Straight White American Jesus: Recent Episodes
Bradley Onishi + Daniel Miller
An in-depth examination of the culture and politics of Christian Nationalism and Evangelicalism by two ex-evangelical ministers-turned-religion professors. If you have ever wondered what social and historical forces led white evangelicals to usher Donald Trump into the White House this is the show for you. As former insiders and critical scholars of religion, Dan Miller and Bradley Onishi have a unique perspective on the Religious Right. Guests have included Chrissy Stroop, R. Marie Griffith, Janelle Wong, Randall Balmer, Katherine Stewart, and many others. Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Ahead of the premier of American Idols next week, Brad talks with Dr. Andrew Whitehead about the podcast series, his new book, and why Christian nationalism is such a threat to our democracy. He shares insight from his own life as a kid who grew up in church, only to see many of his fellow Christians succumb to the temptations of Christian nationalism's idols: fear, power, and violence. Subscribe now to American Idols: https://www.axismundi.us/american-idols/
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“You Have to Get ‘Em Lost to Get ‘Em Saved” What can it possibly mean when some Christians say that you “have to get people lost before you can get them saved?” What does it mean to be “lost”? What does it mean to be “saved”? And what are some of the effects of this language? Is it just a way of summarizing basic Christian teachings, or does it have further-reaching, possibly significant, negative effects? Dan tackles these issues in this week’s episode.
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Brad speaks with Dr. Robert P. Jones, President of PRRI and author of the new book The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy: And the Path to a Shared American Future. Beginning with contemporary efforts to reckon with the legacy of white supremacy in America, Jones returns to the fateful year when a little-known church doctrine emerged that shaped the way five centuries of European Christians would understand the “discovered” world and the people who populated it. Along the way, he shows us the connections between Emmett Till and the Spanish conquistador Hernando De Soto in the Mississippi Delta, between the lynching of three Black circus workers in Duluth and the mass execution of thirty-eight Dakota men in Mankato, and between the murder of 300 African Americans during the burning of Black Wall Street in Tulsa and the Trail of Tears. Buy the book here in order to support the show: https://bookshop.org/lists/swaj-recommends-september-2023
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Brad and Dan discuss three main stories from the week:
The GOP debate, where Trump was somehow both absent and present.
The killing of a shop owner in CA over her display of the Pride flag.
The appearannce of Spokane mayor Nadine Woodward at a Christian nationalist rally with Sean Feucht and Matth Shea
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We say someone is “speaking in code,” or talk about “codes,” or discuss things that are “in the code?” But what do we mean by “code?” And when someone uses coded language, do they know they’re doing that? When we talk about people or communities using codes to manipulate or control others, are they doing it on purpose? And do we all use codes, or is it always something “they” (whoever they are) do? Dan tackles those questions in this week’s episode.
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Brad speaks to Rachel Laser, President and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. They discuss AU's lawsuit with the ACLU and FFRF in the case of the state of Oklahoma agreeing to send taxpayer funds to a Catholic school. This is, in essence, an attempt to make Christian schools into public schools. From AU: And public schools must be secular and open to all students. They are not allowed to discriminate against students or indoctrinate children into one religion. But that is exactly what Oklahoma’s newly approved religious public charter school, St. Isidore of Seville, intends to do. Approved by the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board in June 2023, St. Isidore would be a public school—entirely funded by the taxpayers of Oklahoma—even though St. Isidore makes clear in its charter school application that it intends to run the school “as a Catholic school” and a “place of evangelization.” That’s why Americans United along with the ACLU, Freedom from Religion Foundation and Education Law Center is suing.
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On a solo Friday, Dan begins by discussing the sprawling indictment of Trump and his co-conspirators in Fulton County, Georgia. This indictment includes lawyers, pastors, and others who allegedly helped Trump attempt to overturn the 2020 election results. Dan then turns his attention to the ruling on the abortion pills out of the 5th Circuit. It's a monumental story that, while unfinished, will have dramatic impacts on reproductive rights all over the country.
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What does it mean when a church is “non-denominational”? What is the relation between non-denominational churches and established denominations? In what ways does the designation of being non-denominational encode information about a church’s values and beliefs, its demographics, or its position on hot-button cultural issues? Dan tackles these questions in this week’s episode.
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Brad analyzes the new hit song, "The Rich Men North of Richmond," which has become an anthem for right-wing populism.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the latest news from SCOTUS - Clarence Thomas's many vacations with right-wing billionaires - by framing the entire GOP's approach to politics as a will to power. Dan draws on a piece by a retired conservative judge in order to demonstrate that the American right has become the party of power and negativity. Brad then goes through a litany of issues related to sex and gender: from reactions to the World Cup loss of the US women's team to Matt Walsh's comments on pansexuals to Praeger U being taught in Florida schools. In the final segment the hosts analyze the mid-summer vote in Ohio and what it means for reproductive rights across the country. Donate to help Maui: https://www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong
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Within a certain part of the American Christian subculture, it’s common to speak of people who are “baby Christians.” But what does that mean? Is it just silly? Is it just an effect of biblical understandings of the Christian faith? Or does it have more significant religious, social, and political consequences? In this episode, Dan argues that it does have these consequences, and explains why.
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Capitalizing on current, widespread anti-China sentiment in the United States, lawmakers in nearly 30 states have proposed or have passed legislation banning foreign nationals, governments and companies from purchasing land, particularly farmland or property near military bases. Although they ostensibly aim to protect America’s national security, they have other dangerous consequences – stoking xenophobic biases and targeting of Asian Americans for further racial profiling and exclusion. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2023/07/04/land-ownership-bans-china-racist-us-history-repeats/70352009007/
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Brad and Dan discuss the details, reactions, and takeaways to the Trump indictment by Jack Smith.
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“Lots of people miss salvation by 18 inches—the distance between the head and the heart.” This (and statements like it) is a phrase that has long circulated within a particular kind of Christian subculture. But what does it mean? What does it mean to “believe” in God with your heart, instead of your head? And how does this language work as a mechanism of social control, beyond or beneath its surface meaning? Dan tackles these topics in this week’s episode.
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Brad is joined by Julian Walker and Matthew Remski, two of the hosts of the Conspirituality podcast and co-authors of the new book, Conspirituality: How New Age Conspiracy Theories Became a Public Health Threat. Emma Hulbert provided research assistance for this episode. https://www.powells.com/book/conspirituality-9781541702981/1-2 Each of the three authors has witnessed firsthand the use of fear-based political agendas to manipulate the human desire for spiritual fulfillment. They throw a spotlight on the telltale signs of cult dynamics and expose how influencers have stoked suspicion of public health initiatives. And they show how charlatans and pseudo-doctors encourage their followers to oppose mainstream advice as a form of spiritual quest.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the new Florida school curriculum that forces teachers to tell students that enslaved people received some benefit from their enslaved condition. Dan reports on Gov. Ron DeSantis' claim that enslaved people would have been able to develop trade skills and other "personal benefits." In the second segment Brad outlines the controversy surrounding Jason Aldean's song "Try That in A Small Town," explaining why it's code and what the history of lynching and other violence tells us about it. In the final segment the hosts discuss the right-wing temper tantrums in reaction to the Barbie movie.
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Why do so many on the Christian, cultural, and political right receive such obvious pleasure in enacting policies and legislation that harm others? Don’t they care about the harm they’re doing? And if not, why not? Dan tackles this issue in this week’s episode, taking a look empathy, and its lack, as key concept for answering these questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is scheduled to speak on August 26th at an interfaith event held by the Metropolex Atheists. However, the city of Fort Worth refuses to allow the group to advertise. Brad speaks with Nick Fish, president of the American Atheists, on how the City is creating a false pretext to prevent a group of non-religious Americans from advertising their event in public. "Since at least 1998, Fort Worth has permitted nonprofit organizations to rent out space on downtown lamp posts to advertise events. These nonprofits include Kenneth Copeland Ministries and Texas Christian University. By its policy, the City has created a limited public forum under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and may not discriminate based on viewpoint, which includes atheism. The Supreme Court recently confirmed these protections in its 2022 decision Shurtleff v. Boston. Nonetheless, the City of Fort Worth has denied Metroplex Atheists the right to advertise an event on combating Christian nationalism and protecting secular public schools, planned for August 26 at the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens. Assistant City Manager William Johnson, who denied the banner display, claimed that the education event was not of “sufficient magnitude.” Yet nowhere does the City’s Banner Display Policy mention such a requirement." https://www.atheists.org/2023/07/atheist-group-lawsuit-fort-worth/
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing a bombshell report at the New York Times outlining Trump's plans to completely transform the executive branch if he becomes president again. Brad analyzes how the playbook he and his team are using comes right from Orban's takeover of Hungary's government from within. In the second segment Dan analyzes the reports that Ron DeSantis is trying to create his own personal militia in Florida that would answer only to him and be deployed in matters of border security, violent crime, and other issues. Brad likens this to Mussolini's Black Shirts. In the final segment both hosts discuss the horrific story that border security in Texas were ordered to push nursing children into the Rio Grande River.
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Why do those on the religious and cultural right often describe transgender or gender-nonconforming identity as a mental illness? What is the relationship of “gender dysphoria” and trans or gender-nonconforming identity? Why would some who target trans and gender-nonconforming people claim that they are doing it because they care for them? And finally, how can we support trans and gender-nonconforming people and address the concrete effects of gender dysphoria? Dan takes on these issues in this week’s episode.
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Brad speaks with veteran journalist Sarah Stankorb about her new book Disobedient Women. Disobedient Women is not just a look at the women who have used the internet to bring down the religious power structures that were meant to keep them quiet, but also a picture of the large-scale changes that are happening within evangelical culture regarding women’s roles, ultimately underscoring the ways technology has created a place for women to challenge traditional institutions from within.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the fallout from the 303 Creative SCOTUS case in the form of a hair stylists who claims they will not serve anyone who introduces themselves using pronouns. This follows on a predication made when the ruling came down: Bigots will use the licence of "expression" to justify turning away people on the basis of sex, gender, and so on. In the second segment they discuss an academic article that shows the long term effects of protest movements - and how they shift the needle in political discourse over generations. Finally, the hosts analyze the shocking comments made by Sen. Tommy Tuberville on White nationalists in the military.
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The language of “religious freedom” is often used as a code for the preservation of traditional White Christian privilege in the US. But it is also used as a code for efforts to use religious ideology to influence the secular government, so that the beliefs of a minority of White conservative Christians in the US is forced onto the population as a whole. Dan explores this dimension of the contemporary code of “religious freedom” in this week’s episode.
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Last weekend Moms for Liberty held their national conference in Philadelphia. Annika Brockschmidt attended the conference. She talks to Brad about the protests outside the conference, conversations with rank and file members, and speeches from Trump, DeSantis, Haley, and many others.
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Brad begins with a long discussion of the Moms for Liberty conference in Philadephia. He centers his comments on the long history of "housewife populism" that goes back to the 1950s. Drawing on work from Gill Frank and Melissa Deckman, Brad argues that Moms for Liberty stands in a long lineage of grassroots movements led by women using the mantle of motherhood to advance an anti-LGBTQ and often White supremacist agenda. Piece by Gillian Frank: https://wearethemeteor.com/moms-for-liberty-history-white-supremacy/ He also does a close reading of Dennis Prager's comments from the conference - showing how the drive for "order" is the sacred value in Christian nationalist and right-wing spaces. In the final segment he considers the category of Whiteness in relationship to the "color-blind" approach to race and racism that we are hearing about in the wake of the SCOTUS decision on college admission.
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Last week SCOTUS ruled that race cannot be used in the college admissions process. Many in and outside of the Asian American community see the ruling as positive for Asian American students who are supposedly disadvantaged by affirmative action policies. Brad talks with Dr. Janelle Wong of the University of Maryland about what the data tells us concerning Asian American acceptance rates, how this ruling will affect BIPOC Americans on the whole, and the ways the model minority myth is used to divide and conquer people of color and Black Americans in the United States. To donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Brad analyzes the recent SCOTUS decision ruling that a website designer has the right to refuse to create websites for gay couples. It's the latest attack on equality from the Alliance Defending Freedom. Brad discusses two major components of the case:
The lawful expectations of businesses that are open to the public
The ways that this opens the door for discrimination against numerous vulnerable groups on the basis of the freedom of speech.
Piece by Andrew Seidel: https://religiondispatches.org/dont-be-fooled-todays-supreme-court-decision-gutting-civil-rights-laws-isnt-about-an-individual-who-opposes-same-sex-marriage-as-a-tenet-of-faith/ Piece by Elizabeth Sepper: https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2023-06-30/supreme-court-303-creative-gay-rights-first-amendment-lorie-smith-neil-gorsuch-sonia-sotomayor Piece by David French: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/30/opinion/christians-and-drag-queens.html
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What does the SCOTUS decision on affirmative action have to do with the Don't Say Gay bills, book bans, and attacks on school curricula all over the country? How is is part and parcel of a certain White supremacist libertarianism? What are the ramifications for how we think of education and the ways our professional and legal domains are organized? Brad and Dan answer these questions and more in the Weekly Roundup.
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The language of “religious freedom,” “religious freedom restoration” laws, and so forth makes many of us uncomfortable. What does this language mean? Who deploys it? For what reasons? Where did it come from? In this first of a two-part episode, Dan explores these issues, looking at the emergence of the idea of religious freedom and how those who deploy it on today’s political and religious right have departed from its historical meaning. To donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Jon Ward's life is divided in half: two decades inside the evangelical Christian bubble and two decades outside of it. In Testimony, Ward tells the engaging story of his upbringing in, and eventual break from, an influential evangelical church in the 1980s and 1990s. Ward sheds light on the evangelical movement's troubling political and cultural dimensions, tracing the ways in which the Jesus People movement was seduced by materialism and other factors to become politically captive rather than prophetic. To Donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Brad and Dan dedicate this episode to discussing the state of reproductive rights, activism, and law one year since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Brad begins by going through the numbers on support for abortion in the country, policy and campaign surprises since Roe's fall, and the ways Democrats and Republicans have responded. In the second segment Dan outlines the American religious groups who are suing to have abortion bans overturned in their states on the basis of religious freedom. The argument: abortion is a religious right that is part of their religious practice. This leads to a broader discussion of how law and religion work in the USA and why using religion as a means of policy change is so effective. To Donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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In this week’s episode, Dan explores and explains the practice of infant “dedications,” in contrast with the more familiar practice of infant baptism. Why do some churches reject infant baptism, but practice infant “dedication” instead? And what does this tell us about cultural “duplication” and its role within American evangelical subculture? Check out this week’s episode to find out. To donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Brad shares the recording of a roundtable he hosted at Americans United's Summit for Religious Freedom. He asked Andrew Seidel, Katherine Stewart, and Rob Boston what they are worried about in the year ahead - and what gives them surprising amounts of hope as we careen toward 2024. They expound on SCOTUS, public schools, LGBTQ+ rights, and more. To donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the reactions to Trump's arraignment in Miami - from congresspeople calling for war, to Kari Lake talking about 75 million Americans with guns, to megachurch pastors exhorting their congregations to emulate religious terrorists. Brad points out that the anger over Trump's arraignment coincides with the rise of anti-trans rhetoric - from Trump himself to the KKK. In the second segment, Dan provides a long list of ways to learn about trans issues and how to become a trans ally. A list of the resources can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/14jp1y8Kj0bxeeY2NHWY3yRhORKx6M_3-/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115399197961662580538&rtpof=true&sd=true In the third segment the hosts discuss the vote in the SBC to exclude any congregations with women serving in the role of pastor. Dan links this to the sinister ways that purity is used as a virtue. Brad provides a history of women in pastoral roles in the SBC and shows why this is not a new issue. More here: https://theconversation.com/how-women-in-the-southern-baptist-convention-have-fought-for-decades-to-be-ordained-161061 To donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Why do conservative American Christians and Christian nationalists use the rhetoric of being “attacked” and “persecuted”? Why do they perceive themselves to be “suffering” in the contemporary United States, when they experience pronounced social, cultural, and legal privilege? And how do these ideas link up with the broader valorization of “suffering” within some forms of Christian identity? Dan takes on these issues in this week’s episode. To Donate: venmo - @straightwhitejc Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus
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Brad speaks with Tim Whitaker of the New Evangelicals about what he saw and heard at the TPUSA Pastor's Conference in Nashville - a gathering of 1100 pastors from across the country. They discuss three main themes:
COVID denial and the way it created momentum for an anti-government, anti-"woke" church movement
Trans hatred and the dehumanizing rhetoric that TPUSA encourages pastors to use
Christian nationalism - the various factions and debates manifest at the conference and why they should scare us all.
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With Dan still on vacation, enjoy this episode from the One Nation All Belief series: Brad speaks with Paul Southwick and Erin Green from the Religious Exemption Accountability Project. They explain REAP's mission: to help queer students on religious campuses and to get tax dollars out of institutions that discriminate against LGBT people. Through civil rights litigation, storytelling, oral history, research and public policy, REAP works toward a world where LGBTQ students on all campuses are treated equally, with safety and respect.Through civil rights litigation, storytelling, oral history, research and public policy, we work toward a world where LGBTQ students on all campuses are treated equally, with safety and respect.
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Faith deconstruction - the intentional examination of one's religious faith and beliefs, leading to a profound change in, or even loss of, that faith - has received increasing attention in the past few years. But, who are the people who deconstruct their faith, what causes them to do so and where does the journey take them? Olivia Jackson's new book (Un)Certain is a collective memoir built on the stories and reflections of over 150 interviewees and nearly 400 survey respondents from all over the world, including the author's own story. These are ordinary people who reached the end of their (predominantly) evangelical road and had the courage to keep walking. It is woven around themes and shared experiences which came up time and again, and reveals a picture of deeply committed believers (including clergy) who reached a breaking point with the certainties and doctrines they spent years or even decades professing. https://scmpress.hymnsam.co.uk/books/9780334063636/uncertain
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the Senate's passage of the Respect for Marriage Act, which provides federal protections for same-sex marriage. Both hosts see the bill as a net win, but are concerned about the concessions it gives to churches and conservative lawmakers.They then discuss the seditious conspiracy conviction for Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes. Again, it's a net win, but it won't prevent right-wing extremism or put out the fire of the Big Lie. For that, we need the conviction of someone else. . .In the final segment they breakdown the refusal of several counties in Arizona to certify the election. Brad traces this back to the Big Lie and notes why it is more than a footnote in the 2022 midterms.Join Brad in Costa Mesa, CA - January 13: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/473515687167Join Brad in Los Angeles - January 14: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/466693531917Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishiPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesusSWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ronLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
“Count it all Joy” Why do Christians sometimes tell people they should feel “joy” when they experience difficult times? What can that possibly mean? Is it intended as a form of encouragement? As a fatalistic acceptance of everything that happens to us? And what are the implications of this? What are the implications of this idea for mental health, for high-control religious environments, or for the range of feelings, emotions, and experiences that are considered legitimate within the faith community? In this episode, Dan tackles these questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
We are kicking off a new series on the history of the New Apostolic Reformation with Dr. Matthew Taylor. "Charismatic Revival Fury: The New Apostolic Reformation" will run from the first Monday in December all the way to the January 6th anniversary. The series will explore the history of the NAR through its key figures - starting with C. Peter Wagner, then moving to Ché Ahn, Lance Wallnau, Cindy Jacobs, and Dutch Sheets. Along the way we will see how people like Sean Feucht, Gen. Michael Flynn, Doug Mastriano, and others fit into the NAR matrix. The NAR is the most influential Christian phenomenon that you either haven't heard of, or don't understand. It is much discussed, but rarely explored in depth with a scholar's insight and patience. This series will break down myths and clearly present the origins of the fastest growing component of Christianity in the USA - and maybe the world. Join Brad in Costa Mesa, CA - January 13: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/473515687167 Join Brad in Los Angeles - January 14: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/466693531917 Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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On a solo Weekly Roundup Brad discusses the significance of anti-Semitic Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes having dinner at Mar A Lago with former president Trump and Ye (formerly Kanye West). Beyond the frightening implications of a former president - who remains the figurehead of his party - inviting two anti-Semitic celebrities to dine with him, the event demonstrates once and for all that despite the better than expected outcome of the 2022 midterms, fascist threats to American democracy are looming all around us. He then transitions to discuss a new book, Moralist International: Russia in the Global Culture Wars, that shows the profound influence that James Dobson and Allan Carlson (founder of the World Congress of Families) had on Russian culture and politics in the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. Brad traces a lineage from American eugenicists to Putin's Holy War rhetoric, showing how a fear of White replacement lies at the heart of the culture wars. Moralist International: https://www.fordhampress.com/9781531502157/the-moralist-international/
Join Brad in Costa Mesa, CA - January 13: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/473515687167 Join Brad in Los Angeles - January 14: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/466693531917 Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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In the second episode from their 2019 series, Brad and Dan continue their discussion of the history of the Christian Religious Left. They try to figure out how Mainline Protestantism won massive cultural victories in the 20th century, only to decline rapidly in terms of membership and political visibility. Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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This is the first episode in a 2019 series on the Religious Left . Brad and Dan begin by giving a brief history of the Christian Left over the last century. They highlight four main differences with evangelicalism: approaches to the Bible, the relationship between science and religion, the end of the world, and the Social Gospel vs. Individual Piety. Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and Dan are in Denver for the SWAJ event this evening! Buy a last minute ticket here: bradonshi.com/nationalism. If you can't watch live a recording will be sent to all virtual attendees in a week or so. In place of a weekly roundup, here is Episode 3 of Monster in the Mirror! Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts!
