Poema Podcast

TW: Spiritual abuse, evangelicalism, toxic religion   Today I'm joined by Carissa (@carissaexplainsnothing) who courageously shares her story, including her deconstruction and experience of toxic religion. She talks about her upbringing with evangelicalism, and a path she began to see as already pre-determined and inevitable. Carissa shares some of the spiritual abuse she experienced, and the grief she experienced leaving evangelicalism behind, and at the end of her marriage. And then she tells us about her experience of deconstruction, the risks and the joys of creating a new life, and discovering who she's always been. 

This week I'm honoured to be joined by Candice Czubernat. She is a therapist (known as @lesbiantherapist on IG), and founder of The Christian Closet, an LGBTQ affirming counseling, coaching and spiritual direction organization. She is also the founder of Gloriously Queer a conference for LGBTQ people of faith developed by LGBTQ people of faith. Today Candice shares her own story, talks about her work and her experiences as a therapist, particuarly focussing on grief. We discuss our various experiences of grief, different types of grief - including loss of loved ones, relationships ending, and the grief of deconstruction - and how we can learn to respond to grief and process grief in healthy ways.

Today I'm joined by returning guests Trace Bell and Tina Olsen to discuss grief and the spirituality of dogs.  Tina shares her experience of grief, and both her and Trace share their experiences with dogs, and learning and understanding their consciousness and building relationship with them, and how this can improve our mental health. They discuss how dogs can be extra intuitive and aware of our emotions and needs almost before we are, and what this can teach us about learning to listen to our own intuition and our relationship with the earth.

In this week's episode author Amanda Held Opelt joins me to discuss the cultural and historical impact of the Black Death during the 1300's.  We discuss the collective grief and trauma experienced by the countries impacted by the Black Death, and the longer term consequences for the church, culture and ultimately the history of western culture. We explore the consequences of collective cultural grief and trauma, and talk about what the potential long term impact of COVID has and potentially will be for the world and our culture as a whole. 

In today's episode we return to our irregular pop culture series, with author Marla Taviano joining me to discuss the popular show - and one of our favourites - Schitts Creek.  We talk about the various character arcs, and how these explore personal deconstruction and transformation after a major life change. We also explore the culture of the show which normalised LGBTQ inclusion and was such an inspiration to the LGBTQ community. This was such a fun episode to record, any fan of the show will enjoy it (and even those who don't know the show). 

I'm honoured to be joined today by my friend, colleague Maria Francesca French today. Maria is a professor, theologian, author and coach, exploring all things Christian and post-Christian.  Today she shares her personal journey, and talks about her first book, Safer than the Known Way, and we discuss together the root of the term deconstruction. We explore the concept of event, and how event begins an unravelling which takes us on a journey into what is called deconstruction, which goes way beyond the boundaries of religion and belief, and helps us explore, question and understand our very identity. This was such a great conversation, Maria has such knowledge, wisdom and lived experience in this area.  **** I highly recommend checking out Maria's book 'Safer than the Known Way', available at all online booksellers now.  

**Trigger warning: religious abuse, toxic religion** Today author and podcaster Nikki Pappas joins us to talk about her book "As Familiar As Family: Leaving Toxic Religion". Nikki tells us her powerful story of how she experienced abuse as love from a young age, being brought up in an evangelical family, being groomed for unhealthy relationships and toxic religion.  She talks about she finally broke free of toxic religion, the challenges and the cost - and the freedom she discovered. 

Today author, YouTuber and public theologian Damon Garcia is my guest, as we explore the call of Jesus to social activism. Damon shares his own spiritual journey, and how he discovered a Jesus who takes sides with the marginalised and the oppressed and who fights for their liberation. Damon then explores how we need to follow this example, in the oppressive systems we currently find ourselves in, and take a stand for marginalised, oppressed peoples. 

Today my friend author, podcaster and tik tok star Rev Brandan Robertson joins me to talk about his new book 'Dry Bones and Holy Wars'. In this episode he and I explore how the teachings of Jesus can inspire us bring social and spiritual renewal in a world engulfed by toxic systems of oppression, and where there is so much grief, trauma, inequality, and marginalisation. Brandan talks about what a healthy, deconstructed Jesus spirituality can look like, and how the community of Jesus followers need to reform, evolve and grow to be able to bring about the social and spiritual renewal the world so desperately needs. 

