In this episode, I interview Gloria Beth Amodeo, author of the memoir God's Ex-Girlfriend: A Memoir about Loving and Leaving the Evangelical Jesus. We talk about her college-age conversion to evangelicalism through Cru, how purity culture and gender norms are enforced, and much more in this wide-ranging conversation. Support Gloria Beth Amodeo & Exvangelical by buying her book from The Post-Evangelical Posts's bookshop.org page - or if you prefer ebooks, from my Amazon affiliate...

This week’s guest is Lenny Duncan, author of the new book Dear Revolutionaries: A Field Guide for A World Beyond the Church.  In this brief talk, Lenny and I discuss church, the thought leader industrial complex, and more. A couple notes: we had a short window to talk, and I captured as much as I could during that time. You may hear some occasional sounds in the audio including from some bangles Lenny was wearing; I think it adds to the ambience personally, but your mileage may vary.  Buy...

In this short episode, I talk about producing 200 episodes of this show: how it started, where it's been, what might be next. A new interview episode will be posted this week. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Support this work via a subscription at $5/month or $50/year at postevangelicalpost.com. Benefits include ad-free podcast feeds, supporter-only podcast & writing, and Discord access. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support...

In this episode from 2020, I chat with Anne Helen Petersen about her book Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation (Amazon, Bookshop). We discuss her spiritual & religious background, her viral essay on BuzzFeed that led to this book, how the way we use social media contributes to burnout, how our economic systems fail us, and more.  You can follow Anne on Twitter @annehelen and subscribe to her newsletter, Culture Study. Follow Blake on Twitter @brchastain, Instagram...

IN this chill conversation with return guest Kevin Garcia, I talk to them about what we should expect from community, how online communities don't reflect the ones we might have left, and how this balances out with our desire for personal autonomy after leaving unhealthy communities. We get into it. It's fun. Follow Kevin on Instagram: @thekevingarcia. Support this show via a $5/month subscription to The Post-Evangelical Post. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post,...

Listeners, come see me w/ Brad Onishi of Straight White American Jesus & Tim Whitaker of The New Evangelicals in Philly on 2/11/23! Get tickets here and use code 50 at checkout to get 50% off! It's an archival episode! In September 2021, 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...

In this episode, I speak with Teddy Wilson from Radical Reports about his experience covering the radical right. We talk about how important language is when identifying and discussing various groups, the transnational nature of nationalist movements, what we know about the Brazil insurrection so far—and finally, how “progressive” movements can respond to the rising tide of anti-democratic groups. Follow Teddy on Twitter: @reportbywilson Come see Blake, Bradley Onishi of Straight White...

Over at The Post-Evangelical Post, I've been writing about fictional religions for subscribers. As I wrote on 1/3/23: "When your faith of origin is also the origin of a grievous wound, there’s an odd solace to be found in knowingly made up things. Fiction, the old adage goes, is a lie that tells the truth—and there’s a lot of truth to be found in fictional religions." This is an audio version of an essay published this week, "The Comfort of Fictional Religions: The Sensayers of Terra Ignota."...

Happy new year, everyone - the first guest of 2023 is a return guest, Bradley Onishi. Brad is co-host of the Straight White American Jesus podcast and author of the new book: Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism—and What Comes Next. Our conversation starts discussing just 10 words, just 2 sentences, from the first chapter of Brad's book: "I should have known better," and "I could have been there." "There," in this context, is the Capitol Riot. This is a good...

This is an audio version of my latest essay published at The Post-Evangelical Post: The Vibe Shift That Was Foretold Came, & Twitter Did Not Survive It. Back in February, a time that feels much farther away than a mere 10 months ago, The Cut published an essay called “A Vibe Shift is Coming. Will any of us survive it?” It was a piece meant to get people talking, and it did. It featured a lot of coast-centric media bubble trendspotting talk mingled with pandemic lockdown introspection. But...

This week's guest is Jenny Booth Potter, author of the book Doing Nothing Is No Longer An Option: One Woman's Journey Into Everyday Antiracism. Jenny is also the co-host of the web series The Next Question with Austin Channing Brown and Chi Chi Okwu. In this book, Jenny shares her own story of committing long-term to antiracism, challenging both herself and society to keep pressing forward. It's a great conversation and her book is a welcome starting point for any White person looking to...

Today I'm happy to share with you an episode from a fellow Irreverent Media Group podcast called Speaking In Church. If you're not aware, Exvangelical is part of the Irreverent Media Group podcast collective, and so is Speaking In Church. I thought it would be great to share with my audience an episode of their show. This episode was recorded and published in September of this year with Josie Jimenez and Cameron Bishop. Subscribe to Speaking In Church on Apple or Spotify. Follow them on...

Angela Denker, pastor and author of the book Red State Christians (which was re-released this year with updated material), joins the show to discuss the 2022 midterms and how the political landscape continues to change. In particular she draws on her role serving a rural parish while living in an urban/suburban area, and the ways local relationships are more complex than simple media coverage portrays. Pick up Red State Christians from my Bookshop.org affiliate link, or your local bookstore....