Monster in the Mirror Episode 3: The trope of the “Asiatic criminal mastermind” has haunted Asians for over a century, from the notorious Fu Manchu right up to the myths of dastardly Wuhan virologists circulating in the COVID era. But these myths, which have helped fuel a historic spike in anti-Asian racism, didn’t start with Sax Rohmer’s “Devil Doctor.” Before Fu Manchu, there was Dr. Yen How, the villain of M.P. Shiel’s smash hit The Yellow Danger (1898). In this episode, we examine how Asians today live not only in the shadow of the ruthless Yen How, but also in the shadow of the mindless monster that Yen How commands: the “Heathen Chinee.”
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Narrated and Scripted By Lucas Kwong Voice acting: Christian Young Valdovinos, Lucas Kwong Sound Effects courtesy of royalty free sources Played N Faved, The Sound Source, Free Sound Effects Theme Song “Lair” by The Brother K Melee (brotherkmusic.com) End song “Pledge Of Allegiance” by The Brother K Melee (brotherkmusic.com) Various film and news audio clips used under fair/educational use laws.
Further Reading: Sascha Auerbach, Race, Law, and the ‘Chinese Puzzle’ in Imperial Britain
Harold Billings, M.P. Shiel: A Biography Of His Early Years
Paul Boyer, When Time Shall Be No More: Prophecy Belief In Modern American Culture
Lou Cannon, President Reagan: The Role Of A Lifetime
Ross G. Forman, China And The Victorian Imagination: Empires Entwined
Christopher Frayling, The Yellow Peril: Dr. Fu Manchu And The Rise Of Chinaphobia
Kathryn Gin Lum, Heathen: Religion And Race In American History
Mark Jerng, Racial Worldmaking: The Power Of Popular Fiction
Kirsten MacLeod, "M.P. Shiel and the Love of Pubescent Girls: The Other 'Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name,'" English Literature in Transition 51.4 (2008): 355–80
Caroline Yang, The Peculiar Afterlife of Slavery: The Chinese Worker And The Minstrel Form. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
We often hear Christians, cultural conservatives, and conservative politicians appeal to the family, and particularly the need for children to have families. Why do they say this? Would anyone disagree with it? When we crack the code of this language, do find more going on that the simple affirmation that children need and deserve adult caregivers who love them, care for them, and want them to thrive? In this episode, Dan argues that when we crack this code, we find that this sentiment is primarily about the family at all.
SWAJ IN DENVER - We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad is joined by return guest and co-author Annika Brockschmidt to discuss three things:
Her recent piece at Religion Dispatches on the fascist elements of the Right's taste for violence and cruelty
The 2022 midterms, including J.D. Vance, Blake Masters, and the looming DeSantis/Trump showdown
What the f*ck is happening with Twitter? We have thoughts.
THE MONSTER IN THE MIRROR pod has its own feed. Go subscribe wherever you get your podcasts!
SWAJ in DENVER: We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad and Dan breakdown the good, the bad, the ugly, and the hopeful from the 2022 midterms. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Is the slogan, “stand for the flag, kneel for the cross” a harmless expression of the conviction that good Christians can also be good citizens? Or if we decode it, do we find that a meaning that’s much more pernicious than that? In this episode, Dan argues that this slogan is an expression of Christian nationalism, giving voice to anti-Black racism and licensing election denial and efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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When it was first published in 1897, Bram Stoker's Dracula immediately triggered a spate of strong emotional responses. These responses partly stemmed from its action-movie depiction of Christianity, but also partly from the xenophobic fears of European Jews that lurk beneath its titular monster. Dracula also introduced the idea of a holy conspiracy, whose members must conduct their sacred fight against evil in secret. In this episode, we talk about how a century of adaptations has preserved the notion of dueling conspiracies, and thereby provided the narrative that fuels QAnon, the Oath Keepers, and other modern Crusaders consumed with their own secret plot to take America back from the "globalist" monsters they fear and loathe.
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Voice acting: Christian Young Valdovinos, Alfred Kwong, Lucas Kwong, Naomi Kwong For Further Reading:
Stephen Arata, Fictions Of Loss
Barbara Belford, Bram Stoker: A Biography Of The Author Of Dracula
Roger Luckhurst, ed. The Cambridge Companion To Dracula
Raymond McNally and Radu Florescu, In Search Of Dracula: The History Of Dracula And Vampires
David Skal, Something In The Blood: The Untold Story Of Bram Stoker, The Man Who Wrote Dracula
Bram Stoker And Valdimar Asmundsson, Powers Of Darkness: The Lost Version Of Dracula.
Bram Stoker, Dracula.
Audio from various films used under fair/educational use laws. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the attack on Paul Pelosi. Brad discusses the conspiracy theories that have taken hold surrounding the attack and why the jokes, memes, and laughs coming from the American Right reveal how they think of the country - and themselves. Dan then dives into Kanye West's anti-Semitic remarks and discusses his history of anti-Blackness. The episode finishes with an examination of the open racial fear mongering on GOP midterm ads in the South. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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One of the most central commands given by Jesus of Nazareth in the Bible is to “love your enemies.” But if this is true, why does it seem like we seldom see this in practice among Christians, especially those who actively articulate their faith in terms of culture war and Christian nationalism? Dan tackles these issues in this episode, decode Christian understandings of what “love of enemies” does, and doesn’t mean, for the Christians who appeal to it. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Monster in the Mirror is a limited audio series produced by Straight White American Jesus, and created and written by Dr. Lucas Kwong. Monster in the Mirror is a series about monsters. It's about how the fantastical beasts who stalk the imagination of contemporary Christian nationalists were birthed in another white God fearing empire. It's about how Christian nationalism's past and the clues to its future line, the pages of some of the most popular novels in English. Christian nationalism isn't just a set of policies or a material network of influencers. It's a story, a story that seduces the imagination, one that's been told over and over, but that is now enjoying a renaissance. And if we wanna trace today's reboot back to its source material, we have to go back further than the Reagan eighties or even the Billy Graham fifties. We have to go back to another time and place where the script that MAGA religion has now revived first entered white Christian consciousness, not as an explicit political ideology, but as entertainment. That time and place is late 19th century Britain. Monster in the Mirror explores how at the height of its powers, the British Empire began to suffer nightmares, visions of an apocalyptic future, of a decline. That in some sense, actually is happening today in our place in time. And we're gonna see how the monsters that today's Christian right blames for that decline originated in the stories that the late Victorians told themselves about Christianity's enemies and protectors.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the brand new survey data from Pew Religion and PRRI about faith, politics, and American values. Dan brings up the numbers on how many people think the USA is a Christian nation and what that means. Brad discusses the high number of Christians who think that patriotism is an important part of faith - and why that feeds Christian nationalism on an everyday level. After the break, Dan brings up the PRRI data that shows how many Americans think the country has been a force for good in the world without exception. Brad talks about how White Christians, according to the data, see newcomers to the country as a threat to it. They finish by discussing the 50 point divide in how Republicans and Democrats feel about the "femininity" of American society. Pew Research PRRI American Values Survey In the final segment, Brad brings up how Trump, Tucker Carlson, and local offiicals are setting the stage to cast doubt on the election results in the state - and fuel the fire for another violent political event.
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Brad is joined by Congressperson Jared Huffman, who represents California's 2nd District. Rep. Huffman is the only member of the House who is not affiliated with a religious tradition. He started the Freethought Caucus in 2018 to highlight the concerns and needs of Americans who are humanists, freethinkers, agnostics, and otherwise invested in freethinking in politics and the public square. Perhaps most importantly for SWAJ in March 2022 Rep. Huffman held a hearing on White Christian nationalism that reviewed a report on J6 by the Freedom from Religion Foundation and the Baptist Joint Committee. He has called out Christian nationalism on the House floor and said that it is infecting our government. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad speaks with Dr. Lucas Kwong, creator of the SWAJ spinoff podcast series Monster in the Mirror - first episode drops Halloween 2022. They discuss how Christian nationalism is a story - a story about empire, fear of replacement, and anxiety about the other. In this story, White Christian invent monsters that they then blame for "destroying" the nation and the culture they want to protect. So, political enemies become demons. Elections become apocalyptic events. And the stakes are reduced to a battle between the Good Guys and the monsters they have invented. This explains how 19th century Gothic literature such as Dracula and War of the Worlds provides a map for understanding the monsters that contemporary American Christian nationalists have invented. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad and Dan discuss three stories from this week that show American conservatism is over - and what is taking its place is a right-wing totalitarianism that should scare us all. They begin by discussing new material on House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy who it seems is willing to hold the country hostage by not raising the debt limit in order to get what he wants in the form of cutting certain government programs. Brad and Dan use this to delve into the shift from classical conservative ideals to radical burn-it-down-ism over the last two decades. Brad then provides a brief profile of Arizona GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake. She is the perfect example of how the contemporary American Right operates on the basis of grievance and revenge, rather than conservative principles. She is also a frontrunner to be Trump's VP pick if he runs in 2024. They finish with the most important story of the day - an article from the Federalist that argues the following: Put bluntly, if conservatives want to save the country they are going to have to rebuild and in a sense re-found it, and that means getting used to the idea of wielding power, not despising it. Why? Because accommodation or compromise with the left is impossible. One need only consider the speed with which the discourse shifted on gay marriage, from assuring conservatives ahead of the 2015 Obergefell decision that gay Americans were only asking for toleration, to the never-ending persecution of Jack Phillips. The left will only stop when conservatives stop them, which means conservatives will have to discard outdated and irrelevant notions about “small government.” The government will have to become, in the hands of conservatives, an instrument of renewal in American life — and in some cases, a blunt instrument indeed. This isn't conservative. It's a call to a totalitarian government.
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In the previous episode, Dan decoded the affirmation that Christians are called not to “live in a spirit of fear,” showing that this affirmation actually masks a pervasive culture of fear. In that episode, he looked at the dynamics and effects of this affirmation within the spiritual and religious experience of individuals and particular congregations. In this episode, he continues that work, looking at how this culture of fear spills out from individuals and congregations, taking form the Christian nationalism and culture wars that currently engulf our society. As with individuals and congregations, and despite all the movement’s protestations to the contrary, we can see that this Christian nationalism is a social embodiment of pervasive fear. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad links last's week's episode on Christianity as the original American purity culture to the argument made in a new book by Stephen Wolfe - "The Case for Christian Nationalism." In the book and in his public comments, Wolfe makes an argument like this:
God created humans on earth
Those humans were always going to gather in separate communities
Christianity therefore assumes nations
Christians should institutionalize Christianity in order to rightly order the public sphere
You should love those who are like you more than others
Nations should defend their people's identity and freedom from others
In Brad's mind, this is a stone's throw from ethno-nationalism - and it creates an impulse to see those who are not White, Christian, straight, patriarchal, and native-born as less than - as deserving less love - and as potentially the threats against which real Americans would defend themselves in the name of God and country. Despite the high theological language, it's White ethno-nationalism - at a time when Kanye West and Donald Tr*mp are making anti-Semitic remarks. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have five in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have 25 virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the final J6 hearing. Brad focuses on the new information that the Secret Service had tips about potential violence on J6 as early as December. They then discuss the released footage of Pelosi, Schumer, et al trying to get military and law enforcement help as the Capitol was under siege. In the second segment Dan breaks down the verdict in the Alex Jones case. He zeroes in on how the GOP has reacted to the news by playing the victim - as if Alex Jones did nothing wrong and should not be held to account. In the final segment, Brad discusses Kanye West's anti-Semitism and how it reveals a larger issue in this country: the casual acceptance of everyday anti-Semitism - as well as Christian nationalist's infatuation with Israel, but little regard for Jewish people. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have five in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have 25 virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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One of the central admonitions within theologically conservative American Christianity is that Christians are not defined by a “spirit of fear.” What does this mean? Where does this way of talking come from? And what are its effects? Dan answers these questions in this first of paired episodes on this topic, decoding this language to reveal what’s really going on with this insistence on not experiencing fear in the Christian life. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have five in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available) We have 25 virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 (limited number available)
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Brad does a preview from a key chapter in his new book. He argues that we should see purity culture - the movement for sexual purity in every way that swept through evangelical spaces in the 1990s - as an outworking of Christian nationalism. For Brad, Christian nationalism is the original purity culture because Christian nationalism is about creating and sustaining a pure nation - a nation that is ordered the right way with White Christians in power and everyone else knowing their place on the margins. Christian nationalism wants a pure national body. Purity culture is the attempt to create that nation by purifying teenage flesh from not only sexual licentiousness, but also all the elements that might make the national body impure - queerness, mixed races, and foreigners. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ We have five in-person tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50 We have 25 virtual tickets at 50% off - use SWAJ50
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the revelations about Herschel Walker, GOP candidate for US Senate in Georgia, paying for an abortion for an ex-girlfriend. What interests them is how this event (like others) reveals the power-at-all-costs worldview of the GOP and the Christian nationalists at the heart of the party. Such events also show how any criticism of GOP Christians is perceived as persecution - as if they are targets of spiritual warfare, rather than public figures being asked about incoherencies between their actions and policy positions. In the next segment Brad zeroes in on the reactions the American Right had to Lizzo playing James Madison's flute. His analysis focuses on the theme of racial retribution and a reduction of the world to an us-vs-them mentality. In the final segment the hosts discuss the similarities among Brazil's Bolsonaro, Russia's Vladimir Putin, and the newly elected Giorgia Meloni in Italy. While they may not be political allies formally, they use similar strategies to foment fear and anxiety in their supporters. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
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Theologically and culturally conservative American Christians actively mock “liberal” or “progressive” or “secular” appeals to “safety” in society. And yet, the rhetoric of safety, and the related idea of “health,” have penetrated deeply into this religious culture. One the surface, these emphases represent a more inviting, less judgmental form of spirituality. But in this episode, Dan decodes this language to show that, beneath that appearance, this rhetoric harbors judgment and resentments that actively endanger huge numbers of people and that lead to lasting negative mental and emotional health consequence. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
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Brad is joined by scholars Jill-Hicks Keeton and Cavan Concannon to talk about their new book: "Does Scripture Speak for Itself: The Museum of the Bible and the Politics of Interpretation. " https://books.google.com/books/about/Does_Scripture_Speak_for_Itself.html?id=f3iwzgEACAAJ The Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC is arguably the latest example of a long line of white evangelical institutions aiming to amplify and promote a religious, political, and moral agenda of their own. Jill Hicks-Keeton and Cavan Concannon show how the Museum's exhibits reinforce a particularized and partial interpretation of the Bible's meaning. The authors reveal how the MOTB produces a version of the Bible that in essence authorizes a certain sort of white evangelical privilege; promotes a view of history aligned with that same evangelical aspiration; and above all protects a cohort of white evangelicals from critique. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
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Brad and Dan are in the same room! Recording SWAJ in person! It's the first time since 2019 and so they take the opportunity to do a primer on all things SWAJ: the origin story of the show, the rundown of all the series they've done in the past and are planning for the future, the books they've written, the live event coming up in Denver, and why Brad is a California cliche and Dan is a walking dad joke. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Dan's 1st book: https://www.dupress.duq.edu/products/the-myth-of-normative-secularism-politics-and-religion-in-the-democratic-homeworld Brad's 1st book: http://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-sacrality-of-the-secular/9780231183925 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Many have heard Christians claim that “God’s ways are not our ways,” or that “God moves in mysterious ways.” While these words might have been offered as comfort in a trying time, they have had a negative impact on many. In this episode, Dan cracks the code on phrases like these find out why, and to understand the multiple meanings encoded within them. Join us at the SWAJ Live Event: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad speaks with constitutional lawyer Andrew Seidel about the crusade to weaponize religious freedom for the minority - and against the majority. The Bible speaks of people beating swords into plowshares, but some conservative American Christians are proving that a false prophecy. They’re beating plowshares into swords. A group of committed and well-funded activists—“Crusaders”—are attempting to redefine and weaponize religious liberty, to change a hallowed legal protection into a tool to impose religion on others. The Crusaders are deliberately working to pervert this hallowed constitutional protection. Their vision of religious liberty codifies privilege and status for conservative, white Christians, a dwindling demographic. It’s a weapon to maintain their dominant, privileged caste status that can be used against nearly every law, rule, or regulation. https://andrewlseidel.com/american-crusade/
ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SWAJ LIVE EVENT! https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
Pre-Order Brad's new book: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SWAJ LIVE EVENT! https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ Brad and Dan begin by going through the details of Trump's awful no good week of legal woes and lawsuits. Dan piles up the hits against him and shows how the arguments he makes on social media and rallies don't hold up in court. He also points out that the more Trump is pursued by the law, the more his base see him as a suffering martyr. This sets up the next segment where Brad and Dan go through the creepy salutes people are doing at Trump rallies and other MAGA events around the country. It may seem like par for the course at this point, but it hearkens back to scary stages in the development of fascism from the past. In the final segment they dig into the widening scandal surrounding DeSantis' Martha's Vineyard stunt. Brad points out that it recalls the "Reverse Freedom Rides" of the 1960s.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SWAJ LIVE EVENT! https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ You may hear Christians say they are called to be “in the world, but not of the world”? What does that mean? When someone talks in this way, what kind of Christian are they likely to be? How does this way of talking relate to different conceptions of Christian identity, to contemporary Christian nationalism, or to the ongoing “culture wars” that affect so many of us? Dan tackles these questions in this episode.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SWAJ LIVE EVENT! CHECK IT OUT: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ Brad speaks with the Rev. Angela Tyler-Williams a queer pastor in the Presbyterian USA Church and co-director for movement building at SACReD (Spiritual Alliance of Communities for Reproductive Dignity). They discuss the interreligious movement led by clergy and religious leaders to bring reproductive justice to the USA. They also discuss:
What the Bible really says about abortion
Why the Dobbs decision rests on bad theology
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SWAJ LIVE EVENT! CHECK IT OUT: https://www.bradonishi.com/nationalism/ Brad and Dan begin by discussing the proposed federal abortion ban rolled out by Sen. Lyndsey Graham. Brad puts it in the context of the Christian nationalist attempt to return the country to where it was in the 1950s - and to ensure that the rights gained by BIPOC Americans, women, LGBT folks, immigrants, and others are reset. Dan points out the strange timing of the rollout and asks why Graham did it now. They both agree that this is the beginning of a slow roll to banning abortion in almost any case federally. In the second segment they discuss the MAGA-ification of the GOP by examining primaries in New Hampshire and elsewhere. Where will the moderate Republican go? Finally, they discuss Ron DeSantis' stunt of flying migrants to Martha's Vineyard. Both of them ask if this is what a Christian leader does in 2022 and how it can be considered any form of helpful governance. They also discuss how Uncle Ron has infused Florida schools with conservative curricula from Hillsdale College, disproving the notion that the governor wants to rid the state's schools of ideology of any kind. https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2022/07/01/conservative-hillsdale-college-is-helping-desantis-reshape-florida-education/
