Sacred Counsel

On this episode of the pod, Brian and Meg speak with April Ajoy, author of the upcoming book, “Star Spangled Jesus: Leaving Christian Nationalism and Finding True Faith.” They discuss April’s wild journey out of Christian Nationalism, relationships with family who are still stuck, how April got the nickname ‘condom girl,’ and what faith looks like for her now.

Brian interviews the one and only Marianne Williamson about her new book, The Mystic Jesus. Marianne is a best selling author, speaker, political activist and former presidential candidate. Marianne's background is not in Christianity, but in the Course in Miracles, which is not a religion exactly- Marianne describes it as "spiritual psychotherapy," and it informs her universal, mystical approach to Christ. In this wide ranging conversation, Brian and Marianne discuss how our spirituality should inform our political engagement, how to walk in love and forgiveness towards our enemies in a divisive political climate, what Jesus can still mean for those of us who are deconstructing, and more! This was an enlightening conversation that you don't want to miss!

Brian and Meg answer two listener letters, each discussing family dynamics. How do we care less about whether or not we are accepted by our parents? How do we help family members understand that they are making us feel rejected? Meg shares some very poignant advice born from her own experience. We also discuss the presidential debate and Brian gets excited about ranked choice voting.

Brian and Meg dive into purity culture with Stephanie Stalvey, a graphic novelist who mines her own story and describes the intricacies of navigating purity culture, as well as showing a path towards reclaiming sexual autonomy on the other side. Her book shines a light on experiences many of us resonate with, and she is just as insightful in this brilliant conversation!

Brian and Meg are joined by Sally Osborne, a former Mormon who left the church and came out as a lesbian. She now works to help people come out into their truest selves. We discuss her journey out of high control religion, and how we can support people in all kinds of coming out journeys.

In this episode, Brian and Meg acknowledge and celebrate Meg’s first Pride since coming out, and reflect on what Pride means, and how we have each evolved in our relationship with Pride celebrations. We also discuss Trump’s indictment, the wasteland of the US political environment, and the dehumanization that allows a continuing genocide in Gaza.

Brian and Meg are joined by Brandan Robertson, a queer pastor, to discuss his upcoming book on 'queering' the Bible! Brandan tells us his favorite queer Bible stories, and answers questions like; should queer people care about the Bible at all?

Episode 2 of season 2 is a continuation of the first episode where Meg and Brian catch up and discuss what Meg believes Christians can learn from atheism. Brian and Meg also respond to a listener letter about a woman who's in a gay relationship and getting married (love!) who's struggling with family members not wanting to attend the wedding.

Brian and Meg return to the podcast after a 3-month hiatus to catch up and talk about their opinions on hell and how Meg has been getting so much ate on IG now that she's posting deconstruction videos.