Season 5 | Episode 87: The Necessity of Accountability with Tiffany Bluhm

Upside Down Podcast

“Silence is not spiritual, and action is not optional.” Author, speaker, and podcast host Tiffany Bluhm talks with host Patricia Taylor about accountability and abuse—particularly in faith spaces—and the hard questions we must ask.

TW: This episode covers spiritual abuse, though it does not go into specific details. Still, we want to allow listeners whose stories may include abuse to be aware of what’s coming.

In this episode, we:

• Discuss Tiffany’s latest book, Prey Tell: Why We Silence Women Who Tell the Truth and How Everyone Can Speak Up
• Talk about how women are expected to “play by the rules” set by culture, society, and the church
• Cover the gaslighting that happens when speaking truth, the weaponization of scripture, and the insulation of men in power
• Ask why abuse happens so often in faith spaces and what elements allow for this
• Consider how many of us don’t want to believe that we can offer our trust to an untrustworthy leader, leading to silence and complicity
• Discuss the systemic nature of abuse, what it takes to dismantle those systems, and the cost of speaking up and speaking out
• Talk about how Jesus addressed the powerful and their abuse of authority while leveling hierarchies and ushering in equity

Join us for this discussion about taking an honest look at abuse and what it takes to pursue love as justice. We invite you to lean into the liberating and healing ways of Jesus as we expand and challenge the familiar if it’s not leading us closer to love.

News, Notes, and Links:

• Check out Tiffany’s website and follow her on Instagram.
• Have you grabbed your copy of “Prey Tell” yet? Find it here!
• This post about spiritual abuse from Reclaiming My Theology.
• An encouragement from K.J. Ramsey, as well as this wisdom.
• Support more conversations like this on Upside Down Podcast! Please visit us, where you can pledge a few dollars of monthly support to help us pay our bills and keep the conversations going.
• Learn more at Upside Down Podcast.
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