The Dismantling Doctrine Podcast

This special bonus episode features returning guest, sociologist and cult expert, Dr Janja Lalich. I reached out to her once again to talk about the NXIVM cult and how specifically it worked from a cult psychology point of view. As someone who not only has been in a cult herself, but has also researched and written a tremendous amount of material about cults, Dr Lalich is an invaluable resource. I...

This week's incredible conversation features Janeen Puckett, host of the Deconstruction Stories website--a place where you can share your journeys deconstructing out of religion, anonymously and safely. Janeen herself has an absolutely incredible story of deconstruction too--she comes out of a prophetic, charismatic version of Christianity that had an unbelievably damaging effect on not just her l...

I finally got a chance to edit and release my first episode of my new series for 2021, "Profiles of the Christian Right." For this inaugural episode, I reached out to Mark Potok, who worked at the Southern Poverty Law Center for 20 years and is an expert on the radical Right and the Christian Right. Mark wrote an article for the SPLC in 2004 exposing, perhaps for the first time publicly, Pastor Do...

In this special bonus episode, given the events of the recent Capitol Riots and the prominence of QAnon-branded diehard Trump loyalists who took part in the insurrection, I figured it was time to take a deep dive into the cult psychology behind this rapidly-spreading online conspiracy theory. Is it merely a harmless belief system that rational folks can dismiss? I think we all know now that this i...

This week's episode features Paul James Caiden, host of the Mind's Eye Podcast. I was a recent guest on his show and now I'm returning the favor and having him on the show--from Mind's Eye to MindShift! In this chat we cover not only Paul's story of his faith deconstruction, we focus on the issues surrounding the various traumas that accompany the decision to walk away from one's former faith. In...

In this inaugural episode of 2020, I figured something needed to be said about the recent, highly disturbing events in the US Capitol building.   An angry mob of Trumpists laid waste to the building, resulting in 5 deaths and the widespread destruction of property. But beyond the headlines, I wanted to explore two additional aspects of the story: one, the draw of conspiracy theories, and two, the...

This final episode of 2020 features an eye-opening and informative interview with Seven, a rapper and former megachurch pastoral staff member from Jacksonville, Florida. Seven and his wife experienced not just church hurt during their time as part of the congregation, the situation became much worse as he transitioned into a position on the church staff. Turns out that the only reason the church w...

In this special bonus episode, I'm bringing back recent guest Frank Schaeffer, son of the hugely famous and influential Francis and Edith Schaeffer.   As we discussed in our last episode, we'd return to talk about two of his books: Crazy for God and Why I'm an Atheist who Believes in God . I read them both (highly recommended, by the way), and that gave me ample content to fire questions at Frank....

This episode will be of great value to anyone who grew up in a fundamentalist or evangelical Bible cult background, like this week's guest--life coach Rebekah Drumsta. Beyond talking about her incredible life's journey out of fundamentalism, and then rebuilding, we get into Rebekah's amazing work as a life coach, helping people recover from the oftentimes harmful, traumatic and toxic effects of fu...

Thanks to the wonderful Karen & Bonnie from the Deconversion Therapy Podcast, we are happy to bring the full episode of our conversation from the other day.  We had a great chat, talking about our own backstories growing up in evangelicalism, Trump politics and the Christian Right, and which evangelical leaders we'd like to punch in the throat right now. Enjoy! Support MindShift Podcast on Patreon...

In this special bonus episode, I'm chatting with Jared Yates Sexton, who is the co-host of the Muckrake Podcast along with Nick Hauselman. An associate professor at Georgia Southern University, Jared is also the author of the 2020 book American Rule: How a Nation Conquered the World but Failed Its People . As both an author and political analyst, Jared is perfectly positioned to comment on the dev...

In this fourth bonus episode, I'm taking a slightly different direction away from the charismatic "apostles and prophets" who failed in their predictions of a Trump landslide. This time, I'm looking at the issue of why voices on the Christian Right--who might possibly disavow their more charismatic brothers and sisters--are amplifying and promoting the same conspiracy theories Trump is touting? Le...

