Poema Podcast

Poema S6 044 | Chad E Jarnagin on Learning To Be: Part One

This week I'll be releasing two episodes with author & Priest Chad E Jarnagin - this first episode was recorded in January, before the global pandemic, murder of George Floyd, and the other traumatic events of January really unfolded.  The second, coming out later this week was recorded this month.
Chad talks about his life & work, true spiritual transformation beyond simple deconstruction, and learning to be.
He explores how people are not able to move forward with new, healthy practices and rhythms without first healing from past toxins, abuse, and unhealthy patterns, and how we need to go on an inner pilgrimage to have our emotional and spiritual health transforme.
Chad explains how we can explore a discover and deeper peace and knowing within us, and improve our spiritual & emotional health through contemplative spirituality, and how contemplative practices can help us go deeper in intimacy with the divine, and with ourselves, as we are. 
 

Poema S6 043 | Brittney Moses on Mental Health, Faith & The Pandemic

This week I'm joined by mental health advocate, author and podcaster Brittney Moses. Brittney works on issues at the intersection of faith, culture & mental health and is host of the Faith & Mental Wellness Podcast, studying clinical psychology at UCLA.
In this episode we explore the challenges the pandemic, lockdown and grief of 2020 has given us in terms of our mental health, our routines and our faith. We discuss how little day to day disruptions can impact us, and whats happening could affect us emotionally, mentally and physically - and what steps we can take to love ourselves better and take care of our mental health.
Brittney also tells her own story, of losing and coming back to faith, her mental health challenges, and how she began exploring the intersection between mental health and faith, becoming a mental health activist. She also talks about mistakes churches and pastors have made in dealing with mental health, and how we can create church communities which are trauma informed.
Brittney ends by saying how important it is for us - and for churches - to name the mental health conditions we're struggling with, and how this can be the beginning of healing and transformation, both in individuals and church communities.

Poema S6 042 | Jess Mally on Systemic Racism & Discovering Who We Are

My friend, writer and activist Jess Mally, joins me to tell her powerful story, and share her lived experiences of systemic racism*.
Jess shares the incredible story of how she tracked down her birth father, with the most random set of coincidences happening in a row - and how she rebuilt her relationship with him. She also shares about her challenges with depression, and how she has encountered systemic racism. 
Jess goes on to talk about the racial murders in the US, the false accusations made by Amy Cooper and shares what it was like to observe these racial murders & incidents as a black person, including the grief and trauma this caused her personally and the collective grief of the black community.
She shares what it's like to feel unsafe as a black person, and then talks about the importance of anti-racism work, and the work white people need to do to bring about change.
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*Please note this episode was recorded in early June, before the death of Chadwick Boseman and other racially-motivated murders or attacks since. 

Poema S6 041 | Shari A Smith on Deconstruction, Grief & "End Times"

Today I'm joined by writer Shari A Smith. Shari is a blogger and writer for Ezer Rising, and today she tells her story of faith deconstruction, in the context of grief, and the global pandemic.
Shari talks about her upbringing and end times theology she grew up with, and how her journey led her to question her theology and her perspective on faith. Then we shift into talking about the grief of leaving evangelicalism and shift into talking about grief in the context of the pandemic and how all our lives have changed. 
Shari also talks about how the dynamic of her relationship with God changed through deconstruction, and grieving what she'd left behind. She also shares how writing was a cathartic, therapeutic practice for her, and we discuss how writing and the creative process can help us process grief and our emotions generally. 
Shari concludes by coming back to the divine truth she holds on to which gives her rest and peace, grounded in the reality of what we are living through - and how we're not alone. 

Poema S6 040 | Adam Asher & The Edge of Adventure

Today I'm joined by Adam Asher, creator and host of 'The Edge of Adventure' show and podcast,  where he takes his viewers to some of the most remote corners of the globe in search of what matters most & introduces his audience to some of the most inspiring travelers on the planet.
In this episode he talks about his work and his passion for travel and sharing stories, and shares some experiences of discovering unseen people doing incredible work in different parts of the world.
He shares about what he believes is our longing to do work which matters, to do something out of our normal routine - and make the most of our time here. And how this work can be something big or small, seen or unseen, but it all matters.
Adam concludes by saying our lives can become so much better when we stop centering ourselves, and look outwards to serving and honouring the needs, stories and experiences of others. 

