Across the Western Church, a seismic shift is underway. Assumptions are being questioned, inherited frameworks are cracking, and for many, faith itself feels unsettled. This moment has come to be known—sometimes anxiously, sometimes triumphantly—as “deconstruction.” But what if deconstruction is neither a collapse nor a cure-all? What if it is, instead, a threshold?
In this Radix Live conversation, Jersak reflects on his book Out of the Embers: Faith After the Great Deconstruction, exploring what faith might look like after cherished certainties are shaken—but not abandoned. Drawing from memoir, theology, philosophy, and the Christian tradition, Jersak invites us to consider how deconstruction, when approached wisely and communally, can actually become a pathway toward deeper communion with God rather than an exit from faith.
Rather than rushing to rescue belief or cheer its dismantling, Jersak patiently “deconstructs deconstruction” itself. He engages voices from across time—from Moses and Paul to Dostoevsky, Kierkegaard, and Simone Weil—showing that this unsettling process is not new, nor is it faithless. Because, when approached with humility, deconstruction can strip away counterfeits, expose idols—progressive and conservative alike—and return us to the living Christ who meets us in the ashes.
This conversation explores what deconstruction actually is, why critique of the Church is necessary, and why thoughtful deconstruction does not have to lead to deconversion. Special attention is given to the vital role of community, the dangers of isolation, and the temptation toward new fundamentalisms once old ones fall away.
Known for his gentle, humble, and pastoral voice, Bradley Jersak speaks not as an expert above the fray, but as a fellow traveler. For those feeling disoriented, weary, or searching for a faith that can breathe again, this conversation offers space, honesty, and a surprising promise: that in the embers, life still stirs.
Bradley Jersak (PhD, Theology) is Principal of St. Stephen’s University (NB, Canada), where he also serves as Dean of Theology & Culture. He is the author of numerous books, including A More Christlike God, A More Christlike Way, Her Gates Will Never Be Shut, and Out of the Embers. Through his work, he seeks to participate in Christ’s mission of restoring all things.
Names mentioned:
Jacques Derrida, Leibniz, David Hayward, Apophatic theology, Dostoevsky, Søren Kierkegaard, Eric Johnson, Simone Weil, Friedrich Nietzsche, Voltaire, John Wesley, Albert Camus, George P. Grant, Archbishop Lazar Puhalo, Elie Wiesel, Viktor Frankl, Brian Zahnd, Co-suffering love, Dark Night of the Soul, St. John of the Cross, Tolstoy, Ron Dart, Trauma-informed therapy, beatitudes, Jim Forest.
Books:
Questions Are the Answer (David Hayward)
When Everything’s on Fire: Faith Forged from the Ashes (Brian Zahnd)
“I don’t want to be a Christian” (Jon Swales)
“Poème sur le désastre de Lisbonne” (Voltaire)
The Kingdom of God Is Within You (Leo Tolstoy)
War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy)
A Confession (Leo Tolstoy)
Dark Night of the Soul (St. John of the Cross)
Candide (Voltaire)
The Plague (Albert Camus)
The Possessed (Fyodor Dostoevsky)
Tolstoy: Soul Probes (Ron Dart and Bradley Jersak)
A More Christlike God (Bradley Jersak)
A More Christlike Way (Bradley Jersak)
A More Christlike Word (Bradley Jersak)
A Feast for All: Jesus’ All-Embracing Gospel (forthcoming – Bradley Jersak)