Dr. Alison Cook is a therapist and host of the top-ranked The Best of You podcast. She is the author of I Shouldn't Feel This Way, the ECPA bestselling book The Best of You and coauthor of Boundaries for Your Soul. Widely recognized as an expert at the intersection of faith and psychology, Dr. Alison empowers individuals to heal from past wounds, develop a strong sense of self, forge healthy rela­tionships, and experience a loving God who is for them.

Andrew Whitehead is Professor of Sociology at Indiana University Indianapolis.

He is one of the foremost scholars of Christian nationalism in the United States and the author of American Idolatry: How Christian Nationalism Betrays the Gospel and Threatens the Church which was awarded the 2024 Gold Medal Book Award from Foreword Reviews and the 2024 Midwest Book Award. He is also the lead author of Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States.

Aundi is a licensed professional counselor and the best selling author of the critically acclaimed Try Softer™, Try Softer™ Guided Journey and her newest offerings: Strong like Water and Strong like Water Guided Journey.

She has received additional training in her specialization of trauma- and body-centered therapies and is passionate about the integration of faith and psychology.

As a survivor of trauma, Aundi brings hard-won knowledge about the work of change, the power of redemption, and the beauty of experiencing God with us in our pain.

Becky Castle Miller is a PhD student at Wheaton College researching a New Testament dissertation about emotions in the Gospel of Luke. She writes and speaks on emotional, mental, and spiritual health in the church and offers emotion coaching. She received her master's in New Testament from Northern Seminary where she wrote a master's thesis on Jesus's emotions. She, her husband, their five kids, and their cat returned to the US in 2020 after living in the Netherlands for eight years, where she served as discipleship director at an international church.

Ben is an author, speaker, and digital pastor with over 20 years of experience pastoring local churches. He writes at the intersection of politics and Christianity, and his desire is to discover how we can move away from Christian nationalism, religious fundamentalism, and church hurt to reclaim the Gospel of Jesus together. He lives in Idaho with his wife and two small children.

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Brett serves in Richmond, VA, at Eternity Church. Over the last 20 years, he has pastored churches in America and Africa, teaching and training new pastors, planting churches as well as revitalizing others recovering from spiritually abusive leadership. He serves local congregations, pastors and missionaries who’ve experienced religious trauma. Because of this, Brett is grateful to join Brian to see more people move from broken to beloved.

Cait is a writer and editor based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her work has been published in The Revealer, Religion Dispatches, Fourth Genre and Hawai`i Pacific Review, among others. As an advocate and a survivor of the Christian patriarchy movement, she serves on the editorial board for Tears of Eden, a nonprofit providing resources for survivors of spiritual abuse, and co-hosts the Survivors Discuss podcast.

Dr. Camden is a licensed psychologist with nearly 15 years of experience as a therapist and college professor. She owns a private therapy practice and is a writer, speaker, and coach on purity culture recovery, egalitarianism, and faith reconstruction. Her first book, Recovering from Purity Culture: Finding Freedom and Reclaiming a Healthier, Values-Based Sexual Ethic, publishes October 15 by Baker Books. Dr. Camden lives in Knoxville, Tennessee with her husband and their daughter and son.

A sought-after speaker, writer, and public theologian, Cara Meredith is the author of Church Camp and The Color of Life.

Passionate about issues of justice, race, and privilege, Cara holds a master of theology from Fuller Seminary and is a postulant for Holy Orders in the Episcopal Church.

With a background in education and nonprofit work, she wears more hats than she probably ought, but mostly just enjoys playing with words, a lot. Her writing has been featured in national media outlets such as The Oregonian, The New York Times, The Living Church, The Christian Century, and Baptist News Global, among others. She lives with her family in Oakland, California.

Chuck DeGroat is a follower of Jesus, a husband to Sara, and father to two amazing daughters. He serves as Professor of Counseling and Christian Spirituality and Executive Director of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at Western Theological Seminary in Holland MI. He’s also a faculty member for the Soul Care Institute.

A licensed therapist, a spiritual director, author of five books, and retreat leader/speaker, Chuck has specialized in issues of abuse and trauma, pastoral (and leadership) health, and navigating issues of doubt and dark nights on the faith journey. He’s also a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Reformed Church in America, and has pastored in Orlando and San Francisco before transitioning to training and forming pastors.

