STRONGWILLED

Welcome to our new series on estrangement! This episode we discuss what Focus on the Family and the James Dobson Institute are saying about estranged adult children. This episode focus on the reasons given for estrangement, as well as what we think is actually driving estrangement.  You can read more about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at ⁠⁠⁠ stron...

Krispin talked with Jenai Auman about learning to spot power and abuse dynamics in any group or organization .  She is author of Othered , and writes regularly on her substack . She also serves on the board of The Reclamation Collective . You can also follow her on instagram . They talked talked about the Spiritual Power Inventory which you can find on The Reclamation Collective website . They als...

Trigger warnings: religious trauma regarding purity culture throughout, allusions to pedophilia around 15:00, mention of sexual abuse around 49:00. We were so grateful to have a conversation with Erica Smith, sex educator and author of the incredibly helpful new book The Purity Culture Recovery Guide: The Shame-Free Sex Education You Deserve . You can also follow Erica on instagram. Krispin talked...

Krispin and DL discuss the movie Spotlight, about the team of journalists who broke the story about abusive Catholic priests in Boston, and eventually, around the world. The powerful movie is about how systems protect abusers.  We originally recorded and released the episode last summer for our paid subscribers, but felt that it was relevant to current times, following another Epstein Files dump,...

TW: childhood sexual abuse, CSAM This episode, DL gives an overview of their research on Dobson's knowledge and failure to use that knowledge to protect kids, and instead promoted ideas within purity culture that parallel and affirm childhood sexual abusers. It's a long one, and it's tough content, but we feel it's incredibly important.  You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and als...

Here's another Hopecore episode!  DL talks about why the latest Knives Out Mystery gives them hope. We discussed the way it approaches different types of Christianity, as well as asking whether Christianity itself is helpful, as well as what happens to true believers when they become calcified in institutions.  We appreciate your continued support and engagement. As always, this is a survivor-led...

TW: eugenics, racism, forced sterilization, gendered violence, child abuse, child sexual abuse materials, and homophobia/conversion therapy. This episode, DL talks about Dobson's political career (including helping Putin come to power in Russia), and how Dobson's purity culture is pedophile culture.  You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast...

TW: eugenics, racism, forced sterilization, gendered violence, child abuse, child sexual abuse materials, and homophobia/conversion therapy. This episode, DL gives an overview of the beginning of Dobson’s career prior to founding Focus on the Family, including his eugensistic beginnings, his role on the Meese Commission and the ways he ushered in the religious authoritarianism we’re living under r...

This is our second Hopecore episode! It's a special series where we take a break from talking explicitly about religious authoritarianism, and talk about something we like.  DL talks about why Derry Girls gives them hope during such difficult times. We discussed why it feels like an important story, our favorite characters and why Krispin is a Derry girl.  This fall, we’ll be releasing a substack...

We’re trying something new this week! Instead of talking about religion authoritarianism, we took some time for DL to talk about something they love and that is giving them some hope: The 2025 Superman movie that released this summer. This fall, we’ll be releasing a substack series of writing and podcasts focused on Dobson and his impact on children in religious communities — so we also wanted to...

Krispin & DL recap and discuss the fourth movie of The Hunger Games, wrapping up the series and discussing picking up the pieces after trauma -- and a lot more.  We’d love for you to take our survey examining the impacts of growing up in a religious authoritarian environment: click on this link to take it! So many thanks to all of you who have taken it so far, we’ve had over 500 responses! Plu...

Today, we’re re-playing an episode from early 2024 about the origins of Christian Zionism — with an updated introduction (actually, two updated intros). Krispin & DL discuss the origins of Christian Zionism and how Christian publishing has shaped the course of history, including US foreign policy. The series originally had three episodes, and you can go back and listen to the other two episode...

TW: Homophobia, corporal punishment / spanking, drug overdose. Krispin & DL recap and discuss the third movie of The Hunger Games and talk about the reality of devastating violence of authoritarian governments.  You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at ⁠⁠⁠ strongwilled.substack.com⁠⁠⁠ . You can join⁠⁠ ⁠our patreon community⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠...

