Welcome to Litsy!

Listened to Heretic on audio while taking walks over the last week often finding myself at a cafe to scribble in my journal & gather my thoughts as much of this hit very close to home coming from a similar background and subsequently leaving the evangelical church when I was in my early thirties. It's a lot to unpack; even a decade later, I still find myself unpacking more and more. I appreciated hearing someone else's experience and perspective.

I don't really like reading memoirs but I was interested in Kadlec's story of growing up in the evangelical church/culture and then leaving church in her 20s. I grew up in a fundamental church, so there was a lot that I could relate to. Mostly I found the discussion of religion interesting but not some of the other parts as much.

Great book, both as memoir and as cultural analysis/brief history of the impacts of White Evangelicalism. While most specifics of Kadlec's story weren‘t relatable to me, many of her thoughts and emotions were (one part made me cry! 😢). Some details (esp. around her marriage) felt overshared, but it's her story, so 🤷‍♀️. Excellent narration by Xe Sands. And I loved the writing - punchy and irreverent + an obviously ex-academic flair.

I feel bad when people lose touch with the church because they feel unwelcome or that they can‘t be themselves. Kadlec was raised in a cult-like evangelical church. She married young, and it was terrible for her. When she later came out as lesbian, many shunned her. This memoir in essays delves deep into Biblical scholarship and interpretation as well as her personal story.

FYI I grew up (and still attend) a liberal, social justice church.