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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“Freedom in Christ” What do Christians mean when they appeal to “freedom in Christ”? Where does this phrase come from? How is it understood differently by different kinds of Christians? And why does it seem confusing or hypocritical to so many? Dan tackles these and other issues in this episode.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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American culture focuses on letting go of grudges and redemption narratives instead of the perpetrator’s obligations or recompense for harmed parties. As survivor communities have pointed out, these emphases have too often only caused more harm. But Danya Ruttenberg knew there was a better model, rooted in the work of the medieval philosopher Maimonides. For Maimonides, upon whose work Ruttenberg elaborates, forgiveness is much less important than the repair work to which the person who caused harm is obligated. The word traditionally translated as repentance really means something more like return, and in this book, returning is a restoration, as much as is possible, to the victim, and, for the perpetrator of harm, a coming back, in humility and intentionality, to behaving as the person we might like to believe we are. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/710956/on-repentance-and-repair-by-danya-ruttenberg/
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Christian musician and political activist Sean Feucht wants people to join him on Sept. 11 for a time of worship at the U.S. Capitol Reflecting Pool. It’s not unusual for people to gather for prayer, reflection, and even music on that date as we recall the terrorist attacks two decades ago. But Feucht’s event has a little different branding. “Pray for America. Pray for President Trump.” That’s how Feucht’s group Hold the Line titled the Sept. 11 event. After invoking 2 Chronicles 7:14, they issued an invitation: “Join us on September 11th in front of the Capitol in DC to pray for Trump, pray for our country, and pray for God’s divine intervention.” Brad speaks with Dr. Brian Kaylor who wrote a piece outlining the details of Feucht's event and the ways it denigrates the memory of 9/11: https://publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/when-worship-goes-wrong
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the recent "controversy" over the casting of BIPOC actors in a new Lord of the Rings series. Dan lays out the reactions from American conservatives who claim that casting a diverse cast is nothing but woke nonsense that denigrates Tolkien's vision and makes the series unwatchable. Dan analyzes how this reaction reveals the racism at the heart of their concern. Brad discusses how conversations about fictional characters matter, recalling Megyn Kelly's famous proclamation that both Santa Claus and Jesus are White. In the second segment, they discuss the hold a federal judge placed on the investigation into the documents seized from Mar-a-Lago. Brad calls attention to the holes in the judge's opinion and worries that this will delay the investigation months or years, leading us into the 2024 election with nothing decide. Dan worries about the precedent this will set in terms of famous people not being lawfully indicted to their reputational capital. In the final segment Brad breaks down a new report from AP on how Michael Flynn has become a central figure in the network of Proud Boys, QAnons, election deniers, and conservative Christians by turning himself into a Christian nationalist figurehead.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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“God’s Will” What does it mean when religious people appeal to “God’s will”? What kind of work does this do? Does it always provide the guidance and comfort for life it seems to promise? And what are the dangers of understanding God in terms of “will” in the first place? Dan dives into these and other issues in this episode.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad gives a preview of his new book by discussing how some of Trump's tactics and myths are comparable to what Hitler used to gain power in Germany. Brad is careful to point out that his comparison is just that - a comparison. He is not arguing that Trump and Hitler are identical. Rather, his argument is that Trump's Big Lie and the myth that the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago was unconstitutional and illegal are resonant with the Stab-in-the-Back myths Hitler used in Germany to convince his followers that their country had been stolen from them and only he could return it to glory.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing the growing case against Trump, whose seems to have clearly obstructed the retrieval of classified documents from his home. This leads to a discussion of how and when GOP elites will pivot away from Trump and what this means for the MAGA movement going forward. They then discuss two speeches by President Biden this week. In the first, he used the term "semi-fascist" to describe MAGA Republicans. Then, last night he gave a speech at Independence Hall in Philadelphia where he laid out the strongest case yet that MAGA-ism is a threat to our democracy. Brad and Dan dissect what fascism is, how it has worked historically, and why it's accurate to label MAGA-ism a fascist movement. They then analyze key lines from Biden's speech and what his intentions were in giving it. The episode finishes with a segment on the racialized environmental disaster in Jackson, MS where residents are without water. Brad and Dan show how a history of shifting funds away from Black areas of the city and ignoring failing infrastructure led to a preventable humanitarian crisis in the Blackest state in the nation.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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“Pronouns” What’s up with Christian nationalists and religious communities that are so angry when people talk about their pronouns? How does pronoun use relate to and express gender identity? Why do cisgender people also mark their pronouns? Is this more than identity politics and culture war? In this episode, Dan decodes some of the culture war and religious dimensions around the hot-button topic of pronouns.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad is joined by the one and only Dr. Jemar Tisby. They discuss a range of issues related to paternalism, prejudice, and power. One of the first things Dr. Tisby points out is that compromise has often been the site of the most egregious forms of racism in American history. He then goes on to talk about the paternalism that pervaded White Christians' justification of slavery - and the ways paternalism continues to perpetuate racism today. The discussion then turns to an individualistic vs. systemic approach to thinking about oppression, and why the former is often used as a way out for doing the hard work of facing history and the present. The Color of Compromise: The Truth About the American Church's Complicity in Racism: https://jemartisby.com/the-color-of-compromise/ The Color of Compromise is not a call to shame or a platform to blame white evangelical Christians. It is a call from a place of love and desire to fight for a more racially unified church that no longer compromises what the Bible teaches about human dignity and equality. A call that challenges black and white Christians alike to standup now and begin implementing the concrete ways Tisby outlines, all for a more equitable and inclusive environment among God's people. Starting today.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and Dan begin the episode by discussing the student loan forgiveness announcement the Biden administration made this week. They ask whether it went far enough and then track the responses from the GOP, who uniformly denounced it as irresponsible. Unfortunately for them we have the receipts about how much they received in forgiven PPP loans . . . Brad then takes us through a history of how universities have lost public funding, leading to higher fees, and you guessed it, a student loan crisis. This all happened when BIPOC and women started entering universities in larger numbers during the 70s and 80s. In the second segment they discuss how abortion has become the primary issue in statewide primary races across the nation. Dan tracks all the numbers from Florida to New York to Oregon and Brad discusses the overwhelming number of young women who have registered to vote in Pennsylvania. In the last segment they examine the calls to restrict voting rights to landowning men between the ages of 35-65 by prominent right-wing pundits. It's creeping fascism, pure and simple.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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“Spiritual Warfare 2.0” How do appeals to “spiritual warfare” relate to the social and political struggles of the flesh-and-blood world? How do different kinds of Christian communities and traditions understand the relation between spiritual forces and the flesh-and-blood world? And what role does racial identity play in shaping understandings and expressions of “spiritual warfare”? Dan tackles these and other questions in this episode.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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From the archives, an episode from 2019 centered on how fundamentalist religions are prone to violence. This episode has renewed relevance given the recent discussions of civil war in the wake of the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago: Dan and Brad dissect why so many evangelical leaders--and high-level government officials--are threatening civil war if the president is impeached and/or removed. One thing is clear: the single group who is maintaining unwavering support for Trump's presidency = White Christian nationalists.
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and. Dan begin by discussing the week's GOP primary results, nothing that the GOP remains the Party of Trump. They juxtapose these results with the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago, the Trump Org tax case in NY, and the other ongoing investigations. The takeaway: facts and morality don't matter in MAGA land. Just fealty to the leader. They then transition to two stories about American Christianity. First, the DOJ's investigation into the Southern Baptist Convention and what that means for the SBC's governance, theology, and future. The takeaway: we should stop giving American Christians the benefit of the doubt. Christian does not automatically mean good, civil, or trustworthy. https://www.npr.org/2022/08/13/1117362904/southern-baptists-doj-investigation-sexual-abuse Houston Chronicle's Robert Downen on SWAJ: https://www.irreverent.fm/show/straight-white-american-jesus-1/special-episode-the-southern-baptist-conventions-apocalypse-with-robert-downen/ The last segment is on the new article from the Atlantic on how Rad-Trad Catholics are using the rosary to as a militant symbol for spiritual and political warfare. This leads to analysis of how the Rad Trad movement represents a significant Christian nationalist faction within American Catholicism. Brad argues that there are correspondent elements of nostalgia, apocalypticism, and literalism with White Evangelical Christian nationalism. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/08/radical-traditionalist-catholic-christian-rosary-weapon/671122/?utm_source=apple_news
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“Spiritual Warfare 1.0” What is “spiritual warfare”? Why do some Christians understand their faith and practice in terms of spiritual warfare? And what are some of the concrete effects of understanding Christianity in terms of spiritual warfare? In this episode, Dan outlines where this language of spiritual warfare comes from, how different Christian groups understand and practice spiritual warfare, and considers the significance of spiritual warfare language for Christian groups that deny the reality of mental illness and the legitimacy of LGBTQ+ identities.
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Brad speaks with journalist and pastor Angela Denker about the updated version of her book, Red State Christians. Denker spent a year traveling across the United States, interviewing the Evangelical Christian voters who supported the Trump presidency and exploring how their voting block continues to influence the landscape of modern conservative politics. From booming, wealthy Orange County megachurches to libertarian farmers in Missouri, to a church in Florida where the pastors carry guns, to an Evangelical Arab American church in Houston, to conservative Catholics on the East Coast--the picture Denker paints of them is enlightening, at times disturbing, but always empathetic.
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Brad and Dan begin by going through the nuts and bolts related to the FBI's search of Trump's residence--what it requires to get a warrant, who had to sign off on it, and what it means that the GOP has no faith in the process or belief in the rule of law. They then examine the reactions to the search from MAGA Nation, followers of QAnon, and influential right-wing politicians, pundits, and influencers. The overall tone: This means the next civil war. Unfortunately, the consequences are already being manifest--yesterday a man tried to enter an FBI facility in Cincinnati and was killed in a standoff with law enforcement. The last segment examines the revelations that the FBI's search centered on classified information related to nuclear plans, weapons, and/or secrets. Brad lays out the case that this could be related to the billions of dollars Trump officials (including Jared Kushner) have received from the Saudi family. Dan argues it could be as simple as Trump wanting to show off to old golfing buddies.
Michael Flynn and Saudi Arabian nuclear plans: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/white-house-pushed-saudi-nuclear-power-plan-report-says
The Saudis invest in Kushner: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/10/us/jared-kushner-saudi-investment-fund.html?smtyp=cur∣=tw-nytimes
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In this episode, Dan revisits the claim or aspiration to be “biblical.” If such claims or aspirations involve efforts to control religious adherents, what are the consequences of this? What claims or attitudes, or actions does it license? How do claims to be “biblical” create an “anything-goes” kind of spirituality? How does this play out in concrete, practical terms? Check out the episode to find out!
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Brad speaks with Dr. Arlene Sanchez-Walsh, author of Latino Pentecostal Identity, about how and why many Latinx Evangelicals have signed on to Trump's brand of Christian nationalism. They discuss the history of Latinx conversion to evangelicalism and Pentecostalism and how such conversions require participation in an American colonial project that demands assimilation. They also discuss the religious-political Latinx leaders who have risen to prominence in the Trump era and sometimes inescapable allure of power and influence that has led many of them into the heart of MAGA Nation. Latino Pentecostal Identity: http://cup.columbia.edu/book/latino-pentecostal-identity/9780231127332 Pentecostals in America: http://cup.columbia.edu/book/pentecostals-in-america/9780231141833
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing takeaways from Kansas, where voters soundly rejected a state amendment proposal to ban abortion. In one sense, it offers hope that pro-abortion movements and candidates can push back in the wake of the Dobbs decision and make headway in the fight for women's rights, reproductive rights, and healthcare in this country. On the other, it will provide fodder for the American Right to argue to conservative voters that the only way forward is a national ban on abortion. Brad then takes a deep dive into Viktor Orbán's appearance at CPAC and what it means that the American Right looks to him as a model for the illiberal democracy they want to create here. He draws on his own work and that of Sarah. Posner to show that the current conservative fascination with Orbán was fueled by the Religious Right and Christian nationalists. Andrew Marantz at the New Yorker: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/07/04/does-hungary-offer-a-glimpse-of-our-authoritarian-future Sarah Posner at Vice: https://www.vice.com/en/article/a3b4kk/is-authoritarian-europe-becoming-the-new-hope-of-the-religious-right-v26n1 The episode finishes with a look at the Arizona primary results. Down the GOP ticket in AZ election deniers won their races, meaning that the state could be run by proponents of the Big Lie very soon. It is, in essence, a test run for the kind of illiberal democracy we see in Hungary.
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What does it mean when a Christian says something is “biblical?” Why do some Christians talk this way, while others don’t? What do “biblicist” claims tell us about Christians’ understanding of religious authority and social control? Do all Christian groups share these understandings? In this episode, Dan helps to crack the code of being “biblical” to answer these and other questions.
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What is power? How can power be yielded in helpful and harmful ways? Brad is joined by Dr. Stephen Backhouse, an international scholar, speaker, and podcaster. They discuss the idea of magical thinking - not in the sense of sleight of hand tricks - but in the sense of trying to bend other peoples' wills towards yours. This form of power yielding is a zero-sum game - one in which either I win and you lose, or vice versa. There is no room for dialogue, compromise, or cooperation. The goal is vanquishing the other in order to dominate. As Dr. Backhouse explains, this form of power often overtakes institutions, governments, and churches. We see it today in the rising authoritarianisms of Brazil, Hungary, and the USA. It is also rampant in Christian nationalist churches that have accepted the mission of having dominion over the earth in God's name.
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Dan is joined by guest co-host Dr. Sara Moslener.
They begin by the calls by Mike Pence and others for a national abortion ban. Dan puts this in the context of the "culture of life" many Christian conservatives tout as their reasons for implementing inhumane reproductive rights policies. Dan zeroes in on the slogan, "Save the Babies, Save America" as a nationalistic straw man with tragic consequences.
In the second segment, the hosts discuss the Turning Point USA conference, which is a vehicle for radicalizing young conservatives. Dr. Moslener shares her personal run-ins with the organization and the scary tactics they use to threaten and harass professors and teachers. In the final segment, the hosts dig into the CNN article that claims Christian nationalism is "imposter Christianity." They argue that Christianity is what Christians do- and so CN is Christianity, even if it's violent, inhumane, and down right bad for the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On a special episode, Brad is joined by Dr. Thomas Lecaque to discuss the likelihood that Trump will face criminal charges for his role in the Insurrection. Brad begins by recounting the late breaking news that Trump is reportedly part of the DOJ investigation into the efforts to overturn the 2020 election. This news followed on the heels of Attorney General Merrick Garland's interview with Lester Holt, in which he said that anyone found to have broken the law will be prosecuted. Dr. Lecaque summarizes the last two J6 hearings in light of this news. Brad turns his attention to Georgia where Trump faces legal issues related to his phone call with the Georgia AG, in which he said he needed him to find votes. The episode finishes with analysis of the likelihood that Trump will someday face charges.
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In this episode, Dan takes his lead from listeners who’ve written in about hearing that “God hates divorce,” that “the family that prays together, stays together,” and so forth. What does this language mean? How have theologically conservative and "traditional" Christians understood divorce? How has Christian rhetoric and messaging about divorce changed over time? Are those changes positive, or do they harbor negative dimensions as well once we decode them? Listen to the episode to find out!
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Brad is joined by Dr. Charlie McCrary, postdoctoral researcher at Arizona State University and author of the new book, Sincerely Held: American Secularism and Its Believers. They discuss how SCOTUS determines what counts as religion, and thus what is deserving of protection under the 1st Amendment. Their conversation focuses on the "sincerity test" of religious belief, which has become a cornerstone of US jurisprudence, framing what counts as legitimate grounds for First Amendment claims in the eyes of the law. McCrary provides an original account of how sincerely held religious belief became the primary standard for determining what legally counts as authentic religion. Charles McCrary at the New Republic: https://newrepublic.com/article/165942/sincerely-held-religious-belief-law Charles' Book - Sincerely Held: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/S/bo135951072.html
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing last night's J6 hearing, focusing on the 187 minutes between when violence erupted at the Capitol and when Trump finally released a video telling his followers to go home. They focus on the callousness of the Commander in Chief watching Fox News for three hours while the Capitol was attacked, police were killed, and the peaceful transfer of power was disrupted. Dan takes us through a leaked memo from AG Merrick Garland that states there won't be indictments before the midterms. Does this mean Trump will never be indicted? Is Garland too much of an institutionalist to pursue justice in this case? Brad then takes us on a tour through extremist Christian nationalist policies from around the country with a focus on Maryland and Idaho. Some highlights: The John Birch Society, God granting the right to handheld killing machines, no exceptions for abortion when a woman's life is in danger, repealing the 16th amendment, and codifying originalism as an interpretive strategy.
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“Church Family” What does it mean when a church or spiritual community refers to itself as a “family”? If this is intended as a statement of support and affirmation, why does it make some people feel uncomfortable? And how does it relate to common workplace ideas like being part of the “team” or “community”? Dan tackles all these questions in this episode.
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Brad and Dan discuss immigration, refugees, and White evangelicals with Dr. Janelle Wong, Core Faculty in Asian American Studies and Professor of American Studies at the University of Maryland. Professor Wong discusses her new book on evangelicals and immigration in an era of policy change.
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This week’s episode focuses on the intersections of cultural and political debates about race, history, sexual violence, and abortion. Dan and guest co-host Professor Sara Moslener discuss a Fox new claim that "wokism" has taken over Thomas Jefferson's legacy because tour guides at Monticello now highlight his sexual relationships with the people he enslaved. Sara recounts her recent visit to Thomas Jefferson’s home in Monticello, VA and the lessons for understanding current debates a race, history, and cultural memory. They also discuss ongoing efforts to minimize and trivialize the findings about sex abuse within the Southern Baptist Convention, and some of the ongoing lessons that are being learned in the wake of SCOTUS’s overturning of Roe v. Wade.
