Sacred Tension

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I sit down with quaker, actor, activist and Biblical scholar Peterson Toscano to discuss his time in the ex-gay movement. Peterson discusses what he went through in the Love in Action program, and his long, hard road of recovery.

You can find Peterson’s work at https://petersontoscano.com. Please go support his work and follow him on social media.

Love my work and want to support it? Please share this episode with your friends and family, and take a moment to give this podcast 5 stars on iTunes. If you have financial resources, you can support my work at https://patreon.com/stephenbradfordlong. You can find me on twitter @stephenblong, and you can contact me and read my work at https://sbradfordlong.com. Please drop me an email or tweet to let me know your thoughts on this episode.

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In this episode of Sacred Tension, I'm joined by podcaster Caleb Rowe for a demonstration of the life-changing power of Tarot. Through the reading we cover many topics, including: millenial anxiety, deconstructing Christian faith, the struggles of being an LGBT minority, developing our own rites and systems, and much more.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

Can you be religious and an atheist? Can you disbelieve in spirits while also defending your religious freedom? We live in a culture that has hard boundaries between these territories, and they are enforced by all sides, atheists and religious alike. The assumption that religion = theism is deeply imbedded in our culture, but it might be blocking progress to a more rational, reasonable, and humane religion.

Greg Stevens of the Satanic Temple joins me to discuss non-theistic religion, the activism of The Satanic Temple, the importance of religion for atheists, and to answer questions from my listeners about The Satanic Temple. 

Among the questions asked are:

- Why Satan? Why, of all the deities to worship, do you choose Satan?

- Why degrade Christian symbols that so many Christians deem holy? Isn’t that counter-productive?

- How has the election of Donald Trump effected the Temple?

- Is Satanism purely reactionary to Christianity? What would Satanism look like in other cultures? 

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

In this Episode of Sacred Tension, Danielle and I chat about what would make us lose faith in Christianity, what still scars us from our evangelical pasts, our favorite Catholic saints, why we eventually came to affirm gay relationships, and much more.

Love this episode and want to support it? Please take a few seconds to give this podcast 5 stars on itunes.

Patreon: patreon.com/stephenbradfordlong

Twitter: @stephenblong

Read my dozens or article at sbradfordlong.com

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

Matt and I wrap up our conversation with Timothy by discussing, among many other things, Theosis: the spiritual concept that ultimately led Timothy out of the closet. Theosis is the belief that God is working to unite all things to Himself, and what this taught Timothy about his own sexual orientation is profound. 

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Matt and I continue our conversation with Timothy, unpacking his journey of coming out. Timothy discusses the gradual theological transformation that led to his liberation and fundamental shift of worldview.

 

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In this episode of Sacred Tension, Matt and I are honored to share our conversation with Timothy, an old friend in the process of coming out of the closet. He shares what life was like as a conservative Christian, the importance of authenticity, the health consequences of the closet, the Gay evangelical ghetto, and much more.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I have a fascinating conversation with cult expert Joseph Laycock. He answers questions from me and my audience about new religious movements, and sheds enormous clarity on our culture in the process. We talk about why we differentiate between cults and religions, the history of the cult wars, new religions that have emerged in the past five years, whether or not cult brain washing is real, whether cults are an American phenomenon, and much more.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I continue my conversation with Satanic Temple spokesperson Greg Stevens about the core seven tenets of the Satanic Temple. Along the way, we talk about freedom of speech, bodily autonomy, the significance of how we treat our neighbor, the importance of science in shaping belief, and much more.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I talk to Greg Stevens, a leader and spokesman of the Satanic Temple. In part one of this interview we discuss nontheistic religion, worship, atheism, the 7th tenent of the Satanic Temple, and much more. 

You can find Greg at Gregstevens.com. You can find the Satanic Temple at thesatanictemple.com.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe