It's the 100th Episode of Honoring the Journey today!! Leslie welcomes Beau Stringer, a former Southern Baptist preacher who transitioned to mainline Christianity. Beau shares his journey from growing up in an evangelical bubble in West Texas, serving as a youth pastor at 19, and eventually becoming a senior pastor, to questioning biblical inerrancy and evangelical theology—particularly around the violence in the Old Testament versus Jesus's command to love enemies. After wrestling with these tensions for years, he left vocational ministry briefly before finding a home in the United Methodist Church in Kansas City, where he now serves at one of the largest mainline churches in North America. Throughout the conversation, they discuss what mainline Christianity is, the importance of pastoral care over conversion agendas, the shift from fear-based faith to love-centered faith, rethinking hell and the kingdom of God, and how to lovingly engage with people still in evangelical spaces without erasing or dismissing them—emphasizing humility, questions, and staying in relationship rather than canceling those who disagree.

Find Beau on Substack at https://substack.com/@beaustringer

Honoring the Journey is hosted, produced and edited by Leslie Nease and the artwork for the show is also created by Leslie Nease.

Want to get updates/announcements and a FREE Deconstruction Journaling Prompt PDF? Sign up for Leslie's Monthly Newsletter! You can do that HERE.

Pick up Leslie's new book, Honoring the Journey: The Deconstruction of Sister Christian here.

Interested in working with Leslie as your Life/Faith Transitions Coach? Check out her website and learn more about what she offers! https://www.leslieneasecoaching.com

If you'd like to be a part of the Honoring the Journey Team on Substack, click here! You can find her work and also support her financially if you desire.

Would you like to leave a voicemail for Leslie? Click here!

If you are looking for community as you deconstruct or just a place to go and enjoy the company of people who are seekers, learners and who are looking to connect with the Divine without religious baggage, please join the Private Facebook Community! Leslie is very passionate about connection and community, so if that sounds like you, please come join us!

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Today we honor the journey of Jeremy Johnson, host of the Slutty Grace podcast, as we explore our parallel journeys of religious deconstruction. Both of us were raised in evangelical fundamentalist Christianity, and we discuss how we moved from rigid theological certainty to a more expansive, grace-centered faith. Jeremy shares his path from youth pastor to questioning core doctrines like total depravity, hell, and exclusionary salvation, catalyzed by reading Brian McLaren and experiencing diverse Christian traditions. Jeremy chats about how his childhood religious teachings shaped his self-worth, his eventual separation of faith from institutional paychecks, and his discovery that God's love might be far more generous and inclusive than he was ever taught. The conversation touches on the nature of sin, human connectedness, and the freedom found in embracing mystery and curiosity rather than doctrinal certainty.

Find Jeromy at Slutty Grace Podcast!

Honoring the Journey is hosted, produced and edited by Leslie Nease and the artwork for the show is also created by Leslie Nease.

Want to get updates/announcements and a FREE Deconstruction Journaling Prompt PDF? Sign up for Leslie's Monthly Newsletter! You can do that HERE.

Pick up Leslie's new book, Honoring the Journey: The Deconstruction of Sister Christian here.

Interested in working with Leslie as your Life/Faith Transitions Coach? Check out her website and learn more about what she offers! https://www.leslieneasecoaching.com

If you'd like to be a part of the Honoring the Journey Team on Substack, click here! You can find her work and also support her financially if you desire.

Would you like to leave a voicemail for Leslie? Click here!

If you are looking for community as you deconstruct or just a place to go and enjoy the company of people who are seekers, learners and who are looking to connect with the Divine without religious baggage, please join the Private Facebook Community! Leslie is very passionate about connection and community, so if that sounds like you, please come join us!

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This episode of Honoring the Journey is a deeply personal conversation with Justin Telthorst, who shares his journey of coming out as gay at age 25 while remaining within the Catholic Church—a path that defied the common narrative of leaving religion behind. Growing up in a conservative Catholic environment in the Midwest, Justin initially viewed his sexuality as a "cross to bear" and his secret testimony to overcome. After years of internal struggle, falling in love with a man, and experiencing profound peace in that relationship, he faced a pivotal moment: conversations with unsupportive priests led him to leave his dream job at a Catholic nonprofit and begin the painful process of coming out. Rather than abandoning his faith entirely, Justin found his way back to Catholicism after several years, choosing to stay and create welcoming spaces within the church. He now runs a Discord community for LGBTQ+ Catholics, offers one-on-one spiritual direction, and advocates for a theology centered on God's infinite mercy and love rather than rules and condemnation.

Follow Justin on Instagram.

Empty Chairs Website

Key Points of Interest:

• Justin's realization that the Catholic Church's teaching on homosexuality was based on outdated 1950s psychology, not serious theological reflection

• The profound moment of peace he felt holding hands with a man while driving through the Colorado mountains—a spiritual experience that contradicted everything he'd been taught

• His decision to return to the Catholic Church after leaving, viewing it as a place where he encounters God while maintaining spiritual autonomy

• The importance of taking deconstruction "one step at a time" rather than trying to figure out the entire future at once

• His discovery that Jesus's only commandment is to love God and neighbor—a realization that transformed his entire theological framework

• The role of online community and welcoming churches in providing support during the coming-out process

• His perspective that God's justice IS mercy, and that divine love is an "unfathomable ocean" we can't fully comprehend

Honoring the Journey is hosted, produced and edited by Leslie Nease and the artwork for the show is also created by Leslie Nease.

Want to get updates/announcements and a FREE Deconstruction Journaling Prompt PDF? Sign up for Leslie's Monthly Newsletter! You can do that HERE.

Pick up Leslie's new book, Honoring the Journey: The Deconstruction of Sister Christian here.

Interested in working with Leslie as your Life/Faith Transitions Coach? Check out her website and learn more about what she offers! https://www.leslieneasecoaching.com

If you'd like to be a part of the Honoring the Journey Team on Substack, click here! You can find her work and also support her financially if you desire.

Would you like to leave a voicemail for Leslie? Click here!

If you are looking for community as you deconstruct or just a place to go and enjoy the company of people who are seekers, learners and who are looking to connect with the Divine without religious baggage, please join the Private Facebook Community! Leslie is very passionate about connection and community, so if that sounds like you, please come join us!

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