Exvangelical

April Ajoy joins the show! You probably know her from TikTok, where she creates at turns funny and serious videos about "humorously detoxing American Christianity." We learn about her story, about how she got started on TikTok, and more! Check out all of April's projects: TikTok The Evangelicalish podcast Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. You can support the show at $4, $6, or $8/month at postevangelicalpost.com and get access to ad-free podcast feeds, subscriber-only content, and the PEP Discord. I donate 25% of net proceeds each month to groups that serve populations harmed by white evangelicalism. Find links to all my social media accounts at blakechastain.com This episode was edited by Elizabeth Nordenholt of Podcat Audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This was also published as an essay at The Post-Evangelical Post. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Learn how to support my work here. There are many resources about reproductive health available. If you want to approach it from an interfaith lens, start here. A reproductive rights advocate I've had on the show, Asha Dahya, can be followed on Instagram. Her episode is here. Links: https://postevangelicalpost.com https://instagram.com/brchastain_ https://exvangelicalpodcast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this audio essay, adapted from The Post-Evangelical Post, I talk about Twitter's role in allowing "counterpublics" to flourish - and how #exvangelical relates to that. New interviews are coming - due to my recent ear surgery I am still restricted from listening to audio in both ears - which makes editing podcasts difficult. I am enlisting another producer to help. Please consider becoming a paid supporter of my work via The Post-Evangelical Post. There are free options, as well as tiers at $4, $6, or $8 per month. I donate 25% of net revenue each month. Follow me on Twitter, TikTok, or Instagram. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been over a month since I’ve released an episode. That was not my plan nor intention. But sometimes life intervenes. Just shy of a month ago, I had surgery to repair a lifelong issue with my ear - ruptured ear drum, and the recovery took much longer than I expected. It required me to slow down. I wrote about this over on my newsletter, The Post-Evangelical Post.  I have 6 episodes recorded that need editing, which I will get to releasing soon. In the meantime, enjoy this interview with Pete Holmes from 2019. - If you find this podcast meaningful, please consider supporting my work via Substack at postevangelicalpost.com. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post - a publication about belief, technology, and society, with a focus on white evangelical influence in American society. Much of this audio essay originally appeared as an entry there. In addition to Exvangelical, I also have a tech series called Shaped by Tools, and a book series called The Good Books. You can subscribe to my news

Even though my relationship to religion is always shifting, some of the rituals and symbolism have more resonance than others. For me, in recent years Lent has been the most meaningful part of the Christian tradition, even if I'm not sure where I fall in relation to it. In this audio essay, I explore the both-and nature of Lent - through denial and affirmation. "I have made it a focus of both this show and my writing that, to me, the term ‘exvangelical’ has its limits. I understand that it is inherently negative, in that it describes a former relationship. It also describes a formative relationship of incredible significance. As a term, as an identity marker, it is at once a recognition and renunciation of a certain type of belief and belonging. That is significant in and of itself. But it is a denial without a prescribed affirmation. What one chooses to affirm is up to them." In this 10 minute essay, I go into more detail. The transcript will be posted to postevangelicalpost.com later today. Support my wo

RE-RELEASE: Dr. Anthea Butler returns to the show (she was a guest on season one of Powers & Principalities) to discuss her new book, White Evangelical Racism. Her book is of utmost importance to helping us understand both our past and our current moment. We discuss the history of white evangelical racism, and how it played a part in the Jan 6th insurrection and the murders in Atlanta in March 2021. I also wrote about the book in my new series, The Good Books, published via my newsletter The Post-Evangelical Post. Help support the show directly via a paid subscription to the newsletter. (Free tiers are also available.) Stay tuned for more news about the show next week! This interview was recorded on 3/19/2021. Follow Dr. Butler on Twitter @AntheaButler. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain, and follow the show on Instagram @exvangelicalpod. This episode was produced and edited by Jake Lewis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this conversation, I speak with exvangelical Tiktokker Melissa Stewart (@lissajostewart) about her upbringing, how exvangelical spaces continue to evolve, and how platform differences (i.e. Twitter vs. TikTok) enable different conversations - and much more! As I mention in the introduction, note how Melissa talks about her experiences leaving fundamentalism, and how it differs from the way evangelical pastors who decry "deconstruction" or some other rhetorical bogeyman. #exvangelical has taken on a life of its own on TikTok, with 633 million views as of this writing. Melissa talks about her own experience as an observer of these spaces, and a bit about what it has been like to become a creator in the space. We couldn't cover every aspect of these topics in our conversation, but the great thing about our media landscape is that the conversation can continue. Follow Melissa @lissajostewart and follow Blake @brchastain_ on TikTok. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post. You can support the

