Growing Up Fundie

Send us Fan Mail Watch the original livestream here: https://youtube.com/live/v8hiG8Wa0oc?feature=share Dr. Josh Bowen  graduated from the Johns Hopkins University in 2017, with a Ph. D. in Assyriology.  He wrote his dissertation on the lamentational liturgies of the city of Kiš, and specializes in the Sumerian language.  Joshua was awarded the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (D.A.A.D.) and...

Send us Fan Mail At one time, James Aames led worship at a megachurch, held Bible studies, gave sermons, witnessed on the streets, went on mission trips, and never missed his daily devotional regimen. He walked the walk and talked the talk. But forcing his faith didn’t work for him, and he was soon miserable.  At 33 years old, he finally called it quits. Since then he’s been writing, reading, thin...

Send us Fan Mail John Verner  used to be a member of what he calls 'the largest cult in the United States.' However, after studying the Bible, ministry, and Christian history at Moody Bible Institute, he set his sights on confronting the problematic nature of white evangelicalism in the United States.  John is now a writer, reporter, and podcaster whose book (and podcast of the same name...

Send us Fan Mail View Anthony's previous interview, Episode 73, here: https://youtu.be/OWZxPsamguI?si=uq5pobymYEaRTZV7 Religious Studies Scholar Anthony David Vernon returns for further discussions regarding little-known information about many non-Christian religions practiced around the world, and the reasons people deconstruct from them (including the consequences they can face when they do...

Send us Fan Mail ***This episode originally streamed live on 1/23/24 (on YouTube) as part of Skeptic University Week*** Check out the visual episode here: https://youtube.com/live/MybCrkGvrZk?feature=share Dr. Kipp Davis is an author, a biblical scholar with a PhD in Religions and Theology, and a Dead Sea Scrolls detective. Tonight, he tunes in to share with us a lecture on the god YHWH, and the S...

Send us Fan Mail https://www.npr.org/2022/05/10/1096741988/orthodox-christian-churches-are-drawing-in-far-right-american-converts Hunter wasn't always a member of the Eastern Orthodox church. In fact, he was quite the opposite! However, as a young religious pre-teen, Hunter found himself looking for a place of worship that he felt was more serious, and less of the concerts he felt modern Non...

Send us Fan Mail *** This livestream originally aired on Monday, Jan 22nd 2024 as part of Skeptic University Week *** Watch the visual version here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAle8O47hvA Dr. Jennifer Bird joins us to discuss the most important aspects involved in unpacking what the Bible says, vs. what the Bible actually says. In her book "Permission Granted, Take the Bible into Your Ow...

Send us Fan Mail Stacie and Dee are a mother-daughter duo who co-host the podcast/YouTube Channel “ Stacie’s Mom Podcast ."  However, before they became deconstruction and atheist-centric content creators, they were both members of the Pentecostal church in Canada. While they both led separate journeys through deconstruction, it wasn’t until Stacie finally confessed how she felt to Dee that s...

Send us Fan Mail Aaron Yost identifies as a member of the Reformed faith, who often align themselves with Calvinistic beliefs.  According to Encyclopedia Brittannica:  (The Reform Church) sees the Bible as the only source of truth, and they accept two sacraments—baptism and Communion, or the Lord's Supper. Along with other Protestants the Reformed churches also believe that people are saved b...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Skeptic University! To watch the visual episode (with slides, clips, and cool effects) go here: https://youtu.be/haoNNJzzLik?si=dftoEpOdIexJ4UVX J. Anderson Thomson is an American psychiatrist and writer. He is a Trustee of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science and board member of the Center for Inquiry. He is also a staff psychiatrist for Counseling and...

Send us Fan Mail Gary Parker spent decades of his life devoted to his faith, and to his relationship with God.  However,  as recently as three years ago, Gary started to recognize that the things he'd been taught his entire life didn't make sense, and the nagging questions he'd felt in the back of his mind showed no signs of going away any time soon.  In episode 132, Gary shares wit...

Send us Fan Mail Tim Christiansen was born and raised Catholic, and still identifies as one today. However, believing in God doesn’t mean someone won’t have doubts, or questions. In Episode 131, Tim shares with us some of the things he agrees with, and disagrees with, when it comes to morality and the Catholic faith.  ***This episode originally aired as part of Skeptic University Week on YouTube,...

