Artist Portrait No. 12: Holiday Special: Mike Miller (organist, singer, pastor)

This is an episode of the old podcast, called Artists on the Verge. I decided to keep these conversations up in the feed because they are, in fact, part of what led me to create Classically (Un)Trained. I have taken down all except the artist interviews - but you can check out an expanded archive here: https://classicallyuntrainedpodcast.com/former-podcast-archive/ Check out the current podcast here: https://classicallyuntrainedpodcast.com/ Mike Miller and I met on our first day of undergraduate music studies when we were both 18. Mike studied voice, as a countertenor, and, later, organ. When I found out, years after we both graduated, that he had become a protestant pastor in Texas, I was puzzled, at first – he was openly gay and I had heard him complain about his conservative relatives who used the Bible to condemn who he was. But then I realized - Mike had never condemned Christianity or God or religion as such – his complaints centered around how selectively people read the Bible. And, talking to him about his life as a pastor, I realized there are many parallels between what he does as a spiritual guide, and the function that artists might have as cultural guides. Mike and I talk about the unpredictable life of a pastor, mistranslations of the Bible, myths about Christmas, and how creating things is one of the bests paths towards greater spirituality, among other things. Mike's blog: https://gaybythegraceofgod.com/ 💋👁👂🏼 Website: https://onthevergetrilogy.com/