Your Faith Isn't Broken - Brian McLaren at Restore

For this week’s episode, we’re sharing one more talk with you from our Restore gathering in 2022. This was one of our absolute favorite sessions, and it was the final presentation, right at the end on Saturday afternoon. We were privileged to hear from Brian McLaren, who shared his simple and incredibly resonant framework for faith development. It’s one that we’ve referenced before on this podcast, and we think you’ll love hearing Brian teach it. Brian does a beautiful job emphasizing that the point isn’t to get everyone to a particular “stage” of faith - rather, it’s creating a Church and a community where each stage is welcome and included.
First, you’ll hear Brian give his presentation, and afterward, Tim and Aubrey sit down for a live Q&A with him. We think Brian brought really key insights to both parts of this session. When we listened back, there was so much there that we hadn’t fully absorbed, and even if you were with us at Restore last year, we think this one’s really worth a listen.
For those of you who haven’t heard Brian from before, he’s a bestselling author, speaker, and public theologian. A former college English teacher and pastor, he is a passionate advocate for a Christianity that is just, generous, and works with people of all faiths for the common good. He is a core faculty member of The Living School and podcaster with Learning How to See, which are part of the Center for Action and Contemplation. His newest books are Faith After Doubt, released in 2021, and Do I Stay Christian?, which was released in 2022.

[@markb4595]

One of the most relatable messages i have ever heard. Looking to explore stage 4....

[@Gurney200actor]

Faith Matters is the most thoughtful, faith expanding podcast on the air. Thank you.

[@markchristiansen9611]

Mclaren's 4 stages of faith model has been life-changing for me. I heard about it on this podcast.

[@TheSocstar]

🤯. The more I know the more I realiize I don't know very much. But also, it makes me want to know more. It's not what I know that I don't know that holds me back. It's the things that I don't even know that I don't know it. Be humble. Love and appreciate others for who they are. What people do and who they are, are completely different things. A person is not thir decisions. Just like a person has a foot, but they are not their foot. We can separate things we may not like or agree with and still love and respect the person.

[@joshua_sykes]

“Contemplation is being open to all of the reality we can stand.”
🤲
- Richard Rohr,
quoted by Brian McLaren 35:47

[@FatFenderGarage]

Great insight. I love to hear truth

[@joshua_sykes]

“All I know is that life is a gift and that love is the point.” 21:47
🎁 • 🤟
- Brian McLaren’s mega-church-pastor-friend

[@Divineheart7]

Loved and disliked his book Faith After Doubt. Disliked it because it brought to light why I am struggling, or even that I was struggling. 😂
Loved it because it gave me hope that there is a future beyond my doubt. All thanks to Faith Matters for introducing me to Brain McLauen. ❤

[@christopherbazemore8972]

Thanks Brian for once again bringing us into the future we have a long way to go but we can do it the United States still have a dualistic perspective about life mini souls are looking for a spiritual practice I also must add that until we begin to understand a multicultural perspective as you see on your stage you will only have a certain kind of a person speaking we're not reflecting the practice inclusivism we are now ready to begin to talk across the lines in spirituality about the struggle The Dark Night of the Soul we're also able to talk about what the faith developmental stages have not talked about and that is the undergirding underlined racism in the United States holistic Faith movement moments you have a pure understanding of the stages and where we need to go I would like to see now in your practice with you people of color

[@ralphstarling6707]

Beautiful!!!