This week's episode features a conversation with ex-charismatic Christian and host of "The People I Meet" podcast: Dean Krosecz. Dean and I discuss not only a bit of his backstory, we also delve into the charismatic version of dominion theology--the so-called "7 mountains mandate." Dean helpfully breaks it down, explains how he got into it, and we also unpack just what in the world Paula White-Cai...

There's just so much information out there that I am having a hard time keeping up with all of it!  As I struggle to keep up, here's my third bonus episode on this topic, as we continue to watch the so-called "prophets" who confidently predicted a Trump victory--and who are now proven to be false prophets. What other options are left open to them?  Now it's becoming clear that in addition to embra...

This week's episode features a fascinating conversation with Dara Molloy, former Catholic priest from Dublin, Ireland. Now situated on the Aran Islands off the west Coast of Ireland, Dara ended up walking away from the institutionalized Roman Catholic Church and embarking on a journey to discover--or perhaps rediscover --Celtic spirituality millennia before it was overshadowed by the Catholic Chur...

Although it's only been a week since my last bonus episode on this topic of the failed Trump prophecies, much has happened since then--so I felt that it needed to be revisited! In this episode, I'll take a look at what some of these so-called "prophets and apostles" have been saying since the election. With just one or two notable exceptions, virtually to a person they are doing what is expected,...

In this special bonus episode, I take a look at the phenomenon of cognitive dissonance as it relates to the wide variety of failed so-called "prophecies" laid out by a great number of charismatic and 7 mountains mandate dominion theology "apostles and prophets." Turns out: to a person, they were all clearly wrong. So: was God incorrect in giving this "prophetic word" to his prophets? Or were they...

This extremely helpful episode features a conversation with returning guest Andrew Jasko, a Princeton-seminary trained former minister who walked away from the faith years ago and now as a therapist, is devoting his life to helping people heal from religious trauma syndrome (RTS). Andrew's blog is helpfully titled "Life After Dogma," and that is exactly what we focus on in this episode--what is tr...

This special bonus episode is a chat with Dr John Fea, professor of American history at Messiah College in Pennsylvania--and although he's an evangelical, he is a prominent voice who has been speaking out for years about what he terms the "court evangelicals" surrounding Donald Trump.  Dr Fea is also the author of multiple books and articles, but I wanted to focus on two works: first, his 2011 boo...

This week's episode features Heath Brown, associate professor at CUNY and author of the upcoming book Homeschooling the Right: How Conservative Education Activism Erodes the State, which is expected to drop in early 2021. Heath has done a tremendous amount of research into not just homeschooling, but specifically the world of Christian homeschooling. What he has uncovered in the ultra-secretive wo...

This special bonus episode features author, filmmaker, artist and activist Frank Schaeffer, son of Francis Schaeffer--the hugely influential intellectual evangelical and anti-abortion activist. Frank, along with his famous father, helped to launch the evangelical anti-abortion movement back in the 1970s and 80s with their film series "Whatever Happened to the Human Race?"  As we discuss the backst...

Is it possible to have a respectful dialogue between an atheist and an evangelical Christian?   Matthew Taylor, this week's guest and co-host of the Still Unbelievable podcast, thinks that it is possible--provided, of course, that you separate the beliefs from the believer.   In addition to exploring that concept, Matthew and I trade backstories in our old evangelical days, comparing notes and dis...

In this special bonus episode, I have a conversation with Peter Montgomery, Senior Fellow at Right Wing Watch.   Peter has diligently been researching and writing on the Christian Right, dominion theology, evangelical politics, and more for the last 2 decades. As such, he is the perfect person to speak with now, just weeks before the election.   We are seeing more than ever the levels of rabid sup...

This special bonus edition features sociologist Andrew Whitehead, co-author along with Sam Perry of the informative book Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States.   As you'll recall, Sam was my guest a few months ago as we discussed the findings of their research of Americans as it relates to Christian nationalism in their book. I reached out to Andrew to have a disc...

In this episode with Steven Tiger, author of Doctrine Impossible , I'm hearkening back to my old days as an evangelical pastor and Bible college teacher and revisiting the subject of Christian theology. Today, however, neither of us are seeking to defend what in many cases is quite a monstrous set of beliefs--and view of God that is revealed in the pages of the Bible. What are the implications of...