Beyond Religion Podcast

12/17/2023

It's Pastor Amy Butler day on the blog. Season 2, Episode 7: Beautiful and Terrible Things is out today! You'll find links to her new book (Beautiful and Terrible Things), her foundation (Invested Faith), and her personal website (pastoramy.com) in the show notes. Dive in!

12/13/2023

"It's a dangerous thing, though, to confuse the church with God. The church is not and never has been divine, even in the moments where it has been a channel for healing and hope and change. But while I stand by those words, the truth is that I have never been able to fully separate the two." - Pastor Amy Butler

Season 2, Episode 7 drops this Sunday--December 17, 2023

12/12/2023

My conversation with Pastor Amy Butler will be up on Sunday, December 17. Have you read Beautiful and Terrible Things yet? There's still time! Grab your book and follow along as we talk about church and life and raising kids and getting knocked down and getting back up again. It's a tender one, and I hope my clergy friends will take an hour next week to sit with it awhile. Thanks, Amy.

***Postponed due to bronchitis (turned out to be RSV) and hopefully to be rescheduled***

Up next on Beyond Religion: a conversation with Pastor Amy Butler about her new book Beautiful and Terrible Things. Have you read it? Got questions? What would you like to hear in this episode?

12/12/2023

In 2023, you shared Season 1, Episode 8: Recovery and Rebirth more than any other episode. Matt's story resonated with so many of you, and you texted and DM'd and emailed this episode to your friends. Haven't listened yet? You can find Matt Duvall's story here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-religion/id1676823954?i=1000612046298

12/07/2023

It is so lovely to near the end of 2023 with this amazing news about how many people really like the podcast. I knew that we had over 5000 plays, but I didn't realize so many people had us ranked in the top 10 or 5 or 1 spot. Thank you for supporting this wild hare of an idea. Thanks for letting me think out loud about life and faith and church and spirituality and the what ifs of it all. And thanks for letting me take weird breaks rather than posting consistently like a professional podcaster would do. :)

Coming up December 17: Pastor Amy Butler talks about Beautiful & Terrible Things

11/13/2023

***Postponed due to bronchitis (turned out to be RSV) and hopefully to be rescheduled***

Up next on Beyond Religion: a conversation with Pastor Amy Butler about her new book Beautiful and Terrible Things. Have you read it? Got questions? What would you like to hear in this episode?

10/15/2023

It’s Oteil day! Dive in! ✨🧝‍♀️🧝‍♂️✨

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-religion/id1676823954?i=1000631370327

10/14/2023

Tomorrow’s the day! Love is magic. Magic is real. Love is real.

10/11/2023

New episode on Sunday (October 15) with my friend of over 20 years now (twenty!), the one and only: Oteil Burbridge! We've been waiting to record this for months and months because he had to do things like tour with Dead & Co. for their final tour and raise his amazing children and promote a new album and all the creating and making and teaching he does.

But it finally happened, and this episode is FUN and WEIRD and MAGIC!

10/04/2023

We're back! Episode 5, On love and leave-taking, drops on Sunday, October 8. It's a season of change, releasing the old, discovering the new. Thanks for letting me process it all out loud and for listening in so beautifully. xo eml

09/06/2023

Quitted with Emily McDowell and Holly Whitaker was a really significant part of my discernment process, and they're coming back with Season 2! Dear listeners, please nominate me to be a guest on Quitted season 2. It would be such a delight and an honor!

Hey y'all! We're back! (Surprise! We didn't quit Quitted! We just rested.) In the first season, we explored multiple facets of what happens when you quit a fundamental piece of your identity -- changing a core belief, leaving a religion, making a big career change at great cost, quitting hustle cult...

09/01/2023

Welcome to the pod, Zoe Garry! A great talk with an amazing woman, friend, activist, pastor, world traveler, and so much more. Dive in! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/elizabeth-lott3/episodes/S2Ep4-The-Finite-and-the-Infinite-e28pbsp

08/21/2023

Flip the numbers, keep the episode.

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/elizabeth-lott3/episodes/S2Ep3-Macon-Me-Crazy-e28bq8u

08/21/2023

The plot twists just continue, and they're MACON ME CRAZY! (Oh, bad dad joke.) If you're curious to hear about why and when the Lotts are leaving New Orleans or you're in your own liminal space, listen in here: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/elizabeth-lott3/episodes/S2Ep3-Macon-Me-Crazy-e28bq8u

08/13/2023

Season 2 Episode 2--Christian Nationalism is up now! Thanks to this week's guest, Karrie Gaspard-Hogewood. A great conversation (with my sub-par sound skills). Lots of good info as we move into another election season!

For those who get fired up, check out

Karrie Gaspard-Hogewood is a PhD candidate studying Christian Nationalism as part of her doctoral work on the Sociology track of the City, Culture, and Community program at Tulane University. A Louisiana native and a graduate of LSU, Karrie began her professional career as a high school teacher wher...

07/24/2023

Season Two is coming up, and we have MERCH to celebrate!

The Benediction Shop Ocean Tote from $23.00 View Options Ocean Mug (8oz, 12oz) from $17.00 View Options Ocean Sticker (2", 4") from $3.00 View Options Spiral Notebook - Ruled Line $15.00 Add To Cart On Being host Krista Tippett has said “spirituality is as water but religion as a cup, the vessel t...

06/18/2023

The final episode of season one is available now! Episode 12: Why Beyond Religion?

https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/VNt9YfS3JAb

06/10/2023

Announcing her resignation from a church 2 years ago, Rev. Alyssa Aldape wrote: “It’s not easy to jump into dark icy cold water you’ve never been in before. Sometimes it takes a few countdowns to ten and sometimes it takes your boyfriend graciously jumping in with you. It’s also not easy leaving a job you love. It’s a lot like jumping off a deck into unknown waters.”

Join us tomorrow, June 11 for episode 11, as we talk about the pain and complexity of leaving--whether it's the church you loved or the doctrine that shaped you or the old self you have outgrown. Leaving anything you love is hard. Walking away from the comfort of what you’ve known is terrifying. And if you are lucky enough to have people around you who champion you and support you, then how amazing is it to grab their warm hand as you finally take that leap into the open, unknown waters.