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What does it mean when cultural and religious conservatives proclaim that they affirm a “culture of life?” We know it means that they oppose abortion and abortion access. But what else does it mean? In this episode, Dan dives in to decode this message to look at the racial, gender, and social positions that are encoded in this seemingly familiar slogan.
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Brad speaks with Stanford scholar of religion Dr. Kathryn Gin Lum about her new book Heathen. They discuss how White American Christians have used the label "heathen" in order to name those they deem not only different, but in need of saving. In this context, "saving" often meant the occupation of native lands, the overtaking of entire cultures, and the exclusion of those "unassimilable" to the American way of life. Race continues to operate as a heathen inheritance in the United States, animating Americans’ sense of being a world apart from an undifferentiated mass of needy, suffering peoples. Dr. Gin Lum reveals a key source of American exceptionalism and a prism through which Americans have defined themselves as a progressive and humanitarian nation even as supposed heathens have drawn on the same to counter this national myth. This is not a past phenomenon - it continues today in debates about reproductive rights and the rise of anti-Asian hate during the COVID pandemic. Heathen by Kathryn Gin Lum: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674976771
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Brad is joined by guest co-host Dr. Leah Payne. They begin by discussing how many White Americans - especially White Christian nationalists - view the national body as straight, White, patriarchal, and American-born. This framework helps guide a discussion on the drastically different reactions law enforcement took in the cases of Jayland Walker, who was shot by police 60 times in Akron, Ohio, and the Highland Park shooter who was apprehended without violence after he allegedly killed 7 people at July 4 parade. This leads to a discussion of Tucker Carlson's explanation for the Highland Park shooting: women lecturing men, government-backed weed, and medication. It is a case of refusing to look at the monster in the mirror--and doing anything possible to take the attention away from guns. The episode finishes with analysis of the AZ rep who said she would kill her own grandchildren in order to protect them and how this ties into discussions of reproductive rights.
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What does it mean when Christians say that we “live in a fallen world”? Where does that language come from? Most importantly, what to different kinds of Christians do with that language? Dan tackles these topics in this episode, discussing what different kinds of Christians imagine when they describe the world as “fallen,” how they think we should respond to that, and exploring how that plays out in our contemporary culture.
Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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Brad speaks with Dr. Kelsy Burke, a sociologist from the University of Nebraska, who discusses her new book The Pornography Wars: The Past, Present, and Future of America's Obscene Obsession. https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/pornography-wars-9781635577365/ Burke spent the last five years researching and interviewing internet pornography's opponents and its sympathizers. She does a deep dive into the long history of pornography in America and then turns her gaze on our present society to examine the ways this industry touches on the most intimate parts of American lives. She offers a complete understanding of the major players in the debates around porn's place in society: everyone from sex workers, activists, therapists, religious leaders, and consumers. In doing so, she addresses and debunks the myths that surround porn and porn usage while showing how everything from the way we teach children about sex to the legal protections for what can be published is tied up in the deeply complicated battles over pornography.
Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad and Dan are back together. They begin by discussing the validity and significance of Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony at the J6 hearing this week. Brad implores us not to get distracted by claims that her account of certain episodes is being disputed by off-the-record sources who won't testify under oath in front of the nation. They then turn to SCOTUS. Dan breaks down the religious freedom case in which the Court ruled that praying after football games is part of the free exercise of religion. He and Brad discuss why this is coercive, damaging to religious minorities, and just plain incoherent. In the final segment, Brad previews Moore v. Harper, a case SCOTUS will hear next term. This case could give state legislatures full control over the electors they send to the Electoral College. What does that mean? It means votes - and democracy - could be nullified when state legislatures decide that election results are invalid and they are sending alternative sets of electors with no oversight from state courts or the governor.
Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
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In this episode, Dan decodes a phrase that A LOT of listeners have contacted him about: the claim that Christians are called to “love the sinner, but hate the sin.” What does this mean? What kind of Christian claim is this? Why does it strike such a nerve among those who hear it? Dan tackles these questions in the episode.
Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi
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For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960
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Brad is joined by writer R.L. Stollar who discusses his recent article on Voddie Baucham and the Stay at Home Daughter Movement. Baucham may not be a household name-but he was nearly elected the president of the largest Protestant denomination in the country just over a week ago. According to Stollar, Bacuham is a pillar in the SAHD movement, which "argues that girls should remain at home—even after they become adult women—and submissively serve their fathers until they’re married." Here is how Christianity Today describes the movement: "Essentially, adherents of SAHD believe daughters should never leave the covering of their fathers until and unless they are married. One SAHD father writes: While they are preparing to be keepers of their own homes one day, until our daughters are married, they should serve as keepers at home in the house of their father. They are to be helpers to their mother and blessings to our entire family, as well as to our local church and community." R.L. Stollar's article: https://religiondispatches.org/at-this-weeks-meeting-will-the-sbc-vote-for-voddie-baucham-the-homeschooling-star-who-embraces-the-right-wing-theology-at-the-heart-of-its-emerging-scandal/
Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi
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Brad is joined by guest co-host Annika Brockschmidt, a historian and journalist who has written a wonderful new book about Christian nationalism in the USA. Brad and Annika begin by discussing the Texas GOP party platform, which claims Biden's election win was illegitimate, calls homosexuality "abnormal," promotes repealing the Civil Rights Act, denounces the ERA, pushes a total abortion ban, tries to set up an electoral college within Texas, and opens the door for secession from the Union. They then analyze the Carson v. Makin SCOTUS decision, which opens the door for tax money to be used to fund and pay for religious schooling. This was a stunning decision that, in the words of scholar Finbar Curtis, revolutionizes the free exercise clause and essentially changes how religious freedom is conceived in this country. In the third segment, Brad and Annika discuss an ad by Missouri Senate candidate Eric Greitens in which the candidate calls for hunting RINOs amidst a backdrop full of handheld killing machines. This dropped the week SCOTUS ruled a concealed carry law in NY unconstitutional, making it more likely that handheld killing machines will be carried in bars, restaurants, and other public places. Pre-Order Brad's new book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism and What Comes Next: https://www.amazon.com/Preparing-War-Extremist-Christian-Nationalism/dp/1506482163 SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In this episode, Dan decodes the admonition to “remember who you are,” as well as the related admonition to “remember whose you are” and the question “what would Jesus do”. What are these admonitions intended to convey? What do they presuppose about authority, control, and Christian identity? Decoding these admonitions helps us to answer these questions. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is joined by Dr. Joe Blankholm, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California Santa Barbara. They discuss his new book, the Secular Paradox: On the Religiosity of the Non-Religious. The Secular Paradox: https://nyupress.org/9781479809509/the-secular-paradox/ Blankholm argues that, despite their desire to avoid religion, nonbelievers often seem religious because Christianity influences the culture around them so deeply. Relying on several years of ethnographic research among secular activists and organized nonbelievers in the United States, the volume explores how very secular people are ambivalent toward belief, community, ritual, conversion, and tradition. As they try to embrace what they share, secular people encounter, again and again, that they are becoming too religious. And as they reject religion, they feel they have lost too much. Trying to strike the right balance, secular people alternate between the two sides of their ambiguous condition: absolutely not religious and part of a religion-like secular tradition. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this weekly roundup with takeaways from the J6 hearings. They focus on the ways the committee demonstrated how Trump and Eastman both knew the theory was illegal, but pushed it anyway. The question: Will it make a difference? Dan then provides a helpful explainer on the difference between a nation and a state in response to a new statement on Conservative nationalism signed by a bunch of MAGA superstars like Charlie Kirk and conservative thinkers like Rod Dreher. He and Brad decode the words "assimilation" and show how nationalism is incompatible with democracy. This leads to a demonstration of how Christian nationalist rhetoric is leading to violence against the LGBT+ community. In the final segment they dissect Lauren Boebert's AR-15 christology and the grave consequences it holds. Boebert claims that if Jesus had an AR-15 he wouldn't have been killed by the state. This brings dragging into light the incoherency of Christian nationalism in the face of a religious tradition centered on a crucified God. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On June 11, 2022 31 alleged members of Patriot Front were arrested near the Pride celebration in Coeur d'Alene Idaho. Brad speaks with two people who were at the event--Alicia Abbott of The Idaho 97 and Chad Schobert, who was born and raised in the region. They talk about how even before Patriot Front arrived there were armed militia members circling the Pride event, how all of this fits into the radicalization of the region during the Trump years, and the experience of living in a Christian nationalist, anti-government, wannabe theocratic state. The Idaho 97 Project: https://www.theidaho97.org/ SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Building from the previous episode, Dan explores what’s going on when people say that Christianity is “a religion, not a relationship,” when salvation is understood as requiring a “personal relationship” with Jesus, and so on. Like so many other uses of popular religious language, this language tells us a great deal about the identity of those who talk this way, who the “real” Christian are, and who they aren’t. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In his recent article at Religion Dispatches, historian Thomas Lecaque writes: In the wake of every mass shooting in this country, we have a brief moment where we talk about the guns used and the need for gun control. And then rapidly, the gun lobby, conservative politicians, Second Amendment absolutists, and the rest find every conceivable other possible thing to focus on, starting with “thoughts and prayers” and moving on to hardening school buildings. The mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where the shooter used an AR-15-style weapon he’d purchased from the gun company Daniel Defense, has followed the same pattern—but with a recognition that the love of the AR-15 style weapon isn’t just about “freedom” or Second Amendment absolutism. It’s also about Christian Nationalism. https://religiondispatches.org/christian-nationalists-and-the-holy-gun-crusade/ He speaks with Brad about this moment in our nation's history and what it means. Thomas Lecaque is an associate professor of history at Grand View University. Twitter: @tlecaque. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is joined by guest co-host Dr. Leah Payne. They begin by discussing the first primetime hearing of the J6 Select Committee. Brad observes that they seemed to have two goals - first to show that Trump and Trump's team knew that there was no legal basis for contesting the election, whether via voting machines, vote counts, or anythign else. Two, that there was a months-long conspiracy to stop the certification of the election by the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers. They then focus on Tucker Carlson's response to hearings. He had a White supremacist guest, Darren Beattie, on the show to put forth the conspiracy that J6 was an inside job conducted by the FBI. In the final segment, Leah zeroes in on some election results from the recent primaries in order to talk about whether or not the national headlines match local realities when it comes to criminal justice reform and other issues. SWAJ Apparel is here! https://straight-white-american-jesus.creator-spring.com/listing/not-today-uncle-ron For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What does it mean when someone asks you if you’re “saved”? If you’re active in the life of a Christian church or tradition (of whatever kind), and someone says, “that’s fine, but are you saved,” what’s going on? In this first of paired episodes, Dan explores this question, decoding the different ideas of “salvation” and Christian identity that define and structure so much of the terrain of contemporary American religion. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with journalist Elle Hardy about her new book, Beyond Belief: How Pentecostal Christianity is Taking Over the World. How has a Christian movement, founded at the turn of the twentieth century by the son of freed slaves, become the fastest-growing religion on Earth? Pentecostalism has 600 million followers; by 2050, they’ll be one in ten people worldwide. This is the religion of the Holy Spirit, with believers directly experiencing God and His blessings: success for the mind, body, spirit and wallet. Pentecostalism is a social movement. It serves impoverished people in Africa and Latin America, and inspires anti-establishment leaders from Trump to Bolsonaro. In Australia, Europe and Korea, it throws itself into culture wars and social media, offering meaning and community to the rootless and marginalized in a fragmenting world. Find Elle Hardy's book here: https://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/beyond-belief/ For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the mass shootings that took place this week at a funeral, a hospital, and more. They ask what can be done about gun violence in a country where one party has chosen to worship handheld killing machines (and the money it brings their leaders). Should laws be passed that allow for civil suits against gun owners responsible for violence and/or manufacturers? They then turn their attention to an op-ed at the New York Times that tries to downplay the GOP's Christian nationalism and present the party as the "nonreligious right." Brad and Dan dissect the analysis, showing how it rests on faulty metrics and erroneous assumptions. At the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/01/opinion/republicans-religion-conservatism.html They end with a report about the "army" of GOP trained poll workers who plan to saturate voting places across the country in this year's midterms. At Politico: https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/01/gop-contest-elections-tapes-00035758
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What does it mean when a church declares itself to be “open and affirming?” How does this relate to churches that claim that “no matter where you are on your spiritual journey, you’re welcome here”? In this episode, Dan decodes these phrases to highlight their very different meanings, and suggests that they represent a significant resource for charting the terrain of American Christianity. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Khyati Joshi, author of White Christian Privilege: The Illusion of Religious Equality in America (NYU 2020). https://nyupress.org/9781479840236/white-christian-privilege/ The United States is recognized as the most religiously diverse country in the world, and yet its laws and customs, which many have come to see as normal features of American life, actually keep the Constitutional ideal of “religious freedom for all” from becoming a reality. Christian beliefs, norms, and practices infuse our society; they are embedded in our institutions, creating the structures and expectations that define the idea of “Americanness.” Religious minorities still struggle for recognition and for the opportunity to be treated as fully and equally legitimate members of American society. From the courtroom to the classroom, their scriptures and practices are viewed with suspicion, and bias embedded in centuries of Supreme Court rulings create structural disadvantages that endure today. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On an emotional weekly roundup, Brad and Dan discuss the timeline, law enforcement failures, and nihilism of the Uvalde Massacre. From the handcuffing of parents trying to rescue their kids, to the myth of the good guy with a gun, to the hypocritical theologies of Christian nationalists . . . Brad points out that this took place in a town near the Southern Border--but that instead of an outsider other, who the GOP always tries to demonize, it was a monster created in this country, abiding by its gun laws, and acting in a way that only happens here--not in Mexico or anywhere else. Dan responds to the Uncle Rons of the world who would claim this is a result of a loss of Christian values, the nuclear family, or patriotism. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
This past week a 400-page report outlining the culture of coverup and the widespread abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention was released. The SBC is the country’s largest Protestant denomination with roughly 14 million members. Together Its 45k churches bring in roughly 11 billion dollars annually. The bombshell report provides details of an abuse and cover up scandal in the SBC that goes both to the very top of the organization but also spreads to every corner of its vast network of churches. Robert Downen has been covering the SBC and its various scandals since 2018. After having written dozens of articles on the abuse, the silencing of survivors, the threats against whistleblowers, and the resignation of executive leaders accused of rape and cover-ups, he sits down with Brad to discuss the newly released report.
Link to Jonathan Krohn's reporting for SWAJ on the 2021 SBC Convention : https://open.spotify.com/episode/3VVuBFO7xM48S4lmCNxZNn?si=2s4nfIJzTFyIiJvpjWpGDA&dl_branch=1&nd=1
Link to Jonathan Krohn's report from the floor of the SBC Convention in 2021: https://player.fm/series/straight-white-american-jesus-2916173/a-house-divided-dispatches-from-sbc-2021
For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
“No matter where you are on your spiritual journey, you’re welcome here.” This is a slogan we might read on church flyers, websites, or signs. We might here it in the welcome given by the pastor of a church. But what does it mean? In this episode Dan decodes this phrase to find out if it delivers on the promise of acceptance and inclusion it communicates. He explores what kinds of churches make this affirmation and what the limits of acceptance might be on “wherever you are.” For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with sex educator Erica Smith about her experiences working in abortion care and what the overturning of Roe looks like on the ground for ordinary Americans. They discuss how and why abortion is healthcare and the health risks involved for pregnant people if abortions are not accessible. They also discuss how the misguided approaches to sex education in this country lead to reductive conversations about pregnancy, abortion, and reproductive rights. They finish by discussing ways to get involved in the fight for reproductive rights at a time when organizing and activism are as important as ever. National Network of Abortion Funds: https://abortionfunds.org/ For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the various dimensions of the Buffalo massacre and the shooter's understanding of Caucasian Replacement Theory (CRT). Dan demonstrates that this ideology is farm from fringe in today's American Right. Instead, it is a mainstream position touted by the likes of senators, congresspeople, and Fox News talking heads. Brad dives into the Christian nationalist elements of the shooter's identity, pointing to how he equates Whiteness with Christianity and uses both as the grounds for his violence against those who don't share both those characteristics. Talia Lavin at Rolling Stone: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/buffalo-shooter-white-supremacist-great-replacement-donald-trump-1353509/ Greg Sargent at WaPo: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/05/18/doug-mastriano-insurrectionist/ They both argue that it is not enough to be neutral on these matters. Anti-racism and anti-Christian supremacy stances demand active engagement to thwart and prevent both from cultivating in one's community. To get involved: startguide.org In the final segment, they analyze the results of various primary elections across the country. The main thesis is that these elections in PA, NC, and KY highlight the stark contrast in the visions the two parties have for the USA. Across the board, the GOP elected election-deniers and Christian nationalists. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What is “cool kid church?” It’s the gleaming church-that-doesn’t-look-like-a-church in suburbia. It’s the church with the pastor who’s just a “cool guy” talking with the congregation. It’s the church of modern consumer capitalist America. It’s the church of American suburbia and the upper middle class, preaching a Christian message that provides meaning without producing undue comfort. It’s the church that emphasizes a “relevant” Christianity that will speak to you “no matter where you are on your spiritual journey.” But what do we find as we decode cool kid church? That’s the topic of this episode. For access to the full Orange Wave series, click here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Teddy Wilson of Radical Reports about the trickle down effect of overturning Roe. They discuss how this will lead to an expanded police state that surveils women who have miscarriages, stillbirths, and abortions. They dig into how certain states will try to punish women who have abortions or who cross state lines in order to receive care. They discuss what might be next in terms of contraception bans, outlawing IUDS, and even IVF. The second part of the discussion turns to the fault lines in the anti-abortion movement and how overturning Roe may uncover them. While the overturning of Roe has led to despair for many, it may also open up horizons for countering the anti-abortion movement at a time when it feels victorious. Orange Wave: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan continue to discuss what the post-Roe landscape looks like. They begin by going through a new article by Katherine Stewart and the New Republic. Stewart shows how Alito uses the argument from history to take women's rights away in the future. She compares it to the Dred Scott decision and argues that Alito smuggles in a White Christian nationalist framework into his legal opinion. Katherine Stewart's article: https://newrepublic.com/article/166404/christian-right-roe-alito-abortion This leads to analysis of the various calls for civility when protesting the overturning of Roe. Since protesters began going to the houses of SCOTUS justices, there have been calls for civility. Brad reminds us that when those in power call for civility, they are not asking you to be good citizens, but obedient ones. Tim Alberta at the Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/06/evangelical-church-pastors-political-radicalization/629631/ Dan then leads the discuss through a long new article by Tim Alberta at the Atlantic on the radicalization of evangelical politics and what it looks like on the ground. The episode finishes with both hosts offering a scathing critique of a new anti-abortion oped at Newsweek. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
“It’s Part of God’s Plan” “God has a plan for your life.” “It’s all part of God’s plan.” How do we decode common religious sentiments like these? Are they sources of hope? Affirmations of a loving and caring God? Sources of solace in difficult times? They can be all of these things. But they can also have a darker side, legitimating authoritarian religious institutions and individuals. They can shut down dissent, questioning, and calls for social justice in name of existing structures of power. In this episode, Dan decodes the complex and often damaging dynamics at work in such sentiments. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the wake of the 1964 Goldwater campaign, three young men decided to start the Council for National Policy in order to take back the country for God--and themselves. They joined forces with an army of clergy, big donors, and media moguls in order to take back America. This "shadow network," as the journalist Anne Nelson calls it is the secretive, but pervasive force that has overtaken the GOP and infiltrated every level and every corner of this country's politics. Interview: Anne Nelson, author of Shadow Network, and faculty at Columbia University. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Since the mid-twentieth century, evangelicals and others on the Religious Right have looked to Hollywood, rather than the Bible, to construct their visions of "cowboy masculinity." It started with John Wayne and Ronald Reagan, then moved to Mel Gibson and others. On the political side, tough guys like Barry Goldwater and Donald Trump were favored over more reflective leaders like Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama. Conservative women, such as Phyllis Schlafly and Maribel Morgan, provided the tools to construct a corresponding submissive femininity. The militant masculinity of the Religious Right is a key component to their love for strongmen leaders, willingness to engage authoritarianism over democracy, and desire to return the country to a white Christian patriarchy. This episode features an interview with Dr. Kristin Kobes du Mez, the author of the new book: Jesus and John Wayne: How Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation." For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On this installment of the Orange Wave: A History of the Religious Right Since 1960, Brad traces two intertwined histories. First, the Sun Belt Migration, which led to a massive westward population shift in the 1950s and 1960s. The Sunbelt Migration turned Orange County into the nation's hub of defense production. This led in turn into an evangelical wave in Southern California. He interviews Professor Gerardo Marti of Davidson College about this story. Second, Brad examines the decline of the Mainline Protestant denominations during the same time period. The breaking of their cultural and political authority opened a space for the Religious Right to rise. Brad discusses this with Dr. John Compton of Chapman University. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Some just want to watch the world burn. But for others, the end of the world is an opportunity to rebuild it in their image. On this penultimate episode, Brad explores how global kleptocrats, Donald Trump, and Christian Reconstructionists all view the end of the world as a chance for power and control. It is the simplest and scariest explanation of why the Religious Right continues to support the 45th president--they both want to destroy the world. This episode contains an interview with Prof. Julie Ingersoll, author of Building God's Kingdom: Inside the World of Christian Reconstruction. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
The Religious Right has not always existed. White evangelicals have not always been the guardians of far-right immigration policies and patriarchal models of the family. In the 19th century, they were often progressive activists fighting for labor rights, abolition, and women's suffrage. How did they transform into the scions of Christian nationalism? Brad digs in to the history with Professor Randall Balmer of Dartmouth College on the initial episode of The Orange Wave: A History of the Religious Right Since 1960.
