This Week In Heresy

This week our guest is Ragen Chastain of the Dances with Fat blog. In this episode, we talk about how body policing and body shaming in a religious setting can do spiritual damage. Where does the religious body shaming come from? What is the responsibility of clergy when it comes to the health of their members? What are clergy telling people when they have “Biggest Loser” type contests in their churches?

This episode coincides with the online Fat Activism Conference. The conference is completely online and has a sliding scale.

Ragen Chastain is a trained researcher, three-time National Champion dancer and marathoner who writes and speaks full-time about self-esteem, body image, and health. Ragen is the author of the blog DancesWithFat and the book Fat: The Owner's Manual, and her writing has been published in forums including the Huffington Post, Jezebel.com and The Frisky.com. She has been a guest on programs including Fox News, Alberta Primetime, HuffPost Live, NPR, BBC, and NBC News, and has been featured as an expert in media including The Associated Press, Bloomberg Businessweek, FITNESS, and the Chicago Tribune. She is the editor of the multi-volume anthology The Politics of Size - Perspectives from the Fat Acceptance Movement, due out for Praeger in late 2014. She is the body image and women’s health blogger for NBCs iVillage and a columnist for Ms. Fit Magazine. Ragen is a feature interviewee in the documentaries “America the Beautiful 2 – The Thin Commandments,” released by Warner Brothers in 2011, "A Stage for Size" released in 2013 by USC Films, and "Ragen's More Cabaret" released in 2014 by PBS Independent Lens.

Links

“Who Would Jesus Body Shame?” on Ms. Fit: http://msfitmag.com/who-would-jesus-body-shame/

Ragen’s blog: www.danceswithfat.org

Ragen’s website: www.sizedforsuccess.com

Rev. Gina’s paper on body size, sexual abuse, and theology: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/33574665/final-gpond-22May13.pdf

Sometimes, you just have to speak about the injustice that you witness…

This episode starts with a reading from “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran (Amazon)

Sarah Thompson returns in this episode to talk about navigating pagan traditions and an asexual, especially when many traditions follow a fertility cycle based on the sexual union of a God and Goddess. How do we adapt and redact rituals and traditions in order to include those who don't fit into the narrative? What is a “Relationship” and does a committed, intimate relationship always have to lead to sex?

You can learn more about Sarah on our Regulars page.

Links

Sarah’s Patheos Article: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/agora/2014/08/queer-of-swords-the-beast-with-no-backs/

“Bi Any Other Name” by Loraine Hutchins and Lani Kaahumanu (Amazon)

“Black Blossom” by M.C.A. Hogarth (Amazon)

“(A)sexual” (Movie): http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1811293/

“Distress” by Greg Egan (Amazon)

The Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN): http://www.asexuality.org/home/

This week we talk about the ins and outs about being a spiritual teacher with Athena Wallander. We explore the benefits, the ethics, and the pitfalls of teaching a spiritual tradition. For more about Athena, visit her website: http://www.enochian.org/faq.shtml Links: … Continue reading →

This week’s guest is Rev. Beth Parab (who I call Pastor Beth), an Episcopal priest, whose spouse is Hindu. We talk about being in a multi-faith family, teaching children, and practicing, more than one faith path, and the evolution of … Continue reading →

This week’s guest is Devin Hunter, host of the Modern Witch Podcast. In this episode, we, two witchy heretics, talk about evolutions in the greater Pagan community. We start with gender issues, then move on to pagan and witchcraft theology, … Continue reading →

This week we have Rev. Lee back to discuss body shame, disability, and how to be responsible and welcoming clergy around issues of the body. The biggest question is: If we say that ALL people are made in the image … Continue reading →