Episode Details

🎙️ 34. David Hayward (The Naked Pastor) – Challenging Power, Holding Grief, and Sharing the Gospel Through Art

Highly encourage you to watch this episode on YouTube or Spotify to see art from The Naked Pastor we talk about! https://youtu.be/U2okGOpqGrA?si=_vb3UU346wydnpcV

Alexis Rice welcomes David Hayward, the Canadian artist known globally as The Naked Pastor @nakedpastor, for a courageous, deeply human conversation about faith, power, grief, art, and what it actually means to follow Jesus right now.

A former pastor of nearly 30 years, David’s minimalist cartoons have become lifelines for millions navigating deconstruction, church harm, 2SLGBTQIA+ inclusion, political theology, and spiritual independence. In this episode, he reflects on leaving institutional ministry, the grief of losing both parents, and why art can sometimes tell the truth faster — and more honestly — than sermons ever could.

Together, Alexis and David explore where Jesus consistently shows up: not in the center of power, but on the margins — among the excluded, the grieving, and those still brave enough to love indiscriminately.

💡 Key Takeaways

• Why “indiscriminate love” is at the heart of Jesus’ teachings — and why it’s never been popular
 • The difference between church style and spiritual substance (high church vs. low church)
• How charismatic religious leadership bleeds into politics — and why that matters
• Why 2SLGBTQIA+ inclusion exposes the deepest fears of patriarchy
• Art as a spiritual practice that bypasses defenses and speaks directly to the heart
• Grief, loss, and why David painted a man “floating in his own tears”
• Why de-centering ourselves may be the most faithful work we can do

👤 About Our Guest

David Hayward is a Canadian artist, former pastor, author, and visual theologian. Known as The Naked Pastor, his daily cartoons challenge religious harm, patriarchy, and exclusion while re-centering faith around dignity, compassion, and love. His work is shared globally and has helped countless people reclaim faith — or heal from it — beyond institutional walls.

🎨 The Naked Pastor Art & Prints (Shop)
https://nakedpastor.com/collections/all

🌐 Website (Home Base)
https://nakedpastor.com

📖 Books by David Hayward
Available wherever books are sold

canadian artist

deconstruction

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About The Sacred Slope
Where the slippery slope becomes sacred ground.
For the spiritually tender—raised in or rooted in Christianity.
Come explore our global, diverse, inclusive Christian faith, deconstruction, and spiritual identity in a rapidly changing world. Through conversations with clergy, scholars, and cultural voices, the show creates space for people navigating faith after certainty, church harm, or political co-option of religion.

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🎙 Hosted by Alexis Rice
🎵 Music by Brett Rutledge, Eddie Irvin & Sean Spence
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