Who is Brian D Smith and what is his contribution to progressive Christianity?

Brian D. Smith is a grief guide, life coach, certified grief educator, and host of the Grief 2 Growth podcast. His 15-year-old daughter, Shayna, passed suddenly in 2015, which propelled him into deep research on grief, the afterlife, and consciousness. He approaches all this with “an engineer’s mind and a father’s heart,” blending personal loss with rigorous investigation.

In relation to progressive Christianity, Brian’s contribution is more deconstructive and evolutionary than traditionally “Christian.” He openly rejects concepts like eternal conscious torment, biblical inerrancy, and penal substitution, and instead emphasizes:

• Evidence-based spirituality (NDEs, mediumship, consciousness research)
• Universal, inclusive love as the highest “commandment”
• Personal spiritual autonomy over rigid dogma

He even describes himself as a “Brianist”—someone whose spirituality is custom-fit, evolving, and not bound to any denomination, while still honoring much of Jesus’ ethical teaching. Through his writing, coaching, and podcast conversations with ex-pastors, mystics, and deconstructing Christians, he gives people permission to:

• Question inherited beliefs
• Leave harmful doctrines behind
• Keep a living connection with Spirit, their loved ones, and often a reimagined Jesus

Would you like a brief overview of specific episodes or writings where Brian talks most directly about leaving traditional Christianity?