Pastor With No Answers

Continuing a conversation that was started on this podcast 2 years ago, part six of a series that has taken a behind the scenes look at Joey’s journey through a mental health crisis in 2019.  Joining today are four of Joey’s closest friends, Tim McAdams, Sarah Eller.And Amy Alderman, Robbie Madison, both also co-hosts of the show.  The three reflect on his transparency leading up to this crisis and the effects it had on their processing of the situation at hand, back in 2019.  They discuss whether they dealt with fear around the potential of Joey losing his life; and how they processed knowing that the friend of theirs, who was battling for his life, was also pastor of the church that all four  considered their family.  A true story of friendship, the power of family and the need for connection.  Sarah Eller, Tim McAdams, Amy Alderman and Robbie Madison, special thanks for your love, grace and commitment to your boy. Bear W/ Community – investigate and/or joinWelcome Packet - we'd love to send you!Click

Adarius Gerard Jenkins 12/10/00 - 06/09/13Son of Kip and Leenetta Smalls, brother of Kazadia SmallsHonoring all who are mourning the loss of a loved one, during this Mother's Day 2022.  Sunday morning of June 9th 2013 started just like any other day, but by the time the sun set, a metaphorical darkness had settled in the hearts of Leenetta and Kip Smalls, as their minds were forced to grapple with the prospect of their precious 12-year-old Darius not coming back home to them on this side of heaven.This is the story of the human experience.  Not one person is in the clear from pain like this, it's always potentially right around the corner.  Life gives the potential for the highest highs and unbearable lows.  What stands out in this story is the abundant, God-given peace that was  received by these suffering parents, peace that guided them through the unbearable pain they weren't sure they could survive. This is also a  "2 Corinthians 1 story," one in which Paul says "Praise be to

Co-hosts Robbie Madison and Matt Oxley, join host Joey Svendsen with the original purpose of continuing a conversation from episode 340, “Courage Not to Cancel the Racist,"  asking the question, "what about the statues of racists?"We accomplished this while at the same time, Joey believes the Holy Spirit moved in real time, opening his eyes to a facet of his white privilege that was sobering to see. Robbie was in an English town where actors still practice "black face" and Joey shares how he doesn't want to have the label of "woke," nor does he want to be seen as "not woke."Thankful for my listeners who let me learn in front of them; also happy to be able to release content like today for other people who find interesting, things like the amount of money one would have to be paid in order to get a "genitalia tattoo" on his/her arm.  -- JoeyMatt Oxley / Web  / TwitterRobbie Madison / Web / Instagram / MusiEllen Mauro / InstagramJoin usas a Patron.Conn

[with special appearances from Pete Enns, John Mark McMillan, Brandan Robertson, Jared Svendsen and Hayne Griffen]The original intent of the episode was to get deep into the theology of the Cross of Jesus, and Brian Zahnd covered us [profoundly]  in that department.  We discuss with Brian how the church explains too much the “death and resurrection of Jesus,” stripping it from its beauty and power.  Also how the western world, despite the profound baggage it’s delivered, also gets credit for the “Christ infused convictions” it's delivered to the world; and according to Brian, has greatly changed for the better, how we see dignity and worth in all of humanity. What if God exists but Jesus never came and died?  What kind of shit storm would we be in then?  We talk Jesus’ non-violent approach to life and whether it applies to national governments.  Penal substitution is what the Western church world is stuck on and according to Brian Zahnd, it’s an abhorrent theological approach to the Cross.   With a Pasto

Welcome to a new (and permanent) angle of Pastor With No Answers Podcast.  Ellen Mauro, Amy Alderman and Liz Miller, all mothers and wives,  one hates her job as a stay at home mom, each medicated for anxiety and really bad OCD.   One seems to be pro-violence,  one swings both ways, each  of them think critically enough not to cancel everyone who makes a mistake, and all three want to follow Jesus as best as she can.  We discuss Liz’s journey of being widowed for 10 years and recently getting married this past January.  Liz processes with us evangelicals' perspective of her as a “broken woman" due to her gay marriage.  We discuss the irony that religious organizations -- full of promiscuity, sexual scandal, and pedophilia themselves-- are the ones shouting the loudest about sexual sin.  As a PART II of this episode, Pricilla Svendsen joins Amy, Ellen and Joey to discuss different facets of "the Chris Rock getting popped by the Fresh Prince" craziness.  As this discussion unfolds, it’s disc

