The Unlearning Curve

While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including:* Toxic Leaders* Toxic/Dangerous Organizations* Our Mental Well-Being* The Things We Learn on the JourneyRegardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward!JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Deloney is a former pastor who currently podcasts and blogs at the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary, a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura.Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to transpa

The Unlearning Curve is a education podcast hosted by Karl Forehand, with 79 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Karl Forehand hosts The Unlearning Curve, a education show with 79 episodes published.

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  Episode #79

  79 - VBS Is Grooming? The Double Standard of Indoctrination

  Sep 22, 202642 min

  79 - VBS Is Grooming? The Double Standard of Indoctrination When does outreach become indoctrination—and who decides? On this episode of The Unlearning Curve, Stuart, Karl, and JD dig into the argument behind Stuart’s article, VBS Is Grooming, and the uncomfortable similarities between religious outreach, indoctrination, and the broader process of shaping children’s beliefs before they’re equipped to question them. The conversation starts with an important distinction: indoctrination isn’t simply teaching someone what you believe, and grooming isn’t limited to sexual abuse. Both can involve creating trust, controlling alternatives, normalizing expectations, and making certain beliefs or behaviors feel inevitable. From Vacation Bible School and church camps to public education, the guys examine a striking cultural double standard. Churches openly design programs to bring children into a particular worldview and call it outreach. Meanwhile, many of the same religious communities accuse teachers of “indoctrinating” kids simply for acknowledging diversity, inclusion, or viewpoints they don’t approve of. So what makes one influence acceptable and the other dangerous? Maybe the answer has less to do with whether children are being influenced—and more to do with who gets to do the influencing. The Unlearning Curve Podcast Copyright 2025 - Stuart Delony & Karl Forehand theunlearningcurvepodcast@gmail.com While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including: * Toxic Leaders * Toxic/Dangerous Organizations * Our Mental Well-Being * The Things We Learn on the Journey Regardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward! JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Delony is a former pastor, podcaster, and blogger for the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary , a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura. Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to share our experiences and the lessons we’re unlearning transparently, we will also refer you to professionals when necessary. Trusted guides will arrive when you need them. Feel free to convey your thoughts, concerns, and necessary corrections to Karl (karl4hand@gmail.com) or Stuart (stuartdelony@gmail.com). You can also visit our Facebook page, The Unlearning Curve .

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #78

  78 - Your Faith Is Not My Law

  Sep 15, 202631 min

  78 - Your Faith Is Not My Law What happens when religious freedom turns into religious rule? On this episode of The Unlearning Curve, Stuart, Karl, and Jordan start with Jordan’s recent trip to Malaysia and its dual legal system, where civil law exists alongside Sharia law for Muslims. That leads to a larger question: if Christians in America want laws based on their religious beliefs, why should everyone else have to live under them? The conversation moves through Christian nationalism, the separation of church and state, the mythology of Christian persecution, and the gap between claiming religious freedom and demanding political control. They also look at the real-world consequences of policies shaped by conservative religious ideology, particularly around sex education, healthcare, poverty, and personal autonomy. At the center of it all is a simple distinction: you are free to practice your religion. You are not entitled to make everyone else practice it too. The Unlearning Curve Podcast Copyright 2025 - Stuart Delony & Karl Forehand theunlearningcurvepodcast@gmail.com While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including: * Toxic Leaders * Toxic/Dangerous Organizations * Our Mental Well-Being * The Things We Learn on the Journey Regardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward! JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Delony is a former pastor, podcaster, and blogger for the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary , a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura. Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to share our experiences and the lessons we’re unlearning transparently, we will also refer you to professionals when necessary. Trusted guides will arrive when you need them. Feel free to convey your thoughts, concerns, and necessary corrections to Karl (karl4hand@gmail.com) or Stuart (stuartdelony@gmail.com). You can also visit our Facebook page, The Unlearning Curve .

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #77

  77 - When Churches Handle Crimes Like Sin

  Sep 8, 202636 min

  77 - When Churches Handle Crimes Like Sin Sexual assault is a crime. Somehow, inside many churches, it gets turned into a discipleship issue. On this episode of The Unlearning Curve, Stuart, Karl, and Jordan dig into how churches—particularly high-control evangelical environments—have handled allegations of sexual abuse, and why the process so often protects institutions and people with power rather than victims. The conversation looks at the biblical and cultural assumptions underneath those systems: confronting your offender, taking the matter to male church leadership, pressure to forgive, fear of damaging the church’s reputation, and the tendency to treat criminal behavior as “sexual sin” that can be handled internally. They also examine the deeper problem: when scripture, authority, and institutional self-preservation all occupy the same room, accountability can disappear remarkably fast. Sexual assault does not become less criminal because it happened inside a church. And forgiveness is not an investigative procedure. Content note: This episode includes discussion of sexual assault, rape, and abuse within religious communities. The Unlearning Curve Podcast Copyright 2025 - Stuart Delony & Karl Forehand theunlearningcurvepodcast@gmail.com While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including: * Toxic Leaders * Toxic/Dangerous Organizations * Our Mental Well-Being * The Things We Learn on the Journey Regardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward! JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Delony is a former pastor, podcaster, and blogger for the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary , a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura. Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to share our experiences and the lessons we’re unlearning transparently, we will also refer you to professionals when necessary. Trusted guides will arrive when you need them. Feel free to convey your thoughts, concerns, and necessary corrections to Karl (karl4hand@gmail.com) or Stuart (stuartdelony@gmail.com). You can also visit our Facebook page, The Unlearning Curve .

