Recovering From Religion

Recorded on Nov 16, 2020 Were you ever a religious asshole? Sometimes when we leave religion we don’t leave enough behind and take our sexism, racism, and homophobia with us. In this talk, we’ll discuss how NOT to be a secular asshole. Rebecca Williams is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California. She is the owner of Inland Empire Couples Counseling and specializes in helping mixed fa...

In this discussion Hayley Twyman Brack speaks about the fear of hell. We will discuss why even non-believers may experience residual fear of hell, long after they have deconverted. We will also explore the science behind the fear and resources for support. Hayley Twyman Brack is a licensed professional counselor and freelance writer in Oklahoma. Hayley has co-authored a textbook chapter for mental...

In this RfRx session Taylor will discuss what Multi Level Marketing (pyramid schemes) are, the risks and statistics involved with MLMs, who they prey on, and how to avoid falling into one. Also, she will discuss how to deal with a family member or friend who has become involved with an MLM. MLMs disproportionately target religious people, and many of us who have left/are leaving religion likely kn...

Premiered Jan 23, 2021 Children are not just little adults and their mental health concerns cannot be viewed and treated the same way we would address adult mental health. Add on a layer of nonbelief and you are truly facing a different set of circumstances, especially when it comes to seeking treatment. In this talk, I will explore how and why mental health problems require a different approach w...

Premiered Jan 20, 2021 Dr. Darrel Ray returns to RfRx to tell us about “Religious Trauma, Its Roots and Its Treatments.” Religious abuse is the root of religious trauma and often goes unrecognized by therapists and clients alike. Children raised in toxic environments do not know it is toxic; it just seems normal to them. When they experience symptoms later in life, failure to identify the root cau...

In this RfRx session we will discover that sexual integrity is simply about being yourself and getting honest with yourself and others about who you are as a sexual being. We will also discuss how to integrate, instead of compartmentalize sexuality. Dr. Steven Davidson, Ph. D. (Certified Sex Therapist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker) is a psychotherapist and sex therapist in private practice in F...

Premiered Oct 21, 2020 Religion can take over our entire lives and shape every aspect of ourselves including our community, traditions, relationships with others and our identity. In this session of RfRx we will explore how we can find our new identity after leaving religion and how we can grow without the guidance of an all knowing God. As a registered professional counsellor with a personal hist...

Do you feel bad about things you did or said when you were religious? Do you feel guilty doing or thinking things that your religion taught were “wrong” even though you don’t believe that anymore? Rebecca and Praia will help you understand what’s going on here and what to do about it, so you can live a happier, lighter, guilt-free life. Rebecca Williams, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and Family Ther...

Premiered Sep 27, 2020 Content warning: child marriage and rape In this RfRx session Yasmine will discuss her experience growing up in a fundamentalist Islamic home, how she was forced into a marriage with a terrorist and her search for freedom. She will also talk about her current work supporting others who denounce Islam. Canadian human rights activist, Yasmine Mohammed, advocates for the rights...

Premiered Sep 23, 2020 RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with Shanon Nebo, the RfR Treasurer, Social Media Director, & Excursion Director.  Shanon talks about her upbringing living in a "demon haunted world" as she felt demons could posses and control people's lives, her fear of hell, her struggles with understanding her own sexuality and the damage that purity cu...

Premiered Sep 19, 2020 In the current climate of Black Lives Matter, dismantling institutional structures and civil unrest, engaging the Black community means more interaction with believers, and having potentially tough conversations. Mandisa Thomas will discuss how to better engage religious counterparts or both personal and professional levels, and why it is important to try and forge working r...

This RfRx discussion looks at developing intentional communities to make your new life functional and enjoyable. In the age of COVID-19, this discussion will also explore how we can work to combat loneliness & build community amidst the need to self-isolate. As a registered professional counsellor with a personal history of religious trauma syndrome, Janice is passionate about helping others u...

RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with RfR Founder & President, Dr Darrel Ray.  Dr Ray talks about his work as a corporate psychologist, the impetus for his two books, why and how he started RfR, how he incorporated his past work experience into forming RfR and a lot more.  The primary focus of Recovering from Religion (RfR) is to offer hope, healing, and sup...