Derek and I have hung out online doing podcast episodes  for the last 7 years or so and we've talked very little about Christian faith.  In this episode, that's the focus; Derek's faith  - JoeyDeconstruction is the buzz word.  Those who "deconstruct" typically demolished "static pillars" of fundamentalism and over time, new ones go up.  There exists different beliefs, but same old regimented, manmade approach to spirituality. People who sense a faith change coming on may have been living in a mindset in which certain beliefs need to be true in order for God to be real. This paves the way to an arduous road that can end in so many places. What does Derek struggle with?  Seeing the church with nuance.What does he artistically regret?  His ego in earlier work.  We learn about "Calvinist Rap" that Derek took part in for a spell, we toil with the thought of "good samaritan type people," who live a life of love and service (all the things Jesus said were most i

[At top of episode, Ellen, Ryan and Joey discuss Ryan's ignoring of God, why it's a bit morbid when a Christian asks "was he/she a believer" after some one dies, and how the church is trying to convince Ellen's friend to stay with her cheating husband because he "reads the word" and "it was only a blowjob."]For our main talk, biographical author, George Azar, lived it and wrote a book for us to peer into his journey from leading vocational ministry as a pastor (and as a gay man) to “eventually having enough" and leaving Christianity all together.  He shares his story here.  Joey and George discuss the senselessness of appealing to “traditional theology” as a standard not to evolve past for the reason of "God ever changes."  This ideology seems to assume that God hasn’t anything further to say about the teachings in the bible and no more revelatory direction for humanity.  Pretty boring God, if you ask me.  Joey shares how hard it was to maintain his

BONUS EPISODEThis situation is so intriguing, if you're interested in human behavior.  So much here.    But this episode is like the RobCast.  There's just one person talking here.  The big difference  between this episode and the RobCast is that they have Rob Bell, he's smart, and has tons of answers.    I have a smart therapist who has helped shape how I see humans and encouraged me to be curious about our tendency to mark people, due to certain actions, as "good" or "bad."  I find this sort of categorization  very UN-Christian and the less i do this to others, the more mercy and grace i have for myself.     -- Joey Svendsen*NOTE* New listeners, this episode usually has lots of people and fun music (and stuff).  This is pretty much a speech by one person.  Join us as a Patron.Sign up for our mailing list to keep up with everything.Joey/PWNA Instagram and TwitterJoin the PWNA Discussion Facebook GroupWe are on YouTube. [email protected]  for correspondence. 

Dr. Latimore, author of “Unshakable Faith of Famous and Little Known African Americans from Colonial Times to the Present"  joins co-hosts Robbie Madison and Joey Svendsen to discuss the important outlooks and insights his book delivers on. In our diverse communities, churches, organizations and political spaces, [Black] history offers a window into the meaning of America  and the opportunity to reflect and marvel at, the strength of a people who refused to be destroyed and who fought and loved their way into our nation’s story.  In this conversation, an unexpected theme is processed in real time and confirmed by Robbie and Dr. Latimore.  As African American men who value their blackness and maintain passion for  equality and social justice for all people,  the concept of blindly "cancelling a racist" for them seems lazy, rudimentary, and contrary to the Spirit of love represented by Jesus' words "Father, forgive,  for they know not.."  This new "cancelling trend" in o

Matt Johnson used to live in Mark Driscoll’s basement as “one of the interns” (inside joke you’ll find out later) and eventually became an integral part of Mars Hill Church's operations and ministries, as a pastor. On this episode, Matt and Joey reflect on Christianity Today’s The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill Podcast, including guesswork on Driscoll’s heart, ("that only God can judge") mental state and marriage.  Reflecting on the story of Mars Hill, Matt is left with a faith unshaken but a complete distrust of the competitive-driven, consumer-minded, charismatically-led model of church-planting and that model of church in general.    We discuss here the power of charisma, “spiritual narcissism,” and whether things are different at  Driscoll’s new church in Phoenix.  There’s also some “Driscoll Myths” debunked, including Mark’s “they’re out to get me” narrative of the "divorce."   We also ask Matt if he was personally intimidated by Mark and whether he currently has empathy for him.  At