TW: Homophobia, corporal punishment / spanking, drug overdose. Krispin & DL recap and discuss the third movie of The Hunger Games (which was a difficult watch). You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at ⁠⁠⁠ strongwilled.substack.com⁠⁠⁠ . You can join⁠⁠  ⁠our patreon community⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠ join our substack⁠⁠⁠ to support this podcast and...

Krispin & DL recap and discuss the second book/movie of The Hunger Games and talk about strategies of authoritarian governments.  If you want to hear Part 2 of this episode earlier than the regular schedule, you can ⁠become a patreon subscriber⁠ and listen to part 2 today! Krispin mentions researchers who see corporal punishment as a symbol of devotion to God; he's referencing Susan B. Ridgley...

Krispin & DL recap and discuss the first book/movie of The Hunger Games and talk about how James Dobson and President Snow use the same methods of control.  Download Pranksters vs. Autocrats by Sophia McClennen and Srdja Popovic for free! You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at ⁠ strongwilled.substack.com⁠ . You can join ⁠ our patre...

DL and Krispin discuss what it’s like when you start to notice your partner’s family is dysfunctional, as well as what it’s like when you’re the one in the enmeshed family — and your partner starts to point it out to you. You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at strongwilled.substack.com . You can join our patreon comamunity or join our...

TW: child abuse, corporal punishment DL interviewed Talia Lavin, author of the phenomenal book Wild Faith: How the Christian Right is Taking Over America.  You can follow Talia on bluesky and buy her book here .  You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at strongwilled.substack.com . You can join our patreon comamunity or join our substack...

TW: Holocaust denial, homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny, religious trauma DL took some time during their estrangement story to do a deep dive into the intergenerational aftermath of Nazi Germany, and how younger generations talked with their parents about their support of Hitler -- plus, a run down of what seems to be driving estrangement in the US among adult children and their religious, con...

TW/CW: denial of structural racism in the US, COVID denial / death, transphobia, homophobia, fatphobia.  DL shares their story about going no contact with their parents, and in line with our recent post on substack , discusses how oppressive politics and ideology can do incredible harm in personal relationships.  You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for...

TW/CW: physical abuse, corporal punishment, emotionally abusive caretaker Krispin & DL discuss the second part of the the Adventures in Odyssey episode, a follow up to our podcast episode Spanking on Christian Radio released last fall. This Adventure's in Odyssey episode focuses on Mr. Whitaker’s troubled relationship with his adult daughter. Honestly, we couldn’t have written an episode that...

TW/CW: sexual abuse, spanking, religious trauma Krispin shares his story about going no contact with his parents. This is a heavy one, and has an ongoing theme about sexual abuse and a family system that enabled abuse, so please take care in listening. You can read about religious authoritarian parenting and also find the transcript for this podcast at strongwilled.substack.com . You can join  our...

TW/CW: corporal punishment, spanking, mention of sexual abuse Krispin & DL discuss the factors that make setting boundary in religious authoritarian families so difficult. We talk about how trauma responses make it difficult for us to speak up, the negative responses to setting boundaries, and more. D.L. mentions the Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents series by Lindsay Gibson. You...

TW/CW: physical abuse, corporal punishment Krispin & DL interview Tori Williams Douglass about corporal punishment and their experience working in a neuroscience lab. You can follow Tori on IG and check out their website here . You can check out our recent post at STRONGWILLED about the research about spanking and corporal punishment here , and the rest of our STRONGWILLD content (and the tran...

TW/CW: physical abuse, emotionally abusive/aggressive caretaker, sexual abuse, animal/pet death. Krispin & DL discuss a Christian radio drama about spanking/corporal punishment. We're digging into an episode of Adventures in Odyssey (produced & distributed by James Dobson's organization, Focus on the Family) from 1988 that talked about why it was so important. We're discussing "A Member of...