**TW: Eating disorder**   This week author, podcaster & speaker Jackie Gronlund (she/her) is my guest. Jackie shares her story, talking about her relationship with her body, and learning self acceptance.  Jackie talks about the challenges of living with an eating disorder and other coping mechanisms and escapes, and how this impacted her life, spirituality, relationships with others. and her relationship with her body. Jackie shares her journey of discovering healing through a healthy relationship with her body, and how this helped her find peace in herself and in her true identity - and how we can do the same.   Find more of Jackie's work at jackiegronlund.com

Today my friend, podcaster, coach, speaker and author Rev Sarah Heath returns to Poema! In this episode we catch up with what she's been up to, and she shares the story of how she chose to leave working in ordained ministry to create a life which was truly her own, and becoming fully embodied in her vocation and her life.  Sarah talks about the challenges of moving out of ordained ministry, and the risks, the difficulties - and the rewards, of choosing to live fully in tune with ourselves. Sarah also shares how these choices have been influenced by, and have themselves impacted her own spiritual journey. Sarah's story is  a great example of what it means for us create our own lives and tell our story our own way, and how this can transform us.

I'm honoured to be joined by Thomas Floyd LCMHC, a psychologist and therapist. He tells us a little of his story, and then we explore the connections between the process of deconstruction and issues of co-dependency and attachment types in relationships of all kinds  We talk about how toxic religious systems can teach us co-dependency and unhealthy attachment models, and how we can unlearn these to have healthy relationships and communities. 

Honoured today to be joined by my friend Erin Green M.Div (she/they). Erin is a queer activist and scholar. Today their share their story of deconstruction, and discovery and exploration of their queer identity. They discuss how they reconciled the two, how this impacted their life, faith & relationships, in particular their relationship with Christianity & the church, and finding healthy community. 

Today I'm joined by Sarah Kimble, as we continue my exploration of pop culture with a discussion on the book / movie "Pride & Prejudice".  We explore the cultural context it was written and how this impacts how we read and interact with the story and characters. We also discuss the character of Mr Darcy and make the argument that he may well be autistic, and explore examples of this, and how this would explain much of his character and his behaviour/interactions in the book. We also talk about how that can help us understand the story and have more empathy with him. This was such a fun episode, with some great insights. Hope you enjoy it!

This week I'm joined by Dr Amy Marschall. Dr Amy is a licensed psychologist and certified in telemental health, working with children aged 2-18 and experienced and qualified in giving ADHD & autism diagnoses. She's also authored or co-authored several books.  In this episode she talks about her experiences working with children with ADHD and autism. She shares about how her reaction to the dramatic changes in her lifestyle during lockdown ultimately led her to the discovery and diagnosis of her autism and adhd, and how she has spoken to over 45 people with the conditions to understand their experiences - a project she is still working on. Dr Amy also talks about the issues with getting a diagnosis, especially as an adult, and how her clients had even noticed. She also discusses how this has impacted her work and her hopes to end stigma and ableism around these conditions, the biggest misunderstandings around ADHD & Autism, and the challenges of getting a diagnosis and being honest about this condition

My pop culture series continues today with my friend Melissa Weissenberger returning to the show to discuss the movie 'Free Guy'. We explore the numerous themes of the movie and how they relate to our own personal journeys. We also discuss how it's a metaphor for being trapped in toxic systems and becoming aware of them, breaking free from the control of others and discovering your own identity, and so much more. This was such a fun episode to make & I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

This week I'm joined by author and poet Marla Taviano, who shares her story about her faith deconstruction, the end of her marriage, and how she found a way to survive and create a new life. We talk about her recently released book of poetry called 'Unbelieve: Poems on the Journey to Becoming a Heretic', and the creative process behind it. Marla shares how creativity has become a path to healing & expressing the trauma, grief and pain of her experiences, exploring the questions she had, and lessons she is still learning and unlearning. 

This week I welcome back my friend Irene M Cho to the podcast, and we continue our series on pop culture with an examination of the Godfather trilogy, and the arc of Michael Corleone.  We explore his personal journey and his unhealthy responses to grief and how they defined him - and how they can define us. We also discuss the generational trauma carried through the Corlene family, and how generational trauma can do so much damage to individuals and families without proper healing work, take us away from our true selves, and lead to tragedy. 

As Poema Podcast returns, I'm joined by my friend Kevin M Nye, and we talk about his book 'Grace Can Lead Us Home: A Christian Call to End Homelessness'. Kevin has worked in the area of homelessness for many years, and today we discuss this is more detail. Kevin talks about the many myths and misunderstandings around those experiencing homelessness and how these can cause such damage. He also explores the many ways the problem has been tackled, and shares some more new & more helpful approaches which he believes can bring about genuine change.  The core of Kevin's perspective, is how by simply humanising those who experience homelessness and loving and showing grace towards them, is the first step to reducing homelessness.

Nicki Pappas, author and podcaster, joins me today to share her deconstruction story. She shares how her lived experiences and rise of Trump challenged her to leave toxic evangelicalism behind, and begin work on what she calls 'broadening the narrative'. Nicki talks about the the impact this journey has had on her relationships, her marriage, and her mental health. She shares lessons she's learned on her journey, and the process creating spaces in her own life, and in her creative work, for wider conversations. She tells us how she is exploring new ways of exploring our spirituality, new perspectives, which give us freedom to grow and heal.