What a roller coaster ride, “riding through” purity culture as a guy.  I can’t imagine the beautiful world of being a teen and accepting (even embracing) sexuality (and all the feelings) as a gift to be celebrated; instead we were taught shame and guilt about one of the most natural and beautiful gifts there are.  – Joey (host)Purity culture affected the guys here in various ways.  Lots of “sexually impaired marriages” and one even attributes the beginning of his drug addiction to the horrors of purity culture.  And yes, we talk about real “horrors” available for every guy entering into the unforgiving (literally) world of purity culture.  Parents, listen here to the perspective of Hayne’s parents who encouraged healthy ways of sexual release (i.e. masturbulatory occasions) once he hit the age of fourteen.  As far as sex in general, theologically have Christians added rules to sexuality, that never existed in the bible?  Lots of questions here, but the truth be told,  if evangelical purity culture’s standards

What if in the "Genesis 1 beginning," things had already began?  What if the infamous, "In the Beginning" beginning, happens to be about  one small area, guarded by an angel (Garden of Eden).  S. Joshua Swamidass, MD, PhD,  author of The Genealogical Adam and Eve: The Surprising Science of Universal Ancestry, challenges widely-held presuppositions held about the Genesis creation story and has put his tenure on the line for being forthright with the role that his faith plays in how he sees the world.  In this episode he talks how a plain reading of Genesis  can still be supported by science.  Oh yeah, and he believes in evolution.  But according to Dr. Swamidass, humans still lack amazement for the good stuff.  How are we not more fascinated by existence in general?  Or the existence of consciousness?  He demonstrates well the ability to maintain what most of his atheist colleagues would call "good science" while still being a self-proclaimed, "Christian first, scientist seco

[Episode is Rated R and contains offensive language, including slang for female body parts.  Last thing we desire is for folks to be uncomfortable, triggered or offended.  Please proceed with caution]Co-hosts Ryan Amick and Ellen Mauro discuss some new territory on a common theme we have on this show: PC Culture. Why is Ryan (a white, straight male) sad about not being able to say certain words?  Ellen expresses skepticism for Ryan and Joey's fear of being cancelled and wonders what that would even look like for two guys who aren’t really famous.  Along the way, Joey thinks he found a “female counterpart” for the word “dick,” and don’t worry, it’s not the “p-word.”  Could humans be more forgiving with people's words?   Is it a thing of the past to have public, "non-cancelling" spaces for those who are genuinely ignorant but open to learning?   Or what about those who truly make a mistake but have sincere regret?  We discuss all this and end on the sad note of how Bill Cosby broke our damn

We've heard the stories, we've seen their signs, our jaws have dropped, our stomachs have turned. Why do they do what they do? How do they reconcile their actions with the teachings of Jesus? How do they claim to practice love? Back in August of 2020, Jack Hoey III and Joey talked to the leader of Westboro Baptist, Tim Phelps.   You can listen to that episode here (part 1).  This time around, we challenge some different practices of Westboro, including their clear “double-standard” use of scripture.  Jack  amongst other things, suggests that the folks at Westboro would greatly benefit from  approaching the bible with more humility.   Tim amongst other things, points at what he'd call clear doctrinal instructions in the bible that guide the day to day of his organization.  Joey is accompanied this time by Jack Hoey (the father) who is closer in age to Tim and quite likely as studied in scripture.  Unfortunately a bit of the same result, as far as finding substantial common ground but that wasn&a

[Evangelicals, on this episode, we aren’t laughing at you.  The guest is too nice to do this and I’d be too much a hypocrite]We released Eastern Orthodox Part 1 with former "rock stars (Luxury) gone Orthodox Priests" because I had no idea what the heck it meant to be orthodox and had to know.  Little did I know, the episode would influence my brother (former co-host and current producer of this show) to fully convert to the best paradigm of faith he’s ever worshipped in, perfectly suited to how he’s wired up.  He’s all in, I’m happy for him.   -- Joey But there’s more to the story.  The Orthodox church is THE REAL church?  My brother claims there’s one true church and the implications would say that most of us aren’t in it.  Father Josiah Trenham Ph.d, comes on to discuss this very question.  He also explains the importance of church buildings, “the invisible church doctrine” of evangelicals, how the functionality evangelicals ascribe to the “sinner’s prayer” is heresy, how Pentecostals aren’t Pente