For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
You might be surprised to learn that the history of sex ed in the USA is a religious history. Christians were not always the enemies of science-based sex education programs. But during the 1960s, the Religious Right began a war against comprehensive sex education. Since then, it has been able to implement abstinence-only sex ed programs through tens of millions of dollars in federal funding. Where did this war start? Who are its major players? And why are evangelicals so afraid of condoms? This episode include an interview with Dr. Kristy Slominski, Assistant Professor of Religion, Health, and Science at the University of Arizona, and the author of the forthcoming book Teaching Moral Sex: A History of Religion and Sex Education in the United States. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the early 1960s, Orange County became the hub for both white evangelical Christianity and libertarian politics. It was the epicenter of the John Birch Society and the Goldwater campaign. This history is crucial for understanding the rise of the Religious Right throughout the 80s and beyond. It was from this soil that Reagan and his evangelical coalition took over the GOP. The racism, conspiracies, and extremism of 1960s libertarian evangelicals in Southern California has remained part of the GOP and the Religious Right from Goldwater to Reagan to the Tea Party and the presidency of Donald Trump. - For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
If you want to take the country back for God, if you want to have dominion over every level of society, if you want to ensure a white Christian patriarchy rules over the land--you have to start with the children. Christian school movements are part of the fabric of the Religious Right. On this episode, Brad examines why the Christian schooling movement--including homeschooling--took off in the 60s, how it has shed government oversight, and what effects its having on our public education system and our public square. This episode features interviews with Dr. Chrissy Stroop and Scott Okamoto. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad explores the alliance between the alt-right and the Religious Right in and through Trump's presidency. In tracing this story, he uncovers how and why the Religious Right now looks to Putin's Russia, Orban's Hungary, and other autocratic regimes as the City Upon a Hill that the USA used to be. This episode features an interview with the renowned journalist Sarah Posner, author of Unholy: Why White Evangelicals Worship at the Altar of Donald Trump. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On the series finale, Brad reflects on his departure from Orange County and evangelicalism. This provides a jumping off point for reflecting on what we've learned through the series, and, perhaps most importantly, how Orange County's politics and culture provides a window into the contemporary moment. For the Full series go here: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/products/the-orange-wave-a-history-of-the-religious-right-since-1960 or To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Many evangelicals are single-issue voters when it comes to abortion. Brad and Dan discuss the historical development of this trend, and why it represents more than just a concern for the unborn. Dan goes through the history that shows evangelicals were in favor of certain types of abortion all the way into the 1970s. The abortion myth, as Randall Balmer calls, it is that abortion has been a perennial issue in this community. That is a lie. Brad talks about how this kind of myopic focus on abortion led him out of evangelicalism because it's cover for cruelty and selfishness in a myriad of ways. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars Brad's talk at UCSB's Capp's Center: https://twitter.com/GregJoh81863873/status/1518663300409483264/photo/1 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the wake of news that Roe v. Wade will likely be overturned, Brad and Dan begin this episode with a history of how evangelicals have transformed on the issue of abortion. In the 1960s and 1970s many evangelical pastors, theologians, and politicians were in favor of abortion in many cases and without too many restrictions. This changed when political operatives began to use abortion as a wedge issue that could give them control of the GOP--and the country as a whole. They then discuss what this looks like in states and communities across the country. There are already bills up for debate that would make abortion a homicide in Louisiana, and ideas to ban IUDs and other contraceptive methods in Idaho. Will this have an effect on the 2022 midterms? Yes . . . and no. They note that Roe could be codified as law if Dems would kill the filibuster and pass the bill that was already moved forward in the House. But . . . Manchin and Synema. In the future, the overturning of Roe will only further the cultural divide. The cold civil war will ramp up, leading to two different lived experiences for Americans. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
The American Christian landscape is littered with “Bible churches.” It is full of churches that use the word “Bible” in their name, or that claim to be “Bible believing,” and affirm that they “preach the Bible,” and so on. What meaning can we discern behind this code? What can we know about the kinds of Christians who define themselves in this way? This episode considers these questions, cracking the code of the “Bible church” and what it tells us about the profile of those who attend such churches and the Christian identity they express. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars Brad's talk at UCSB's Capp's Center: https://twitter.com/GregJoh81863873/status/1518663300409483264/photo/1 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Why are white evangelicals the most skeptical major religious group in America regarding climate change? Previous scholarship has pointed to cognitive factors such as conservative politics, anti-science attitudes, aversion to big government, and theology. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork, scholar Robin Globus Veldman reveals the extent to which climate skepticism and anti-environmentalism have in fact become embedded in the social world of many conservative evangelicals. Rejecting the common assumption that evangelicals' skepticism is simply a side effect of political or theological conservatism, the book further shows that between 2006 and 2015, leaders and pundits associated with the Christian Right widely promoted skepticism as the biblical position on climate change. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars Brad's talk at UCSB's Capp's Center: https://twitter.com/GregJoh81863873/status/1518663300409483264/photo/1 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this episode with a prolonged discussion of the newly released audio of Kevin McCarthy calling for Trump's resignation and the revelations in the 2000+ texts of Mark Meadows revealed this week. Brad argues that in the McCarthy tapes you can see an alternative pathway for the country--one where the GOP and its media entourage called out the traitorousness of Trump and his team before, during, and after J6. But instead, the Meadows texts show, we got conspiracy theories, the Big Lie, and are now on the precipice of an authoritarian takeover in the next cycle of elections. Take action at startguide.org The second segment is a mythbuster--Dan uses the various events in Florida (from book banning to the war on Disney to the war on trans people to the war on CRT) to uncover the real nature of contemporary American conservativism. It uses government as a weapon for identity politics, culture wars, and censorship. This leads to a brief analysis of the debate about forgiving student loans. Seminar: straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/seminars Brad's talk at UCSB's Capp's Center: https://twitter.com/GregJoh81863873/status/1518663300409483264/photo/1 To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
New Series: It’s in the Code American Christians speak in a bewildering array of different “codes” that mark their identities, signaling to others who is welcome among them and who isn’t. This series explores how to decode popular religious language, revealing the cultural politics of American Christians of different stripes. What does the slogan on the that church billboard mean? How can we tell which churches value social justice, or are LGBTQ+ inclusive? Learning how to decipher the codes of American Christianity can tell us. This first episode outlines the aims of the new series, which will explore that ways that different kinds of American Christians express their identities through the language they use in sermons, in denominational statements, on church billboards, and other common expressions. He argues that the significance of what American Christians say is not limited to the literal meaning of their words, but with how they use that language to define themselves and others. The episode highlights the value of the series for anyone who wants to better understand and map the complex terrain of American Christian identities. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Bradley Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What are the psychological stages of leaving religion? How can mourning religion lead to new forms of faith, meaning, and community? David Morris, PhD, is a publisher, author, and psychologist of religion. In his new book, Lost Faith and Wandering Souls, he treats the loss of faith as if it were any other kind of loss, and asks, what if we learned to mourn? He turns to psychoanalytic psychology for its interpretive power. With the concepts of mourning, pining, and play, he shines a light on a path forward. He and Brad discuss the zig-zag process of leaving religion and discovering new forms of meaning and hope - what often feels like going between feelings of numbness, self-recrimination, and wandering to playfulness, self-agency, and belonging. If we can feel our loss, he argues, then we can rediscover meaning making. David Morris, Lost Faith and Wandering Souls: https://lakedrivebooks.com/lost-faith-and-wandering-souls/ To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is joined by special guest co-host Dr. Sara Moslener. They begin by discussing the hilarious trailer for Tucker Carlson's new original show, "The End of Men," which among other things touts the practice of tanning one's testicles in order to increase testosterone levels. After some jokes about the merits of red and blue balls, they breakdown the model of masculinity Carlson is upholding as ideal and how it connects to patriarchal visions of God and country. "If God is male, male is God." - Mary Daly Brad's article on God as Ultimate Masculinity: https://therevealer.org/god-is-ultimate-masculinity-evangelical-visions-of-manhood-in-the-wake-of-the-atlanta-massacre/ In the second segment Brad and Sara discuss the remarkable Right's new buzz word: Grooming. In their view anyone who doesn't oppose CRT and wants children to learn basic facts about history (including slavery and racism) and human health (including comprehensive sex ed) is a groomer who supports pedophilia. Sara traces this all the way back to the 19th century to proslavery theologies. Brad links it to similar rhetoric from the 1960s and 1970s when schools were integrated. Sophie-Bjork James on the history of the Right's grooming rhetoric: https://religiondispatches.org/the-rights-grooming-rhetoric-didnt-begin-with-qanon-you-have-to-go-back-a-bit-further-to-get-to-the-source/ The final segment examines the fact that all three Republican candidates for attorney general in Michigan are willing to make birth control illegal for any unmarried person. You heard that right. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Return episode following a great thread by @CaitlinJStout, Brad discusses why the people who leave evangelicalism are often the ones who devoted themselves wholeheartedly to it.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Back in the early 1990s, the Unification Church demanded an apology from a brash real-estate mogul they accused of using the church as “a scare tactic” in a “morally reprehensible” effort to get Palm Beach, Florida, officials to grant his zoning wishes. But that religious sect, founded by Sun Myung Moon — and thus often derisively called the “Moonies” — has apparently since made amends with that owner of Mar-a-Lago. Now his son is leading a dangerous movement in MAGA Nation through his church--which often features AR 15s in worship rituals. Brian Kaylor, Word&Way Editor & President since 2016, is an award-winning writer and sought-after expert on issues of religion, politics, and communication. He also hosts the award-winning podcast “Baptist Without An Adjective.” In addition to articles and editorials for Word&Way, his writings have been published by CNN, Houston Chronicle, Kansas City Star, Louisville Courier-Journal, Religion News Service, Roll Call, Sojourners, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Washington Post, and many other outlets. A Strange Unification: https://wordandway.org/2022/02/17/a-strange-unification/
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the new Hillsong documentary, "Hillsong: A Megachurch Exposed," and the various sexual abuse and infidelity scandals that have rocked the church of the stars. They draw on work by Dr. Leah Payne in order to link Hillsong to a long line of celebrity megachurches that use spectacle, entrepreneurial tactics, and slick marketing to attract young, hot, and rich parishioners. History tells us that eventually scandal will rock the church, due in large part to the authoritarian leadership structures that often characterize this type of ministry. Leah Payne's op-ed: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/justin-biebers-former-church-hillsong-usa-decline-hypepriests-will-end-rcna23685 They then dig into the news that the Saudi Crown Prince helped funnel 2 billion dollars to Jared Kushner's new firm, despite reservations from pretty much everyone else involved. This leads to a discussion of how propaganda and corruption mark autocratic regimes whose constituents lack trust in their leaders and government. It also provides a helpful rebuttal to Uncle Ron's "whatabout Hunter Biden" line. “The real concern here is that the public has no way of knowing exactly what favors someone like Kushner may have done for the Saudis.” - Walter Shaub The episode finishes with substantive discussion on the Georgia Senate runoff and how it illuminates the failed promises of the Democratic party and the incredible war the GOP has made on the state level in just over a year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In this final series episode, Dan tries to understand why well-meaning liberals and progressives so often experience identity politics as a threat, and why they fail to take hold of the opportunities it provides. He outlines how defensiveness and a presumption of insight into the experiences of marginalized communities leads to paternalism and condescension that undermines a progressive politics that could meaningfully change our political and social reality. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
When the rallying cry “Black Lives Matter” was heard across the world in 2013, Andre Henry was one of the millions for whom the movement caused a political awakening and a rupture in some of his closest relationships with white people. As he began using his artistic gifts to share his experiences and perspective, Henry was aggrieved to discover that many white Americans—people he called friends and family—were more interested in debating whether racism existed or whether Henry was being polite enough in the way he used his voice. Now Andrew calls on Black people and people of color to divest from whiteness and its false promises, trust what their lived experiences tell them, and practice hope as a discipline as they work for lasting change. Andre Henry, All the White Friends I Could Not Keep: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/673889/all-the-white-friends-i-couldnt-keep-by-andre-henry/ To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Bradley Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
It's a small world after all. So small we can go from Florida to Alaska to Arizona to California in one episode. A magically tragic journey through American politics and history. Brad and Dan begin the road trop in Florida, where Uncle Ron DeSantis has labeled Disney the wokest place on earth due to its opposition for the Don't Say Gay bill. Marjorie Taylor Greene stated that Disney wants to indoctrinate children with sexual filth. While it's laughable to think of Disney as "woke," the absolute temper tantrum GOP leaders have thrown over this matter is reflective of how extremism has become the only virtue in GOP politics. In order to understand how this works and where it came from, Brad and Dan turn to the news that Sarah Palin is running for Congress in Alaska. While this may not seem like big news nationally, it opens a window into the "Palinization" of politics over the last fifteen years. Brad and Dan recall how and why John McCain chose Palin as his running mate and what this unleashed in the Republican party: Birtherism, the Tea Party, obstructionism, xenophobia, and so on. From an examination of McCain, they look to his predecessor in the Senate, Barry Goldwater, who also ran for president and courted radical White Christians in order to get ahead in the polls. What emerges from this picture is a look at American politics that shows how for 65 years Republicans have tried to use extremists for political gain, only to unleash a disease on the American body politic. Link to Satanic Panic Episode: https://getpodcast.com/podcast/straight-white-american-jesus/satanic-panic-then-and-now_1c0f630e61 Link to the Graham and Dias article at NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/06/us/christian-right-wing-politics.html Link to Goldwater's remarks on regretting alliance with White Christian nationalists: https://www.nytimes.com/1981/09/16/us/excerpts-from-goldwater-remarks.html To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
One of the fallacies that often arises when we think about diverse identities, marginalization, and exclusion, is that all those groups who have experience marginalization or exclusion will naturally or organically come together in solidarity. But the social and political landscape is full of examples illustrating that this doesn’t happen. This episode explores this fallacy and looks at how it operates with an eye to thinking about how we can cultivate real solidarity and shared social identities. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
"Christian nationalism seeks to merge Christian and American identities, distorting both the Christian faith and America’s constitutional democracy. Christian nationalism demands Christianity be privileged by the State and implies that to be a good American, one must be Christian. It often overlaps with and provides cover for white supremacy and racial subjugation. We reject this damaging political ideology and invite our Christian brothers and sisters to join us in opposing this threat to our faith and to our nation." It may surprise you to learn that this statement was crafted in principal by a Baptis and has been signed by hundreds of other faith leaders. We hear all the time about the threat of Christian nationalism. But what about the Christians fighting to prevent another J6 and for the American principles of religious liberty and freedom from religion?
Amanda Tyler is executive director of BJC. She leads the organization as it upholds the historic Baptist principle of religious liberty, defending the free exercise of religion and protecting against its establishment by government.. Called a “powerful advocate” and “rising star in the sector” by The Nonprofit Times, she was named one of the nation’s top 50 nonprofit leaders in 2018. Tyler was named “Baptist of the Year” by EthicsDaily.com in 2019. She also co-hosts the Respecting Religion podcast series, and she serves on the board of the Center for Faith, Justice, and Reconciliation.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Bradley Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing how Madison Cawthorn's claims about cocaine and orgies sounded like youth group scare tactics. They then dig into the significance of the texts between Ginni Thomas and Mark Meadows, focusing on the Christian nationalism rife in their conversations, their characterization of Democrats as "evil," and the hope that God would not allow for the fair and free election of Joe Biden to go through. They also point out how this poses a conflict of interest for Clarence Thomas on SCOTUS cases involving January 6 and provide rebuttals to the Uncle Ron claims that criticism of Ginni Thomas is just misogyny. In the second segment Brad examines Trump's hopes that since Putin is now mad at Biden, Putin might release dirt on the President. For Brad and Dan this shows how the enemy of the people in the minds of MAGA Nation is not a war criminal like Putin, but their political opponents, who are not real Americans. The episode finishes with a lengthy discussion of the rise of Donald Crow--arguing that Trumpism will outlast Trump through the bundle of policies that are being passed at the state level. Trump himself was very bad at passing legislation. But governors and state legislatures are now putting into law the animus that his platform activated in the MAGA base. In the future, regardless of what happens with Trump and his role in public office, the legacy of Donald Crow will divide the country along lines similar to Jim Crow. This idea was first put forth by Charles Blow: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/27/opinion/desantis-trump-republican-party.html
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How do we understand a complex social and political phenomenon like Christian nationalism? Does it represent a strategic coalition of different identity groups (e.g., political conservatives, conservative Christians, etc.)? Or is it something else? Dan argues that understanding something like Christian nationalism requires a different understanding of social and political identity. Instead of a strategic coalition, a phenomenon like Christian nationalism represents the emergence of a single new, complex social identity. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Dan Miller and Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Carolyn Chen is Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies and Co-Director of the Program for the Study of Religion at Berkeley. Her new book, Work, Pray, Code explores the ways tech is replacing religion for some workers--and what this means for the future of the American public square and American religion.
