S4: From Obedient, Christian Girl to Independent Adult: Meet Charis

In this episode, Charis describes her childhood in a high-control, Bible-based cult with gentle humor and candor. Her father, a minister and narcissist, and her mother, a home-maker with a “subversive” streak, who dared to allow Harry Potter books into their home, raised three children in the group. Charis describes her journey from obedient, Christian girl on the path to marriage and motherhood, to independent young woman realizing she’d been brought up on the fallacy that marriage and motherhood were her only choices.  When her marriage plans end abruptly, she realizes that “doing all the right things” does not lead to the fairy tale ending promised by the church community. When the same community isolates her after the breakup, she turns to new friends outside the church and they give her the language, environment and social support to leave and claim her authentic life. Charis discusses her now deceased mother who also left the church but faces tragedy within a year of her exit. Hear how this loss catalyzes Charis to build a new life, based on her authentic beliefs, morals and principles, leaving behind black and white rigidity and control for multi-hued horizons. 

You can listen to Charis and her sister on their podcast: Adventures in Ideology | Podcast on Spotify https://share.google/kPGfcg5YFtoS5YnQC



Trigger Warning: Due to these episodes containing stories that involve cults and other types of coercive control that may be disturbing to some, listener discretion is advised.

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Intro & outro by Jon Snow; Original Music by Esther Friedman 

Editing and production by Vanessa Hennessey

Huge thanks to Living Cult Free’s intern, Nikki Kattamuri, and the Living Cult Free Board of Directors.

Music found on Pixabay by: Alana Jordan, Anastasia Chubarova, Dilip, Folk_acoustic, Freesound_community, JefWakeUp, Juan Sanchez, Lil hex, Luis Humanoide, Nikita Kondrashev

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