9. A Deep Skeptic & Also a Pastor: Jeremy Steele (United Methodist)

How to Not Suck as a Christian — with Jeremy Steele

Alexis is joined by Jeremy Steele — bestselling author, viral TikTok creator, and United Methodist pastor known for radical honesty and spiritual skepticism. Jeremy’s online community, NotChurch, is a safe harbor for agnostics, mystics, post-evangelicals, and anyone who’s done with fear-based faith but still seeking connection, meaning, and a purpose bigger than themselves.

Jeremy shares how he navigates doubt and faith as a pastor, why “deconstruction” shouldn’t be a dirty word, and what happens when we tell the truth about our doubts, spiritual wounds, and longing for a better way to be Christian. They dig into the legacy of apologetics, the damage of certainty culture, how church and brain science shape faith, and what the Book of Revelation is (and isn’t) really about.

This episode is for anyone who’s wrestled with faith, been told they don’t belong, or just wants a little more grace for themselves—and everyone else.

💡 Key Takeaways

• Doubt isn’t failure; it’s honest faith.
• Christianity has always held many voices—don’t settle for a single story.
• Academic consensus in biblical scholarship matters—don’t just trust the loudest voice.
• Healthy spiritual community heals what harmful church can’t.
• The Bible wasn’t meant to be a weapon.
• Revelation is not a rapture manual!
• You are allowed to question, grieve, and begin again.

⛪ About Our Guest
Jeremy Steele- https://jeremy-steele.com/
Instagram & TikTok: @skeptic.pastor
NotChurch
Author of How to Not Suck as a Christian (the audiobook that he reads is so good)

📚 Resources Mentioned

• How to Not Suck as a Christian by Jeremy Steele: https://www.amazon.com/How-Not-Suck-as-Christian/dp/1964252334
• NotChurch Community
• Society for Biblical Literature: https://www.sbl-site.org/
• SBL Study Bible: https://www.augsburgfortress.org/store/product/9781506492248/Society-of-Biblical-Literature-Study-Bible
• Data Over Dogma Podcast (Dan McClellan & Dan Beecher): https://www.youtube.com/@dataoverdogma
• Pete Enns- Bible Scholar: https://thebiblefornormalpeople.com/about-pete-enns/
  Instagram: @peteenns, @thebiblefornormalpeople
  TikTok: @ptrnns
• Dan McClellan- Bible Scholar
   TikTok & Instagram: @maklelan
• Theology Beer Camp with Tripp Fuller: https://theologybeer.camp/
• United Methodist Church: https://www.umc.org/en/

🌿 Community Guidelines 🌿
If we claim to follow Jesus, let us strive to be known by our love—not by what we say, wear, or perform, but by the fruit of the Spirit:
❤️ love, 💫 joy, ☮️ peace, 🕊 patience, 💝 kindness, 🌿 goodness, 🙏 faithfulness, 🤲 gentleness, 💪 self-control.

🕊️ Let this space, and all spaces we’re part of, be shaped by it.

Go in peace, friends. May your questions become the doorway to deeper faith. May you find comfort even in the not-knowing, and may you remember: God’s love was never something you had to earn.

Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground.
For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity, exploring its many expressions.

🔗 Explore episodes & community: linktr.ee/TheSacredSlope
🎙️ Hosted by Alexis Rice
🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence
📬 Nominate a guest: [e-mail]