Work, Pray, Code: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691219080/work-pray-code
Silicon Valley is known for its lavish perks, intense work culture, and spiritual gurus. Work Pray Code explores how tech companies are bringing religion into the workplace in ways that are replacing traditional places of worship, blurring the line between work and religion and transforming the very nature of spiritual experience in modern life. Over the past forty years, highly skilled workers have been devoting more time and energy to their jobs than ever before. They are also leaving churches, synagogues, and temples in droves—but they have not abandoned religion. Carolyn Chen spent more than five years in Silicon Valley, conducting a wealth of in-depth interviews and gaining unprecedented access to the best and brightest of the tech world. The result is a penetrating account of how work now satisfies workers’ needs for belonging, identity, purpose, and transcendence that religion once met. Chen argues that tech firms are offering spiritual care such as Buddhist-inspired mindfulness practices to make their employees more productive, but that our religious traditions, communities, and public sphere are paying the price.
We all want our jobs to be meaningful and fulfilling. Work Pray Code reveals what can happen when work becomes religion, and when the workplace becomes the institution that shapes our souls.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan are joined by special guest host Dr. Sara Moslener, the professor for our May 2022 seminar: Purity Culture, Race, and Embodiment. The three of them begin by discussing the Senate hearings from SCOTUS nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to be nominated for the USA's highest court. We dig into why GOP senators focused their questioning on pedophilia and sex offenders, the definition of womanhood, and whether or not children are born racists. As Dan and Sara explain this all comes from a history of trying to make Black women into something other than real mothers and wives--much less real women--and framing safety and purity in racialized terms. Brad also notes that these foci played right into the hands of the QAnon crowed--a constituency Republican Senators now actively try to woo. The second segment examines the anti-trans and restrictive abortion laws in Idaho and TN. One law allows for the family members to sue a woman who decides to get an abortion. Another calls for life in prison if one leaves the state to get their kid gender-affirming care. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
If individual identity and group identity are deeply intertwined, why does it seem that group identity shapes individual identity, but not the other way around? Why are group identities so hard to change, even when there are those within them working to change them? And what does this mean for understanding identity politics? To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Dan Miller and Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Jimenez-Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In Part 2 of a two-part interview, Brad speaks with Philip Gorski (Yale) and Sam Perry (Oklahoma University) about their new book, the Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-flag-and-the-cross-9780197618684?cc=us⟨=en&#. Gorski and Perry explain what white Christian nationalism is and is not; when it first emerged and how it has changed; where it's headed and why it threatens democracy. Tracing the development of this ideology over the course of three centuries—and especially its influence over the last three decades—they show how, throughout American history, white Christian nationalism has animated the oppression, exclusion, and even extermination of minority groups while securing privilege for white Protestants. It enables white Christian Americans to demand "sacrifice" from others in the name of religion and nation, while defending their "rights" in the names of "liberty" and "property."To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In Part 1 of a two-part interview, Brad speaks with Philip Gorski (Yale) and Sam Perry (Oklahoma University) about their new book, the Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-flag-and-the-cross-9780197618684?cc=us⟨=en&#. Gorski and Perry explain what white Christian nationalism is and is not; when it first emerged and how it has changed; where it's headed and why it threatens democracy. Tracing the development of this ideology over the course of three centuries—and especially its influence over the last three decades—they show how, throughout American history, white Christian nationalism has animated the oppression, exclusion, and even extermination of minority groups while securing privilege for white Protestants. It enables white Christian Americans to demand "sacrifice" from others in the name of religion and nation, while defending their "rights" in the names of "liberty" and "property."
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
We often think of individual and groups identities as separate, or as incompatible in some way. But in this episode, we consider the ways in which our group identities determine and shape our individual identities, and argue that an understanding of this is crucial for understanding both identity and identity politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
While the bill in Florida has received more attention, South Carolina has its own Don't Say Gay bill on the docket. The bill would prevent instruction, presentations, discussions, counseling, or materials in any medium”that involve LGBTQ+ identities. It would prevent queer teachers fro being out to their students because that would constitute discussing such matters. It would prevent teachers from affirming or supporting queer students, offering them materials, or even assigning books that mention gender or sexuality. Taryn Auerbach is a queer educator in South Carolina. She shares with Brad the devastating effects this bill would have on her and her students.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss a wide range of topics— from GOP voter fraud to Madison Cawthorn calling Zelenskyy a thug, to Don’t Say Gay Bills—through the lens of the idea that Christian nationalism is about order and violence. The takeaway: whether it’s reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, voting rights, or democracy itself— Christian nationalists will use violence to achieve the societal order they want. Also: Trump says to bomb Russia and say China did it. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Why can it be so apparent to us that people’s political behavior or social views are a reflection of their group identity, but they will insist that they’re group identity has no impact on these areas of their life? Or why do we have such a strong sense that we hold the social views we do or behave politically as we do because of who we are as individuals, when we know that people are shaped by their group identities? This episode explores these questions and outlines the relation between individual identity and group identity, arguing that an understanding of this dynamic is crucial for thinking about identity and identity politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Why are American Christians rooting for Putin? How did the Russian autocrat become the ideal leader in their eyes? Brad speaks to Dr. Sara Riccard Swartz, an expert on Russian Orthodoxy and American religions, about her brand new book, "Between Heaven and Russia": https://www.fordhampress.com/9780823299515/between-heaven-and-russia/ Historically a minority immigrant faith in the United States, Russian Orthodoxy is attracting Americans who look to Russian religion and politics for answers to Western secularism and the loss of traditional family values in the face of accelerating progressivism. These converts sought and found a conservatism more authentic than Christian American Republicanism and a nationalism unburdened by the broken promises of American exceptionalism. Ultimately, both converts and the Church that welcomes them deploy the subversive act of adopting the ideals and faith of a foreign power for larger, transnational political ends. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the recent AFPAC conference, where the far-right figure Nick Fuentes compared Putin to Hitler in a positive way, while giving a speech full of racial and ethnic slurs. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar attended the conference--and Greene gave an address after being introduced by Fuentes. Dan unpacks the historic significance of this chapter in the GOP's intimacy with what are essentially Neo-Nazi White supremacists, while Brad compares Greene's remarks to the KKK of the 1920s. Interview with Kelly J. Baker: https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/PPY9950636314?selected=PPY8028158396 In the second segment, Brad investigates the responses of QAnon adherents and other conspiracists to Putin's invasion of Ukraine. He links the polarization and instability in our public square back to Russia's cyber warfare during the 2016 presidential election.
The show wraps with reflection on what these issues mean in light of the news that the J6 Select Committee has evidence to prosecute Trump and close allies for various crimes related to January 6th.
Center for Trauma Resolution and Recovery: https://www.traumaresolutionandrecovery.com/
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What do we mean when we talk about “recognition”? What is it to recognize someone in their identity? What is it to recognize ourselves in a particular way? What happens when someone doesn’t recognize me in the way I identify myself? What happens when I don’t recognize someone others in the way they recognize themselves? This episode explores the complex dynamics of recognition and the significance of identity and recognition for understanding our current cultural politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with the Danté Stewart about his journey into, and then out of, the White Church. Stewart grew up a Black Pentecostal until he reached university. There he began attending a White megachurch. He spent years in White churches convinced that the Jesus worshipped there--one coded as a White American, as superior to the one found in the Black church, as the true and right way to be a Christian and an American--was saving him from his own blackness. The murder of Trayvon Martin, the election of Donald Trump, the massacre of the Charleston 9--these events and more slowly opened his eyes to the way White Jesus had made him anti-black. Danté Stewart's Shoutin' in the Fire: An American Epistle: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/672938/shoutin-in-the-fire-by-dante-stewart/
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Documentary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss Putin's war on Ukraine and the Christian nationalist/GOP responses at home. They focus the first segment on how the only people on the global stage defending Putin openly are Donald Trump and select politicians and leaders from the GOP. This leads to an exploration of the Christians who admit that they identify more with Putin's Christian values than Joe Biden's leadership. Link to Brad's interview on Putin and American Christian nationalists: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/im-a-fascist/id1441649707?i=1000519920471 Video of Lauren Witzske praising Putin: https://twitter.com/RightWingWatch/status/1496937857839153168 The second segment explores the frightening anti-trans legislation at play in Texas. Go follow https://www.tiktok.com/@adhdeconstruction! To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
This episode explores the concern that people act against their own social or political interests because of their identity. Because they privilege their identity, they oppose political, social, or economic policies that would be beneficial to them. Dan argues that this is a mistaken conception, and that we have to recognize that identity and interests are entangled with each other in complex ways. Changing how we understand the relationship between identity and interests is the key to advancing transformative politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Correction: "Jeff" says that Locke's church is in McMinnville, TN. It is in fact in Mt. Juliet TN. Brad didn't catch it in the conversation. Both he and Jeff were a bit tense--wanting to get the story right and bring listeners into the scene, without giving away Jeff's identity. Our apologies.
Brad speaks with a man he calls Jeff (identity hidden) who went undercover at the book burning led by Pastor Greg Locke. The book burning happened ominously in the wake of the banning of Art Spiegelman's acclaimed graphic novel on the Holocaust "Maus" in a nearby school district. Jeff wrote an article on the event: https://leftcoastrightwatch.org/2022/02/pro-coup-tennessee-pastor-holds-anti-masonic-anti-disney-bonfire/ Here is an excerpt: In between threatening to kick in Dunkin Donuts employees teeth and refusing to follow his own dictates opposing divorce, Greg Locke is a pastor at Global Vision Bible Church (formerly Global Vision Baptist Church.) It takes little to find offensive comments on from him. “Your kid could be demonized and attacked, but your doctor calls it autism.” “Transgenderism is not a civil right. It’s not normal, it’s anti-biblical. And I’m sorry, just because I have morals and values that does not make me a discriminatory bigot. I’m sick of the day and age in which we live when people call good evil and evil they call good.” Recently Locke also put out more serious calls to join things like the Black Robe Regiment, a far-right nationalist group of pastors that advocates preaching a “patriotic view” of American politics. Locke’s idea of patriotism meant encouraging his followers to attend the January 6th insurrection during sermons and railing in support of Trump’s lies about election fraud. But Locke also calls for more local forms of violence. Recently, he organized burnings of so-called “demonic” items like the Harry Potter and Twilight children’s/young adult books from almost two decades ago. LCRW attended one incognito on Wednesday last week and will tell the tale later. Burning books isn’t new to Greg Locke. In 2019 he jumped to twitter to post a video of himself burning a book titled “The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American.” Locke’s beliefs are firmly rooted in Christian Fundamentalism. The church he leads, Global Vision Bible Church, originally identified itself with the Independent Fundamental Baptist movement (IFB)—one of the most conservative groups of Christians in the nation. He dissociated from the IFB in mid 2011, claiming that the leadership of the movement had tried to pressure him into taking on a “legalistic mindset of man-made regulations.” Locke claims he pledged to remain amicable with the IFB despite parting ways. Incidentally, in 2019 in Knoxville an IFB pastor and sheriff’s detective called for the trial and summary execution of queer people.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Steve Bannon is a familiar figure by now. One of the super villains from the Trump administration, he is still a force in right-wing politics in the USA and across the globe. He reportedly pushed Trump to overturn the election by any means possible. He is often referred to as a White nationalist whose misogyny and racism need no further explanation. But what if Bannon's worldview is more complex, more sinister, and more weird than you ever expected? Brad speaks to Dr. Benjamin Teitelbaum about his new book, War for Eterinity: Inside Bannon's Far Right Circle of Global Power Brokers: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/war-for-eternity-benjamin-r-teitelbaum?variant=32123408941090 Inspired by a radical twentieth-century ideology called Traditionalism, Bannon and a small group of right-wing powerbrokers are planning new political mobilizations on a global scale—discussed and debated in secret meetings organized by Bannon in hotel suites and private apartments in DC, Europe and South America. Their goal? To upend the world order and reorganize geopolitics on the basis of archaic values rather than modern ideals of democracy, freedom, social progress, and human rights. Their strenuous efforts are already producing results, from the fortification of borders throughout the world and the targeting of immigrants, to the undermining of the European Union and United States governments, and the expansion of Russian influence.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the Jericho Marches connected to the "Freedom Convoy" protests in Ottawa. Drawing on work by the writer Chrissy Stroop and scholar Thomas Lecaque, they discuss how the Jericho story provides a narrative in which both American J6 and Canadian convoy protesters/rioters are able to use as a way to build group cohesion and justify their actions. Chrissy Stroop on Christian nationalism and the Canada convoy: https://conversationalist.org/2022/02/17/freedom-convoys-extremism-poses-long-term-damage-to-canadian-civil-society/ Thomas Lecaque on the Jericho Marches: https://www.editorialboard.com/that-freedom-convoy-in-ottawa-its-partly-inspired-by-a-biblical-account-of-divine-massacre/
In the next segment Dan walks us through the new John Durham/Hillary Clinton/Spygate distraction making the rounds in the MAGA Universe.
In the final segment, Brad links Charlie Kirk's freakout about the Super Bowl halftime show to the long entanglement among Muscular Christianity, American imperialism, and toxic masculinity. Jack Moore on the connections among all three: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2015/may/08/muscular-christianity-and-american-sports-undying-love-of-violence Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What is the relation to class and identity? Does a focus on identity and identity politics overlook, trivialize, or eliminate the significance of class or economic inequality in contemporary politics and social conflict? This episode suggests that a focus on identity does not discount, and is not at odds with, a focus on class or economic inequality. On the contrary, Dan argues that class is a dimension of identity of vital relevance for understanding, and changing, political and social culture. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett-"Yellow Leaves" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks to filmmaker Kat Gellein Viken who is the co-creator of two recent documentaries on churches, conspiracy, and the war on democracy. In 2020's People You May Know, Gellein and her co-creator Charles Kriel connect the dots among the Council for National policy, American oligarchs, and nefarious data mining firms. The film follows a trail that eventually reveals how churches are collecting their parishioners' most sensitive data and how that data is being sent to political operatives in order to use it as a weapon to wage war on democracy. In 2022's Dis/informed the duo pull back the curtain on the 12 sources of disinformation that account for over 60% of the pandemics spread of disinformation. This time, the trail leads to online wellness spaces full of yoga moms into alternative medicine and natural remedies. The filmmakers reveal how yoga moms became allied with conspiracy theorists and far-right agitators as part of the anti-vax and QAnon movements. People You May Know: https://www.amazon.com/People-You-Know-Charles-Kriel/dp/B08LHH7QJZ Dis/informed (coming soon from PBS America): https://metrotonemedia.com/ To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett - "846" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the RNC calling J6 "legitimate political discourse." While it may seem like a blip in a busy news cycle, Dan relates it to the pearl clutching Republicans did about civility and bi-partisanship early in the Biden presidency, while Brad argues that the history books will reveal it as evidence leading to the GOP's development into full-blown fascism. This segment ends with a comparison of this language with the once-upon-a-time concern about Hillary Clinton's emails. In the second segment Brad takes a semi-deep dive into Putin's assault on Ukraine and how it traces all the way back to the Cold War. There are clues in Putin's worldview as to why so many American Christian nationalists are enamored with him--the binary thinking, the strongman masculinity, and the nostalgia for a lost world. The final segment is a brief exploration of the trucker convoy protests in Canada and their wider implications for the political moment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
This episode revisits the idea that identity is about recognition and explores the significance of this. Because identity is not only about how I recognize myself, but also about how others recognize me, identity is never merely a matter of individual preference. Rather, identity is always shared and collective in nature. This is particularly true of identities with the “critical mass” to effect social or political change. This is one of the reasons why criticisms of identity politics on the grounds that it is merely individualistic and socially divisive are misguided. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by MattPuckett-Yellow Leaves Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What if J6 and the Anti-CRT movements trace back to the same secretive organization? What if J6 was the result of years of planning and organizing? And what if there's a plan in place to make sure that a secretive network has the chance to pick our next president? Anne Nelson is the author of Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right. She explains how J6 was the result of a year-long strategy implemented by the Council for National Policy. Once the CNP realized that Trump would most likely not win the popular vote or the electoral college, they set in motion a plan to skew doubt on the integrity of the election. They helped organize various events and rallies calling for the election to be overturned and supported the events on the ground on J6. Afterwards, they set in motion another set of plans to win back moderate voters by convincing them that their kids's schools were teaching CRT. Anne Nelson's Washington Spectator article: https://washingtonspectator.org/school-boards-nelson/ To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by: Brad Onishi Edited by: Shannon Sassone Music by: Matt Puckett-Here We Go Again Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin with a discussion about the new bill in Florida that would outlaw referencing gender and sexual identity. This new "Don't Say Gay Bill" is an attempt to create a patriarchal safe space in which all those who are not straight are considered outside threats to children. It shows how, despite all their ire toward the idea of safe spaces, Christian nationalists and conservatives attempt to create safe spaces as same spaces--a place where everyone is made to be, or assumed, to be the same so that no one is uncomfortable.
