Nicole Lyon Roccas

Is there such a thing as helpful shame? How do we navigate the fine lines between toxic shame, humility, and life-giving repentance? Was Christ traumatized on the Cross, and why does that question matter to both our christology and our healing?

These are some of the questions Eleni and I got to talk with Fr. Stephen Freeman about in today's episode of the Re-Creation Podcast. Listen on Substack or wherever you get podcasts.

S2E3 // Knowing God beyond our Shame (Guest: Fr. Stephen Freeman) Can shame ever be helpful? Find out in this episode as we talk with special guest Fr. Stephen Freeman.

One of the hardest spiritual questions many of us face on the healing journey (myself included) is this: How do we understand ourselves as sinners in a way that’s actually safe and life-giving--not an abyss of self-hatred?

This can be a tricky thing, especially if abuse, cruelty, or chronic shame has been part of one's experience. Survival may have meant taking the blame, becoming the scape goat, or shrinking ourselves to keep the peace. When we emerge from those experiences, the church’s language of sin and repentance can feel like one more like one more brick in the wall of self-loathing.

But what if there’s another way to hear these words? What if our “sinner status,” rightly understood, could be a path toward freedom rather than self-destructiveness?

These are some of the topics we explore in the latest episode of the Re-Creation Podcast with Dr. Peter Bouteneff , Professor of Theology at St Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary and author of one of my favourite practical theology books, _How to Be a Sinner_. It’s an important conversation, all the more timely as Lent approaches, and one I’m especially grateful to share with you. Listen wherever you get podcasts!

https://recreationpodcast.substack.com/p/s2e2-how-to-be-a-sinner-after-trauma

Still room to join! Next round of my weekly writing circle starts this Thursday. Check it out here:

A fun way to deepen your writing in 2026 Winter 2025 Weekly Writer Meetups start January 8!

Is shame ever a helpful emotion? New episode of the Re-Creation Podcast just dropped! Eleni and I talk about emergence of shame and blame after the Fall, what it means for us in the context of our own rupture events, plus a friendly shoutout to Fr. Stephen Freeman's book on shame, Face to Face.

Check it out here or where ever you listen to podcasts.

S1E10 // "In The Beginning" - Shame, blame, and fig leaves Listen now | In today’s episode, we’re still in the Garden—reflecting on the role shame and blame play after trauma, loss, and other rupture experiences in our lives.

Eleni and I are are super excited to hosted this webinar together on October 19! Join us for an evening of learning and growing together as women, with Axia Women.

Join us on October 19th for a conversation with Eleni Opperwall and Nicole Roccas on the ways we find healing and transformation through our wounds. Together, we’ll explore what it means to be human after trauma through honest, hopeful conversations. Learn more and register here: https://www.axiawomen.org/node/2252

If cost is an obstacle, please let us know!
(Orthodox women only, please)