Poema S6 039 | Jo Luehmann on Decolonizing Theology & Faith

Today I'm joined by activist & writer Jo Luehmann. Jo tells her own story, her background in evangelical Christianity and journey out of this into an awareness and understanding of how it was actually part of a systemically racist, oppressive, patriarchal system, including purity culture. 
Jo shares her journey out of this system and how it impacted both her marriage and her faith and how she deconstructed and decolonized her faith and found a new, more authentic understanding of Jesus spirituality.
Jo goes on to talk about how we can decolonize our own faith and theology, and how true faith/life deconstruction can only happen if it involves unlearning systemic racism and decolonizing.
Finally, Jo discusses how white people in particular can unlearn systemic racism and toxic theology, and find a faith which is free from the colonial, racist, patriarchal system which has been built around it.

Poema S6 038 | Rev Rob Lee on Church, Mental Illness & The Pandemic

I'm honoured to be joined by Rev Rob Lee today. Rob is a pastor and author who has bipolar disorder, who is known for his mental health and anti-racism work in the US. 
Today he shares about life of a pastor during a pandemic, the experience of living with bipolar disorder as a pastor in a pandemic, and finding the divine in the midst of times of struggle and trauma. 
He talks about how we need to sit with trauma, how we can find comfort in the midst of difficult times. He also discusses the power of healthy community, including church, to support those facing mental health challenges, and his own experiences of this. 
We end with some thoughts and reflections on what life, church and faith will look like post pandemic, the scars we will carry - and whether will acknowledge them like Jesus did, or hide from them. 

Poema S6 037 | Megan K Westra on Being Born Again & Again

Today author and podcaster Megan K Westra joins me to discuss her new book 'Being Born Again & Again', and the idea that salvation isn't a product, or something we acquire - but an invitation to radical transformation. 
Megan discusses how she learned how the message of the Bible has been twisted and distorted, in particular to serve political / capitalist, purposes and support oppressive, systemically racist systems. She tells me how God is forming a new family, where we all belong, and we're all connected.
Megan shares how she discovered how we can dig back to the roots of the Jesus story, and then allow ourselves to be truly challenged. She tells me the idea that the call of Jesus is a call to acquire, but a message to surrender and be radically transformed - and what this might mean for us.
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Get Megan's book wherever books are sold, and find info on her work at meganwestra.com

Poema S6 036 | Shirley Fessell on Redemption from Biblical Battering

**Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse**
 
Today author and domestic abuse survivor Shirley Fessell joins me to share her powerful story of living with and surviving domestic abuse, how she got free - and how she took her story and used it to help others. 
Shirley shares the seven levels of confusion victims of domestic abuse can get drawn into, and several practical steps to get out from under these confusions and find freedom from abuse & the abuser.
She also talks about how evangelical Christianity and church have played a role in enabling abuse and reminds us it is possible to get free, and begin again.
 
Find her work at: https://shirleyfessel.com/ 

Poema S6 035 | Holly Stallcup on Singleness & The Global Pandemic

Today my friend Holly Stallcup, Executive Director of Now She Rises, joins me to talk about the challenges of singleness - both coming from an evangelical Christian background and how the global pandemic and lockdown, have created new challenges and issues for single people.
 
Holly and I are both single so we were able to cover a lot of ground and share some of our own unique experiences as single people and challenges we are facing during lockdown, including loneliness and social disconnection, and its impact on mental health. We also talk about how things might look for singletons going forward in a post pandemic world, as well as acknowledging the gifts and freedoms singleness allows. 
 
This is an important episode both for singletons and those in couples who know singletons - singleness is an issue we need to discuss and become more aware of collectively, in a culture tilted in favour of coupling, and Holly has some amazing insight into this.