https://abcnews.go.com/US/dont-gay-bill-moves-forward-florida/story?id=82481565
https://www.vox.com/2016/7/5/11949258/safe-spaces-explained
The next segment looks at militia movements in California taking over rural counties and what this says about the state of trust in democratic institutions and the radicalization of the right. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/feb/03/california-county-controlled-by-militia-group
Finally, Brad and Dan look at Lauren Boebert's tweet wherein she suggests that the Constitution doesn't evolve. What does this say about her worldview and how does it relate to biblical inerrancy and constitutional originalism? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Contemporary critics on both the right and the left essentially accuse those who politically mobilize around social identities of being fundamentally selfish in nature. The charge is that their politics reflects only personal interest, that they seek special treatment or privilege on the basis of an identity that isn’t shared with others, and that they fragment any shared political vision. But none of these criticisms hold up if we consider the actual social groups that figure prominently in current discussion of identity politics. Rather, we find that these groups originate in the experience of marginalization and social and political exclusion, radically changing the light in which we should view identity and identity politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller Edited by Shannon Sassone Music by Matt Puckett Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Dana Lloyd is an expert on Native American religious traditions and faculty at Villanova University. She speaks to Brad about how the QAnon Shaman's appropriation of Native American symbols extends a long lineage of White people "playing Indian." According to Dr. Lloyd, "playing Indian" is a means of eliminating indigenous peoples by using their symbols, rituals, and traditions while leaving them behind--often through violence and attempted genocide. She draws on her own upbringing in Israel-Palestine to explain how the J6 rioters as a whole saw themselves taking what has always been given to them by God. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this episode with a discussion of the new profile of Jerry Falwell Jr. at Vanity Fair. In their view, Falwell is a type for contemporary Christian nationalism. He describes himself as not particularly religious while subscribing to a vision of the United States wherein White Christian men hold power. He was formed politically by Rush Limbaugh. He lavished praise on Donald Trump. For Dan, it's a perfect example of how Christian nationalism is a religious-political-cultural identity that often time has little to do with persona religious practice. They then segue into analysis of a new piece by sociologist Ruth Braunstein that investigates the backlash against the Religious Right and White Evangelicals. Braunstein examines the rise of the Nones--those unaffiliated with religion--but also looks at how the Religious Left and the "spiritual but not religious" also represent a backlash to conservative American Protestants. In the final segment Brad goes through the history of SCOTUS picks based on identity. Dan argues that identity politics are always at play and that there are no objectively best candidates for SCOTUS. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
If all of politics involves “identity,” and if we all possess identities, why do so many feel like contemporary “identity politics” is something new and experience it as threatening? If identity has always been a fundamental part of shared social and political life, why does identity figure so prominently in that shared life now? In this episode, we explore this question, looking at three significant social and political events over the latter half of the 20th century that help us to understand how identity has come to hold such a prominent place in our social and political life. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Leah Payne is a historian of Pentecostalism and other Christian traditions in the United States. She speaks with Brad about the overwhelming presence of charismatic Christians at the Insurrection. Drawing on her insider-scholar perspective, Dr. Payne helps decode some of the religious elements at at J6: the shofars (the horns used as instruments to declare war), the flags, and other symbols. She also explains why charismatic Christianity became such a prominent part of Trump's presidency and MAGA Nation as a whole.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan lay out the timeline and details of the fake electors the Trump campaign organized in order to overthrow the election. If you thought the details of Trump’s coup couldn’t get worse, wait until you hear the full scope of the plan to commit election fraud throughout the country in order to overturn the will of the people. They then discuss a new article at Christianity Today that maintains God’s pronouns must be he/him. Dan draws on his training as a theologian and queer theory to disssect the argument’s misguided and disingenuous foundations. The episode finishes with a discussion of the difference between feeling unsafe and uncomfortable a propos a new bill in Florida that would make it illegal for schools or workplaces to make people feel “uncomfortable” based on their racial identity. It is another ploy by Uncle Ron DeSantis to whitewash American history. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Produced by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller. Edited by Shannon Sassone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What is identity? It isn’t something limited to particular social groups claiming equal rights or something that only applies to minority groups of different kinds. On the contrary, “identity” is something we all have and it’s how we categorize and sort individuals and groups to shape our shared social life. It’s also fundamental to our shared political life, which means that the concept of “identity politics” is actually redundant. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Episode produced by Brad Onishi and Daniel Miller. Episode edited by Shannon Sassone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad interviews Phil Gorski, Professor of Sociology at Yale, and the author of the new co-authored book with Sam Perry, The Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to Democracy. Gorski breaks down how the rioters thought about the Insurrection–it was not about right or wrong. It was about us vs them. This explains how the various spiritualities on display at J6 worked to form a coalition of forces even if they don’t all have the same worldview. It also explains the function of religious symbols, rituals, and dress on display that day. They all worked to tell a story of one team trying to overtake another. The discussion finishes with Gorski explaining how the Reformation and the wars that followed it are a good comparison point for our current situation. The breakdown of authority, the transmission of information, and the individualism of our time resonate with the Reformation period and portend difficult days ahead.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this MLK weekend show by going over the outlines of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the Selma marches, and King’s missives to White moderates. They link this to the current fight for voting rights and the misugided logic of Senator Synema, who continues to stand in the way of new voting rights legislation. They then transition to new scholarship that shows White Christian nationalists are on the whole in favor of making it harder to vote and are unwilling to admit that voter suppression is a factor in American politics. The show ends with reflections on the sedition charges against a number of Oath Keepers–and the Christian nationalist logic they use to defend their traitorous actions. In a bonus segment, Brad and Dan discuss the NFL MVP race as a referendum on White identity politics. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Episode produced by Brad Onishi and Daniel Miller. Episode edited by Shannon Sassone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
What do politicians like Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders have in common? They’re critical of “identity politics.” In this episode, we’ll take a closer look at how people on both the political left and the political right are critical of identity politics and the unexpected similarities of their perspectives. We’ll also talk about some of the obvious problems with these perspectives and suggest some of the issues we’ll tackle in future episodes.
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Episode produced by Daniel Miller and Brad Onishi. Royalty Free Music; "Documentary" by Coma-Media Episode edited by Shannon Sassone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with journalist and researcher Teddy Wilson, who has spent a decade covering the Radical Right in the United States. Teddy describes the J6 rioter network map he has built, showing the connections among the 725+ rioters who have been arrested in the year since the Insurrection. He paints a picture of how radical right groups like the Proud Boys, Oathkeepers, and 3 Percenters were already at the Capitol before anyone else arrived. He also connects J6 to a lineage of right-wing terrorism in the USA. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this J6 anniversary episode by zooming in on certain religious elements manifest at the Insurrection. Dan decodes the various Braveheart references and signs on display, connecting them to a form of Christian nationalist masculinity via work by Kristin Kobes du Mez. Brad talks about how and why the rioters prayed as they crossed every boundary and threshold of the Capitol. It was a way of transforming the space into theirs and transforming them from criminals to God’s warriors.
They then discuss what has happened in the year since–pointing to stats of how many Republicans and Evangelicals believe the 2020 election was stolen. This give’s Dan a chance to explain what people are really saying when they repeat the mantra, “Don’t make it political.”
The last segment is on what happened on the one-year anniversary of the Insurrection. Brad and Dan analyze reactions from political leaders, religious leaders, and Trump admin figures, showing how the myth of the Big Lie took root and blinded Americans en masse.
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On the first episode in this series, Dan Miller explains why identity politics gets a bad rap and why that's a mistake. He introduces basic concepts in identity formation, group dynamics, and cultural identity in order to explain how identity is at the core of everything we do--including politics. It's not a matter of doing away with identity politics. It's a matter of understanding how they work and why in order to create a society in which everyone can flourish. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the first installment of J6 One Year Later, Brad speaks with the journalist Sarah Posner. Sarah discusses the various aspects of Christian supremacy and myth that provided a basis for the religious dimensions of the Insurrection. She and Brad touch on the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys, and the Jericho March in order to uncover how and why the Insurrection was saturated with Christian imagery and symbols. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan kickoff this New Year's Day roundup with a look at the false binary anti-vaxxers use to criticize the COVID vaccine and put forth a bad argument as to why they shouldn't get it. Dan discusses the case of NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers, while Brad uses the binary reference point to show why anti-vaxxers are natural allies to those who adhere to fundamentalist religions. They then discuss the very cringe worthy poster for the Alpha Conference--a gathering for male entrepreneurs who want to be "Alphas" in business and life. Brad dispels the myth of the Alpha male, while pointing out how it damages both men and women. The episode finishes with the wild details of how Madison Cawthorn met his wife. It involves a cruise. Russia, and a man named Captain Todd.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In an interview from early 2020, Brad talks with Dr. Samuel Perry, co-author of Taking America Back for God and a leading scholar on the phenomenon of Christian nationalism. They discuss the principles, structures, statistics, and threat of Christian Nationalism. For Perry, Christian Nationalism isn't just theocracy. As they discuss, it's a code word--a dog-whistle--used to signal xenophobia, racism, patriarchy, and so on. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with scholar Mark Fugitt whose recent work explores the various sources and factors in evangelical opposition to the COVID vaccine. He provides the historical context for this movement, showing that it is half a century in formation. He explains to Brad how everything from creationism, to Christian wellness, to anti-abortion sentiment, and the apocalypse play into fear-mongering around the COVID vaccine. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing how Joe Manchin is giving everyone coal for Christmas, even though coal workers want him to vote for the Build Back Better Act. It shows that his actions are based on corporate lobbying, rather than looking out for his voters. They then discuss Americafest--the event put on by Turning Point USA where Kyle Rittenhouse was given celebrity treatment. The episode finishes with a look at how the war on Christmas in America was started and waged by Puritans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In an interview recorded in 2019, Brad talks with Dr. Kelly J. Baker, author of the award-winning book "Gospel According to the Klan." They talk about how and why the Klan's story is THE story of white Protestant America and how the Klan is an important antecedent to the modern-day Religious Right. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Aaron Griffith, Assistant Professor of History at Whitworth University. They discuss his book, God's Law and Order: The Politics of Punishment in Evangelical America. Griffith links the rise of the American carceral state to shifts in evangelical theology and anthropology on the 20th century, showing that the individualistic and punitive ethos of evangelical thinking influenced the rise of mass incarceration in the USA. They discuss figures like Billy Graham who was a conduit of this thinking, and discuss how it remains a factor in our contemporary public square. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the text messages to Mark Meadows revealed by the J6 Select Committee. They dig into why this confirms all the worries we had about the plot to overthrow the election. They also underscore the callousness of the then Commander in Chief who ignored the pleas of fellow citizens to stop an attempted coup in progress. Brad then does a deep dive into Kyrsten Sinema in order to understand her opposition to abolishing the filibuster to pass voting rights legislation. The episode finishes with a spotlight on the words of Rafael Warnock, who asked this week why the Senate was willing to change the rules for the economy, but not for democracy.
Brad will be on the Wisdom App on December 20, at 1pm PST/4pm EDT under the username @bradleyonishi. Come chat! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad responds to pastor Matt Chandler's claim that deconstruction is only for those who were never real Christians in the first place. Brad dissects Chandler's blithe reference to Derrida (and moral relativism), explains why this is a convenient straw man that skips over the devastating process of leaving one's faith, and then explains why Chandler's response comes from a place of helplessness at the hands of a story that doesn't make any sense, but tries to make sense of everything. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Robert Mason is a biblical scholar whose recent work focuses on Romans 13. This passage of the New Testament has been frequently used (and abused) by authority figures trying to manipulate their subjects into obeying the law. It was used by Jeff Sessions to justify separating migrant kids from their parents. It was used to justify slavery. And the Holocaust. And the divine right of kings. But, Mason argues, these defenses rely on a profound misunderstanding of the text--and are nothing more than misguided abuses by those in power. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad begins by reviewing the bombshell document on Trump's plan to commandeer a recount of the 2020 election by using the military and other government agencies. He links this to comments this week by Matt Gaetz about how when the GOP takes over power once again they will come for their political opponents directly--using "shock troops" to overrun the American government. He then turns his attention to a SCOTUS case on funding religious schools. What is at stake, among other things, is the question as to whether or not the government should fund explicitly religious schools as a matter of religious liberty. He then turns his attention to the fact that the people who invented the idea of a war on Christmas have now turned Christmas into a war . . . To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On the final installment of Mild at Heart Brad discusses how purity culture taught him to treat his body as an enemy that his mind was in charge of controlling. This had after effects long after he left purity culture. It took him years to learn how to exist in his own body, to recognize how his mind was preventing him from feeling in real time, and how to quell the hypervigilant inner dialogue that he couldn't turn off. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Amanda Moore spent a year undercover attending rallies, events, and conferences in the trenches of MAGA Nation. She hung out with Proud Boys, got up close and personal with QAnon grifters, and got invited to join a fascist grassroots organization while attending a Turning Point USA event. She was also present at January 6th. She joins Brad to share what she saw and heard. They play clips she recorded secretly while at these events and talk about why we should all be worried about the future of the nation. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan are back after a week off. They begin by discussing SCOTUS and the very real possibility of Roe v. Wade being overturned. Dan distills the arguments of the Trump appointed judges. Brad points to the religious history and context that made this moment possible. They then turn their attention to Oxford, Michigan and the school shooting from a few days ago. Brad argues that the reason we have not seen meaningful gun control in this country is that guns--handheld killing machines--represent White patriarchal supremacy. They finish with a discussion of Uncle Ron DeSantis' COVID antics in Florida and his idea to build a Florida militia controlled by, you guessed it, the governor.
To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan are joined by Professor Kristin Kobes du Mez, author of Jesus and John Wayne, and an expert on evangelical masculinity and culture. They discuss why evangelicals imagine Jesus to be a heterosexual strong man, how evangelical pastors prime their congregations for fear, the trappings of gender complementarity, the #churchtoo movement, and the damaging effects of patriarchal church cultures. To Donate: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/BradleyOnishi For an ad-free experience and to support SWAJ: https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium To become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/straightwhiteamericanjesus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dennison University political scientist Paul Djupe. They discuss Djupe's findings that those Christians who live in homogenous Christian communities are most likely to believe that Democrats, atheists, and others are trying to take their rights away. They also discuss data that shows a large majority of Evangelicals are willing to strip rights from nonbelievers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dan speaks with author and constitutional lawyer Andrew Seidel. They discuss his new book, "The Founding Myth," and dissect the idea that the USA is a Christian nation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In his new book, Profaning Paul, USC Professor Cavan Concannon takes an unflinching look at the letters of Paul through the metaphor of excrement--or shit.
"The letters of Paul have been used to support and condone a host of evils over the span of more than two millennia: racism, slavery, imperialism, misogyny, and anti-Semitism, to name a few. Following the lead of feminist, queer, and minoritized scholarship, Profaning Paul asks what would happen if we stopped recycling Paul’s writings. By profaning the status of his letters as sacred texts, we might open up new avenues for imagining political figurations to meet our current and coming political, economic, and ecological challenges. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss the censuring of Rep. Paul Gosar for his tweet depicting him as an anime character killing Rep AOC. This leads to a bold, but evidence-based thesis: There is no good Republican party. If it ever existed in the first place, it is now gone. What has taken its place is a party founded on Trumpism, grievance, and fascist tendencies. After providing evidence for this thesis, Brad and Dan ask two questions: What happens in parties and states where contradicting the leader is the only reason a member is punished? What happens when such parties/states give their authority a religious cloak?
The episode finishes with a discussion of the recent instance of Kansas City residents donning yellow stars in order to compare their situations as unvaccinated people to the Jews in Nazi Germany. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On Mourning the One and the lessons about love you never learn in church. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
A life long social activist, Obery Hendricks is one of the foremost commentators on the intersection of religion and political economy in America. He is the most widely read and perhaps the most influential African American biblical scholar writing today. Dr. Hendricks’ appearances include CNN, MSNBC, CBS, Fox News, Fox Business News, the Discovery Channel, PBS, BBC, among others. Dr. Hendricks has served in the Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group at the U. S. Department of State under Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry; was a member of the Faith Advisory Council of the Democratic National Committee. Dr. Hendricks speaks with Brad about his new book, Christians Against Christianity: How Right-Wing Evangelicals Are Destroying Our Nation and Our Faith (Beacon Press, 2021) . They discuss Christian supremacy, how White evangelicals have turned their faith into a Jesus personality-cult while ignoring the Gospel, and the radical message of welcome to immigrants and refugees found throughout the Bible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the case of Aaron Rodgers, who was recently found out not to have been vaccinated. They discuss the various components at play in the case--from becoming an anti-vaxxer wiithout realizing it, to blaming the "woke mob" for cancel culture, and the politics of scientific authority. This leads to a discussion of Ted Cruz's criticism of Big Bird's immunization. Yes, Big Bird. Staying with Ted Cruz, Brad and Dan then analyze how and why our nation's freeways and other structures were built via segregationist and racist ideals. Given that the infrastructure package will mean money for investing in roads, bridges, and other projects, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has said that rectifying these wrongs is part of his agenda. While Cruz criticized him, history shows he has no case. Brad and Dan finish with comments on vigilantism, law and order, and the ways White men take it upon themselves to instill order when they feel the law isn't doing what they want. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad uses recent comments by Josh Hawley to talk about what people mean when they say that the country (and the church) needs to return to masculinity. Brad argues that this is a common trope in Christian nationalism and the theme opens the door for seeing how Christian nationalism is the original purity culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad's spirited and at times contentious interview with Daniel Silliman, the news editor for Christianity Today and the author of Reading Evangelicals:: How Christian Fiction Shaped a Culture and Faith. Their discussion of Silliman's book includes rumination on the themes of race, class, politics, and the contours of evangelical culture. Where Silliman sees diversity, Brad sees a narrow focus on suburban White evangelicals whose homogenous,, Trumpian politics are reflected in the fiction Silliman examines. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by debating the fallout of the gubernatorial election in Virginia. Dan points out that historically the party in power doesn't perform well in midterm and off-year elections. This is especially true in Virginia. Brad takes a different approach by discussing the ways that the GOP has made extremism mainstream in the past and how Glenn Youngkin, who ran on a Trumpian platform without Trump as the mascot of his campaign, may be the next iteration of making racism and prejudice "respectable" in GOP spaces. They then discuss the new data from PRRI that shows the two competing visions of the United States. According to the report, "More than two-thirds of Republicans (68%), compared to 26% of independents and 6% of Democrats, continue to believe that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump. And Republicans (30%) are approximately three times as likely as Democrats (11%) to agree with the statement, “Because things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.” Agreement with this statement rises to 40% among Republicans who most trust far-right news sources and is 32% among those who most trust Fox News. One in four white evangelicals (26%) also agree that political violence may be necessary to save the country."
Finally, they go over new details from the Washington Post about the extensive alarm bells that domestic security officials triggered before J6, only to be ignored by federal agencies and the White House. It shows how far we are to knowing that Trump incited a coup while allowing him and his cohorts to go unpunished. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad takes a break from Mild at Heart to talk to writer, podcaster, and organizer Cindy Wang Brandt, the person behind Parenting Forward. Cindy discusses her journey from Evangelical convert to the go-to person helping folks navigate parenthood after deconstruction and in the wake of purity culture. Her new children's book, You Are Revolutionary, provides an inspiring child-affirming message that is poignant and timely. You are Revolutionary: https://www.beamingbooks.com/store/product/9781506478302/You-Are-Revolutionary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Brett Krutsch is the editor of the Revealer and the Director of the Center for Religion and Media at NYU, He speaks to Brad about his book, "Dying to Be Normal: Gay Martyrs and the Transformation of American Sexual Politics." In Dying to Be Normal, Krutzsch argues that gay activists have in the past enacted a political strategy to present gays as similar to the country's dominant class of white, straight Christians. Through an examination of publicly mourned gay deaths, Krutzsch counters the common perception that LGBT politics and religion have been oppositional and reveals how gay activists used religion to bolster the argument that gays are essentially the same as straights, and therefore deserving of equal rights. In his view, this is a limiting strategy that stifles the movement for queer liberation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing three trials happening right now: the Charlottesville Unite the Right Trial, the Kenosha Shooter Trial, and the Murder of Amaud Arbery. They analyze the racial, legal, and historical dynamics of each, pointing to the failure of our legal system to reckon with the baked-in White supremacy of our system. They then dissect the revelations about January 6th planning meetings and Trump's War Room. This leads to a discussion of myth making in real time and how everyone from Marjorie Taylor Green to Tucker Carlson is spinning dangerous narratives about the Insurrection. The episode finishes with reflection on a recent piece in the NYT on how Republican and Evangelical are becoming synonyms, and what this means for our political landscape. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Why does love feel like death? Brad continues to reflect on the soulmate myth and purity culture's vision of love. He analyzes how the model of love in these stories sees it as the end of life--the completion of one's journey, and thus something like death. With help from Plato and the Odyssey he explains why it is such a toxic, and potentially abusive, vision of love within the purity culture context. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Calvary Chapel started in Southern California in the 1960s. From the beginning, the aesthetic was laid-back, casual, and welcoming--the type of place barefoot hippies and wet-haired surfers could find a church home. But below the surface a militant conservative theology and politics took shape. Fast forward half a century and Calvary Chapel is now a nation-wide network that is at the forefront of shaping the contemporary culture wars. By offering a ready-made circuit for Christian nationalist speakers like Charlie Kirk and Tony Perkins, it has become the vanguard of Christian nationalism at the denominational level. Carly Fox, who grew up in Calvary Chapel churches and now runs "Calvary Chapel Watch," stops by to discuss it all with Brad. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin discussing the MAGA freakout over Mayor Pete's paternity leave. They use this to ask what kind of families and what kind of fathers conservatives envision when they talk endlessly about family values. Using the work of George Lakoff, this leads to examining the metaphor of the nation as a family and the political leader as the nation's father. Brad and Dan connect the outrage over paternity leave to the way conservatives value authoritarian styles of leadership based on punishment, force, and discipline, rather than empathy, nurturing, or happiness. In the second segment they connect this vision of fatherhood and the nation to Joe Manchin's sabotage of the Democrats policies on climate change, child tax credits, and voting rights. In the final segment, Brad and Dan examine the details of the new "MAGA incubator" property in Tennessee--a 130 acre compound started by the "AR 15 church" in Pennsylvania. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad shifts to the theme of love and explains the toxicity of the soulmate myth in purity culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Alex DiBranco is Executive Director and Founder at Institute for Research on Male Supremacism. Alex stops by to discuss "Male Supremacist Terrorism as a Rising Threat". According to Dibranco, male supremacism is a right-wing extremist ideology that has contributed to terrorist attacks, primarily in the US, but also in Canada and Europe. Within male supremacist communities, the motivation for terrorist attacks stem predominantly from two core misogynist beliefs: 1) the belief that men are entitled to sexual access to women, and 2) the belief that feminists are a malevolent force controlling society at the expense of men, a frame similar to anti-Semitic conspiracy theories regarding Jewish elites controlling the world. Alex and Brad discuss how secular and religious male supremacisms are cut from the same cloth, the dynamics of superiority and humiliation in male supremacist terrorism, and the rise of the Proud Boys. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing a rally for VA gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin where supporters pledged allegiance to a flag carried at the January 6th Insurrection. To top it off, Steve Bannon--who is ignoring a subpoena to testify about January 6th--appeared at the rally to support Youngkin's campaign.
