Chapel Probation

By Scott OkamotoReligion & Spirituality

Chapel Probation episodes

April 25, 2023 Chapel Probation s3 Chrissy Stroop
We're back with Season 3!
We start the season with someone who helped Scott get started in the deconstruction world, Dr. Chrissy Stroop. Everyone who listens to this podcast is likely familiar with Chrissy's work, but she joins us to talk about her educational experiences and how they shaped who she is today.
Dr. Stroop is a co-editor in the groundbreaking Empty the Pews anthology of stories of deconstruction.
Support Dr. Stroop by joining her Patreon here.

Update: Despite not being monetized, Spotify has flagged my Songs of Deconstruction segment as violating copyright, so it had to be deleted.

Asian-American-Apostate- Losing Religion and Finding Myself at an Evangelical University is available now!
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Music by Scott Okamoto, and Jenyi
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
48 min
February 28, 2023 Season 2 Wrap- Asbury Wins Chapel Probation!!!
Just a quick finale to an amazing season. Thank you to everyone who came on Chapel Probation and thank you to everyone who has tuned in.
Asian American Apostate: Losing Religion and Finding Myself at an Evangelical University is coming out soon, so stay tuned for pre-orders.
Apologies to Blake Chastain for this Moonlight moment where I gave him the Chapel Probation award, but I gotta give it to Asbury. Warning: Unpopular Opinion herein.
See everyone in Season 3 which should fire up in April!
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
15 min
February 21, 2023 S2.E34: After Hours with Gloria Beth Amodeo- Author of God's Ex-Girlfriend
Like me, Gloria Beth Amodeo went to a "normal" school for college. But also like me, she got caught up in an evangelical ministry on campus. Cru was once Campus Crusade for Christ, and Beth joined up to escape what she thought was the evil secular values of the school. There she was indoctrinated into purity culture and fundamentalist views of the bible and church. She compares her experience to those of my guests from the Inter Varstiy Christian Fellowship episode, and tells us about her new book, which is out now, God's Ex-Girlfriend.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
41 min
February 14, 2023 S2.E33: Sex-Positive Valentine's Day with Hope and Nicole
It's Valentine's Day. Yay. Whatever.
The topic that I get asked to cover most is purity culture. And while many of the guests on Chapel Probation have mentioned sex and sexual experiences, almost all the stories get told as cautionary tales that result in punishment or guilt or shame. Not fun. Sex and sexuality should be a normal part of human development, but if you add evangelical culture to the mix, it gets toxic. We were taught to deny our sexuality and fetishize our virginity as some kind of mark of Jesus on our soul. So how about we just talk about sex and sexuality without the guilt and shame. No embarrassment, even for the less good experiences, and no shame for our desires and identities.
So, I brought S2.E1 guests, Hope and Nicole to help me tell stories and talk about sex. We had a blast, and we could have talked all night, but Nicole had a hot date with her husband, so we got a solid hour-plus of stories, observations, and claiming our sexuality.
Content Warning: Lots of frank, open talk of sex and sexual acts. Listener discretion is advised.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
1 hr 12 min
January 17, 2023 S2.E32- After Hours with Ariel Climer
Ariel has been a big supporter of Chapel Probation as a moderator for the Facebook group and the inspiration behind in-person events. She attended APU and is connected to A Scott and Mahrs Shoppman as a housemate in the famed Synchronicity LA house, which was an intentional community formed by some APU alumni. I wanted to hear Ariel's thoughts on the podcast and her own experiences at APU, so it's kind of a hybrid episode.
We want to hear your sexiest stories from christian or religious colleges and universities which we will feature in the upcoming anti-purity culture Valentines Day episode. You can send your story (which will be anonymous unless you want your name in it) to [email protected]. More info to come.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
43 min
January 10, 2023 S2.E31: Daveo Mathias- The Writer Who Lost Faith at APU
No, I'm not talking about me. I'm talking about Daveo Mathias, a talented writer and creative human who got hammered by APU's evangelical culture to the point where he stopped believing in God because of his time there. As a new freshman, Daveo got a story published in the prestigious and new at the time web site McSweeny's. And while that might have offered a young writer some serious writing cred at a normal university, for Daveo, it was just one in a list of sins he committed simply by being a thinking, living human. Like many others, he found his people, but he still feels the pain of being rejected by an intractable, unforgivable culture that demanded conformity of its White students.
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
1 hr 21 min
January 05, 2023 S2.E30: After Hours with Meghan Crozier and Cortland Coffey- Thereafter Podcast on Chapel Probation
Meghan and Cortland of the Thereafter Podcast join me for a wild and fun conversation about sexual loopholes in Purity Culture, online communities, and how we navigate tricky subjects like purity culture and identity in life after evangelical faith. And we ask the question of the ages: Can people have sex before curfews on evangelical campuses? It's more complicated than you might think. Or not.
Join the Dauntless Media Discord for more conversation with all the podcast communities.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter and Substack
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
46 min
January 03, 2023 s2.E29: Brad Onishi- The Angry Asian Professor (APU)
Dr. Bradley Onishi is a man on the rise. His podcast, Straight White American Jesus, which he co-hosts with Dr. Daniel Miller, is one of the most popular shows in the politics and religion category. Brad's book, Preparing for War- The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next is already a best-seller on Amazon during its presale days, and it's out today, January 3, 2023. It's a book that should be required reading to all who care about the state of this country.
We talk about Brad's time as a student at APU, and note how the white nationalist culture of the early 2000's grew into the nightmare of MAGA Nation. And we talk about our heritage as Japanese Americans and how evangelical culture made us ashamed of who we are. We're all good now, and learning and growing still, but it's tough looking back at what we once were.
We do settle a score from earlier this season when Blake Chastain and I called out Brad to outdo Blake's chapel probation story, so you can hear the results of the contest now. It was a close one, but I think I made the correct ruling. Let me know if you disagree.

Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
1 hr 10 min
December 29, 2022 S2.E28: After Hours with David Morris- Psychology, Publishing, and Finding Writers Like Me
A lot of people have told me to just get my book published, as if that's something I could just do. Get an agent, find a publisher, bam. Book. But, no one I ever talked to, outside of my own friends and family, thought I could write a book worth reading. Until I met David Morris. First of all, how many male Asian American (much less Japanese American) authors of non-fiction can you think of? That pretty much tells you what the publishing world thinks of us. But David saw me and heard what I had to say. He saw value in both my voice and the stories I have to tell. Once I had David in my corner, I knew I could accomplish anything.
David, in addition to a couple decades in the religious publishing world, has a doctorate in Psychology, and he brings his unique perspectives to Chapel Probation After Hours to talk about the podcast and his thoughts on the evangelical world. I even get him to cuss.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
47 min
December 27, 2022 S2.E27: UPDATE: NOW GOES BY NOVA BRIGHT- The Trans Woman Warrior Forged in APU's Fires
I remember Chris as a thoughtful person who was often deep in thought when she was a student. The underground LGBTQIA club, Haven, was fairly new, and the school was now fully aware of its existence and activities. Chris was part of the first group of leaders, along with Liz Cirelli, to start openly challenging the school's hateful policies and advocating for the rights of queer students. This led to the school doing the unthinkable to Chris, which made crystal clear the values of evangelical culture. Thankfully, Chris is living a great life today, advocating for queer youth, and raising a family of her own.
Chapel Probation is part of the Dauntless Media Collective
Music by Scott Okamoto, Elephants with Guns, Azeem Kahn, Jenyi, and Shin Kawasaki and Wingo Shackleford
Join the Chapel Probation Patreon to support Scott and for bonus content.
Join the Chapel Probation Facebook group to continue the conversations.
Follow Scott on Instagram and Twitter
You can subscribe to Scott's newsletter and learn more about the book, the blog, and performances at rscottokamoto.com
1 hr 12 min

About Chapel Probation

From the publisher's feed

As a Dauntless Media podcast, this is a companion to Scott's forthcoming book about losing faith while teaching at an evangelical university. This podcast will feature former students and faculty of…