This inaugural episode of 2022 features a fascinating conversation with Australian-born author and investigative journalist, Elle Hardy. She's the author of a brand-new book entitled Beyond Belief: How Global Pentecostalism is Taking Over the World.

In addition to researching the history and the various sociological aspects of global Pentecostalism, Elle was able to conduct amazing field research worldwide, studying the movement in a number of countries. In addition to that, she also delves into the more political aspirations of the movement, tracing the so-called "7 Mountains Mandate" dominion theology particular to more of the charismatic movement.

I think you'll find this episode both challenging as well as potentially alarming, as we uncover the rise of global Pentecostalism.

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This final episode of 2021 features another returning guest and good friend from Canada--David Hayward, "The Naked Pastor."

A former evangelical pastor like me, David and I go way back and share a lot in common since we both left both our ministries and our former faiths behind. I wanted to reconnect with him after we were on a panel last year's CORT 2020 conference on religious trauma. 

In addition to some live deconstructing, we get into the subject of David's artwork--the messages and themes that are so prevalent in his work. I think you will find this final episode of the year both insightful and helpful along your journey.

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This week's guest is another returning friend--Dr Josie McSkimming from Sydney, Australia. 

I reached out to her recently because I was interested in speaking with her about not only her backstory in Christian fundamentalism, and how she got out of that system, but also about her work as a psychotherapist who specializes in helping clients recover from such afflictions as religious trauma syndrome.

As she views it, our authentic or preferred self is the one we need to recover, rebuild and reconstruct after leaving religion or a cult group behind. How do we do it? Listen in to find out more information and helpful resources.

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This episode is something I've wanted to do for a very long time--a re-release of an old recording I did with my sister Valerie way back in 2017 when she came to visit me in North Wales.

We sat down and shared stories of what it was like to grow up in not just a fundamentalist home, but actually a cult--the Bill Gothard Bible cult. Hearing Valerie's story will move you...perhaps even to tears. 

I hope you get a lot out of this re-released episode.

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This week's episode couldn't be more timely--discussing the draconian and hugely controversial Texas abortion law, Senate Bill 8 (SB8).

Now that it is finally being argued at the Supreme Court, we have to ask: will the Christian  dominionists who have played the long game in terms of appointing conservative and anti-abortion judges finally succeed in overturning Roe v Wade? This has been their strategy and they have been working at this for literally decades.

That Texas even attempted to pass this law in 2021 is merely testament to not only the 3 conservative judges appointed during the Trump era--with the assistance of the Christian Right--it is a landmark case that is highly unconstitutional and threatens the rights of not just women, but the LGBTQ community also.

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This special bonus episode features a conversation with my very good friend, Religious Recovery Consultant Janice Selbie! Starting the 7th of November, she is running another one of her amazing "Divorcing Religion" workshops.   We've talked about this before, but I wanted to touch base with Janice to give her a chance not only to promote the workshop, but to explain why such a thing is so needed for those of us who have left religion or high-control groups behind.   In addition to this chat, we also get into CORT 2022--the Conference on Religious Trauma she is putting together for next year. Stay tuned for more information about this excellent conference as well!   For more information about the Divorcing Religion, click https://www.divorcing-religion.com/   Follow Janice on Twitter @Wise_Counsellor Follow me on Twitter @MindShift2018   Join the MindShift Podcast Patreon Community!

This bonus episode is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time–compare evangelicalism with cult psychology and tactics. I’ve done a lot of research and reading on this subject, and have reflected on both my own experiences as a former evangelical, as well as that of a great many others. 

In this episode, I draw primarily on the work of Dr Robert Jay Lifton’s seminal 1961 work, Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism. I also make use of his 1991 article entitled “Cult Formation” to go through not only his 8 markers of cults, but to compare them both to evangelical churches as well as more well-established cults. 

As part of your recovery and rebuilding, post-cult or post-religion, it is my hope that this bonus episode will assist you in terms of education as well as unpacking the psychology behind it all.

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This week's guest is Jonathan Larsen, managing editor over at The Young Turks (TYT) Network. 

Ever since he and his colleagues obtained the formerly-secret invitation list to the yearly National Prayer Breakfast that The Family--otherwise known as "The Fellowship Foundation"--wanted desperately to keep a secret, Jonathan has been doing some great investigative reporting on this uber-secretive, dominionist Christian organization.

First reported on by Jeff Sharlet in his book, and later Netflix series "The Family," this clandestine evangelical organization has been actively working the corridors of power worldwide for decades, building relationships and seeking out "key men" to win to Christ--in the hopes that they will influence their nations and spheres of influence for the Kingdom of God. 

Find out more by listening in!

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In this special bonus episode, which I've long been promising is indeed coming, I was able to interview therapist Rachel Bernstein of the IndoctriNation Podcast.

This is actually Part 2 of two episodes we did--for the first half of the chat, you'll have to head over to the IndoctriNation podcast to catch Part 1. There, we discussed my backstory in evangelicalism, my deconstruction, and the journey to rebuild since leaving Christianity behind.

In this episode, we focus specifically on the important question: how does religion affect people's mental health? What resources are available for those of us who have left it behind, and now need to reconstruct our lives from the ground up?

I hope you will find this conversation with Rachel both enlightening and educational.

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Kurt Andersen is a returning guest, this time to talk about his sequel to Fantasyland, which is his excellent and thought-provoking work, Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America–A Recent History.

How exactly does it function as a sequel to Fantasyland? In this followup book, Kurt reveals that the vast wealth and income inequality in America was not by accident, but by design–the work of the “evil geniuses” he identifies in the book. And not only did the evil geniuses succeed, the “fantasy-industrial complex” he identified in Fantasyland is hard at work, providing a distraction for all the poor workers who have been screwed out of what should have been rightfully theirs.

For more information on Kurt, his writings and podcasts, check out his website. 

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