Frequently Asked Questions
Honest answers to real questions about Faith and Fetish, Christianity and kink, LGBTQ+ identity, and more.
Can you be Christian and part of the kink community?
Yes. My book is built on the conviction that you can. The joy of submission is something people of faith and kinksters share. When I surrender control to someone I trust, I experience the same freedom I find in trusting God. Kink in itself is not good or bad — like anything else, it can be used for good when motivated by love, practiced with consent, and grounded in care.
What is Faith and Fetish about?
Faith and Fetish is a memoir by a gay Christian who is also a kinkster. It explores how bondage, submission, fetish, and puppy play connect to the deepest currents of Christian faith: grace, trust, surrender, and unconditional love. It’s part confession, part theological reflection, and includes interviews with fellow kinksters from across Europe.
What exactly is kink or fetish?
Technically speaking, a fetish is a strong erotic response to a specific object, material, or situation — leather, rope, uniforms, the dynamic of power and surrender. The word comes from the Portuguese feitiço, meaning a charm or enchantment, which feels about right. Kink is the broader umbrella: any sexual interest that sits outside what a given culture considers conventional. One era’s kink is another era’s wedding night.
Psychologists used to classify fetishes and kink as disorders almost by default. That changed. The current clinical standard — the DSM-5 — only considers a kink or fetish a problem if it causes genuine distress or harm to the person or others. Enjoying bondage, submission, or puppy play while living a happy, functional life is not a diagnosis. It is a dimension of who you are, not a behaviour you switch on and off — part of sexuality, but deeper than gratification alone.
What kink is not, despite a persistent cultural assumption, is a symptom of trauma, moral failure, or disordered faith. It is also not, as this book argues, incompatible with grace.
What does the Bible say about BDSM?
The Bible doesn’t address BDSM directly. However, themes of trust, surrender, and voluntary submission run throughout scripture — from Paul calling himself a slave of God, to Ruth pledging total loyalty to Naomi, to Psalm 123’s imagery of servants watching their master’s hand. My book explores these parallels thoughtfully, without claiming the Bible endorses or condemns BDSM.
Is BDSM a sin according to the Bible?
There is no scripture that specifically addresses consensual BDSM between adults. The Greek terms often cited (malakoi and arsenokoitai in 1 Corinthians 6) refer to exploitative practices, not consensual relationships. My book examines these passages carefully and argues that love, consent, and care — not the specific form of intimacy — are the biblical standards.
Who is Puppy Dash?
I’m a Christian in my thirties, gay, and writing under a pseudonym. I surf, ride a motorbike, studied biblical Hebrew, lived in Israel, and spent years immersed in Jewish faith and culture. I’m also a pup and a kinkster. The pseudonym protects me from unsolicited hostility — though there’s an irony in wearing a mask that’s also part of my fetish identity.
Why ‘Puppy Dash’?
Dash is the name. The puppy comes from adult human pup play — a form of role-play between consenting adults where a handler and a pup enter a shared headspace. The pup steps out of verbal mode and into the body: alert, playful, present. Like any kink practice, it runs on negotiation, trust, and aftercare. It is an embodied discipline.
The word “puppy” carries this meaning because of a specific lineage: adult leather and BDSM culture, the international pup community that grew out of it, and a tradition of animal headspace as a way for adults to put down verbal armor and rest in the body. That tradition runs, like the rest of leather culture, on codes of consent and care.
What is puppy play and why do people do it?
Puppy play is a form of role play based on the dynamic between a dog and their owner. For me, it’s about expressing loyalty, unconditional affection, and the desire to be fully accepted. It’s not about animals — it’s about the qualities dogs embody: unwavering commitment, unjudging character, and relentless love. While I can give expression to my desire for loyalty, I am at the same time appreciated for just being myself.
How do you reconcile faith and kink?
Through grace. I believe everything is a gift — even the parts of yourself you didn’t choose. My kinks are part of me, just like my abilities and my flaws. I reconciled with the fact that they exist for a reason. When I stopped asking God to take them away and instead prayed “show me your will,” everything changed.
Are there other Christians who practice kink?
Yes, more than most people imagine. My book includes interviews with fellow kinksters who each have their own relationship with desire, identity, and meaning. The kink community is diverse, and Christians are part of it — often quietly, sometimes with the same struggle I experienced. You are not alone.
Can you be LGBTQ and Christian?
Absolutely. I spent years believing I couldn’t, trying to pray away my same-sex attraction, fostering self-hatred behind a pious facade. When clarity finally broke through, I experienced what grace truly means. I am fully known and fully loved. My faith and my identity are not in conflict — they are both gifts.
What is the difference between kink and abuse?
Kink is built on three pillars: informed consent (all participants grant permission in full knowledge), negotiated boundaries (everyone communicates their limits freely), and safety (nothing should result in permanent harm to body or soul). Abuse violates all three. The presence of consent, communication, and care is what separates a healthy kink dynamic from harm.
Where can I find a kink-friendly church or faith community?
I was fortunate to find a queer-welcoming Christian community where I truly belong. While explicitly “kink-friendly” churches are rare, affirming communities that practice radical hospitality are growing. Start with affirming church directories and LGBTQIA+ Christian organizations. If you need someone to talk to, reach out: contact form
Is this book appropriate for young readers?
Faith and Fetish is written for adults. It contains honest descriptions of BDSM practices, personal reflections on sexuality, and theological arguments that assume some familiarity with Christian faith. While it’s not explicit in a pornographic sense, it is candid about experiences that are best understood in an adult context.