In this RfRx session we hear Itto Outini’s story about coming out of Islam and her struggles and successes after becoming disabled. We explore how religious organizations treat disabled communities and what we could all do as a society to change the manner in which disabled communities are treated. We also discuss value, acceptance and tolerance towards minorities, such as disabled non-believers....

In our very first RfRx Religion Series session, Lloyd Evans and Sherrie D’Souza will discuss their experiences in the Jehovah's Witnesses (JW) and how they left religion. They cover the JW belief system, how Watchtower works, and what challenges people face when leaving the religion. Lloyd Evans is the founder and senior editor of http//:JWsurvey.org - a website that promotes freeness of thought a...

RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with Support Group Leader, Chris West. We talk about his experience being raised in an atheist household, but still wanting to explore religions as he got older, his passion about building and designing well insulated houses, and his connection to the Netherlands. The primary focus of Recovering from Religion (RfR) is to offer hope, healin...

Premiered Aug 23, 2020 As devout Believers, we were discouraged from thinking critically and encouraged to only think through the lens of our specific religion. While we have been able to Divorce Religion, we remain vulnerable to the trap of rigid, authoritarian thinking in all spheres. This module of the Divorcing Religion Workshop explores the fusion of identity with beliefs and how we can avoid...

Premiered Aug 15, 2020 There is no God. Now what? If this is the only life we have, how does that affect how we live our lives, how we treat each other, and cope with our own mortality. Award winning filmmaker and photographer photographer Chris Johnson created the coffee table photography book and documentary A Better Life in response to these questions and more. Chris Johnson is a New York-based...

RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with Naomi Mourra, the co-leader for the Sydney, Australia support group.  Naomi shares with us what life is like in Australia with the recent wildfires and COVID-19 outbreak, her struggles as a woman in the Jehovah's Witness religion, coming out of the Jehovah's Witness religion, both as an atheist and as a gay woman, and much more. Trigg...

Have you ever wondered how to introduce children to science? Do you believe that children should grow in an environment that fosters critical thinking skills and curiosity? J.R. will discuss how he grew up in an Orthodox Jewish household, and became a secular author of humanist science children’s book series entitled Annabelle & Aiden. J.R. Becker Holds a BA in Philosophy, and a Juris Doctorat...

Michele Vescio speaks with Sherrie D’Souza, a former devoted Jehovah's Witness of 30 years, recently awakened and leaving the religion, about her lived experience of religious mind control, and the effects of religious beliefs, shunning, the 2016 Royal Commission into institutional responses to child sex abuse involving the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the advocacy work of Recovering from Religion and...

Between oppression, disease, political upheaval, climate change, war, famine, and a multitude of other tragedies, it's easy to feel hopeless right now. In Hope in a Godless World we'll cover how to be hopeful in the face of it all, without appealing to any religious afterlife or divine justice, so that you can say yes to the world with energy and determination. Danielle LaSusa Ph. D. helps moms gr...

RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with RfR's Online Programming Director, Amaia Perez! We talk about RfRx, pole dancing as a hobby, why she became a vegan, and what it's like hearing people's struggles coming out of religion having never been a believer. You can follow her on Instagram (amaia_pf_) and Twitter (@Amaia_ac).   The primary focus of Recovering from Religion (Rf...

What do you say when your parents give you religious gifts? What do you do when your friend says they’ll pray for you? How do you respond when someone starts preaching to you about how you’re deceived, need to change your ways, and return to the faith? Join us for a discussion about how to have and set good boundaries with your friends and family. Rebecca Williams, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and...

RfR Support Group Director and host, Eric Wells, sits down with Gwen Blodgett, a Helpline Volunteer and the RfR 3.0 Project Manager. We get to know what makes Gwen tick, her struggles coming out of religion despite deep family traditions of missionary work and leading Christian congregations which dates back 9 generations to the 17th century, and why she volunteers for RfR!Gwen talks about Gospel...