Episodes

  • Cognitive Dissonance + Church Financial Oopsies

    Cognitive Dissonance + Church Financial Oopsies
    Mar 6 2023
    On February 21, 2023, the United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) released a statement announcing that they would be charging the investment wing of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (ope that’s the Mormons) for essentially being super dishonest with money under a non-profit wing of the church called Ensign Peak. I briefly break down (to my understanding) how the Mormon church broke the law and what the SEC's "punishment" to the church was.

    While this certainly isn't the first time that the Mormon Church has done something sketchy or dishonest (nor will it be the last), I talk about why I don't think this particular instance will have a direct affect on church membership retention. I share one example of experiencing maaaaajor cognitive dissonance as a Mormon and why I still stayed devout, even when something felt "off."

    Lastly, I pull an affirmation card from Spirit Junkie by Gabrielle Bernstein (snag your own deck here: Spirit Junkie)

    Read the press release from the SEC here.

    Enjoy & stay rad! - Charisse

    **Listener discretion is advised due to adult language and potential religious trauma triggers.

    Find all my links here.

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    41 mins
  • Consistency + Cosmic Coincidences

    Consistency + Cosmic Coincidences
    Mar 1 2023
    Welcome to Season 4, I guess? Warning: lots of tears in this episode. I explain why it's been difficult to consistently put out episodes over the last year (and why that might not be changing any time soon....). I share what I'm grieving, with a tangent on how awkward & NOT well our culture handles grief in general. Cosmic coincidences = the term I now use to describe what my former, Mormon self would have called Divine Intervention or "God's hand in my life" - I share my own recent cosmic coincidence, as well as read/listen to feedback + stories I received on social media.

    Lastly, I pull an oracle card for us from The Moon Deck (snag your own here: Moon Deck )

    Enjoy & take exquisite care of yourself! - Charisse

    **Listener discretion is advised due to adult language, discussion of death of a pet, and potential religious trauma triggers.

    Find all my links here.

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    51 mins
  • Rejuvenation, Recharging, Recalibrating

    Rejuvenation, Recharging, Recalibrating
    Jan 2 2023
    2023 has entered the chat...
    In this short & sweet episode, Charisse gets personal with how 2022 went for her and what she plants on tweaking going into the New Year. She leaves the listener with some thoughts on how we all "recharge" our metaphorical batteries and how that's equally important, but drastically different than "resting" our metaphorical batteries.

    Catch some sneak peeks of what's to come on the podcast, as well as Charisse's word/theme for 2023.

    **Listener discretion is advised due to adult language.**

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    28 mins
  • Morality and Ethics with The Sterners

    Morality and Ethics with The Sterners
    Dec 22 2022
    Manfriend (aka Kyle) is back and joins Charisse, along with Greg Sterner and Abby Sterner of the Sterner Stuff Brand Podcast for a fun & philisophical discussion surrounding morality & ethics. Find the tail end of our conversation, including Greg & Abby's questions for Manfriend and Charisse, on the Sterner Stuff Brand Podcast (found wherever you listen to rad podcasts).

    Questions explored and examined in this episode:
    What does morality look like without a religious or dogmatic system?
    How can we as humans coexist in a world where we can't all agree on what constitutes eithical or unethical behavior?
    Can a person's art, work, or products be separated from their moral failings?
    and More!

    **Listener discretion is advised due to adult language.**

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    1 hr and 46 mins
  • Where Do We Go?

    Where Do We Go?
    Dec 13 2022
    **Apologies for my worn-out, tired-sounding voice! It’s still recovering from recent bouts of Covid and RSV and isn’t quite back to normal. Hope you love the episode! - Charisse**

    This episode wraps up the mini series of BIG, scary existential questions with the final and arguably most daunting of the 3: Where Do We Go? In other words: where do we go when we die (if anywhere)? Sounds dreary, we know, but the goal of this episode is to explore various cultural, religious, and scientific theories surrounding death & an afterlife, as well as examine the ways in which our beliefs about death change the way we live.

