A sincere moment in the deconstruction of my faith came at the end of high school when a clip of the film ‘Jesus Camp’ played at the Oscars- so many people were sickened and shocked to see the real life manipulations of evangelicalism. For me, the pit in my stomach was firmly centered around not what I saw, but what I couldn’t see. The music? The dancing? Swaying and raising hands? Praying in tongues and anointing others? Which was the part we were supposed to be upset over because all of these things were normal parts of my daily life. That seed eventually led me to the study of psychology, to training in hypnosis and an understanding of altered states and, ultimately, the dissolution of my faith. Years later I’m excited to join Amberly in an interview with Ro, a recording artist and former music minister, to better understand the sincere and not so sincere machinations of emotional manipulation and ‘well meaning’ mind control. All that and your calls of course! Catch the episode below and be sure to check back afterwards for some footNOTES!
Gospel Singer Tonex Comes Out As Gay And Changes Name
Still Processing Podcast
The Beginner– On coming out later in life
How Cult Leaders Use Music For Mind Control by Courtney E. Smith for Refinery29
The Power of Music: Mind Control by Rhythmic Sound by R. Douglas Fields for Scientific American
Music as a Catalyst for Altered States of Consciousness and Peak Experiences in the Treatment of Depression, Anxiety, and PTSD by Paul Battles
Music, perception and altered states of consciousness by Aldridge, D., Fachner, J. and Schmid, W
The Altar Call and Manipulation from Restoring Kingdom Builders
The Psychology of Altar Calls by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones for Hacking Christianity
A Study of Music: Music Psychology, Music Therapy, and Worship Music by Jessica Whittemore
Today’s Christian worship music is the new “Trance” from the Really Only Dust blog