Bodies Behind The Bus

In this episode, our storyteller Jane shares her years inside Chi Alpha, the college campus ministry of the Assemblies of God (AG). What began as a warm, welcoming community slowly turned into something else. Jane describes the pressure to lead, the strict rules over her time, friendships, money, and even her food and health, and the spiritual control that kept her silent for years. She walks us t...

Michelle shares her story of serving on staff at a church in Indiana, where subtle control, blurred pastoral authority, financial pressure, and spiritual manipulation slowly became clear over time. Her story names the confusion of being labeled, silenced, and pushed to question herself while navigating deep personal and family crisis. Through telling the truth, Michelle begins reclaiming the voice...

Katie shares her story of growing up in a highly controlled religious environment, entering a young marriage shaped by strict gender roles, and spending years overseas as a missionary. Through the pressures of ministry, isolation, and motherhood, she began to recognize patterns of emotional and spiritual harm in her life. This episode follows her journey of unraveling those beliefs, finding her vo...

Katherine shares her journey from a young missionary sent overseas to confronting the realities of faith, sacrifice, and survival. Raised in the church and driven by a deep sense of purpose, she and her husband moved to the Middle East in their early twenties, navigating cultural barriers, personal risk, and the complexities of mission work. After experiencing trauma, health crises, and the unrave...

Dominique shares her experience at The Austin Stone, where she became deeply involved in church life, missions, and leadership development as a young woman. In this episode, she reflects on the pressure, isolation, racial dynamics, and harmful church culture she encountered, and why telling the truth about those experiences matters. Support the show

Alicia served for years as both a volunteer leader and staff member at a growing non-denominational church in Ohio. After becoming deeply involved in ministry and church leadership, she began noticing troubling patterns within the church’s culture and leadership structure. In this episode, Alicia courageously shares her story and reflects on the impact spiritual manipulation can have on individual...

In this episode of Bodies Behind the Bus , Julia shares her story of becoming involved in an Acts 29 affiliated church plant that gradually shifted from hopeful beginnings into a culture of control, blurred boundaries, and spiritual harm. As she navigated marriage struggles, postpartum depression, and increasing pressure from church leadership, Julia began to see how manipulation, unmet promises,...

In this episode of Bodies Behind the Bus, we’re joined by Ciji, founder of Louder Than Silence , an organization providing free, trauma-specific care and community for survivors of sexual violence. Together, we explore what trauma-informed spaces actually look like, the difference between big-T and little-t trauma, and how harm often compounds in faith communities through misplaced authority, lack...

In the final episode of this three-part series, Christy and Joshua come together to reflect on the shared impact of spiritual abuse and the long road toward truth and healing. Their conversation explores how harm reverberates through relationships, what accountability should look like, and what it means to move forward without erasing what happened. This closing chapter centers survivor clarity, c...

In Episode 2 of this three-part series, Christy shares her story of spiritual harm, silence, and survival within church systems that protected power over people. She reflects on the personal cost of being unheard, the impact on identity and faith, and the long road toward naming what happened. Christy’s testimony deepens the series by centering the lived experience of abuse and the courage it take...

In Episode 1 of this three-part series, Joshua shares his story of spiritual harm, silencing, and the cost of telling the truth inside church systems built to protect power. His testimony traces the personal and relational fallout of abuse, the pressure to stay quiet, and the long road toward clarity and agency. This episode centers Joshua’s voice and sets the foundation for the series to come. Su...

DACA Family Support Fund In this episode of Bodies Behind the Bus , hosts Johnna and Jay sit down with author and pastor Caleb Campbell , author of Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nationalist Neighbor . Together, they discuss faith, justice, and compassion in the face of political division, as well as their joint fundraiser supporting a DACA recipient fighting to stay with their family...

In this episode of Just Calling, hosts Johnna and Jay continue their conversation with author and justice advocate Joash Thomas about his book The Justice of Jesus. Together, they unpack what it means to “decolonize our budgets” exploring how faith, money, and justice intersect within the modern church. The discussion challenges listeners to reimagine generosity, confront systems of privilege, and...

In this Just Calling episode, the hosts talk about empire, power, and how faith communities are being influenced by political systems. The conversation unpacks a recent government filing showing efforts to target U.S. churches through digital campaigns and explores what faithful resistance looks like today. FARA filing Across The Divide Podcast The Justice of Jesus Support the show

In this episode, Cameron shares his powerful story of serving for sixteen years at one of Arizona’s largest megachurches, a place where faith, control, and fear collided. From witnessing the enforcement of “alignment” policies to experiencing personal retaliation and deep spiritual betrayal, Cameron opens up about what it meant to lose his community while finding his voice. His courage sheds light...

Introducing Just Calling — In this first episode of the series, Bodies Behind the Bus sits down with author and advocate Rev. Joash Thomas to talk about his new book The Justice of Jesus . Together, we explore what it means to move from diagnosis to a hopeful prognosis for the church, diving into themes of justice, decolonization, and the everyday choices that shape faithful living. www.joashpthom...

In this episode of At the Bus Stop , we sit down with David and Margaret Bronson to uncover the dangers of Theonomy, Christian Reconstructionism, and the influence of leaders like Doug Wilson. The Bronsons share their personal experiences, explain how these teachings shape churches and politics, and discuss the lasting impact on survivors. They also highlight their work with Deconstruction Doulas...

In this episode of Bodies Behind the Bus, we sit down with Dr. Camden Morgante, a licensed psychologist, author, and speaker. Dr. Camden is the author of Recovering from Purity Culture, a book that helps individuals move beyond harmful teachings and begin the journey of healing. She shares insights from her work with clients, her own experiences, and her research into purity culture, offering a co...

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In this episode of the Bodies Behind the Bus podcast, Kenny shares his experience in the worship residency program at The Austin Stone. He recounts his initial passion for ministry, his transition from law school ambitions to church work, and the realities of support-raising, manual labor, and lack of mentorship during his time in the program. Kenny also reflects on his concerns with the church’s...

James shares his experience with the Austin Stone church, including his early motivations for moving to Austin, the challenges he faced as a Mexican American in a predominantly white evangelical institution, and the barriers to leadership he encountered despite his qualifications. He discusses his experience raising support, internal cultural tensions, tokenism, health struggles tied to workplace...

Kelley joins the podcast to share her experience as both a former member of the Austin Stone church and staff member of its affiliated nonprofit, For the City. She discusses the church’s culture, internal power dynamics, financial mismanagement, and the challenges of working within a complementarian system. Kelley reflects on her personal story of spiritual and emotional harm, organizational dysfu...

Ben joins the Bodies Behind the Bus podcast to share his experience at Austin Stone Church, a large SBC-affiliated church in Austin, Texas. He reflects on his decade-long involvement, including leadership roles and the creation of a ministry for LGBTQIA+ individuals. The conversation explores church culture, leadership dynamics, personal transformation, and the challenges of reconciling faith with...

In this episode of Bodies Behind the Bus, B shares her deeply personal story about the emotional toll of navigating immigration, identity, and faith. B recounts her years at the Austin Stone Church in Austin, Texas, where she joined a residency program to serve the local Latino community, only to face institutional racism, cultural insensitivity, and burnout. Her story highlights the disconnect be...

In this episode, Johnna & Jay introduce a new four-part series investigating The Austin Stone Church in Austin, Texas. Joined by Board member Emily, they discuss the church’s influential role in evangelical culture, its connections to Acts 29 and the SBC, and a troubling pattern of abuse, cover-ups, and systemic harm within its leadership and programs. The episode highlights the church’s publi...