What I learned from 19 faith leaders this year

Back in August, I told you about the podcast I’d been making all year, and I promised I’d circle back with more podcast talk. Here I am.

Since then, I’ve finished recording with pastors, priests, a bishop, theologians, and community leaders. Some stayed in traditions that hurt them and are changing them from the inside. Others found their way somewhere new. Several episodes are fully edited, and I’m absolutely giddy about how they’re turning out.

I went in looking for the edges of Christianity. I kept discovering how far they actually go.

A few lines that I can't wait for you to hear in context of the whole episode:

“It’s okay to disagree, but it is not okay to discriminate.” — Rev. Dr. J.J. Warren, United Methodist

“There’s nothing we can do to gain favor with God. And there’s nothing we can do to lose it either.” — Ann Isenhower Rothschild, ELCA

“The gospel does not exist to uphold the values of empire.” — Rev. Emily McGinley, PCUSA

“If it’s not deepening our capacity to love others, then it’s probably not actually of God.” — Rev. Laurel Mathewson, Episcopal

What surprised me most is this. I grew up thinking every tradition outside my own was either watered down or wrong. Instead, I keep finding that each one is holding onto something the others let go of. The Episcopalians kept the ancient prayers and handed the vestments to women. The Presbyterians wrote down their own mistakes, on purpose, for centuries. The Methodists treated visiting the sick as just as holy as reading the Bible. None of them has it all figured out, and I asked my guests to be honest about that.

The first episodes arrive in January.

A quick reminder: show notes and resources for each episode (the books, the churches, the people worth connecting with) will go out as their own separate email, so they only reach people who want them. If you haven’t opted in yet, go to your subscription portal, sign in if it asks, and check the box for How to Be a Christian.

A huge thank you to my editor, Angelina of Wildwave Podcasting, who has been with me every step of the way, and to the Louisville Institute, whose grant made this project possible.

There’s no single way to be a Christian. I can’t wait for you to hear how wide it goes.