What happens when you leave church… but still believe in God?

In this episode, Edna White sits down with De Shell Parker for a real conversation about faith, healing, identity, and reconnecting with God outside of religion, fear, and control.

Born and raised in Milwaukee and shaped by Milwaukee Public Schools, De Shell Parker brings more than 25 years of service, leadership, and advocacy for youth and families. As a social services professional, board secretary, and community leader,

De Shell shares powerful insight on spiritual growth, religious experiences, personal healing, and learning how to rebuild your relationship with God on your own terms.

This episode goes beyond church culture and explores:

• Religious hurt and spiritual healing
• Faith outside of organized religion
• Identity after leaving church
• Fear, shame, and control in religious spaces
• Reclaiming your voice and personal relationship with God
• Healing while still believing

If you’ve ever questioned your faith, struggled with church hurt, or wondered if God still exists outside the walls of religion, this conversation is for you.

You heard the story. Now let’s talk about what to DO with it.

Subscribe to Keeping It Real on Purpose and Unchurched for more real conversations about healing, purpose, faith, trauma, relationships, and rebuilding your life on purpose.

Like. Share. Subscribe. Hit the notification bell so you always Keep It Real on Purpose.

#Unchurched #ChurchHurt #FaithJourney #ReligiousTrauma #HealingJourney #EdnaWhite #KeepingItRealOnPurpose #SpiritualHealing #GodWithoutReligion #FaithAfterChurch

What if what hurt you… wasn’t truth?

In this episode of Unchurched, I sit down with Charles Hall to unpack what it really means to unlearn the lies and begin healing from church hurt.

This is not about attacking faith. This is about reclaiming your identity.

We’re having a real conversation about: • Church hurt and religious trauma • Unlearning beliefs that no longer serve you • The difference between truth and conditioning • Rebuilding your identity after leaving the church • What healing actually looks like beyond religion

If you’ve ever questioned what you were taught, felt disconnected after leaving a religious environment, or struggled to trust yourself again—this conversation is for you.

You’re not broken. You’re waking up.

WATCH MORE FROM UNCHURCHED Where truth breaks tradition—and real stories lead to real recovery.

READY TO GET YOUR IDENTITY BACK?

Join me live for the You’re Not Stuck Mastermind April 27, 2026

Break the pattern. Rebuild your identity. Move forward with clarity.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/youre-not-stuckyoure-repeating-a-pattern-tickets-1986112045593?aff=oddtdtcreator

WORK WITH ME

Clarity Session (Break your pattern + next steps): https://koalendar.com/e/90minuteclaritysession

The United States continues to rank among the top three worst countries in the world for human trafficking, and for survivors like Marie-Ange Mbumba Ntambwe, this reality is not a statistic — it is personal.

Marie-Ange is a human trafficking survivor who endured unimaginable trauma, yet she has transformed her story into a mission of advocacy, healing, and global awareness. Today she travels and speaks publicly about survival, identity, and reclaiming life after exploitation.

On this powerful episode of Keeping It Real on Purpose, Marie-Ange shares her journey in a deeply honest conversation titled:

Praying But Still Bleeding: Healing Identity After Spiritual Warfare

This conversation explores:

• The hidden emotional and spiritual wounds survivors carry • Why faith alone sometimes isn’t enough to stop the pain • How survivors reclaim their identity after trauma • Turning survival into purpose and advocacy

Marie-Ange’s story is not just about survival — it is about rebuilding identity after the deepest forms of betrayal and trauma.

This episode is a reminder that healing is possible, voices matter, and stories can change lives.

Stay tuned for this important conversation.

#HumanTraffickingAwareness #SurvivorStories #KeepingItRealOnPurpose

Does the place that first taught you about love also quietly teach you shame? For many raised in strict traditions—especially Catholicism—belonging is often conditional. You’re told you fit in, but only if you behave, believe, and love within a pre-built box. When your identity breaks that box, the choice is agonizing: Do you abandon yourself, or do you abandon the system?

In this episode of Unchurched, host Edna White sits down with Bill Hulseman, a ritual designer and former Catholic school principal, to discuss the intersection of faith, queer identity, and spiritual wounding. Bill shares insights from his debut book, six to carry the casket and one to say the mass, reflecting on his years inside religious institutions and the courage it takes to reclaim your own narrative.

We dive deep into deconstructing faith, navigating institutional religious trauma, and finding the path toward spiritual agency. If your personal truth has ever collided with your religious upbringing, this conversation is for you. Learn how to stop working against your wiring and start leading with power.

Key Topics:

• Healing from Catholic Guilt and church-induced shame.
• The journey of LGBTQ+ belonging in spiritual spaces.
• How to reclaim your story after leaving the institution.

