Religion on the Mind

I'm joined by my co-host Kristen Tideman for the third installment of the Anxious Times series. We dig into Emmy van Dersen's concept of "the necessary" — the hard limits baked into existence that we can't change, only accept — and explore how resisting these limits is one of the biggest drivers of unhealthy anxiety, whether you're navigating religious deconstruction, a new diagnosis, or just being alive in a chaotic world.

In the Patron-only second half, Kristen shares the raw, emotional story of her MS diagnosis as a lived case study in running headfirst into hard limits, and we explore what it looks like to resist or deny the necessary — from anti-aging culture to political utopianism to religious change.

Highlights:


Defining "the necessary" (hard limits)


Mortality, uncertainty, embodiment as givens


Kristen's MS diagnosis and processing


Religious change and false certainty


Acceptance ≠ approval or minimizing

Anxious Times Episode Part 1⁠

⁠Anxious Times Episode Part 2

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I sit down with theologian and ethicist Dr. Jared Stacey to unpack his new book Reality in Ruins: How Conspiracy Theory Became an Evangelical Crisis, exploring what actually distinguishes a conspiracy theory from a real conspiracy — and why the answer matters more than ever in the wake of the Epstein file releases.

Jared on IG | @Jaredmstacy

Highlights: 


Psychology of conspiratorial thinking


Modernity, agency panic, capitalism


Boundary situations and anxiety


Shared reality and relationship limits


Hope for repentance and change

Other Conspiracy Theories Episodes:

#207 | Christianity & Conspiracy Theories⁠

⁠#100 | A History of Conspiracy Theories & Evangelicals⁠

#74 | Conspiracy Theories, Evangelicals, Media & More

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Join the Patreon for exclusive episodes (and more) every month: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/dankoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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We're not just individually stressed — we're living through a historic collision of crises that existential psychology has a name for. In this second episode of our Anxious Times series, Kristen Tideman and I explore why the anxiety so many of us feel right now isn't a personal failing, but an honest response to the world we've actually inherited. We explore things like:


What a "boundary situation" really is


Three overlapping crises reshaping modern life


Why shared reality is fracturing (and hurting)


The surprising upside of hitting your limits


Therapy tools for navigating the uncontrollable

Anxious Times Episode Part 1

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Or Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/DanKoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Faith deconstruction resources: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.soyouredeconstructing.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join the Patreon for exclusive episodes (and more) every month: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/dankoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email about the "sliding scale" for the Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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In this episode, I sit down with Harper’s Magazine Editor Christopher Beha to explore why neither scientific materialism nor romantic idealism fully satisfies — and what a third path might look like. We ask questions like:


Does materialism account for consciousness?


Is hard determinism therapeutically dangerous?


Can we rationally care about others?


What breaks down in "radical authenticity"?

In the Patron-only second half, we land on skeptical belief itself — and why love might be the best epistemology we have.

___________________________________________

Follow Dan on IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/dancoke/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Or Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/DanKoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Faith deconstruction resources: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.soyouredeconstructing.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join the Patreon for exclusive episodes (and more) every month: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/dankoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Introducing a NEW five-part series called Anxious Times, focused on practical insights from existential psychology for navigating intense periods like the one we’re living through, both collectively and individually.

Drawing on thinkers like Karl Jaspers, Rollo May, and Emmy van Deurzen, existential psychology provides actionable tools to help you engage with (and not just avoid or manage symptoms of) the realities of our sociopolitical moment, challenging personal circumstances, and the disorienting anxiety of religious or worldview change.

My co-host for the series is Kristen Tideman, a longtime friend who is navigating what we’re calling the “Triple Crown” of anxiety after having a baby, being diagnosed with MS, and continuing in her own journey of religious change all in the last year. 

In this first episode, we’ll look at a few introductory concepts to help us conceive of anxiety in a more productive way.

Hope you enjoy and find it helpful.

___________________________________________

Follow Dan on IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/dancoke/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Or Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/DanKoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Faith deconstruction resources: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.soyouredeconstructing.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join the Patreon for exclusive episodes (and more) every month: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/dankoch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email about the "sliding scale" for the Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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