Religion

Anita is a sucker for live storytelling, so when she and the Embodied team planned their first in-person event, they knew the vibe they were going for. They invited five people to stand on stage in front of a live audience and explore how purity culture has shaped their faith, relationships and sexuality. In part two, you'll meet a poet and a producer who're questioning what purity culture taught them about sexual identity and masculinity.

In October of 2022, hundreds of listeners gathered in the pews of the Hayti Heritage Center for Embodied’s first in-person event: an evening of storytelling about life beyond evangelical purity culture. Produced in partnership with The Monti, Purified Live featured five storytellers, each with a distinct perspective on the lasting impact of the abstinence pledge and the experience of reclaiming their bodies and sexuality. This episode of Embodied features the five stories from that evening, now adapted for radio.

Anita met Embodied listeners IRL for the first time earlier this year at the show's first in-person event "Purified." The evening was part late night talk show and part live storytelling. With music DJ-ed by Quilla to set the tone, five people shared their unique experiences with purity culture on stage in front of a live audience. In part one, you'll meet a social worker, preacher and faith leader who take you from church camp to the pews.

"It’s good when people reject you because they understand clearly who you are," said Pastor Mike Usey of College Park Baptist Church.

The Southern Baptists' Executive Committee has voted effectively to cut ties with two congregations. One is an LGBTQ-friendly church, College Park Baptist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina, that had itself quit the denomination decades ago.

When you’ve spent your whole life immersed in a religion, what happens when you begin to question the tenets of your faith?

Anita grew up betwixt and between two religious communities and never felt like she fully belonged to either. The upside? She had a lot of room to figure things out on her own. She talks with two people who didn't find that freedom until they left their conservative religions. They tell her about extracting themselves from tight-knit religious communities and reconnecting with their sexuality and identity on their own terms.

Students will learn strategies to prevent and respond to sexual abuse through a mandatory course.

In response to an explosive investigation, a list has been released of hundreds of pastors and other church-affiliated personnel accused of abuse. The cases largely span from 2000-2019.

Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention said they will release a secret list of hundreds of pastors and other church-affiliated personnel accused of sexual abuse.