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #76

  76 - Caleb Mayfield - What Outlasts the Church

  Sep 1, 202643 min

  76 - Caleb Mayfield - What Outlasts the Church Some friendships survive distance, changing beliefs, adulthood, and all the strange machinery of life. Sometimes loss reminds us they’re still there. On this episode of The Unlearning Curve, Caleb Mayfield joins the conversation to talk about old friendships, sudden loss, and what pushed him to start reconnecting with people he’d let drift away. Along the way, the conversation wanders back through childhood, youth group, and the realization that sometimes what mattered most about church wasn’t the theology — it was having somewhere to go and people who knew your name. It’s a conversation about grief, connection, growing up, and the relationships that can outlast the systems where we first found them. The Unlearning Curve Podcast Copyright 2025 - Stuart Delony & Karl Forehand theunlearningcurvepodcast@gmail.com While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including: * Toxic Leaders * Toxic/Dangerous Organizations * Our Mental Well-Being * The Things We Learn on the Journey Regardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward! JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Delony is a former pastor, podcaster, and blogger for the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary , a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura. Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to share our experiences and the lessons we’re unlearning transparently, we will also refer you to professionals when necessary. Trusted guides will arrive when you need them. Feel free to convey your thoughts, concerns, and necessary corrections to Karl (karl4hand@gmail.com) or Stuart (stuartdelony@gmail.com). Additionally, visit our Facebook page, The Unlearning Curve .

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #75

  75 - Naming the Chaos

  Aug 25, 202647 min

  75 - Naming the Chaos Thanks for joining us again on the Unlearning Curve podcast. Today, we dive deep into the complexities of understanding chaos and how our perceptions shape our reality. With me are Carl the Great and Jordan, and together, we explore the intricate relationship between naming concepts and our ability to understand them. This conversation is particularly vital given the current climate of misinformation and the oversimplification of complex issues in society. Understanding Chaos: Is Naming It Helpful or Hindering? In this session, we tackle the age-old question: does naming something help us understand it, or does it limit our comprehension? The discussion begins with an acknowledgment of the chaos in the universe and our innate desire to impose order through language. As Stuart Delony points out, using the term "God" to explain chaos can warp our understanding of both God and the chaos itself. When we label everything as divine, we risk losing sight of reality and the nuances of our experiences. The Human Need for Patterns As humans, we are hardwired to create patterns and stories. This need stems from our evolutionary past where recognizing patterns could mean the difference between life and death. However, when we start imposing rigid definitions and narratives, we may find ourselves trapped in a box that limits our understanding. Jordan shares insights on how the internet creates a dangerous landscape where people seek definitive answers without context, leading to misunderstandings and mislabeling. The Comfort of Certainty vs. The Challenge of Chaos Carl the Great emphasizes the comfort that comes with certainty, especially in faith and politics. He illustrates how people cling to narratives that fit their worldview, often ignoring contradictions that might challenge their beliefs. This tendency can create a false sense of security, as he explains, leading to oversimplified views of complex issues. Embracing Complexity in Relationships In discussing personal relationships, Carl reflects on his 38-year marriage, highlighting that while growth is apparent, chaos and confusion often linger. He argues that it’s essential to embrace this chaos rather than seek to explain it away. Accepting that life is not always logical can lead to deeper connections and understanding, both with ourselves and others. The Spiritual Dimension: Finding Meaning in Chaos Stuart shares a personal anecdote from his time as a river guide, where he learned to embrace the unpredictable nature of the water. This metaphor highlights the spiritual journey we all undertake, facing chaos without the need to control it. Recognizing our smallness in the vastness of the universe can be both humbling and liberating. The Dangers of Oversimplification The conversation shifts to the dangers of oversimplifying complex issues, particularly in the context of significant events like 9/11. Stuart argues that searching for divine meaning in tragedies can prevent us from confronting uncomfortable truths about ourselves and our societies. Instead of seeking scapegoats or easy explanations, we must engage with the complexities of reality to foster genuine understanding and growth. Conclusion: The Path Forward As we wrap up this thought-provoking discussion, it becomes clear that embracing chaos, rather than fearing it, is crucial for personal and collective growth. By allowing ourselves to experience uncertainty and engage with complex realities, we open the door to deeper understanding and connection. The Unlearning Curve Podcast Copyright 2025 - Stuart Delony & Karl Forehand theunlearningcurvepodcast@gmail.com While many of us yearn for truth and understanding, the systems we participate in often prevent us from attaining genuine freedom in our everyday lives. As we move away from organized religion, we begin to recognize patterns. We believe that addressing many of these challenges requires us to examine all aspects of our lives, including: * Toxic Leaders * Toxic/Dangerous Organizations * Our Mental Well-Being * The Things We Learn on the Journey Regardless of your belief system, we encourage you to unlearn anything that doesn’t benefit you. This will lead to healing and uncover a new way forward! JD Forehand is the son of a preacher and an overseas educator. Stuart Delony is a former pastor, podcaster, and blogger for the Snarky Faith community. Karl Forehand is a former pastor who runs The Desert Sanctuary , a home for spiritual nomads, with his wife, Laura. Disclaimer: We view ourselves as practitioners on a journey of discovery rather than as experts. While we strive to share our experiences and the lessons we’re unlearning transparently, we will also refer you to professionals when necessary. Trusted guides will arrive when you need them. Feel free to convey your thoughts, concerns, and necessary corrections to Karl (karl4hand@gmail.com) or Stuart (stuartdelony@gmail.com). Additionally, visit our Facebook page, The Unlearning Curve .

  ListenShow Notes

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