You Can Be Both

Together, they discuss: 🇺🇸 What America's founding ideals actually promised ✝️ The rise of Christian nationalism and how it differs from Christianity 🌈 Why LGBTQ rights remain under attack 📜 The meaning behind "all men are created equal" ❤️ How Christians can resist fear and choose love instead 🙏 Why fighting for equality is one of the most American things we can do Rather than giving up on Ame...

Pride Month isn't about celebration. It's about survival. Lauren Lanzaretta breaks down the hard truth about why LGBTQ people need Pride Month in 2026. And why the criticism, the bills, the "Straight Pride Month" debate, and the political weaponization of trans people prove we need it now more than ever. THE FACTS: 10+ countries execute people for being gay 60+ countries criminalize same-sex relat...

Sara Cunningham, founder of Free Mom Hugs, shares the powerful story of how she went from rejecting her gay son to leading an international movement that has impacted hundreds of thousands. It wasn't easy. When Sara's youngest son came out to her at 21, she didn't take it well. She was frozen in fear — terrified he would be condemned to hell, convinced that accepting him would make her a sinner to...

For more than 20 years, Leah Rae Yawn (formerly Shafer) was a gospel worship leader at Saddleback Church. She sang for Women of Faith, worked with Michael W. Smith and Natalie Grant, recorded multiple albums, and sung the national anthem at NFL games. Her voice and faith were her livelihood, her heart, and her life. Then she came out as gay — and lost it all. In this powerful episode of You Can Be...

For nearly 2,000 years, the word "homosexual" did not appear in the Bible. So what changed in 1946? Kathy Baldock is a leading voice on LGBTQ+ issues within Christianity and the author of "Forging a Sacred Weapon" and "Walking the Bridgeless Canyon." She's also featured in the award-winning documentary "1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture." In 1946, Bible translators made a controversial...

Michael Passons was a founding member of Avalon, one of the biggest Christian music groups of all time. He wrote and performed "Testify to Love," a song that became an icon of Christian music. But when he came out as gay, he was forced out of the band and lost everything. Now, Michael is rewriting his story — and breaking records doing it. He just rereleased "Testify to Love" a...

Mike Maeshiro spent 5 years as an instructor at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry — teaching, preaching, and living what he thought was his calling. But there was one problem: he was gay. From age 10, Mike knew he was different. He tried conversion therapy. He dated a woman to "fix" himself. He climbed the evangelical ladder at one of the most influential charismatic churches in the world — a...

I met a woman in Clearwater who was shocked that I'm a Christian and didn't judge her. That moment made me realize something: the church has created a culture of inauthenticity — and it's pushing people away from God. In this solo episode, I'm talking about why so many people (straight and LGBTQ) feel like they can't be themselves in church, why LGBTQ Christians have a unique gift to offer the wor...

Can you be LGBTQ and Christian? Pastor Brandon Robertson says absolutely — and he's spent years studying the theology to prove it. In this conversation, Brandon breaks down why the "clobber passages" Christians use against gay people are mistranslations, misinterpretations, and taken out of historical context. We talk about Leviticus, Sodom and Gomorrah, Romans 1, and what Jesus actu...

Can you be transgender AND Christian? I'm answering this question directly — and what I learned completely changed my heart. In this episode, I talk about Neeza Powers, a trans Christian woman who faced thousands of hateful comments for being her authentic self. I break down what the Bible actually says about gender, explore Deuteronomy 22:5 in context, and explain why Jesus' ministry was...

Here's why "ex-gay" stories are misleading — and why you don't need to change. I'm breaking down why it's impossible to be ex-gay and why these stories you see online are often rooted in trauma, bad behavior, or bisexuality/pansexuality— not actual sexual orientation change. What we're covering: Why trauma gets mistaken for sexual orientation How people confuse bad be...

"For years, I stood in the pulpit and preached that homosexuality was a sin. I believed the Bible was clear. I thought I was right. I was wrong."In this powerful episode of You Can Be Both, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Pastor Joe Smith, a straight, cisgender pastor who spent years preaching traditional, non-affirming theology—until his understanding completely transformed. This isn't a st...

