Reading the Bible as a Survivor [313]
Flying Free
Natalie Hoffman
5 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 4 February 2025
⏱️ 58 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this thought-provoking episode of the Flying Free Podcast, I sit down with author and essayist Liz Charlotte Grant to explore the complexities of faith, scripture, and healing after spiritual trauma. Liz’s debut book, Knock at the Sky, delves into the questions many of us grapple with during deconstruction and offers an artistic, fresh approach to reading the Bible.
If you’ve ever felt disillusioned by literal interpretations of scripture or struggled to reconcile the Bible with the harm inflicted by its misuse, this episode is for you.
Key Takeaways:
- Faith as a Journey, Not a Destination
- Liz encourages listeners to embrace uncertainty and approach the Bible with curiosity rather than fear.
- Faith isn't about having all the answers; it's about walking into the unknown with Jesus as your anchor.
- Permission to Wrestle and Question
- Deconstruction doesn’t signal a loss of faith but rather an act of trust. Asking questions shows a desire for authenticity in our relationship with God.
- Survivor-Centric Bible Reading
- Survivors of spiritual abuse can reclaim agency by approaching scripture in ways that feel safe and healing. It’s okay to prioritize certain passages while setting others aside.
- Diverse Perspectives Enrich Understanding
- Liz emphasizes the value of exploring interpretations from scholars across cultures and disciplines to deepen our understanding of scripture.
Read the show notes and/or ask Natalie a question here
Related Resources:
- Liz Charlotte Grant’s book: Knock at the Sky: Seeking God in Genesis After Losing Faith in the Bible
- Liz Charlotte’s website: lizcharlottegrant.com
- Follow Liz Charlotte on Instagram
- Recommended episodes: Episode 283, “A Closer Look at Spiritual Abuse,” and Episode 291, “The Deconstruction Books That Have Changed and Healed My Relationship with God.”
Liz Charlotte Grant is an award-winning essayist whose first book, Knock at the Sky: Seeking God in Genesis After Losing Faith in the Bible, released in January 2025. She explores a wide range of ideas in her writing, including exploring the heartbreak of Elisabeth Elliot's third marriage, her own surprise disability, and the discovery of dark matter.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi, this is Natalie Hoffman of Flying FreeNow.com, and you're listening to the Flying Free |
| 0:10.0 | Podcast, a support resource for women of faith looking for hope and healing from hidden |
| 0:16.4 | emotional and spiritual abuse. |
| 0:26.7 | Welcome to episode 313 of the Flying Free Podcast. |
| 0:31.5 | Today we have with us author Liz Charlotte Grant. |
| 0:40.4 | She is an award-winning essayist whose first book was just released in January. Her book is called Knock at the sky and it answers questions that many of our listeners who have been in the process of |
| 0:45.4 | deconstruction might be asking. So questions like, what if I don't believe in the literal |
| 0:51.8 | interpretations of the Bible that I was taught as a child anymore. |
| 0:55.5 | How do I read the Bible with fresh eyes? Is the Bible still sacred even though it was used to |
| 1:03.0 | abuse me and or others I love? And what does Bible study look like once I discover that there were errors and discrepancies |
| 1:12.8 | in the versions that I've grown up with? So if you are someone like me who grew up reading |
| 1:18.1 | the Bible every year, going to Bible school, doing dozens of Bible studies, and reading |
| 1:23.8 | hundreds of books about the Bible, and you're questioning some of the things that you |
| 1:29.2 | just bought into without thinking because it was the water that you were swimming in at the time. |
| 1:34.7 | And if you wish that you could find a new way of relating to and studying and loving the Bible again, |
| 1:42.9 | then you are going to appreciate our conversation with |
| 1:46.0 | Liz today. So Liz, I just want to warmly welcome you to the Flying Free Podcast. |
| 1:51.6 | Thank you, Natalie. It's so fun to be here with you. So I think we should start with just so that |
| 1:56.9 | our listeners can get to know you. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how your |
| 2:01.9 | own personal faith journey has informed how you now read the Bible? Sure. So I live in Denver, |
| 2:09.9 | Colorado, actually outside of Denver, with my husband. We've been married for 14 years, going on 15. Okay. That's a good stint. It's a good stint. |
| 2:23.5 | Yeah. Long enough to fight about everything, but still work through it. Nice. Nice. So we're big |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Natalie Hoffman, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Natalie Hoffman and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.