    What happens to our soul and body when we die?
    What is a “soul,” really and where does it live in the body?
    Do our personalities and memories transcend death?
    Can they be transferred to our posterity or people who receive organ donations from us?
    Does the way we treat the body after death affect the soul’s ability to navigate the afterlife? Is a belief in a god necessary for a belief in life after death?

    Charisse explores possible answers to these questions and more, leaning on scientific research, personal accounts, cultural funerary & burial practices, and theological doctrines. Charisse shares how her belief in the Mormon (aka The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Plan of Happiness affected her faith during her divorce, including petitioning for a sealing cancellation (also called a Temple Divorce). The episode concludes with Charisse’s current, personal beliefs on death and the possibility of an afterlife.

    **Listener discretion is advised due to adult language, mention of suicide, and overall discussion of death, including brief, medical descriptions of decomposition.

    View sources and research for this and other episodes of the podcast here:
    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jhaTPhoNlSOaLm0hqxM2ALqiHW4gzV1J56rlibIJ8fw/edit?usp=sharing

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    1 hr and 48 mins
  • Where Do We Go? with Emily the Medium

    Where Do We Go? with Emily the Medium
    Sep 29 2022
    Joined by Evidential Medium, Emily Jane (of Wild Heart Mediumship), Charisse explores some of the possibilities of where we go after we die in this emotionally-packed episode. Emily shares her story of connecting with her late father, her motivations for developing mediumship herself, and how her views of death have drastically changed since her own Mormon upbringing.

    Who knew talking about death could be so uplifting, fun, and filled with love? Grab a Blasphemous Beverage and prepare yourself to think of death in a whole new way with Emily and Charisse.

    *Listener discretion is advised due to adult language, brief mention of suicide, and potential religious trauma triggers.

    Learn more about Emily & book a session with her here: https://www.wildheartmediumship.com/

    Emily's TikTok handle: @wildheartmediumship
    Megan Alisa's (Emily's Mentor) TikTok handle: @meganalisamedium

    Learn more about mediumship courses (including the one Emily mentions in the episode) here: https://www.oakbridgeinstitute.org/

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    1 hr and 24 mins
  • Why Are We Here? with Manfriend as Co-host

    Why Are We Here? with Manfriend as Co-host
    Sep 12 2022
    "Manfriend" (aka Charisse's boyfriend) makes a special appearance as co-host for the second installment of our mini series concerning life's big, existential questions. He chimes in with commentary on various philosophical answers to "Why are we here," as well as putting in his own two cents on the subject, AND we learn from him what it's like dating an ExMormon in the episode's #CultureShockSegment.

    Charisse and Manfriend discuss the following philosophical and religious answers to Why are were here (amongst others):
    - Confucianism
    - Nihilism
    - Absurdism
    - Daoism
    - Existentialism (obviously)
    - Mormonism (obviously)
    - Methodist & Baptist Christianity
    - Platonism
    - Kantianism
    - Pragmaticism

    Listener discretion is advised due to adult language and audible drunkenness (sorry, Mom).

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    1 hr and 52 mins
  • Where Do We Come From?

    Where Do We Come From?
    Aug 22 2022
    (Apologies for the echo in the audio this week. Charisse's mic wasn't plugged in and she didn't realize it until she was done recording #RookieMistake)

    There's no beating around the bush so we're diving into the first of the three BIG, scary, existential questions: where do we come from? (But is it really THAT big & scary?) Charisse examines some of the various theological, philosophical, and scientific answers to this question that have come from all over the world. From creation stories to a Birds and Bees breakdown, this episode looks at the question from all different angles!

    Listener discretion is advised due to adult language.

    This episode is brought to you in part by The ExMo Candle Co. https://exmocandles.com/candles/the-existential-ginger/

    View all of Charisse's links here: https://linktr.ee/theexistentialginger

    The Existential Ginger podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group, LLC.
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    1 hr