The Divorcing Religion Podcast

Britt Hartley - No Nonsense Spirituality Divorced: Mormonism My guest today is author, nihilism survivor, and atheist spiritual advisor Britt Hartley. Britt has over 287,000 followers on TikTok, and I think after our chat today that you will want to follow her, too! Britt is a former Mormon, current atheist, whose journey away from religion took her to some dark places. Today we discuss freedom, n...

Anke Richter - DECULT TW: References to CSA, sex trafficking, suicide My guest today is international journalist and author Anke Richter, who is based in Christchurch, New Zealand. In 2022, Harper-Collins published Anke’s important and bestselling book called CULT TRIP: Inside the World of Coercion and Control. According to Anke’s website: She spent over 10 years investigating how and why cults se...

Wilbur Turner - Two-by-Two Survivor Today’s guest is Wilbur Turner (he/him), visionary founder and president of Advocacy Canada. He is located on the unceded ancestral lands of the Syilx people in Kelowna, BC, Canada. A well-regarded speaker and workshop facilitator, Wilbur utilizes personal stories and humour to engage, educate, and uplift audiences. Wilbur is well known for his advocacy work for...

Announcement! The Shameless Sexuality Conference is back! The Conference centered around life after purity culture will be held in Seattle, WA from May 23 to the 25th, 2025 in Seattle, WA. Don't wait to get your tickets and book your room: https://www.shamelesssexuality.org/ Lyn Smith Gregory - Relative of Joseph Smith LYN SMITH GREGORY grew up in Utah as one of 9 children in a devout Mormon...

Karrine Blouin - ExJW Girl In Shambles Divorced: Jehovah’s Witnesses TW: Sexual Abuse I discovered today’s guest, Karinne Blouin, on Instagram, where her handle is “girl_inshambles.” Her insights and personal snippets about her former life as a Jehovah’s Witness gripped me hard enough to invite her to share her story with us today. Karinne was born and raised in the Jehovah Witnesses (in Montreal...

Meg Applegate - Unsilenced  CW: Kidnapping At the age of 15, Meg Applegate was abducted by two strangers in the middle of the night from her California home. Eight hours later she found herself at a lockdown treatment facility for 6 months in Boise, ID. After that, she was placed in an additional behavioral modification program in northern Montana for the next 3 years. Today, Meg will be sharing w...

Rebekah Monroe - Religious Trauma Research My guest today is Rebekah J. Monroe , who identifies as a white queer woman with lineage in the Osage and Cherokee Tribes. Rebekah goes by the pronouns are She/Her/They. Currently, Rebekah is a Clinical Psychology doctoral student, co-founder of the non-profit NARC-RT (which stands for North American Research Collective - Religious Trauma), and Vice Chair...

Lindsey Doolittle - Recovering from Religion & Suicide Loss TW: Today we will be discussing issues related to suicide Lindsey Doolittle was introduced to me as a documentary film maker who recently focussed her lens on Dr. Darrel Ray’s work at Recovering from Religion (see below for more information on this documentary). In speaking with Lindsey, I learned that she has a powerful story of her...

Nikole Mitchell - From Pastor to Only Fans Model Divorced: Evangelical Christianity CW: Frank discussions about sexuality Today’s guest has previously appeared on the Dr. Phil Show, Jimmy Kimmel, ABC, CBS – and today she is a guest on the Divorcing Religion Podcast! I’m talking about Pleasure Coach NIKOLE MITCHELL. Raised in the Evangelical Christian tradition, Nikole understood the role assigned...

Linda Martin -  Religious Exemptions are Killing Kids Divorced: Followers of Christ Cult CW: Child abuse and death due to faith-based exemptions Linda Martin was born into the Idaho Followers of Christ sect, leaving the church at age 16. It is estimated that the child mortality rate for the Followers of Christ between 2002 and 2011 was 10 times  that of Idaho as a whole . In 2013, Linda went publi...

Clint Heacock - Is Christianity Killing Democracy? CW: USA politics & religion Subscribe to the audio-only version here: https://www.divorcing-religion.com/religious-trauma-podcast Follow Janice and the Conference on Religious Trauma on Social Media:  Mastodon: JaniceSelbie@mas.to Threads: Wisecounsellor@threads.net Twitter: https://twitter.com/divorcereligion Twitter: https://twitter.com/Wise...

Dr. Danielle Kramer - Taylor Swift and Deep Fake Porn Subscribe to the audio-only version here: https://www.divorcing-religion.com/religious-trauma-podcast Follow Janice and the Conference on Religious Trauma on Social Media:  Mastodon: JaniceSelbie@mas.to Threads: Wisecounsellor@threads.net Twitter: https://twitter.com/divorcereligion Twitter: https://twitter.com/Wise_counsellor Twitter: https://...

