Today I speak with Tom Boulton from the U.K. Tom's Christian faith grew in his teenage years amongst friends. His dad thought Tom was in a cult. Tom experienced intense anxiety at the thought of friends and family going to hell. His faith is all-consuming. He said that 18 year old Christian Tom wouldn't recognize 23 year old Christian Tom. His unde…

Ryan is a former evangelical homeschooler who enjoyed life and understanding the world so much that he eventually outgrew the religion of his upbringing. He now works in the tech manufacturing field in Austin TX and enjoys group meditation, talking about philosophy and history, and playing both sports and music. Today, Ryan calls himself atheist or…

Christianity ruins their childhood. They were born into a Catholic family and went to church every Saturday. They became aware they were non-binary at 6 years old, realizing they didn't want to be a girl. Their parents were caring and the type of people that you wish Christians were. Despite a loving home environment, this didn't prevent a childhoo…

* Trigger Warning: Discussions of abuse and rape* Christa Elane is a self described "old Millennial" who has been deconverting for years and now leans atheist. She lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her spouse and kids. She's a social worker and disability advocate with a passion for Autism acceptance and inclusion. She was raised in a s…

My guest today grew up never knowing any other perspective, except the one he was told to have. His family did not attend events outside of church. He spent preschool through 12th grade at the same private school and church. His friendships were strictly controlled. Girlfriends or "crushes" were prohibited. Every potential influence was censored. H…

Amanda was a devout Catholic. She used to attend mass daily. She and her husband didn't use birth control, in accordance with church teaching. She accidentally joins a cult at university. The 2016 and 2020 U.S. elections get her thinking about propaganda. She wonders what propaganda she believes. She hears a Bible verse that says, " You will know t…

Chelsy's been instructing English as a Second Language (ESL) for 20 years. She's been a full time lecturer at Purdue University since 2014. Currently she's working on her second Master's degree about the experiences of lesbian ex-members of Campus Crusade for Christ. She was raised in a Christian home, but an experience during the summer of her Fre…

Today I speak with Abby. She was adopted from South Korea with her little sister by Christian American Parents. Her early life was marked by abuse and neglect. She was raised in a non-denominational Christian family. Demons and hell cause her nightmares as a child. She makes big life decisions based on her faith. She later has to tell her Christian…

April grew up under a lot of parental pressure and expectations. Purity culture had a strong influence on her. *Trigger Warning*: We discuss an abusive relationship, mental health & suicide in the episode. When an abusive relationship ends, April begins to question how this is handled within a Christian context. April poses the questions: What happ…

Pastor & Musician who leads worship at his church. This father and husband has only come out as agnostic to a few people. He is using a fake name in today's interview. He's a great guy and has a touching story about the costs we have to consider when leaving a Christian career.By Steve Hilliker of Voices of Deconversion interviews an Agnostic Pastor and Worship Leader

Tiffany has so many great insights regarding the impact of Christianity on mental health. I really enjoyed my chat with her! Learn more about Tiffany: http://www.tiffanicappello.com/By Steve Hilliker interviews Tiffany Cappello on Voices of Deconversion

Today I speak with Ronna Russell, author of "The Uncomfortable Confessions of a Preacher's Kid". Ronna describes her story as "a childhood controlled by the brutal hand of a narcissistic, closeted homosexual. I believed I could leave my upbringing behind and walk away unscathed. I married a closeted homosexual man, in hopes he could keep me safe. A…

Today is a very special episode about an ex-Muslim's deconversion to atheism, while living in Iran. His story is so important to share! He grew up in Iran in a Shia Muslim family. He was a devout Muslim until he got curious about Salman Rushdie's book, The Satanic Verses. His curiosity leads him to banned anti-islam websites. He reads articles and …

Jordan grew up going to church every Sunday with his family. He went to Bible studies and lived a typical Christian life. When he was junior high age, his family stopped attending church regularly. As Jordan grew older, he struggled balancing his church friendships along with his non-church friendships. He didn't want to live a double life. His fai…

Gidday Listeners! My first guest from Australian shares his fascinating journey out of Christianity. He was raised in a typical Methodist Christian home in a small Township in Australia. His dad was a brickmaker and his mother a homemaker. He was raised going to Sunday school. His dad attended prayer groups during the week and his mom went to women…

*UPDATE-Matt Recently Became Christian Again. A few months after we recorded this interview, Matt became Christian again. I'm leaving the interview up, but wanted listeners to know in case they were to reach out to Matt. ----------------------- Matt was born in Wichita, Kansas and lived there until about age 7. He was raised non-denominational/char…

URGENT: If you live in Wisconsin please contact your state representative to express support for the Clergy Mandatory Reporter Act & the Child Victims Act. These bills are being considered right now. If your representative is Republican, it's even more important. Republican support is low for these bills, but is critical. Anything you can do is ver…

You have to hear this story! He's always wanted to help people. When he became a strong Christian, it was saving people from the lake of fire. If Hell was real, Wiley was compelled to do everything in his power to save people from it. He would stand outside ATMs on busy Friday nights preaching to people. He was attracted to an aggressive form of Ch…

Amanda is realistic about life's difficulties, but also very hopeful. She wears her heart on her sleeve and hopes her story will help others going through similar challenges. I loved her wise words about living with mental illness and how, although better off today, she still has ups and downs. She's a kindhearted person with a great sense of humor…

I don't think I've met anyone who was as committed a Christian at such a young age as Jeremy. He understood his faith so well as a 7 year old that his friends at daycare wanted him to debate an adult atheist! At home he was telling his father he wanted to preach. By 10 years of age he was giving altar calls. This was a child who loved the Bible and…

Dave was recently diagnosed with ALS and has been given 2 to 5 years to live. He has been going around the country and on podcasts speaking about his experience. Today Dave joins me to share what his life focus has been since the diagnosis. How Christian friends and secular friends respond to Dave's news has been very different. I found this really…

What a great conversation! Dana brings such wonderful insight into her life experiences. It was a pleasure hearing her fascinating story. We discuss some difficult, but important topics today. Child abuse, mental illness, substance abuse, abusive relationships and the fixation on sex by male church authorities. Dana was raised in a evangelical bapt…

I was so impressed with Misty's kindness, strength and perspective. At 4 years old Misty gets a virus, which leads to a social anxiety disorder called Selective Mutism. This prevents Misty from being able to speak. She is only able to speak with her parents and brother, but not her older sisters. Misty copes with this through most of childhood. She…

A truly touching and inspiring story. Christianity was everything for Timoree. It helped her with sobriety, mental illness and was a source of comfort. You can imagine that when faith begins to fracture, how unsettling and scary it was for her. The most important things in her life were at stake. Somehow, she still found the courage to face this ch…

Janice was an all-or-nothing kind of Christian. Her life takes a turn toward fundamentalism when her husband is going to school to be a pastor. She chooses to show her submission to her husband by wearing a head covering and not wearing jewelry or make-up. She went through some tremendously difficult experiences: Her daughter's illness, difficultie…