Chuck also trains clergy in issues of abuse and trauma, conducts pastor and planter assessments, and facilitates church consultations and investigations of abuse among pastors and within congregations.

David Gate grew up in London before making his way to Belfast, Northern Ireland and Jacksonville, Florida. He now lives in the ancient Appalachian mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, where he writes, mills flour, and tends to a one-acre homestead with his partner and children.

Dr. Diane Langberg is a globally recognized psychologist with 53 years of clinical experience working with trauma patients. She has trained caregivers from six continents in responding to trauma and to the abuse of power.

She is the author When the Church Harms God's People: Becoming Faith Communities that Resist Abuse, Pursue Truth, and Care for the Wounded and Redeeming Power: Understanding Authority and Abuse in the Church.

Dr. Langberg is the recipient of the Distinguished Alumna Achievements from Taylor University, the American Association of Christian Counselors Caregiver Award, The Distinguished President’s award, and the Philadelphia Council of Clergy’s Christian Service Award.

She is married and has two sons and four grandchildren. 

Dorothy Greco has worked as a photojournalist for more than forty years. She is a three-time author and has written for many publications including Christianity Today, Missio Alliance, Christians for Biblical Equality, and The Common Good. She is the mother of three grown men and a wife to one husband.

Rev. Erin F. Moniz is a deacon in the Anglican Church in North America and Associate Chaplain and Director for Chapel at Baylor University, where she disciples emerging adults and journeys with them toward healthy, gospel-centered relationships. She is a trained conciliator, mediator, and conflict coach. She enjoys content creation, playing music, being outdoors, and narrating the inner monologue of her two cats. She lives in Waco, Texas, with her husband, Michael.

Erin Hicks Moon is a writer, podcaster, and storyteller who helps people disentangle faith by creating a kind and curious community that welcomes honest doubt and questions. She is the Resident Bible Scholar and host of the Faith Adjacent podcast, and senior creative at Podcast Media Group. A homesick Texan, she lives in Birmingham, Alabama, with her husband and three children, where she bravely tries to live without yellow queso every day.

Jeff Chu is an award-winning journalist and editor-at-large at Travel+Leisure. He is the author of Does Jesus Really Love Me? and the co-author, with the late Rachel Held Evans, of the New York Times bestseller Wholehearted Faith. Chu is a former Time staff writer and Fast Company editor whose work has also appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Modern Farmer. In his weekly newsletter, “Notes of a Make-Believe Farmer,” Chu writes about spirituality, gardening, food, travel, and culture. He lives with his husband, Tristan, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Jenai Auman is a Filipina American writer and artist. She draws from her years in church leadership as well as her trauma-informed training to write on healing, hope, and the way forward. She is passionate about providing language so readers can find a faith that frees. She received her bachelor's degree in behavioral health science and is currently pursuing a master's in spiritual formation at Northeastern Seminary. Jenai lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband and sons.

Joon is a hospital chaplain, published author, and viral blogger. He is an interfaith chaplain at a Level 1 Trauma Center. He’s often referred to as a grief-catcher or therapriest.

His role includes grief counseling, attending every death, every trauma and Code Blue, staff care, and supporting end-of-life care. He also served for three years as a chaplain at one of the largest nonprofit charities for the homeless on the east coast.

J. S. has an M.Div., a sixth-degree black belt, and is the author of The Voices We Carry and his new book, As Long As You Need, which released this past May.

J. S. currently lives in Tampa, Florida with his wife, a nurse practitioner, and his three year old daughter and adopted dog.

For nearly a decade, Kat has helped adults pursue wholeness and healing in a clinical setting and is convinced of the goodness and wisdom of our bodies in how they work to protect us. Specializing in religious trauma, her formal training includes EMDR, Polyvagal Theory, Ego State therapy, and Bowen Family Systems, and is constantly reading and learning new approaches and skills.

She holds a Masters degree in clinical counseling, and I am professionally licensed by the state boards in Missouri and Florida.

