Poema Podcast

Today Allison Fallon returns to the show to talk about her new book 'The Power of Writing It Down'.  In this episode we explore the power of a writing habit to transform our lives. Allison shares stories and science which both prove conclusively how the act of regular writing can improve both our mental, physical and emotional health. We talk about how writing can connect us with ourselves and reveal truth about us and our lives we might not notice otherwise.  Allison also shares how we can overcome creative blocks, and build a healthy writing habit, and how writing can ultimately be a self-care practice. 

Today podcaster Lauren Larkin joins me to explore the connections between unprocessed grief, religious certainty, and narcissistic behaviour & systems.  We talk about how unprocessed grief can often be controlled and repressed by religious certainty and how the longer this goes on, the deeper the disconnection between us and our true selves, and even to the realities we live in - leading to narcissistic behaviour & religious/cultural systems growing and becoming powerful, such as fundamentalist evangelicalism & Trumpism in the US We then go on to explore how and why we need to process our grief and name it, and how this can transform not just our spirituality but our very being. 

For the first episode of 2021, pastor and author Abby Norman joins me to reflect on 2020 and to discuss the importance of talking to each other and to God about our personal, and collective grief.  Abby talks about how we need to learn how to embrace lament, to name our grief before others and with God. We talk about examples of this in our own lives, and in scripture. Abby shares how grief and lament have the power to give us healing and invite us into personal and spiritual transformation, and connect with Jesus and the divine in more intimate way. 

Today my beloved friends Julida Alter and Anella Platter - AKA the Blacksmith's Daughters - join me to talk about their Christmas album, Forged at Christmas.  Anella and Julida talk to me about the creative process behind several songs of the album. Then we explore how what we create is often a reflection of our own journeys, and also how knowing the story behind the work can help us connect with music and other art more deeply, as well as what the creative process does to us.  And to top it all off, we get some live performances of some of the songs on the album, including some of the ones we discuss. 

Today I'm joined by author and musician Jamie Kocur, who tells us her personal deconstruction story, told in her book ' My CMM Soundtracked Life'. She shares how Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) seemed, for her, a perfect place to nestle into, but eventually became a place to hide. Jamie dreamed of becoming a Christian singer-songwriter and this dream took her down some unexpected paths, including a literal journey through four continents where she came face-to-face with some of CCM’s biggest artists and Hollywood stars. She tells of how the more she experienced the world, the more the evangelical Christian bubble she had lived in was exposed. She tells us how this led to her faith deconstruction and how this deconstruction impacted her, her life, faith and vocation - and how when she began to explore doubt and mystery, she found a new way to experience God, and a new song to sing.   

Today Melissa Kicher, a certified, practicing enneagram coach, joins me on the podcast to explore the enneagram in more detail than ever before on the show. In this episode we go in depth into the characteristics and traits of every enneagram number, and examine how each might be responding to the grief & trauma we've experienced, including sharing our own lived experiences which only confirm just how accurate Melissa is. Melissa concludes by sharing some practical tips for each enneagram number, about how we can get through this time and manage the stress we're going through well. 

Today I'm joined by author and advocate J Nicole Morgan, to discuss fatphobia and fat-shaming, and fat positivity.  Nicole shares her lived experience of being fat, and her own journey of discovery, from at first thinking God required her to be thin to be loved and accepted, to a fat positive perspective, an understanding of the truth God loves and accepts her as she is.  Nicole discusses what she learned about fatphobia and fat-shaming not only in evangelical culture but western culture, and some misconceptions and misunderstandings she learned around things like diet, obesity and health. Nicole reminds us in this episode that no matter our body size, we are loved and accepted as we are. 

Today we conclude our series on Human Centred Design and Faith with Victoria Sun Esparza, founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits. In this episode we draw all our discussions on empathy and curiosity together into a focus on story. We discuss the power of story to connect us with each other, help us in building relationships, and in creating spaces & communities which connect with the needs and stories of those they serve. And to conclude, we explore how story impacts our lives and how it can help deepen and widen our faith perspectives and even connect us with those we disagree with. 

Today we continue our series on Human Centred Design and Faith with Victoria Sun Esparza,  founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits. In this episode we shift organically from Empathy to Curiosity in the design and creative process. We explore how curiosity can guide us in creating spaces and communities where people can grow and deeper in their faith, and can help us understand the needs of our communities in an ever-changing world, so we can serve them better & meet them where they are. 

Today I'm joined for the first part of a 3 part series with Victoria Sun Esparza on Human Centred Design and faith. Victoria is the founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits. In the first part of this series we explore the concept of human centred design and how it impacts the world we live in and how we engage with the world. And we also discuss  the importance of empathy when we are building and creating spaces and communities of faith - and in the creative process as a whole - and share some examples of how this can impact our lives in unexpected but significant ways. 

Today author, philosopher, theologian and speaker Barry Taylor joins me on the podcast. Today we talk about the impact of the pandemic and the murder of George Flloyd on both faith and culture. We talk about the illusion of 'going back to normal' and how we struggle to come to terms with the changes in our lives, and how we often hide this grief with certainty. And then speculate on the possibilities and changes to our world, to our culture and the church as a result of what we've seen in 2020. All this, and a lot more with the brilliant Barry Taylor. 

Today author and superior court judge Tim Fall joins me to discuss his book 'Running For Judge', and explore how the pressures of his election campaign, being a judge and some events in his own life impacted his mental health.  We discuss how he learned healthy practices and routines to improve his mental health and deal with the trauma he experienced, and this intertwined with his faith journey - and the impact writing a book telling his story has had.  Tim's got great wisdom, lived experience and insight into mental health and faith, this was such a great conversation. 

