn't record properly. Sorry. Read Laura Jean's blog In/Between at laurajeantruman.com, and follow her on Twitter @laurajeantruman...

My guest this week is Chris Stroop. Chris was a guest back on episode 15 of the show, and since that time he has become well-known for his essays on Religion Dispatches (as well as his threads on Twitter, including the trending hashtag #EmptyThePews) about the global Religious Right, particularly in American and Russian politics, as well as Exvangelical experience more broadly. He is also a fellow administrator of the Exvangelical Facebook group. We talk at length about #EmptyThePews and the sto...

My guest this week is Tori Williams Douglass (@ToriGlass on Twitter). She and I discuss her history, as well as how the death of Michael Brown altered her understanding of white evangelicalism. We also discuss her must-read blog post, "The Day I Learned White Christians Hate Me." Read it here: https://toriglassdotcom.wordpress.com/2017/08/08/the-day-i-learned-white-christians-hate-me/ This a frank discussion about race that centers Tori's experience. Follow her on Twitter @ToriGlass, and read he...

This is a wide-spanning conversation. An integral part of Dan's story is his experience within church, evangelicalism, and purity culture (I know those are all overlapping things) as a gay man and how damaging it was to his development. That summary doesn't do it justice, which is why we are all lucky that Dan can say all this in his own words--which he does very well. Profanity warning up top: this show has a bit of it, so, don't play it around kiddos. Follow Dan on Twitter @sweaterzzz. Follow ...

This episode features a conversation with Rev. Kevin Wright from the Riverside Church in NYC. We talk about his journey, LGBTQ affirmation, and more. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain. Follow the show on Twitter @exvangelicalpod Like the show on Facebook at facebook.com/exvangelicalpod Follow Rev. Kevin Wright on Twitter @kevinkwright. Read Kevin's blog at kevinkwright.com Read Kevin's posts on the Huffington Post at www.huffingtonpost.com/author/kwright-488 Show Notes: Harry Emerson Fosdick: ...

This week's episode is a re-release of a conversation with Emily Joy & Hannah Paasch from The Flawless Project (from episode 10). They discuss the impact their experiences with purity culture and sexism has had on their lives. The Flawless Project: theflawlessproject.org Emily Joy Poetry: emilyjoypoetry.com Ida Grey: idagrey.weebly.com Follow Emily Joy on Twitter @emilyjoypoetry Follow Hannah Paash on Twitter @hannahpaasch Follow The Flawless Project on Twitter @flawlessproj Intro: "Night Owl" b...

My guest this week is Peterson Toscano. He is a Bible scholar, actor, storyteller, and activist exploring the intersection of gay rights, human rights, and climate change. Check out all of Peterson's projects: petersontoscano.com Peterson's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/p2son Climate Stew: https://climatestew.com/ Peterson's work on gender & the Bible: https://petersontoscano.com/portfolio/transfigurations/ Citizen's Climate Radio, start from the beginning: http://citizensclimate...

This week's guest is Crystal Cheatham, co-host of the podcast Lord Have Mercy, and producer of the upcoming Our Bible App, an inclusive Bible app for the rest of us. We talk about a number of Crystal's experiences and projects, as well as why the Our Bible App is necessary in today's world. Sign up to be notified when the Our Bible App launches at http://ourbibleapp.com! Learn more about Crystal and all her projects on her website, crystalcheatham.com Follow Crystal on Twitter: twitter.com/cryst...

My guest this week is Verdell Wright. In this conversation Verdell and I talk about growing up in the 7th Day Adventist tradition, asking big questions at an early age, the difficulties of attending church when you're seminary educated, depression, sexuality, Christian atheism, and religious humanism. It's a wide ranging conversation, but I hope you listen through to the very end. In the final section, Verdell talks about his work in highlighting Black queer voices, and what we can all do to hig...

This week I talk to Samantha Field about homeschooling, Christian education, and growing up in a cult. We also focus in on why the nomination of Betsy DeVos is so concerning. Read Samantha's work: samanthapfield.com. Follow her on Twitter: twitter.com/samanthapfield. Follow the show on FB/Twitter/IG: @exvangelicalpod. Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/brchastain. Intro/Outro: "Night Owl" by Broke for Free, available on Free Music Archive: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Broke\_For\_Free/Direct...

This week I'm joined by Becky, Callie, and Amanda--aka The Twisted Sisterds! The Twisted Sisterds spun out of the Inglorious Pasterds podcast, having met in The Pub, which is the Inglorious Pasterds private Facebook group. We talk about their stories, deconstruction, responses to social upheaval--as well as Doctor Who, Stargate, and Lord of the Rings. Subscribe to the Pasterds/Sisterds: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/inglorious-pasterds/id1090051747?mt=2&at=1001lba7 Follow the Sisterds ...

This week's guest is Rev. Morgan Guyton, author of the book How Jesus Saves the World from Us: 12 Antidotes to Toxic Christianity. We discuss his life, his book, and the toxicity of white American evangelicalism. The pledge rewards for the Exvangelical Patreon have been revamped! Check out patreon.com/exvangelicalpod for more details. Follow Morgan Guyton on Facebook and Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/revmorganguyton twitter.com/maguyton Follow the show on Twitter, FB, IG: twitter.com/exvange...

This week's episode features a conversation with Dr. Chris Stroop. Chris is an historian and a Provosts's Postdoctoral Scholar in the Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of South Florida, and the co-editor of the upcoming anthology By the Rivers of Babylon. We discuss his experience with K-12 Christian education, how he wrestled with faith in college and beyond, his reporting on the conservative crackdown of students and faculty on Christian college campuses, as well as his recent a...

This week's episode features a conversation with Dr. Keisha McKenzie, aka @mackenzian on Twitter. She shares her story of growing up in the UK, attending school in Jamaica, as well as her time living in the US, all while engaging her Adventist faith and finding communities that helped her continue to ask the questions she wanted to ask. It’s a great conversation that covers a lot of ground across politics, religion, and sexuality—what she refers to as “the three taboos” on her website. Follow Dr...

Today’s guest is Kevin Garcia, a writer, podcaster, and all around thoughtful guy. It’s hard to summarize Kevin’s story. Ultimately it’s s story of self acceptance and finding God’s love, but it took time to get there. It’s very moving, but it’s best told in his own words. A couple notes: the language in this one is a little blue, so don’t play it around kiddos or people sensitive to profanity - just use discretion, ok? Also, Kevin was recording from a public spot, so there’s a lot of really gre...

This week's episode features a conversation with Emily Joy & Hannah Paasch from The Flawless Project. They discuss the impact their experiences with purity culture and sexism has had on their lives. The Flawless Project: theflawlessproject.org Emily Joy Poetry: emilyjoypoetry.com Ida Grey: idagrey.weebly.com Follow Emily Joy on Twitter @emilyjoypoetry Follow Hannah Paash on Twitter @hannahpaasch Follow The Flawless Project on Twitter @flawlessproj Intro & Outro "Flawless" by Beyonce (duh): https...

This episode features a conversation with Rev. Kevin Wright from the Riverside Church in NYC. We talk about his journey, LGBTQ affirmation, and more. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain. Follow the show on Twitter @exvangelicalpod Like the show on Facebook at facebook.com/exvangelicalpod Follow Rev. Kevin Wright on Twitter @kevinkwright. Read Kevin's blog at kevinkwright.com Read Kevin's posts on the Huffington Post at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/kwright-488 Show Notes: Harry Emerson Fo...