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.

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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:

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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.

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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.

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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 newsletter for free, and paid tiers are available at $4, $6, or $8 a month.

Supporters receive ad-free podcast feeds to Exvangelical and Powers & Principalities, subscriber-only content, and Discord access. I donate 25% of net revenue to organizations that serve populations harmed by white evangelicalism, including White Homework and The Religious Exemption Accountability Project. While exvangelical and deconstruction content is certainly being widely discussed right now, bear in mind that this work is largely self-funded and is pushing back against evangelical entities like The Gospel Coalition that count their annual revenue in the millions.

Your support will allow me to continue my work. Learn more at postevangelicalpost.com

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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 work for $4/6/8 per month and get access to ad-free podcast feeds, Discord, and subscriber-only posts.

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.

Exvangelical is a production of The Post-Evangelical Post and part of Irreverent Media Group. Check out more shows irreverent.fm.

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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.

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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 show at $4, $6, or $8 a month and get access to ad-free podcast feeds, a supporter Discord, and subscriber-only posts. Find out more at postevangelicalpost.com

Exvangelical is part of the Irreverent Media Group. Check out all our podcasts!

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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.

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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.

📞 Have a question for the show? Visit exvangelicalpodcast.com to send an email or leave a voicemail for the show.

🕸 Find out more about Blake and follow links to his work & social media profiles at blakechastain.com.

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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.

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