SBNR University is a learning community for people who no longer fit in traditional religion but still want depth, growth, and connection. We host 8-week online discussion groups guided by clinically trained and spiritually grounded facilitators. Think of it like a small group for your soul—without the dogma, pressure, or pretending.

Our facilitators come from diverse but complementary professional backgrounds. Each brings both training and lived experience in walking with people through transitions of faith, meaning, and identity:

Licensed Counselors/Therapists – Clinically trained to address mental health, emotional patterns, and psychological wellbeing. They help participants recognize and work with anxiety, depression, trauma, and other inner struggles that often surface in deconstruction.

Chaplains – Specialists in spiritual and existential pain and coping trained to companion people of all (or no) faith traditions in times of crisis, loss, or deep questioning. They are especially skilled at helping people explore spiritual and existential pain, where issues of meaning, mortality, and identity converge.

Spiritual Directors – Companions in the inner life. Spiritual directors focus on discernment and attentiveness to the movements of spirit (however one names it), offering practices of listening, reflection, and integration that support long-term growth.

Though their professional paths differ, our facilitators share a common skill set: deep listening, trauma-informed presence, respect for boundaries, and the ability to create safe, spacious environments. Together, they bring a rare balance—psychological grounding, spiritual depth, and relational wisdom—so participants experience both care and challenge in equal measure.

Each week you’ll:

> Read a short chapter or excerpt from a book.

> Watch or listen to about an hour of curated media (podcast or video).

> Join a 90-minute live discussion on Zoom with your group (8–12 people).

It’s not a lecture—it’s a conversation. Your facilitator helps keep it focused, grounded, and spacious.

Each course centers on a theme people often face in deconstruction and spiritual exploration—anger, grief, healing, identity, purpose, or grounding. For example:

> Still Christian, Barely – for those wanting to stay connected to Jesus while leaving old church systems.

> The Fire and the Ashes – for those processing anger in the aftermath of religious trauma.

> Sacred Wounds, Sacred Repairs – for those seeking healing from exclusion, betrayal, or abuse.

> SBNR, But Rooted – for those wanting depth and practices beyond traditional religion.

Not at all. For many, the hardest part of leaving religion is the loss of relationships. Friends, mentors, the people who knew your story, the ones you sat beside week after week. Faith once came with a built-in network of connection. When that unravels, it can feel like you’ve stepped outside of the very space where relationships were formed and nurtured.

SBNR University doesn’t try to recreate church, but it does offer what so many people miss: a circle of belonging. Our circles gather people who understand that ache and want to build new relationships around honesty, curiosity, and shared humanity.

Here, connection inevitably grows—not through obligation or conformity, but through presence. Through listening and being listened to. Through discovering that even in deconstruction, you don’t have to be alone. But unlike a church small group, our facilitators are clinically trained—in group facilitation theory, adult education theory, and spiritual psychology.

Therapy is valuable, and many of our facilitators are therapists themselves. But what happens in a group is different.

Meta-analyses show that for challenges like depression, anxiety, and trauma, group process is often as effective as individual therapy. And where shame and isolation play a role—groups can be more effective. That’s because groups do something unique: they reduce isolation, normalize experience, and build resilience faster than working alone.

Therapy gives you one skilled companion. Group process gives you a community of mirrors. You not only receive insight—you see your story reflected, echoed, and refracted through others who are walking a similar path.

Our groups aren’t therapy. They are educational and communal spaces where these same dynamics can unfold—deeply relational, profoundly normalizing. Many participants find the two complement each other, one offering depth of focus and the other breadth of belonging.

Our introductory cohorts are $495. These cohorts are prerequisites to our advanced offerings. This fee covers facilitator pay and access to our online community. Scholarships and early-bird re are sometimes available.

No one is pressured. Many participants find it healing to share, but listening deeply is just as valuable.

Life happens. While we encourage full participation, you can miss a session and still track with the group. Some facilitators provide optional notes or discussion prompts afterward.

> People leaving or questioning religious systems

> Those seeking honest spiritual community

> Anyone who feels “in between”—not atheist, not religious, but still hungry for meaning

You can browse our courses online, choose the one that fits, and register directly. Once enrolled, you’ll get a welcome email with details, your facilitator’s bio, and the Zoom link.