NBA player Jaden Ivey was recently suspended for making homophobic comments about Pride Night, calling it "unrighteous" and against his Christian beliefs. But when did being Christian become about being the moral police instead of loving people? In this episode, I break down why Jaden Ivey's comments are the opposite of what Jesus taught, why Pride Night matters for LGBTQ+ people who have been mar...

"I was a worship leader who sang about God's love every Sunday—while hiding who I really was. "In this powerful episode of You Can Be Both, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Israel Isaac, a longtime megachurch worship leader who came out as gay four years ago and recently auditioned for America's Got Talent and appears on Bravo's Vanderpump Rules. For years, Israel led th...

What happens when a Harvard Divinity School graduate, public theologian and gardening philosopher sits down with an LGBTQ Christian podcast host for over an hour of raw, unfiltered conversation about faith, sexuality, race, the church and what it means to truly know God? This. This episode happens. Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Ciarra Jones — known as the Gardening Theologian — for one of the m...

What happens when a deeply Christian mom learns her daughter is gay — while sitting in a rainy parking lot before school? In this powerful episode of the You Can Be Both Podcast, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Staci Frenes — singer, songwriter, author and Christian mom — who shares the raw, emotional moment her daughter Abby came out to her at 16, and the years-long journey that followed as...

Have you ever wondered if God actually loves you — or if the hate you've heard from others is the truth? In this solo episode of You Can Be Both, host Lauren Lanzaretta takes a break from guests to speak directly to her community about one of the most important questions LGBTQ people of faith wrestle with: does God love me, exactly as I am? Lauren reads a powerful listener testimony from a wom...

Did the word “homosexual” really appear in the Bible for the first time in 1946? In this episode of the You Can Be Both podcast, host Lauren Lanzaretta interviews Sharon “Rocky” Roggio, director of the documentary 1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture. The film investigates how the word homosexual entered an English Bible translation for the FIRST TIME in 1946 — and how that translation ha...

What happens when you grow up evangelical, marry a man, build a life… and then realize you’re actually a lesbian? In this powerful episode of the You Can Be Both Podcast, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Sophia Spallino — luxury lesbian matchmaker and founder of The Queer Country Club — to talk about coming out at 29, leaving a heterosexual marriage, losing everything, and rebuilding a life r...

Can you be transgender and Christian? What happens when a megachurch pastor comes out as trans? And why is she now running for public office? In this powerful episode of You Can Be Both, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Joanna Whaley, a former evangelical megachurch pastor who was outed, fired, and subjected to 15 years of conversion therapy — and is now running for the Michigan House of Repr...

To inquire about Candace's services please visit: https://www.thechristiancloset.com/ Follow her on Instagram at: @lesbiantherapist Can you be gay and Christian? What does growing up LGBTQ in the church actually do to your mental health? And how do you heal from years of being told you’re going to hell? In this episode of You Can Be Both, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with licensed therapis...

Does conversion therapy work? What actually happens behind closed doors in Christian “ex-gay” programs—and why do people stay for years? In this episode of The You Can Be Both Podcast, host Lauren Lanzaretta sits down with Timothy Rodriguez, author of Conversion Therapy Dropout, for a raw, unfiltered conversation about surviving eight years of conversion therapy, working behind the scenes for some...

What does it mean when a straight, white male pastor says LGBTQ+ people fully belong in the church? In this powerful episode of the You Can Be Both Podcast, host Lauren Lanzaretta welcomes her first-ever guest, Danny Lybarger — a straight, white male pastor, theologian, and founder of The Well: An Inclusive & Justice-Centered Church in the St. Louis area. Danny is known for using his platform,...

• LGBTQ Healing & Resource Guide: www.laurenlanzaretta.com/youcanbeboth• Submit your story: https://bit.ly/49G1tpz________________ Can you stop being gay? Can you pray the gay away? Does God actually change someone’s sexual orientation — and if so, why doesn’t He do it for everyone? In this episode of You Can Be Both, we take an honest, compassionate, and deeply personal look at ex-gay testimo...

If you're LGBTQ+ and Christian, you've probably experienced religious trauma—rejection from church, kicked out of ministry, told you're going to hell, or living a double life hiding who you are. You're not alone, and you're NOT broken. I read dozens of stories from LGBTQ Christians daily, and the pain from Church abuse is heartbreaking but the healing is REAL. This episode is f...