Heart and Soul: Losing my religion
The Documentary Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 2.7K Ratings
🗓️ 7 June 2024
⏱️ 26 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
'Spiritual but not religious’ is the fastest growing faith category amongst Gen Z and Millennials around the world. However, in Nigeria, where most people identify as either Christian or Muslim, questioning doctrine or exploring alternative beliefs is still often seen as taboo. Kamsy and Ore were both raised in evangelical Christian households, but began questioning their faith in their early 20s. Separately, they began reading about other belief systems, such as Judaism, Buddhism and traditional African religions, and posting their thoughts and experiences on social media. Neither were prepared for the backlash they received. When the two of them finally connected, they bonded over how lonely their ‘deconstruction’ journeys had been. So they created a WhatsApp group for others like them. Today, The Table defines itself as a community for the irreligious yet spiritual, and aims to provide a space for connection and discussion free from the dogma.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello my name is Ore and this is your official welcome to the table. This is a safe space for people for whom religion provides no |
| 0:16.4 | satisfactory answers, those for whom cathedrals and stained glass windows and |
| 0:21.9 | assemblies in event halls hold no space anymore. |
| 0:25.0 | Hi everyone, my, I've joined because I guess I've always been very up and down with my Christian |
| 0:35.1 | walk experiencing high highs or feeling close to God and then points of |
| 0:40.7 | disconnect and disinterest. |
| 0:43.6 | What you're hearing there are some messages from a what's up group for |
| 0:47.5 | Nigerians who are disillusioned with traditional religion. |
| 0:52.2 | For people of all faiths, there often comes a time when your beliefs are tested or |
| 0:56.0 | challenge. For some this might eventually lead them to reconnect with their faith |
| 1:00.4 | even more strongly, whereas for others it can lead to a process known as |
| 1:04.7 | deconstruction where you gradually start to pick apart everything you have |
| 1:08.9 | previously believed or been taught. I grew up in a very religious environment but stopped |
| 1:16.9 | identifying as Christian in 2019. Looking back now a lot of things contributed to that, but one major one was dealing with depression. |
| 1:28.0 | It often felt like my depression was not welcome in church. |
| 1:32.0 | But what happens if you're deconstructing an attorney? was not welcome in church. |
| 1:38.0 | But what happens if you're deconstructing in a society or community that is highly religious and we're asking such questions is frowned upon? |
| 1:42.0 | Hi, it's my pleasure to meet everyone. |
| 1:45.0 | I've been deconstructing for a while now. |
| 1:48.0 | About a year and a half and truth be told, I'm tired and exhausted. I'm Jessica Bateman and you're listening to |
| 1:56.7 | the documentary from the BBC World Service in this episode of Heart and Soul |
| 2:01.0 | which explores personal approaches to spirituality from around the world. |
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