91. Chappell Roan & LGBTQ+ Belonging ft. Anna Carter of Eden Invitation
Video Version
Audio Version
Chappell Roan's music has exploded into mainstream consciousness, but underneath the anthems about Pink Pony Clubs and late nights in California, there are songs wrestling with longing, identity, and the cost of belonging. For young Catholics navigating questions about sexuality and faith, those songs hit differently. This episode asks a question a lot of people are quietly carrying: can someone with a queer experience truly find a home in the Catholic Church?
In this episode, Mike Tenney sits down with Anna Carter, co-founder of Eden Invitation, to explore Chappell Roan's music through the lens of Catholic faith and LGBTQ+ experience, discussing:
The stories behind Chappell Roan's biggest songs - What Pink Pony Club, Good Luck Babe, and Naked in Manhattan reveal about longing, identity, and coming of age as a queer woman
The wounds of the closet - Why secrecy is spiritually and psychologically damaging, and how the Church can become a place of genuine welcome rather than fear
Truth and compassion together - Why Mike believes the Catholic Church's sexual teaching is genuinely beautiful, and why that conviction demands a tone of mercy, not condemnation
How Anna navigates attraction as a queer Catholic woman - A candid, personal conversation about desire, prudence, and what it means to live faithfully without denying your experience
The unrepeatable person - John Paul II's vision of the human person as a corrective to both secular identity politics and reductive religious stereotypes
Building community now - Anna's challenge to listeners: don't wait for someone else to make the Church a safer place for LGBTQ+ people
Whether you're a Catholic wrestling with same-sex attraction yourself, a parent or youth minister trying to love the young people in your life better, or someone who's drifted from the Church in part because of how it talks about sexuality, this conversation offers a rare combination of theological honesty and genuine warmth.
Anna Carter is the co-founder of Eden Invitation, a Catholic community offering spiritual formation, small groups, retreats, and connection for Catholics with LGBTQ+ experiences who want to live in alignment with Church teaching. Find them at edeninvitation.com.
Support the show: www.PopCultureCatechism.com
Book Mike: www.MikeTenneyMusic.com
Listen on:
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-culture-catechism/id1530141366
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/4hlSitS9FLX3sYqwr0RsFK
YouTube:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmflGfRsQQxr1ualWPj4SirFdUGmr3XVW&si=-zpxywCtWIUVdkrs
Anna’s Info
https://www.edeninvitation.com/staff-bios/anna-carter
Mike's Info:
www.MikeTenneyMusic.com
