This Good Word With Steve Wiens

Episode 245 | Queer Prophets with Greg Paul

Greg Paul is a pastor and member, as well as the founder, of the Sanctuary community in Toronto. Sanctuary, a community in which people who are wealthy and people who are poor live, work, and share their experiences and resources on a daily basis, makes a priority of welcoming and caring for some of the most hurting and excluded people in Canada’s largest city, including people struggling with addiction, mental illness, prostitution, and homelessness. Greg is the author of the recently released Resurrecting Religion and several other award-winning books: Simply Open; Close Enough to Hear God Breathe; The Twenty-Piece Shuffle; and God In The Alley. His newest book, Queer Prophets, was released late fall 2020. He is the father of four children and married to Maggie, who has three children of her own. They have three grandchildren.

Episode 244 | Your Life is Your Curriculum, Part 2

This is the second part of a two-part series that I created to help people engage in life as it really is, rather than life as we'd prefer it to be. Most of us are well aware of the things we'd like to change in our lives: maybe it's a number on a scale, or something about our job, or how we function in a relationship... come to think of it, what DON'T we want to change in 2020? In part 1, I talked about the importance of sitting in the discomfort of WHY we want those things to change before rushing to change them. Otherwise, we're just trading one type of discontent for another. In part 2, I talk about setting an intention to live life as it really is, and then naming the things you need to pursue in order to live well from that place of tension. Enjoy! 

Episode 243 | Your Life is Your Curriculum, Part 1

Most of us are well aware of the things we'd like to change in our lives: maybe it's a number on a scale, or something about our job, or how we function in a relationship... come to think of it, what DON'T we want to change in 2020? In this episode, I talk about the importance of sitting in the discomfort of WHY we want those things to change before rushing to change them. Otherwise, we're just trading one type of discontent for another. We need to start to see our actual lives - as they really are right now, not as we want them to be - as the curriculum we need for becoming who we really are. Enjoy.

Episode 242 | Honest Advent with Scott Erickson

Scott Erickson is a painter, artist, and author of several books, including Honest Advent. We had a wide-ranging conversation about Advent, his creative process, and how his faith has evolved over time. Enjoy! 

Episode 241| Four Practices For Staying Alive Until November 3rd (and long after)

Is it possible to hold strong opinions and beliefs AND learn to express them without alienating and dehumanizing those who disagree with you? Can you really engage and have a robust conversation where you disagree without getting triggered and traumatized? 

In this episode, I introduce four practices that will help you learn to engage in tough conversations with grace and passion and leave conversations feeling energized instead of defeated and angry. 

Enjoy. 

Episode 240 | New Records and New Theology with Latifah Alattas

I met Latifah Alattas last year when we started collaborating on a new project (The Fun Parts Podcast). I was immediately drawn to her creativity, her infectious laughter, and her commitment to honesty. She's a singer/songwriter who has written under many different monikers, including Moda Spira and Page CXVI. 

Latifah just released a new album called All (as Page CXVI). It's gorgeous, including old hymns she's rewritten to have gender-inclusive language and also some incredible original songs. 

You can check out Latifah's work at ModaSpira.com and PageCXVI.com,  and you can follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

Enjoy! 

Episode 239 | LGBTQIA+ Church Trauma and Recovery with Rebecca Bowers

I loved this conversation! Rebecca Bowers is an LGBTQIA affirming and inclusive therapist and advocate, living in southern Louisiana. She primarily works with clients who have gone through spiritual and religious trauma. She sees many clients who have experienced these specific traumas and works to help them reconcile and recover.

 

Trigger warning: We talked a lot about the kinds of trauma that LGBTQIA+ individuals experience from religious institutions and how to move toward healing.

 

Resources from Rebecca:

 

Disclaimer: Each resource may not be right for each person. If something does not rest well within your body or your mind, then leave it for now. You do not have to agree with what is on the screen. Before diving into resources, tell a friend what you are thinking and ask for their support. If you have a therapist, send them an email and tell them you may need to unpack some of what you read in your next session. I highly recommend therapy, but therapy may not be right for you- do the best you can for yourself, and always try to offer kindness towards yourself.

• https://mywellbeing.com/ask-a-therapist//everything-you-need-to-know-about-religious-trauma
• https://ptsdacademy.com/category/ptsd-training/ptsd-resources-trauma-survivors/
• https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/January-2020/5-Reminders-for-Survivors-of-Trauma
  https://erlc.com/resource-library/articles/10-requests-for-church-leaders-from-a-sexual-abuse-survivor/

Episode 238 | An Ode to Women Who are "Too Much"

I recorded this episode based on a blog post I wrote a few years ago when the Me Too movement was just getting started. The blog was titled "An Ode to the Women Who are Too Much." We need to hear those voices, to hear their stories, and to stop telling women they are too much. 

Click here to read "An Ode to the Women Who are Too Much."

I also mentioned Sue Monk Kidd's gorgeous new book, The Book of Longings. It's an imaginative story centered on the question, "What if Jesus had a wife?" The main character is Ana, the wife of Jesus, who had a voice that needed to be heard. And, as Sue Monk Kidd suggests in the Author's Note at the end of the book: if any woman's voice would have been silenced, if Jesus did have a wife, it certainly would have been hers.

So, to the women who are "too much:" We need you.

The song Bang (from the album Divorce by Moda Spira - a.k.a my friend Latifah Alattas) was used by permission. 

Episode 237 | Born Again and Again with Megan Westra

Megan Westra is the host of a great podcast called The Podluck, and she's the author of a fantastic new book called Born Again and Again, which chronicles her evolving faith. Our conversation went everywhere from her super-conservative upbringing in the Southern Baptist Church to the questions she's currently still wrestling with.

Click here to buy Megan's new book, Born Again and Again. 

Find out more about Megan by visiting her website - and make sure to follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

Episode 236 | Listening to Your Inner Wisdom

Why is it that most of us listen to everybody else but neglect our own inner wisdom? Why don't we trust that voice? Is the heart (as the bible claims), really "deceitful above all things?" In this episode, I talk about how to learn to listen for your inner wisdom, how you can borrow true wisdom from others in order to find your own inner wisdom, and what we can learn about inner wisdom from a bizarre story called the 18th camel. Enjoy!