If you have your own story of being an occult or a high control group, or if you've had experience with manipulation or abuse of power that you'd like to share, leave us a message on our hotline number at 347-86-8-6-trust.

That's 347-8-68-7-8.

Or shoot us an email at trust me pod at gmail.com.

Trust me. Dude, you.com. Trust me.

Dude, you trust me.

Trust me.

I'm like a smart person.

I've never lied to you.

I never have lied.

If you think that one person has all the answers, don't.

Welcome to Trust Me, the podcast about cult, extreme belief, and manipulation from two Christian rock band groupies

who've actually experienced it.

I'm Lola Blanc.

And I'm Megan Elizabeth.

And today is part two of our interview with Caleb Ward, my friend, and former evangelical

Christian and pastor's son.

So Caleb wasn't in a strict cult per se, as you might have learned last week, but talking to him offers a window into evangelical culture in the early 2000s that we thought would be relatable for many of our listeners.

This week we're going to talk about some of the cultural touchstones of his youth, including Heritage USA, which was basically Disneyland for Christians, and Christian rock bands, plus his fear of losing his virginity before marriage and what hell meant to each of us growing up.

We'll talk more about how healthy church leadership can exist and how his dad was an example of that, how his parents were ostracized when they left the church, and what solidified his decision to leave evangelical Christianity.

Megan is a little sick today.

I am. Can you tell?

Can you tell?

...