Inviting Doom Podcast

Finally at the end of this terrible book, Christa and Sarah tackle COUPLE - Eggerichs’ theory of what all women need from men. Not surprising, Eggerichs’ men struggle with providing their spouses with basic human needs, like openness and loyalty, because. well, men, but Eggerichs is here to save their marriages one acronym and anecdote at a time. Eggerichs reveals some disturbing insights about ho...

Christa and Sarah leap into Part 2 of the terrible marriage book, “Love & Respect” by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, released in 2004. In this episode, they attempt to tackle Eggerich’s CHAIRS prescription for floundering marriages, Conquest, Hierarchy, Authority, Insight, Respect and of course, Sexuality, but find it difficult amidst the many highly-problematic and contradictory ideas underwriting his th...

Christa and Sarah return to an evangelical favourite: bad marriage books. Whether this journey continues on to additional bad marriage books, nobody knows, but for now they start with discussing Dr. Emerson Eggerich’s much-adored “Love & Respect” 2004 release which they both had read (and accepted) prior to marriage.

Christa and Sarah take an uncomfortable deep dive into the Adam and Eve story and the underlying teachings perpetuated regarding obedience, purity, punishment, and forgiveness. They have an honest discussion about deep theological flaws and what the Eden story - as told by evangelicalism - reveals about God’s character, and discuss what true justice and an actually loving framework should have loo...

Not wanting to miss out on discussing the impacts of Hillsong’s far-reaching culture and mega-church experiences in general, Christa and Sarah share their thoughts on FX’s “The Secrets of Hillsong” documentary and the undergirding values perpetuated by mega-church structures.

From struggling with being authentic and revealing her actual self to having difficulties relating to those outside the church, Christa discusses her battles with feeling disconnected and disempowered in certain areas of her life. She outlines how this impedes everything from friendships to future plans, and how the disconnect from herself has affected relationships and sexuality.

Sarah discusses the emotional, relational, and physical impacts of the doctrine of original sin and being taught to distrust “the flesh”, police emotions, quarantine thoughts, reject doubts, and continually be vigilant against Satan, the “prowling lion”. She also addresses the lack of tools believers often receive when having to face complex and nuanced real-life situations and the anxiety this ca...

Christa and Sarah discuss Dr. Marlene Winell’s three articles on Religious Trauma Syndrome (RTS), the term which she coined ( https://www.journeyfree.org/articles-manual/). They discuss the very real impacts that leaving a high-demand religion has on a person - socially, somatically, emotionally, and cognitively - and some of the related symptoms that manifest both while coping within rigid belief...

Christa and Sarah discuss intergenerational trauma and the difficulty of addressing harmful interpretations and applications of scripture. When God is never changing, people can misapply His constancy as meaning that their human interpretations of the Bible ought not to change as well. When better approaches are dismissed for the sake of keeping the doctrine and community borders static and clearc...

Christa and Sarah give a “brief” overview of their lives. They discuss personal experiences, stories, key events, and throw in a few theological quandaries they had along the way.

In a Part 1&2 combo, Christa and Sarah discuss Christa’s ‘deconstruction’ blogpost that she wrote and posted during the pandemic. They discuss the problem of institutions v. individuals, and how difficult it can be to address systemic issues when there is a gap between good intentions and actual result.

Christa and Sarah continue the conversation around the C-PTSD response of “fawning”. They discuss the shame cycle built into the theology of being born a depraved sinner, how difficult it is to question ideas when the standard you’re handed as a child is divine and infallible, and learning to regain a sense of self in whatever space available that allows for open discussion and honesty.

Sarah and Christa discuss the Fawn response – one of the complex post traumatic stress disorder reactions that is largely unaddressed, especially in comparison to the more dramatic C-PTSD responses of Fight and Flight. Often referred to as ‘people-pleasing’, this response encapsulates the deep fear of stepping out of place, anticipation of needs, failing perfection, and subsequently worrying about...

Christa and Sarah talk about marriage, biblical interpretation, and harmful sexual messages perpetuated by the church. In the context of health, they touch on two research papers that discuss abstinence and pleasure and talk about the mixed messages they received around their bodies and women’s sexuality.

Christa and Sarah continue their discussion of deconstruction: unpacking closed boxes, the formulaic Christian to-dos meant to prevent doom, and rejection of the ‘good enough’ baseline. They delve into Job, God’s “divine plans”, and how the church places human suffering in an end-justifies-the-means framework that disallows proper discussion and marginalizes those suffering. Towards the end, they...

Christa and Sarah talk about some origin points that led to questioning the religious frameworks they had accepted and fully believed, from profound loss and divine absence, to just plain failure of “truths” about the nature of God. This episode marks the start of their discussions around learning to ask questions, trusting their paths, and being unafraid to wander into the areas they had always t...