Sandy Bigtree & Philip Arnold - The Religious Origins of White Supremacy Subscribe to the audio-only version here: https://www.divorcing-religion.com/religious-trauma-podcast Follow Janice and the Conference on Religious Trauma on Social Media:  Mastodon: JaniceSelbie@mas.to Threads: Wisecounsellor@threads.net Twitter: https://twitter.com/divorcereligion Twitter: https://twitter.com/Wise_couns...

Hannah Abbasi - From Christian to Muslim to Secular Humanist, Part 2 Divorced: Islam In our last episode, we were introduced to Hannah Abbasi. Hannah grew up in a Christian home but converted to Islam in her teens due to family influences on her father’s side. In today’s episode, we learn more about what it was like for Hannah to live and study in nations heavily influenced by Islam, what brought...

Hannah Abbasi - From Christian to Muslim to Secular Humanist, Part 1 Divorced: Christianity PART 1 – FROM CHRISTIAN TO MUSLIM  My guest today is Hannah Abbasi , a transplant to New York City from Austin, Texas. As an adult, she has also lived in Qom, Beirut, and Cairo. At the University of Texas at Austin, Hannah studied Religious Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, and History with a minor in Arabic...

Melanie Trecek-King - Critical Thinking is Power Divorced: Religious Fundamentalism Melanie Trecek-King is an Associate Professor of Biology at Massasoit Community College, where she equips students with empowering critical thinking, information literacy, and science literacy skills. Melanie loves to share her “teach skills, not facts” approach with other science educators and to help organization...

Jeff Beaumont - Trafficked by Scientology Divorced: Scientology CW: Trafficking, forced labour, self-harm. Jeff Beaumont was born into Scientology and educated at the local Scientology school in Vancouver, BC, Canada. At age 14, he was kidnapped and trafficked to the USA to perform labour in the Sea Org branch of Scientology. During that time, Jeff was forced to disconnect from his mother, who was...

Matthew Remski - Conspirituality Divorced: Roman Catholicism Today’s guest is journalist and author MATTHEW REMSKI. In addition to being the author of 8 books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, Matthew is co-host of the wildly popular Conspirituality Podcast. I asked him to join me after hearing his presentation “When Spirituality is a Broken Space,” at the Symposium on Death and Bereavement Stud...

Seth Andrews - Our Lord & Saviour, Taylor Swift Divorced: Christianity  CW: U.S. politics  Don’t worry, this episode is not ALL about Taytay - but she is a happy part of it.  Today’s guest is Seth Andrews, a former evangelical and Christian broadcaster who now hosts The Thinking Atheist…one of the most popular podcasts and online atheist communities in the world! The Thinking Atheist is not a...

Dr. Darrel Ray - All About Sex Divorced: Christianity CONTENT WARNING: Today I’m speaking with Dr. Darrel Ray all about sex. From Purity Culture to ethical nonmonogamy to sex and aging – we cover it in this episode! Dr. Darrel Ray is the founder and President of the Board of Directors of Recovering from Religion. He holds a Masters’ Degree in religion, a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology/Anthrop...

Erin Harrop - Eating Disorders & Christianity Divorced: Fundamentalist Christianity CW: Eating disorders, self-harm, suicidal ideation Erin Harrop (they/them) is an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver, where their research centers eating disorders, weight stigma, and weight-inclusive approaches to healthcare. Their clinical practice involves su...

Nick Khatiam - Leaving the Jehovah’s Witnesses Divorced: Jehovah’s Witnesses CW: CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE Today I’m speaking with Nick Khatiam, from the NW of England. Nick began his further education in English Literature but really began to focus on academic pursuits with his master's degree, in which he studied psychology. His research project focused on the experiences of disaffiliates from the...

Sarah Westbrook  MS, LPC, NCC - Trauma Bonded Divorced: Mormonism/LDS You never forget your first kiss, your first love…or your first trauma bond. 16-year-old Sarah believed her boyfriend would save her from her dysfunctional home. When her parents discovered that they’d committed the sin of premarital sex, the aftermath left the two teenagers irrevocably bonded in trauma.  In today’s episode, Sar...

Ian Bushfield - Humanism in Canada Today’s show is all about Humanism! Here is the definition of Humanism, from Humanist Canada: Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life based on a profound respect for human dignity and the conviction that human beings are ultimately accountable to themselves and to society for their actions. It is a secular worldview that affirms our ability and responsibilit...

Lisa Kohn - Addicted to The Messiah Divorced: Unification Church (The Moonies) CW: Suicidality; abandonment; substance addiction My guest today was a speaker at the very first Conference on Religious Trauma in 2021. Lisa Kohn is a Unification Church Second Gen, and she is the award-winning author of TO THE MOON AND BACK: A CHILDHOOD UNDER THE INFLUENCE.  Lisa understands what it’s like to be raise...