Powers & Principalities is a show about the systems and institutions of white evangelical influence in America and the world. Season 1, published in the fall of 2020, was all about white evangelicalism and Christian nationalism. Season 2 focuses on white evangelicalism & media. This is episode one. Dating all the way back to at least the 19th century, the various groups we now refer to as White evangelicals have always been early adopters of new media formats. Whether it’s books,...

This week's guest is Jeanna Kadlec, author of the new book Heretic: A Memoir, out this week.  Her book is a deeply intimate memoir of her life growing up in and leaving evangelicalism, discovering her queerness, and much more. We talk about the midwest, about developing spiritual practices after religion, and comics - it was a very laid back and meandering conversation that I hope you’ll enjoy as much as I did. You can find Heretic at your local bookstore, or you can support this show by...

My guest today is Becca Andrews. Becca is a journalist at Reckon News, and author of the new book No Choice: The Destruction of Roe v. Wade and the Fight to Protect a Fundamental American Right. She has been reporting on reproductive rights and justice, as well as related topics such as purity culture, for several years and her work has also appeared at Mother Jones, Jezebel, and Teen Vogue, among others. Content note: I want to note that this episode deals directly with abortion and other...

In this interview, I speak to Kristin Peterson, media studies professor at Boston College, about her book Unruly Souls: The Digital Activism of Muslim and Christian Feminists. We discuss the role social media has had in creating a counterpublic that challenges the dominant cultural narratives established by white evangelicalism and other religions. Her book covers aspects of #ChurchToo and other online movements that fall under the broad "deconstruction" umbrella, as well as how Muslims...

This week, I'm joined by Sarah Heath & Justin Gentry from the REVcovery podcast to talk about burnout. This is a long conversation, and it starts by talking about religious burnout for pastors and other highly-involved volunteers. We later transition into talking about post-religious burnout. Like any conversation, it's just a single convo, and not representative of all perspectives. Listen to REVcovery wherever you find podcasts. Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post,...

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, author of the new book On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World. This show is not typically interfaith, but when the opportunity to read Rabbi Ruttenberg’s latest arose, I leapt at the chance. I’ve followed her on Twitter for years and admire her work immensely. On Repentance and Repair is an immensely helpful book that helps reframe what repentance, repair, and forgiveness mean. Those terms are loaded for people whose faith was formed in white...

Another archival episode, in light of the news from The Village Church. Matt Chandler went on indefinite leave from TVC this weekend after inappropriate messaging on Instagram, just a couple weeks after they settled with an abuse victim while acknowledging no wrongdoing. These are longstanding issues in evangelicalism going back decades. There's nothing pithy to say about churches that protect their shepherds instead of their flocks. Here is my 2021 interview with Emily Joy Allison....

While I continue to work on my manuscript, here is another archival episode for you. This is from my series, Powers & Principalities. Season 1 was published in 2020 and focused on Christian nationalism, which remains painfully relevant.  This episode features a conversation with Sam Perry and Andrew Whitehead, co-authors of the book Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States [affiliate link].  While I personally think Christian nationalism is very hard to...

It's been a minute. While I'm working on my manuscript, please enjoy this 2017 interview I recorded with David Bazan from Pedro the Lion. We recorded this interview in Bazan's car, between Living Room shows. It was incredible. The original introduction of this conversation was kept for nostalgia, context, and ease. Original show notes here. To get to the interview, skip about 8 minutes forward (dynamic ads may add 1 more minute). Thanks for listening. New episodes coming soon. Read the 6...

In this episode, I adapt a couple of recent essays from The Post-Evangelical Post to discuss Christian nationalism. As white evangelical hegemony ended, white Christian nationalist minority rule began. Recommended Reading: Christian Nationalism on TikTok; Evangelical Lobbyists Praying with SCOTUS Justices, More Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post, LLC. Subscribe to The Post-Evangelical Post to support the show at $4, $6, or $8/month to receive ad-free podcast feeds...

Today’s guest is Jo Luehmann. Jo and I spoke back in March this year, after arranging to chat in late January, early February, so this episode has been a long time coming.  In this conversation, you’ll hear Jo talk about growing up in Colombia, her experience within evangelical circles in America, and her work discussing decolonization. In the months following our discussion, Jo became a target of many far right figures such as Matt Walsh, who rallied their followers to harass Jo. The reason...

Hello, and welcome to Exvangelical. I’m your host, Blake Chastain. I know there’s a lot going on. I know that the recent Supreme Court rulings are beyond discouraging - they are harmful for so many people, and a decision that could lead to the downfall of Roe is expected as soon as tomorrow. But multiple things happen all at once, and because of our interconnectedness, we feel them all. But I want to isolate one event happening right now and say: Happy Pride - especially to those born and...