Katherine is the founder of Tears of Eden, a nonprofit supporting survivors of spiritual abuse, and the former executive producer and host of the groundbreaking podcast Uncertain, a podcast that pioneered pivotal conversations around Spiritual Abuse. She also is a Certified Trauma Recovery Practitioner working primarily with clients who have survived cults, high-control environments, spiritual abuse, and sexual abuse.

Katherine is a huge advocate for the power of art to help us on our healing journey. She participates in improv theater both as a performer and coach and is the author of one novel. She has been a guest on a number of podcasts, including IndoctriNation and A Little Bit Culty, is the author of several nonfiction articles, and writes regularly at katherinespearing.com and tearsofeden.org.

Laura is a full-time teacher, a part-time writer and speaker, and she is coauthor of A Church Called Tov as well as Pivot: The Priorities, Practices and Powers That Can Transform Your Church Into a Tov Culture.

She previously co-authored the children's version of The Jesus Creed and wrote a teacher's guide to accompany the book. A graduate of Wheaton College, she resides in the suburbs of Chicago with her husband Mark and their three beagles.

Lianna is an organizational psychologist with experience in ministry and secular organizations. She is passionate about helping teams and leaders create environments where people can bring their best self to work. She provides training and consultation on compassion fatigue, burnout, organizational change, and psychological safety. Recently, Lianna has pivoted her focus to helping people recognize spiritually abusive leadership and promote healthier church cultures.

Lianna has a Master of Arts in Organizational Psychology, a Master of Theological Studies, and is a Certified Fearless Organization Scan (FOS) practitioner. In addition to consulting, she has served as Adjunct Faculty at William James College teaching quantitative and qualitative assessment.

Lore is an award winning writer, thinker, learner, and author of the books, The Understory, and A Curious Faith. She’s written for She Reads Truth, Christianity Today, and more, as well as on her own site, lorewilbert.com. She has a Masters in Spiritual Formation and Leadership and loves to think and write about the intersection of human formation and the gritty stuff of earth. You can find Lore on Instagram @lorewilbert or on her kayak in the Adirondacks.

Meaghan is a Christian therapist, writer, and parenting educator passionate about integrating faith, psychology, and neuroscience to support families on their journey toward healing and wholeness. In her clinical work, Meaghan walks alongside children, teens, and adults as they navigate anxiety, trauma, relational wounds, and nervous system dysregulation—always with a trauma-informed and Christ-centered lens. Outside the counseling room, Meaghan runs the Instagram account @soulcareforfamilies, where she shares grace-filled parenting content that challenges harmful theological messaging and helps parents better understand their children’s emotional and developmental needs. She offers resources that equip caregivers to co-regulate, connect, and disciple with gentleness and clarity.

Megan Febuary is a trauma-informed writing coach and the founder of the global storytelling platform and literary magazine For Women Who Roar. Called a leading expert in creative recovery, Megan received her MA from The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology, where she focused her research on the body as a storyteller.

Melissa is an attorney and advocate in the field of trauma and abuse, and co-author of the 2021 book, Afraid of the Doctor: Every Parent’s Guide to Preventing and Managing Medical Trauma. She received her J.D. with an emphasis in health law from the University of Pittsburgh and went on to clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, practice as a corporate/healthcare attorney, and teach legal writing and health care regulatory law.

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Michael is a licensed professional therapist, spiritual director, speaker, and author. Having experienced the restoring touch of God in a deeply broken life and marriage, Michael’s passion is to connect life’s broken realities with the reality of the gospel. The founder and CEO at Restoring the Soul, Michael formerly served as an adjunct professor at Denver Seminary and full-time professor at Colorado Christian University. He holds an MA in Biblical Counseling from Colorado Christian University and an MA in Counseling Psychology from the College of Education at the University of Denver. He lives with his wife Julianne in the foothills of Colorado where he enjoys the Rocky Mountains and a host of other outdoor activities with friends and family.

Monica DiCristina has been a practicing therapist for over fifteen years. She is also a sought-after speaker, podcaster, and writer on topics of emotional healing and mental health. Combining her extensive therapeutic knowledge with creativity, empathy, storytelling, and her deeply rooted faith, she is passionate about walking alongside those who are unraveling their difficult experiences and providing a path for them to do the brave and sacred work of transformation and healing.