In this episode I chat with fellow IMG podcasters, Justin Gentry & Sarah Heath about their new show, Revcovery. Revcovery is all about the process of leaving the ministry profession. We cover a lot in the first half before turning our attention to the recent Vanity Fair profile of Jerry Falwell, Jr., and the confounding Christianity Today piece by Russell Moore. Find out more about Revcovery on irreverent.fm/show/revcovery. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post. Support my work directly at $4, $6, or $8/month and get access to ad-free podcast feeds, subscriber exclusive writing, Discord access, and more. Learn more at postevangelicalpost.com/subscribe. A free tiers is also available. Exvangelical is part of the Irreverent Media Group. Check out irreverent.fm for more shows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this audio essay, Blake talks frankly about how social media exacerbated a dark day he had recently, how social media affects emotions, and how our relationship to identifiers and communities change over time. Throughout 2022 I will be experimenting more with formats and episode types in the feed. Please let me know what you think by sending an email or reaching out on social media. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, a reader-supported publication. You can subscribe for $4, $6, and $8 a month to get access to ad-free podcast feeds, exclusive content, and Discord access.

In this bonus episode of Powers & Principalities, I share my conversation with Chrissy Stroop on the inauspicious anniversary of the Jan 6 Capitol Riot. (One trigger/content note, we talk about Satanic Panic & child abuse in one section). We discuss the lead-up to Trump, the Trump administration, the insurrection, and the Big Lie that has taken root. We also talk about shifts in conversation around religion & Christianity in America, and look ahead at what political fights are to come. Powers & Principalities and Exvangelical are productions of The Post-Evangelical Post. You can support my work directly at postevangelicalpost.com, and you'll gain access to ad-free feeds, Discord, subscriber-only posts, and more to come in 2022. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain. Follow Chrissy Stroop on Twitter @c_stroop. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this interview I chat with R. Scott Okamoto about music, life as a Christian college professor, and much more. Scott will also be hosting the upcoming exvangelical podcast, Chapel Probation. Learn more about Scott at his website, https://www.rscottokamoto.com/, and follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Help support this show via a paid subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post at $4, $6, or $8/month. Benefits include ad-free podcast feeds, exclusive content, and Discord access. Find all this and more, including my social accounts, at https://linktr.ee/brchastain. Exvangelical is part of the Irreverent Media Group. Find more content at https://irreverent.fm. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this mini, Blake talks about the recent spat of discussion about exvangelicals and people deconstructing that is happening. Parts of this script are adapted from Blake's twitter feed & newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I spoke to author Jeff Sharlet in November 2020, just after the election was called for Biden - but Trump was already signaling that he would not concede. The Jan 6 insurrection had not yet happened, but what would become The Big Lie had already begun to take root from those early days. I'm re-releasing another episode of Powers & Principalities Season 1 again, because these conversations continue to be relevant. New conversations are coming soon. Find the entirety of Season 1 of Powers & Principalities on Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts for discussions with Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Sarah Posner, Julie Ingersoll, Bradley Onishi, Katherine Stewart, Anthea Butler, Diana Butler Bass, Sam Perry & Andrew Whitehead, Jack Jenkins, and Reza Aslan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, I talk with fellow IMG podcaster Bradley Onishi about how things have developed in the last year since the 2020 election. In that time we've seen Trump's decisive electoral loss, the Jan 6th insurrection, the entrenchment of The Big Lie within the GOP, and vaccine hesitancy. We've also seen reasons for hope. We talk about it all. This is an unedited conversation, recorded live-to-tape on November 4th, 2021. Read Brad's NYT editorial about the insurrection here, and support Straight White American Jesus on Patreon. I'm also writing a book! Read the announcement here. Subscribe to my newsletter at postevangelicalpost.substack.com - 25% of net revenue goes to organizations that serve communities harmed by white evangelicalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This past July marked 5 years of publishing Exvangelical. In this minisode, I describe my new funding/listener support model. Read the full post here. When you support the show via Substack, I will donate 25% of net revenue to organizations that serve populations harmed by white evangelicalism. Those organizations are: White Homework, The Religious Trauma Institute, and REAP (The Religious Exemption Accountability Project). Support the show at $8/month and receive access to ad-free feeds of Exvangelical and Powers & Principalities, and supporter-exclusive writing at The Post-Evangelical Post, with more perks to come in 2022. Learn more at The Post-Evangelical Post. Why this model? Because I think it’s the right thing to do. I am building this from the ground-up with no outside funding, and have an opportunity to build a business model that includes reparative economics from the beginning. My work focuses on the personal & social impact of white evangelicalism. By committing to donate a significant percent