Send us Fan Mail ***REMINDER: Skeptic University Week begins THIS SUNDAY on my YouTube channel (linked below ). Check out 7 days of content, LIVE, or listen to it hear as the episodes post independently each week. *** Anna Beahm is a writer and journalist for Reckon (news/media), who spent the first two decades of her life steeped in conservative Evangelical Christianity. After marrying a member o...

Send us Fan Mail This interview was originally recorded on October 13th 2023, via Zoom. It was posted to their YouTube channel in December of 2023. View the original episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watchv=qsgXtFw_eIM&list=PLbLrw9HrE2rWzudNDIS8I2jQ4irD12L1m&index=27&pp=gAQBiAQB RfR: Recovering from Religion Recovering from Religion is an international non-profit organization that...

Send us Fan Mail *** Episode 127 feat. Katie B. will be released at a later date*** To watch Eileen’s visual episode on YouTube, click here Eileen Tull is a theater director, producer, and actor in Chicago, Illinois.  However, before she moved to the Windy City, Eileen was a member of what she describes as a "youth group cult." In Episode 128, Eileen shares with us her experiences growin...

Send us Fan Mail Happy 2 Year Anniversary to Growing Up Fundie! Over 125 episodes later - I can't wait to show you all what season 3 (2024) has in store.  Check out my YouTube channel for the visual version of each episode: https://www.youtube.com/@SydneyDavisJrJr  Skeptic University will be available January 21st through January 27th. Follow my YT channel, or Growing Up Fundie on FB, Discord...

Send us Fan Mail Tim Landry is a professor of history at Louisiana State University.  However, before this chapter of his life began, Tim was a fundamentalist Pentecostal pastor, devoting decades of his life to his ministry. In the last episode of Growing Up Fundie, Season 2, Tim explores the ideas and thought processes he had when he first lost the person he thought he was supposed to be, and dis...

Send us Fan Mail **Content warning for ab*rtion and birth control misinformation** Jojo Talkin’ is a Tiktok content creator, and Evangelical Christian. While she still attends Church, she left her conservative Fundamentalist roots behind. Having been raised by a Catholic mother, later attending (and being married within) an IBLP/Bill Gothard inspired Church, Jojo shares her journey confronting the...

Send us Fan Mail 1Ring is a content creator who live-streams on YouTube in the atheist/deconstruction space.  However, that wasn’t always who they were.  When Ring was a child, they were raised within a strict Foursquare household.  As they put it: “Foursquare is very much Pentecostal lite (same great flavor now with zero snake bites).” 1Ring remained active in their church until they joined the U...

Send us Fan Mail Nathan is a talented Jazz musician, veteran of the Army National Guard, and a former member of the Assemblies of God Evangelical Church.  After being raised with strict rules related to dating, worship, socialization, and morality, Nathan began to question what he was being told in sermons, vs what he began to see, and the people he began to meet in the "real" world.  Th...

Send us Fan Mail Graham Buck is BACK for the second chapter of his personal story. In June of 2023, I interviewed Graham about his past, having been a devoted member of leadership in his Evangelical faith. After spending decades of his life leading worship services, hosting bible studies, and even attending a conservative Presbyterian seminary after college, Graham began to recognize thoughts and...

Send us Fan Mail On Episode 122 of Growing Up Fundie: Former Guest, Natalie (from episode 85) believes in God, but doesn’t identify as a Christian. Throughout her life and spiritual journey, she’s thought about questions she would ask members of Christian leadership if ever given the chance.  On Growing Up Fundie, she’s been given her chance! Natalie takes over as host for the evening as she is jo...

Send us Fan Mail Christy Powell  is a licensed professional counselor highlighting issues of gender, sexuality and religious trauma. He is also the former host of “Secular Sexuality,” and a current host on “Talk Heathen,” both of which are live shows produced through The Atheist Experience on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAtheistExperience On episode 120 of Growing Up Fundie, Christy shares...

Send us Fan Mail Last time (on episode 88), Marie joined Growing Up Fundie to talk about her experiences leaving the World Wide Church of God. This time, she's diving into topics including, but not limited to: 1. Watching all of the new popular cult and religion documentaries on streaming platforms, having survived a cult herself. 2. More stories from her time within the Worldwide Church 3. L...

Send us Fan Mail Chris Wooley is a standup comedian, podcast host, and devout Christian whose life story is the last thing you would expect from someone so friendly and humorous.  Until only a few years ago, Chris battled a series of addictions including drugs, alcohol, and food. Having lost over 300 pounds, and having stepped back from alcohol and smoking cold-turkey, Chris shares with us the imp...