Rachael is a trauma care practitioner, speaker, and pastoral leader. She serves as a lead instructor for the Allender Center at The Seattle School and is co-host of the Allender Center Podcast with Dr. Dan Allender. She holds a Master of Divinity from  The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology and recently had the honor of being named by Sojourners as one of “9 Christian Women Shaping the Church in 2024.”

Rachael is devoted to addressing the harm of abuse – especially spiritual abuse – at the intersection of trauma, healing, embodiment and spiritual formation. She leads the Story Workshop for Spiritual Abuse & Healing and recently developed the Allender Center’s Spiritual Abuse & Healing Online Course, inviting survivors of spiritual abuse to journey together towards healing and reclamation.

Sam is a trauma therapist with over twenty years of experience specializing in men’s issues and sexual trauma recovery. Being a therapist has given him a front row seat to hear hundreds of men and women share their stories. His writing flows out of this unique opportunity to help people know and heal their stories, and find greater sexual wholeness and aliveness. He received his master’s in counseling from Reformed Theological Seminary and was further trained in Narrative Focused Trauma Care through the Allender Center at The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. Sam lives in Colorado with his wife and three sons. Together, they enjoy exploring the best camping spots in Colorado in a pop-up camper. Sam goes to therapy, loves fly fishing and can often be found trying to catch his breath on the floor of his local CrossFit gym. 

Sara Billups is a Seattle-based writer and cultural commentator whose work has appeared in the New York Times, Christianity Today, Aspen Ideas, and others. Sara writes Bitter Scroll, a monthly Substack letter and co-hosts the podcast That’s the Spirit. She earned a Doctor of Ministry in the Sacred Art of Writing at the Peterson Center for the Christian Imagination at Western Theological Seminary.

Sara works to help wavering Christians remain steadfast through cultural storms and continues to hope for the flourishing of the Church amid deep political and cultural division in America. Her second book, Nervous Systems, will be released November 4, 2025, from Baker Books.

Scot is a New Testament scholar who has written widely on the historical Jesus and Christian spirituality. He is a Visiting Professor of New Testament at Houston Theological Seminary and at Westminster Theological Centre (UK). He earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornerstone University, a master's from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a doctorate from the University of Nottingham. He has written more than 80 books, including the popular The Jesus Creed, which won an award from Christianity Today.

Shannan Martin is the bestselling author of several books, including Start with Hello, The Ministry of Ordinary Places, and the popular Substack "The Soup." Shannan is a wannabe gardener, a news geek, a fighter for justice, and a thrift store stalker. She and her family live as grateful neighbors in Goshen, Indiana, where Shannan is on staff at the local community kitchen.

Steve is the bestselling author of The Thing Beneath the Thing, and the newly-released Grieve, Breathe, Receive, and hosts Craft and Character, a podcast devoted to empowering pastors and church communicators who want to work on their craft while learning to lead with character.

Pastorally, his passion is to bring the way of Jesus into everything he does. He describes his work as humbling and vulnerable—a soul-baring process that keeps him dependent, expectant, and grounded in Christ.

Steve serves as a teaching pastor at Forest City Church and regularly teaches at churches, conferences, and various businesses worldwide. He lives outside Chicago, Illinois, with his wife and two kids.

Growing up, Tim always felt at home in evangelical spaces – until years later, when his studying and questions caused him to no longer be welcomed at in his church community. Brokenhearted, but undeterred, Tim continued to pursue a deeper understanding of faith, history, theology and the evangelical church.

The more he uncovers, the more he realizes the importance of advocating for the marginalized in the church, exploring the full depth and breadth of Christian faith traditions, and holding toxic churches and leaders accountable.

Zach is the Lead Pastor and co-founder of Restore. Born and raised in Austin, he holds a Bachelors of Science in Communication, a Masters of Theology, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Ministry at Duke Divinity School. He is also the co-founder and board member of the Post Evangelical Collective—a group of pastors, artists, and leaders committed to full inclusion, holistic justice, deep and wide formation, a gracious posture, and the Way of Jesus.