In this episode, I chat with Paul Southwick & Erin Green of The Religious Exemption Accountability Project (REAP). Paul Southwick (he/him) is Director of REAP, and Erin Green (she/they) is REAP's Campus & Alumni Organizer. REAP has filed a landmark class action lawsuit, Elizabeth Hunter, et al. v. U.S. Department of Education, that challenges the religious exemption Christian college and other religious colleges use to deny LGBTQ+ students Title IX protections - and still receive federal funding. Learn more about the lawsuit and REAP's work at thereap.org. CW: this conversation includes discussion of sexual and gender discrimination and other forms of abuse. We talk about how LGBTQ+ students are treated by college administrations, how LGBTQ+ students end up at religious colleges, the history of religious colleges resisting civil rights, and why a formal legal challenge is important. Support the show via a subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain. Buy merch: https://exvang

On 9/9/21, I spoke with Meghan O'Gieblyn, author of the new book God, Human, Animal, Machine: Technology, Metaphor, and the Search for Meaning. We talked about her time at Moody Bible Institute, experiencing 9/11 on a Christian campus, the similarities between Christian prophecy & secular transhumanism, and all sorts of other great things. Buy Meghan's book on Bookshop.org or at your local independent bookstore. (Yes, that is an affiliate link, and it helps the show). Follow Meghan on Twitter. Support the show directly via a subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post newsletter. Follow Blake on Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC and a part of the Irreverent Media Group podcast collective. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recorded on 9/1/2021, I spoke with Peterson Toscano all the way in South Africa. Peterson is podcaster, performer, climate activist, and biblical scholar. In this conversation, Peterson talks about activism, trauma, and recognizing when to move on to other projects. We also talk about curiosity, the role of relationships in activism & He-Man! Learn all about Peterson's projects at https://petersontoscano.com/ Support my work via a subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post newsletter. Follow me on Twitter @brchastain, and on Instagram & TikTok. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In light of the TX SB8 law going into effect, and SCOTUS' refusal to strike it down, I am re-releasing this episode I recorded with Katherine Stewart, author of The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism. This book is extremely helpful in detailing the strategies and tactics employed by Christian nationalist politicians and their allies. This interview part of Season 1 of Powers & Principalities. Listen to that season here. Follow me on Twitter @brchastain, on Instagram/TikTok @brchastain_. Support the shows & my writing at The Post-Evangelical Post. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamie Lee Finch, author of You Are Your Own, returns to the show! We had been planning to talk this month for quite some time, but our conversation has a different tenor than we anticipated. This is one conversation among many about issues surrounding exvangelical/deconstruction spaces--and this has happened before. Listen to the show for further context, but we’re still going to try and talk about why things like these moments of drama happen, and why these cycles of commentary occur: what is general to the types of conversations we have now, and what is particular to post-evangelical spaces and the sorts of traumas that are activated. I've been talking about this in various ways on other shows recently, including these conversations with Your Favorite Aunts & Activist Theology. We also talk about Jamie's upcoming course, Your Body Is a Person. Registration closes on 8/31/2021, so act fast! One production note: the wrong mic recorded my audio, so it's of lower quality. Support my work via a subscription to T