Bare Marriage
Tired of Christian pat answers about marriage? The podcast that goes in-depth into marriage, parenting, and even sex--to see how we can live the passionate life we were meant for. Paired with Bare Marriage--the blog!
Episodes
345 episodes
Episode 328: The Billy Graham Rule and What It Does to Men Too
What if the “Billy Graham rule” (or the evangelical distortion of it) says more about fear than integrity? In this episode, Danielle Strickland helps us unpack the assumptions behind the idea that men and women can’t be alone together—and ask w...
Episode 327: For Men Only by Shaunti and Jeff Feldhahn Talks Lust and Sex
Welcome to Part 2 of our breakdown of For Men Only! This episode dives headfirst into the sex chapter — and quickly exposes how shaky stats and selective storytelling create misleading narratives about libido and desire. We examine why women’s ...
Episode 326: The Problems with For Men Only by Jeff & Shaunti Feldhahn
In this episode, we dive into For Men Only, by Shaunti & Jeff Feldhahn, and let’s just say…we have many thoughts! We unpack some of its core claims about gender dynamics, communication, and emotional needs. Rebecca shares how this ...
Episode 325: I Belong to Me with Tia Levings
Tia Levings is back, and this time she's brought the book so many of you have been waiting for — I Belong to Me, a survivor's guide to recovery and hope after religious trauma, and the follow-up to her memoir A Well-Trained Wife
Episode 324: Who Bears the Emotional Labor and Mental Load for Sex?
Who's carrying the mental and emotional load when it comes to sex? Today Keith and I are breaking down all the ways evangelical marriage culture places that burden almost entirely on women: from appearance standards and contraception to perform...
Episode 323: A Step-By-Step Guide to Vetting a Church's Website to See if They're Heathy!
Finding a healthy church after being hurt is hard — especially when toxic churches have learned to hide what they really believe. This week, Rebecca and I walk you through our evidence-based, step-by-step method for evaluating a church's websit...
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Episode 322: Why Is Every Man's Battle So Creepy? A Harrowing Example
A close look at how Every Man’s Battle ignores the impact of predation on women and girls–and is just plain creepy! Plus a new study on hostile/benevolent sexism when it comes to tradwife content. It’s our podcast and Friday RoundUp in one!...
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Episode 321: New Research into Modesty Messaging, Sexual Harassment in Church, Plus We Answer Your Questions!
Keith and Rebecca are taking over the podcast this week and are answering your questions — from how to find a healthy church community to whether complementarianism is a dealbreaker. They're refreshingly honest and a little funny about it. Then...
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Episode 320: Let’s Talk Adult ADHD and GENDER ROLES!
What does it mean to have realistic expectations of a spouse with ADHD? How does gender play into how ADHD impacts a relationship? And what do accommodations actually look like—versus what do they not look like in a healthy marriage?
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Episode 319: Did Purity Culture Cause Developmental Trauma--and Kill Libido?
What if the reason so many women struggle with desire, arousal, and orgasm has nothing to do with their bodies—and everything to do with what they were taught before they even wanted to be sexual? In this episode, Rebecca and I pull together re...
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Episode 318: You're Allowed to Want Stuff! Talking Desire with Jay Stringer
Jay Stringer, licensed therapist and author of Unwanted, is back to talk about his brand new book Desire: The Longings Inside Us and the New Science of How We Love, Heal, and Grow. Together, we unpack why so many of us — espec...
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Episode 317: Famished--How Purity Culture Taught Women to Shrink with Anna Rollins
Anna Rollins grew up as the kind of girl who took her faith seriously — and that's exactly why it hurt her so much. In this conversation, Anna and I dig into her memoir Famished: On Food, Sex, and Growing Up as a Good Girl, where she t...
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Episode 316: What Still Surprised Us Making the Love & Respect Docuseries
Rebecca, Joanna, and I are pulling back the curtain on what went into making the Love & Respect docuseries — including the things that didn't make the final cut.From the bizarre Nazi torture illustration Emerson used to keep women in...
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Bad Stats, Editing the Bible, and Recycling 1970s Ideas: A Love & Respect Deep Dive Part 2
Part two of a three-part docuseries deep dive into the best-selling evangelical marriage book Love & Respect.LOVE & RESPECT DOCUSERIES:Watch the video ...
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Happily Never After: The Curious Case of Love and Respect (Deep Dive Part 1)
Part one of a three-part docuseries deep dive into the best-selling evangelical marriage book, Love & Respect.THE LOVE & RESPECT DOCUSERIES:This is a video series, so if you want to watch it in all its glory, head o...
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Episode 313: To Heal or To Harm: Making Sense of Weaponized Bible Verses feat. Steven Tracy
Today I'm talking with Dr. Steven Tracy, author of "To Heal or Harm," about how scripture has been twisted to keep abuse victims trapped. We're diving into passages that discuss things like, "wives submit," "God hates divorce," and "a gentle an...
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Episode 312: Why The Complementarian Bar for Men is in the Basement
We're tackling three really problematic things that have happened recently with evangelical leaders that show just how low the bar has gotten for men. From Jonathan Podluka announcing he wants to sleep with multiple beautiful women, to pastors ...
Episode 311: The Misleading Tactics of Complementarianism feat. Lydia Kaiser
Today I'm talking with Lydia Grace about her incredible new book, Bible Truth About Women. Lydia grew up in the ultra-conservative IBLP circles and went to seminary to answer her own questions about what the Bible really says about women's role...
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Episode 310: Desiring God Thinks Marriage Is Like Peddling Furiously on the Back of a Tandem Bike
We're kicking off 2026 by teaching you how to think critically about Christian marriage and relationship advice! Rebecca and I walk through some really problematic articles and social media posts - from the Gospel Coalition's piece against ther...
Episode 309: Evangelicals Shouldn't Be Embarrassing: The Oklahoma Student's Essay and How Our Faith Has Changed
We're coming full circle from our podcast on right-wing authoritarianism to talk about that viral Oklahoma student essay and why Christians rallying around bad arguments makes all Christians look terrible. Then Keith and I get vulnerable about ...
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Episode 308: “We Respond to Crazy Pastor Clips” Pallooza!
Keith and I went through 10 clips from evangelical influencers and pastors that have been driving people crazy all year. We break down why Josh Howerton's claims about conservative mental health don't hold up, why blaming women for divorce is a...
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Episode 307: How the Stories of Missionary Kids Unmask the Myths of Evangelicalism (and Purity Culture!)
It's episode 307 of the Bare Marriage podcast! Holly Fletcher joins us to talk about her AMAZING new book Missionary Kids. I devoured it in one sitting. We need to listen to the stories of these kids, because they're a microcosm of white evange...
Episode 306: Thalidomide, Bad Marriage Books, and a Jesus Who Laughs
Happy American Thanksgiving! We're rerunning one of my favorite episodes from four years ago where Rebecca and I talk about what God is actually like—spoiler: He laughs and takes joy in life, not just suffers on the cross. We also dive into why...
Episode 305: All the Problems with Complementarianism in a Nutshell--And How They Try to Make it Sound Pretty
Complementarians use a lot of really nice-sounding words to describe their beliefs about gender roles, but when you actually break down what they mean, they're not talking about roles at all—they're talking about hierarchy. In this episode, Kei...
Episode 304: Francine Rivers' And the Shofar Blew Part 2: What Can We Learn from Christian Fiction?
We're diving into part two of our discussion on Francine Rivers' "And the Shofar Blew.” While Christian fiction can be inspirational, this novel reinforces dangerous theology about marriage, telling abuse victims to stay and suffer "better," po...