[Not a "christian" or "non-christian" conversation,"  nor a conversation revolving around my personal sexual ethics. Okay, now with that out of way -- Joey}God gives graciously.  Can this be seen any clearer in the sophisticated way humans are able to experience pleasure within one's very anatomy?   And just like most other things, humans have managed to screw (no pun intended) this up also.   Erica Smith, sex educator of 20 years, speaker, writer, consultant (including online one-on-one's) and creator of Purity Culture Drop Out comes on to talk all things sex, some advice and insight for all.  This episode covers a variety of topics surrounding human sexuality, including the benefits of regular masturbation for men and women; and the conundrum between valuing feminine freedom and power, while hating their objectification.  Is it a bummer to be asexual?  Would it be helpful for people to expand the definition of what sex is?  Are some people wired incompatible with monogamy?

Professor at Duke, best-selling author, podcast host of Everything Happens Podcast, is a self-identified “incurable optimist" who is very candid in her dealings with personal life-altering pain and how God fits into (or does not fit into) the equation.  As she shares her story, listeners can acquire new lenses for how they see and process pain, suffering and God.  For example, what if sufferers can benefit from relinquishing the desire to find “a deeper reason” for their suffering?  The discussion also gets into some theology, especially concerning the inconceivable perceptions of God that most Christians share when it comes to salvation, mercy and love.  At top of episode, Robbie Madison, Hayne Griffen, and Joey talk Cobra Kai’s beautiful inappropriateness, Robbie gets mushy talking about Joey as a pastor, and there’s a little crying by all as the hosts discuss some experiences with grief, the stupid things that overly spiritual people say to those who suffer, and why grace can still be given.   And why

At top of the episode, Joey’s pastor Josh Surratt joins to talk about big church buildings, whether he’s comfortable with Joey’s different approaches to Christian faith, if he’d like to be a celebrity pastor and if there's anything he dislikes about the church he leads.   Within white evangelical church cultures, many black people have  found their voices and convictions unvalued.  It's a very ugly truth but many white, evangelical churches embrace black membership and even love “the look” of having black leadership.  But once black leaders use their God-given leadership and insight to influence – or at the very least – to share their hearts with white people, it’s viewed as "stepping out of line," even sinful.  Dante Stewart, former defensive back of God’s favorite college football team, Clemson Tigers, wrote a book called “Shoutin’ in the Fire: An American Epistle;  in which he shares his reasons for permanently leaving white evangelicalism, why it’s not his job to help white people chan

Author and Theologian, Sharon Putt (formerly Sharon Baker), Chip Judd and host, Joey Svendsen all have similar spiritual upbringings but Sharon and Joey believe in a Christ-centered universal salvation.  It’s one thing to reject this belief, another thing for a Christian to say the bible doesn’t support it.  One's view of scripture  may "clearly say anything" he think it says, but what is his view about the (seemingly clear) passages that discus humanity and all of earth being redeemed.  We discuss God and love, in context of the afterlife; and whether there had to be an adversary  for us to be able to truly love and chose God.  Joey pushes back on the very common and sensible objection of  “you’re defining God and love by your own standards.”  Both Sharon and Chip are very biblically studied and Chip has never considered Jesus saving everyone.   Sharon Putt (formerly Baker) / Info / Razing Hell bookChip Judd / Website / InstagramJoin us as a Patron!Join our mailing list to keep up with everyth

I had no idea the direction my home state was heading in.  Our government is making some adjustments to their “capital punishment policies,” which includes (yes, you read right) a firing squad.  We talk about this while Shane shares the correlation between capital punishment and slavery.  According to Shane, this issue can’t be separated by race.  We talk the theological and moral implications of all this and dispel of some assumptions held by more conservatively-wired folks. Shane Claiborne / Website / Twitter / MinistryJoin us as a Patron!Join our mailing list to keep up with everything.Tip any amount $ to Venmo for a PWNA Sticker.Joey/PWNA Instagram and TwitterCurrent DonorSee giving opportunityJoin the PWNA Discussion Facebook [email protected]  for correspondence.Theme song, courtesy of Derek MinorOther music originally composed by Joel Hamilton and Joel Hamilton + friends, and Ray Deezy. Executive Producer of PWNApod:  Jared Svendsen Subscribe here to keep up with all things "Pastor With N