#ReligiousTrauma #FaithDeconstruction #CatholicGuilt #QueerSpirituality #Unchurched #EdnaWhite #SpiritualHealing #IdentityJourney #BillHulseman #ChurchTrauma #SecondChanceInc

A candid conversation with Daniel John Carey examining the Mormon church’s history, high-control teachings, and the lasting emotional and spiritual impact many former members experience. This episode explores religious trauma, identity loss, and the path to reclaiming personal agency after faith-based harm.

Leaving belief systems doesn’t mean losing yourself. If you’re rebuilding identity after religious harm, reach out — I help people design what comes next.

#reclaimyourlife #religioustrauma

Tonight’s conversation stayed with me.

I sat down with Daryl Dittmer as he openly unpacked Religious Trauma, Addiction, and the long road to Recovery. No performance — just honesty, clarity, and the kind of courage that actually helps people see themselves differently.

He didn’t just tell a story… he explained the patterns behind it.

If you’ve ever questioned what you were taught, struggled to separate faith from fear, or rebuilt yourself after survival mode — this one matters.

Watch the LIVE: https://www.youtube.com/live/vzkC5gnxK3Q?si=efWQNBfx2_uleN6P

If this conversation hit close to home and you’re tired of carrying it alone, you don’t have to figure it out by yourself.

Start your next step here: https://calendly.com/ejwcoaching/one-off-talk-it-through-session

Clarity begins when you stop managing the pain and start understanding it.

Real conversations. Real healing.

The “Obedience Trap” exposes how fear-based faith can quietly keep people stuck, silenced, and disconnected from their emotional truth. In this episode of Keeping It Real on Purpose, with Jeffery M. Lenard, we unpack how obedience is often taught as virtue—while actually masking unresolved emotional wounds, trauma responses, and people-pleasing survival patterns.

This conversation challenges the idea that submission equals spiritual maturity and asks a deeper question: Are you truly aligned—or just afraid to question what you were taught? Together, we explore how fear-driven belief systems suppress self-trust, block healing, and confuse compliance with calling.

If you’ve ever felt guilty for setting boundaries, afraid to use your voice, or torn between faith and emotional honesty, this episode helps you identify where obedience ends and self-betrayal begins—so you can reclaim clarity, agency, and a faith that supports healing, not harm.

A necessary conversation for anyone ready to unlearn survival faith and step into grounded belief—on purpose.

Faith is meant to heal, but what happens when the religious environment you trusted becomes the source of profound pain, anxiety, and deep mental health struggles?

Join us as we sit down with Harmony Ekundayo for a raw and necessary conversation about the invisible burdens carried by those wounded by their faith journey.

Harmony (Prophet Harmoney) shares her courageous personal story, diving into the shame, chronic anxiety, and internal conflict that surfaces when doctrine clashes with emotional reality.

This episode offers validation and empathy for anyone navigating the difficult, complex path of healing from religious trauma. If you have ever felt broken by your belief system, this episode is for you.

“Where Truth Breaks Tradition” signals exposing toxic systems without being harsh or defamatory.

About Unchurched

Raw, unfiltered conversations with people who have walked away from institutional religion, survived spiritual abuse, and are navigating religious trauma and faith deconstruction.

Subscribe for Weekly Episodes

New episodes exploring the hidden harm of organized religion and the path to healing, autonomy, and liberated faith.

Work With Edna J. White

Speaking, trauma-informed coaching, and consulting: EdnaJWhite.com

Stay Connected

Join the mailing list for upcoming conversations and resources: EdnaJWhite.com/connect

Support the Show

Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/keepingitrealonpurpose

Patreon: patreon.com/c/moreinlife/membership

Unchurched YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/@Unchurching

Universal Links

https://linktr.ee/keepingitrealonpurpose

#KeepingItRealOnPurpose #KROPCast #HealingStories #RealTalk #FaithandFreedom

In this raw and revealing episode of Keeping It Real on Purpose, host Edna J. White sits down with Stephanie Jones to unpack her journey through the dark side of church life—where faith was used as a weapon instead of a source of healing. Stephanie shares her powerful story of being exploited in a toxic church environment, the emotional toll of spiritual exile, and how she’s finding her way back to truth, trust, and freedom.

This conversation isn’t about religion—it’s about reclaiming your voice after being silenced by systems that were supposed to save you. Tune in for a brutally honest look at pain, power, and the process of rediscovering a faith that heals instead of harms.

#KeepingItRealOnPurpose #Unchurched #ToxicFaith #ChurchHurt #SpiritualAbuse #FaithHealing #RealStories #StephanieJones #EdnaJWhite

Is your relationship with God built on love or on sheer terror? That’s the core question we’re tackling with Pastor Brandon Moore. In this episode of Unchurched, we confront The Church's Bully Tactics head-on: the sermons, the guilt trips, and the cultural pressure that turned God into a Punisher. We discuss the freedom that comes when you stop running from a wrathful deity and start deconstructing the fear that has poisoned faith for generations.

#FearGod

#ChurchBullyTactics

#DeconstructFaith

#Exvangelical

#ReligiousTrauma

#PunisherGod

#faithoverfear