(RNS) — Twenty years ago, Andrew Bauman was part of the problem.
The son of a pastor in the Southern Baptist Convention, Bauman studied religion in college and became a pastor. But privately, his struggle with pornography had infused his spiritual beliefs.
“My pornography use had mixed in with this misogynistic theology that really made women less-than,” he told RNS in a recent interview. But with that realization came transformation. Bauman traded his pastoral vocation for a career as a licensed mental health counselor and interrogated his religious beliefs until, he said, they were more reflective of Jesus.
“As I look at the way Jesus engages women, the way he subverts the patriarchal culture at the time, my faith only grows,” he said.
These days, Bauman co-leads the Christian Counseling Center, which specializes in sexual health and trauma, with his wife and co-founder, Christy Bauman. And in his latest book, “Safe Church: How to Guard Against Sexism and Abuse in Christian Communities,” he aims to use his position of influence to invite Christians of all stripes to listen to women and to sit with the reality that there’s an epidemic of abuse and sexism in their faith communities.
RNS spoke to Bauman about male headship, the appeal of Andrew Tate and whether church can ever really be safe. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What is your faith background, …