Today I'm joined by author, therapist, spiritual director Chuck DeGroat to talk about his work and in particular the themes of his book 'When Narcissism Comes To Church'.  Chuck shares from research and experience about narcissistic behaviour and how this has manifested itself in toxic religion, evangelicalism and fundamentalism, how it's almost become an ideal or idol in that world. We then dive into the damaging impact this can have on the church, and indeed the wider world - including the election of a narcissistic President back in 2016. Chuck explores ideas co how we can move on from this way of doing church, and have a faith, a church and a spirituality free of narcissism and toxic fundamentalism. 

Today I'm joined by writer and advocate Kimberly Stover, in an episode recorded pre-2020 Presidential election. Kimberly creates resources and written material for those leaving evangelicalism behind and on the journey of spiritual journey.  In this episode Kimberly shares her own spiritual journey, her experiences of growing up in evangelicalism, how she broke free of it and the impact this journey had her relationships, her spirituality, her identity, and her life as she knew it.  We also talk about Trumpism and its links to evangelicalism and its' impact on the church, on her own life and on America, and the deeper issues its exposed. Kimberly tells us how we can break free of toxic religion, and find genuine freedom, and our truest, most authentic selves. 

Today my beloved friend, pastor, author and activist Brandan Robertson returns to the podcast to discuss his own recent journey, the release of two new books, and the movement of the spirit which we might be seeing and how this has been reflected in recent politics in both the UK and USA.  Brandan talks about his own experiences and reflections of the last four years, the toxic evangelical system of power and his own experience of it as an LGBTQ progressive Christian, how we might move forward, and his own hopes and vision of what the future might bring.  Brandan also shares more about his own personal journey, and the creative process behind his new book of devotionals, and talks about his faith journey of the last 8 months, the questions and doubts it brought, and how the pandemic has impacted his experience and understanding of the divine. He also talks about how we can find a sense of God, of hope, if the worst happens in the US election. I left this conversation with a real sense of hope, I believe yo

Today my friend Stephanie McCown joins me to discuss fundamentalism and its impact on politics and faith in both the UK and US.  In particular we discuss progressive fundamentalism, which has grown and become more toxic, more abusive and more damaging as time as gone on - both to individuals, the church and our politics. We also share our own experiences and perspectives on this politically from our respective countries, talk about the progressive "purity test" and a lot more. We then move to explore this in context of the story of Jesus, who Jesus was and what he stood for - and find a striking metaphor for today's world from Jesus story, and from a popular movie franchise. And explore what a more inclusive, non-dualistic, non-fundamentalist faith and politics might look like - and where we are finding hope.  This episode releases 4 days before the 2020 US Presidential election - and feels more timely than ever.

Today I'm joined Irene Cho. Irene is a national speaker, writer, consultant, and advisor, focusing predominantly on youth identity and faith development, race and diversity, organizational leadership, and women in leadership.  In this episode Irene shares her experiences of white evangelical Christianity, and this was contrasting with her own education and understanding of the way of Jesus. She talks about how she was exposed to a variety of different theological perspectives of God, and how this has impacted her and her work. Irene shares her own perspective on God, and how she believes he looks at the world with what is happening in 2020. She then talks about the capitalist, evangelical, patriarchal system we live in, and its systemic racism, and her own experiences of this system. Irene goes on to talk about what action we can take to tear down this corrupt system and create a world, a system which is loving, inclusive, just and more in tune with the true way of Jesus.

Today author D.L. Mayfield joins me to discuss her book 'The Myth of the American Dream' and her journey out of the evangelical/capitalist system into a deeper awareness of what the commands of Jesus really mean for us.  D.L shares how the idea of the way of Jesus preached by evangelicalism and the system it supports, contrast so much with the basic commands of Jesus - to love our neighbour. She then explores four dimensions to we this - affluence, autonomy, safety, and power - and the uncomfortable truth of who white privileged Christians might really be in the Jesus story. She talks about privilege, and her experience of how when the system benefits us, it can blind us to the lived experience of reality of how things really are for the oppressed and marginalised. And then, where that leaves people who want to be truly faithful to the teachings of Jesus.   

Today author Suzanne DeWitt Hall joins me to talk about her new book 'Sex with God: Meditations on the sacred nature of sex in a post-purity-culture world ' Suzanne shares her own story, experiences in purity culture and the impact it had on her and her faith. She also talks about how she broke free of purity culture and discovered a healthy, sacred sexual ethic. Then Suzanne dives deep into exploring how we can invite God into our sex lives, and how can transform sexual intimacy into an experience with and in worship to the divine. 

Today my friend, embodiment coach Jamie Lee Finch, joins me to discuss how we can become fully embodied, to connect more fully with ourselves and our bodies. Jamie talks about the big shift from seeing our bodies not as an it, but a he/she/they - a person, and the profound impact it can have on our own personal journeys. She talks about how we learn to listen to and respond our bodies as they speak to us, and the transformation she had in her own life when she learned to do this, and how she's seen this in her clients. We also discuss my experience of doing this in my work with Jamie, and the real time change which can happen in so many aspects of our being, including our mental and emotional health, and in escaping toxic purity culture.  Jamie also shares some simple, practical steps we can all take to begin doing this work, and knowing and listening to our bodies better. Jamie's work has been transformative for me - I know it can be for you too.