They then discuss an ongoing debate in a school district near Forth Worth Texas, where libraries have been closed surrounding the need to teach "multiple perspectives" on the Holocaust. This is a direct result of new laws in Texas passed by Gov. Abbott last month. The episode finishes with a discussion of the politicization of SCOTUS in the wake of a speech given by Samuel Alito at Notre Dame a few weeks ago. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad discusses the fact that masculinity is often a performance for other men. Men fear what other men think of them, creating the need to constantly live up to an ideal of masculinity that is neither rooted in reality, nor healthy. Purity culture exacerbates this phenomenon by setting up God as the Ultimate Masculinity who every man mimics, but cannot live up to. This leads to anxiety and insecurity under the scrutiny of what Brad calls "the masculine gaze." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Jessica Johnson, research fellow at the College of William and Mary and author of Biblical Porn: Affect, Labor, and Pastor Mark Driscoll's Evangelical Empire. They discuss the ways that Christianity Today's podcast, "The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill," primes its audience using similar tactics to Driscoll and other megachurch pastors, how it refuses to center abuse victims, and how it acts as a covert reclamation project for evangelicalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing the Senate Judiciary Committee's findings on how Trump sought to overturn the election by pressuring the DOJ. Dan relates these revelations to the concepts of populism and nationalism, showing how Trump used tactics used by populist leaders who take control of every aspect of government in order to take complete control of a nation. They then turn their attention to a brand new interview with the president of the Claremont Institute, the MAGA think-tank that helped produce the lawyer who outlined Trump's plan to decertify the electoral college votes. Brad and Dan discuss the view expressed in the interview (and an additional essay) that half of Americans aren't real Americans, the Founders framed the Constitution to work for an exclusively Christian nation, and that a civil war is on the horizon. They finish the episode by discussing how the Texas abortion bill may be the catalyst that finally turns the Lone Star state blue over the next decade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad shares an episode from his deconstruction when he began to date again. It was the first time he was out of church and single since he converted. What ensued was a crisis of self image and a crisis of masculinity. While he was overjoyed to be outside the narrow confines of the Evangelical fold, he also had no tools with which to understand himself in the world. When he tried to date "out there in the world," he immediately felt worthless, empty, and full of self doubt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Blake Chastain, host of #Exvangelical and Powers and Principalities, and the author of a recent piece on the recent Christianity Today podcast on the downfall of Mars Hill, stops by to talk about why religious leaders and thinkers refuse to listen to ex-evangelicals. He and Brad discuss the excuses that the Christianity Today podcast and other sources make about why people leave high demand religions. What becomes clear throughout the conversation is that the refusal to listen is a refusal to self-reflect on the issues within church communities and religious traditions. For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss American values in relation to the ongoing debates among Democrats about the Biden administration's infrastructure bill. They discuss why Joe Manchin has been willing to vote for 9 trillion in military spending over the last decade, but doesn't want to invest in education, fighting climate change, or American families. The bulk of the episode focuses on how White Christians use the feeling of discomfort as a justification for their exclusionary politics. Dan walks us through a fight in TN that wants to ban books that discuss race and segregation. The justification from parents is that such discussions make their children uncomfortable. Brad then analyzes a recent piece from the Catholic League on how advances in LGBT rights = the diminishment of Christian rights. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad continues his analysis of sex and masculinity in purity culture. He focuses on how it teaches men to hate themselves twice. First, they hate themselves for continually giving into lust and sexual temptation. It is a losing battle that can't be won. Second, they hate themselves because men are supposed to be sexual barbarians. So, when they get married, if they don't want to engage in sexual activity all the time, then they aren't real men. This hurts women because they are asked to be the gatekeepers of purity in one instance and taught that they are doing something wrong if their husband doesn't want sex multiple times per day in the next. For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too!
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Constitutional Originalism is the idea that one should read the Constitution, not interpret it. It endeavors to implement the "original" intent of the Founders. The goal is to limit renovation and innovation in order to stick with the "fundamentals" of the United States. Sound familiar? It should. The origins of this strategy are found in biblical inerrancy--the idea that the Bible should be read, not interpreted. That it is the errorless Word of God. That it is 100% accurate in terms of history, archaeology, and everything else. What if I told you that both of these movements have their foundation in White Supremacy and the Lost Cause? Austin Steelman, PhD candidate at Stanford University, unpacks the story. For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing Trump and why exploring the ongoing revelations of the January 6th is more than just archival mining. The second major topic is the reclaiming of abortion as a religious right. Brad draws upon the United Church of Christ fight for queer marriage where religious leaders stated that a ban on queer marriage violated the religious liberty and leaders of their church. In this Brad and Dan ask what it means to frame abortion as a religious freedom - a narrative that Evangelicals have used for far too long. They finish by discussing the raising of the debit limit, Mitch McConnell, COVID-19 variants and reasons for hope. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad discusses the strange contradiction at the heart of purity culture's vision of masculinity: You are a sexual savage that has a near uncontrollable libido and that is just how God made you. And you, the uncontrollable animal, should be the leader of church, family, and society. This, among other things, is a form of rape culture. It's also an infantilizing view of masculinity and sexuality that hurts men . . . and women. For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks to his co-host Dan Miller about Miller's new book, Queer Democracy: Desire, Dysphoria, and the Body Politic. Dan explains why the metaphor of the social body is helpful for understanding Christian nationalism as a visceral reaction to the expansion freedoms and rights to marginalized groups within the American body politic. In essence, Miller explains, Christian nationalism holds a myopic vision of what the American body should look like. When it morphs not only to include, but to foreground those who are not straight, White, native born, and/or Christian, it feels to the Christian nationalist as if something is wrong, even if they don't have good arguments to explain why. Miller finishes the conversation by arguing for the promise and potential of a queer democracy. For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
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Dan and special guest Blake begin by discussing the Babylon Bee, and the anti-censorship bill in Florida. They explore how misinformation is disseminated disguised as free speech.
The second major topic is the planned "Justice for J6" rally planned at the Capitol on September 18. This is, in their view, a ritual enactment of the myth of the Big Lie--a return to the site of violence to commemorate battle heroes and martyrs - the creation of myth in real time.
They finish by discussing moral responsibility during the COVID-19 pandemic, Nicki Minaj, the recasting of white evangelicalism, and christian identity as political conservatism. Dan leads by asking what will the effect of 2016 be on American Evangelicals? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
For an ad-free premium feed, https://irreverent.supportingcast.fm/straight-white-american-jesus-premium. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too!
On this first installment of Mild at Heart, Brad shares some of his experience with purity culture. He focuses on how it taught him to hate his mind for the way it led him into continual sexual sin, and to hate his body for the way it stood in the way of his walk with God. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
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"In the 1980s and early 1990s, psychologists, law enforcement officials, nationally syndicated talk show hosts, and at least one sitting U.S. senator believed Satanists were corrupting our nation’s youth through predatory childcare centers, encrypted rock music, and tabletop gaming systems that could serve as literal gateways to hell." -Megan Goodwin, PhD Brad welcomes Dr. Megan Goodwin back to the show to talk about the Satanic Panic of the 1980s. Dr. Goodwin explains how individual reports of abuse at the hands of supposed Satanists led to a national movement to root out the hidden cabals of demonic forces in American society. The problem? They didn't exist. But that didn't stop the FBI from spending millions to investigate, local law enforcement from arresting dozens of innocent people, and talk show hosts and politicians discussing the phenomenon on television and on the Senate floor. For Goodwin the Satanic Panic is a direct precursor to QAnon. Both movements conjure a sexual abuse ring as their enemy while overlooking the sources and perpetrators of abuse at work in the fabric of everyday American life. They are scapegoat movements created to distract from the startling truth that the abuse in most cases is coming from within trusted sources of the community, rather than from demonic outside forces. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
For an ad-free premium feed, click here. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! ______________________________________________ Brad and Dan begin by discussing Biden's sweeping new vaccine mandates and measures. They explore the right-wing response to the measures in comparison with right-wing responses to the Patriot Act and other policies in the wake of 9/11. They then dissect Ben Shapiro's statements about vaccines and COVID using the standard of a freshman logic course. The second major topic is the planned "Justice for J6" rally planned at the Capitol on September 18. This is, in their view, a ritual enactment of the myth of the Big Lie--a return to the site of violence to commemorate battle heroes and martyrs. They finish by discussing the alliance among the Proud Boys, the Anti-Vaxx crowd, and Christian nationalists like Tony Perkins and Charlie Kirk formed in opposition to public schools. Why are Christian nationalists always on the same side as the White Supremacists? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
For an ad-free premium feed, click here. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! ______________________________________________________
Brad refutes the idea that mandating vaccines is un-American and anti-Christian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speak with Ryan Stollar, expert on child protection and a Christian homeschooling survivor. Ryan shares his research on the evangelical and ex-evangelical components of Britney's story--from her childhood in church, to her experiences in purity culture, to the powerful evangelical business manager who convinced her dad to put Britney under conservatorship. It is a story of sexualizing young women, toxic sexual standards, overwhelming patriarchy, and a shocking loophole in our legal system. Stollar makes a compelling case that #FreeBritney is an exvangelical cause, and that Spears's conservatorship represents the culmination of many evangelical beliefs and practices concerning wayward, apostate children Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
For an ad-free premium feed, click here. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! All patrons receive an ad-free experience too! ______________________________________________ Brad and Dan begin by discussing the slate of new laws in Texas:
Abortion: The six-week abortion ban that includes a 10k bounty for anyone involved.
Handheld Killing Machines: The new permitless carry law.
Voting: making absentee voting harder, preventing 24-hour voting in Harris County, demanding driver licenses for mail-in votes, etc.
School Curricula: Laws creating an "1836 Project," outlaw discussing current events and systemic racism, and prohibit credit for civic engagement.
The conclusion: Texas is trying to go back to the 1850s (the Antebellum period) and be the vanguard of the New Antebellum period (the time before the 2nd civil war). They conclude by discussing Kevin McCarthy's and Marjorie Taylor Greene's threats against telecom companies regarding handing over records related to 1/6. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
A re-release of Dan’s interview with Professor R. Marie Griffith, author of Moral Combat: How Sex Divided American Christians and Fractured American Politics. Dan and Prof. Griffith discuss the surprising history of evangelical positions on abortion, and how evangelical extremism has left no room for nuance in the debate. R. Marie Griffith, the John C. Danforth Distinguished Professor in the Humanities at Washington University in St. Louis, is currently the director of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics and the editor of the Center’s journal, Religion & Politics. Her research focuses on American Christianity, including the changing profile of American evangelicals and ongoing conflicts over gender, sexuality, and marriage. For an ad-free premium feed, click here. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use code SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
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On another installment of Ex-Evangelical Apologetics Brad takes on the mantra, "I stand for the flag and kneel for the cross." By looking back to the New Testament and Early Church Fathers, he is able to show the Uncle Rons of the world that the earliest iterations of Christian faith were often staunchly against war, violence, and revenge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
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Dr. Liliana Mason is faculty at Johns Hopkins University and author of Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity. In a new article, Activating Animus: The Uniquely Social Roots of Trump Support, she and her co-authors show that "Trump’s support is thus uniquely tied to animus toward minority groups."
She provides key takeaways fro this study: "First, the people who really like Trump in 2018 are the same ones who really disliked Blacks, Muslims, LGBT+, and Hispanics in 2011. It's NOT THE SAME for the GOP in general, or even for Ryan or McConnell. Trump is drawing on this particular group of people to a unique degree.The new MAGA/anti-MAGA conflict is not an entirely partisan one. It's about white Christian supremacy versus a fully multi-racial democracy. And it's not happening for anyone on the Democratic side. Hating Christians and White people doesn't predict favorability toward any Democratic figures or the Democratic Party. So it isn't "anti-White racism" (whatever that means) motivating the left. It's not "both sides." This means that there is a faction in American politics that has moved from party to party, can be recruited from either party, and responds especially well to hatred of marginalized groups. They're not just Republicans or Democrats, they're a third faction that targets parties. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
For an ad-free premium feed, click here. Use code SWAJ for 60% off the monthly rate! Use cod SWAJyear for $12 off the annual membership! Brad and Dan discuss the dangerous rhetoric coming from the right that frames the COVID outbreaks as the result of "infestations" of undocumented immigrants. It is not founded in data. And it is dangerously dehumanizing. They then discuss Madison Cawthorn's suggestion that masks for children = abuse. This is rich in a country where kids practice active shooter drills regularly. They also discuss Tucker Carlson's framing of Ashil Babbitt as an unarmed protester who was executed. The episode finishes with criticism of Joe Biden's American Empire discourse and Christian nationalism.
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Brad discusses the idea that capitalism and Christianity go together from two angles. First, he outlines how in the mid-twentieth century big business actors infiltrated church spaces with the ideas that free market capitalism, individualism, and libertarianism were God ordained from the Bible. Like abortion in the 1970s, the idea that capitalism and Christianity are natural partners is the result of an external operation that used faith to gain cultural traction. Brad then discusses the case of Denmark, one of the happiest countries on earth. Its social welfare system is extensive--and largely a result of Lutheran ideals inherited from the Reformation. It's a counter-example to the idea that Christianity is incompatible with socialism or any system other than capitalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dartmouth professor and pre-eminent scholar of Evangelicalism Dr. Randall Balmer returns to talk about his new book, Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right. He and Brad discuss how over the course of the 20th century, race and xenophobia have been the drivers of Evangelical theology and politics. Balmer explains how Evangelicals once invested in social reform, but over the last century have undergone a transformation at the hands of conservative political operatives and fear of ethnic and racial others. Bonus: The open race-baiting of Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign Bonus: Balmer explains the Abortion Myth and how race, rather than reproductive rights shaped the Religious Right Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss the vehement support for the Iraq War and the invasion of Afghanistan during the Bush years and comment briefly on the ills of American Empire. They then discuss the dangers and implications of the alliance between anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers with the Proud Boys and how cultural melding leads to strange--and in this case, scary--bedfellows. This leads to a reflection on the Christian nationalism of the Capitol Bomber. He blames immigrants for his family's ills. He spout conspiracies. He says he is acting for God and Country. He repeats lies about the election. He was radicalized. The episode finishes with reflection on the dynamic between blue cities and red state governments and what this portends for the future of the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad continues the Exvie Apologetics series with a retort to those who would say that there are only two genders and that the idea of pronouns is a leftist invention. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Luke Wilson is a survivor of "conversion therapy." He has written about his experiences at Liberty University for Religion Dispatches, Queerty, and other outlets. In this conversation, Luke provides his response to the Netflix doc "Pray Away." They discuss the complexities of those who are both survivor and perpetrator sharing their stories and taking the spotlight. They also discuss the (unsurprisingly) blithe reactions to the film by Evangelical sources, namely the Gospel Coalition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad begins this solo roundup by discussing how provocateur worship leader Sean Feucht provoked conflict in Portland Sunday. His security team was made up of Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer, leading to reflection on what the intimacy between conservative White Christians and militant nationalists groups means for the ongoing Cold Civil War. Brad then spends extended time charting the political/ideological migration to Idaho, the fastest growing state in the country. He demonstrates how and why people are moving there in order to be in homogeneous communities where White Christians are the majority. This is a reversal of what happened in the mid-20th century, when millions of Southerners and Midwesterners flocked to the Southwest. Brad finishes by discussing what the new census data tells us about the nation and what it means moving forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Emily Torres, who is behind the Life She Wrote blog and podcast. Emily tells her story of growing up--and eventually leaving--Evangelicalism and describes the religious trauma that ensued from her experiences. She explains the mechanics of purity culture and how young women learn that their bodies are not their own, their bodies are stumbling blocks, and that they should never trust them. This leads to a prolonged conversation about how purity culture inflicts trauma on young people through both subtle and explicit cues, signals, and messages. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Laura Anderson, founder of the Center for Trauma Resolution and Recovery and co-founder of the Religious Trauma Institute. They discuss the nature of religious trauma, why it can be hard for individuals to label it trauma, and how it can be treated. One of the issues for victims of religious trauma is the absence of a clear cut "before" and "after" that indicates when and how the traumatic event happened. Their discussion addresses the specific contours of high demands on sexual purity within religious frameworks and the traumatic effects this can have years and even decades after one leaves the community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss Tucker Carlson's trip to Hungary and interview with Orban as part of a decades-long pattern of White nationalists and White Christian nationalists looking to autocratic strongmen as the models of the ideal society. They trace Carlson's visit to Hungary to Rod Dreher and other White Christians who see Orban and his ilk as the prototypical Christian patriarchal leaders. They then discuss the rise of Latino Evangelicals and how their resonances with White Evangelicals. Again, the themes of family, patriarchy, and authority come into play. They finish with a look at the ideas of freedom and liberty at play in Ron DeSantis' opposition to masks and the rhetoric against mandating vaccines. Dan explains how Uncle Ron's discourse links up with political theory from the past and ultimately advances a misguided understanding of liberty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad addresses two common refrains about racism and social issues--the "racism is a heart issue" response and the "not of this world" response. He shows how when Evangelicals hold power, they turn to individualist responses to issues like race and guns. They don't want the systems changed, so the response is to turn it into a changing hearts for God issue. When they have lost the power, they do everything possible to elect their candidates, change laws, and get the power back. It's an offense-defense strategy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Matthew Sheffield, the editor and publisher of the new media outlet Flux. They discuss his article, "Republicans are banking on a fusion of Trump autocracy and McConnell nihilism, but will it work for them?" One of the arguments Sheffield makes is that the GOP has given up on policy and has become the party of outrage and resentment. Their only play is belligerence via Fox News and other outlets. He then argues that it's been hard to ramp up this outrage machine during the Biden presidency because Biden is a boring grandpa who is as old or older than most Trump voters; a president who largely stays out of view; and one on whom they can't use racist and xenophobic tacts like they do with other politicians. Finally, he argues that the GOP and the White Christian fundamentalists who anchor it are losing power and numbers, but becoming more violent. Leading to the question of our time: Can our democracy survive the autocracy and nihilism they are turning to in order to remain at the top of the political and social hierarchies? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin with extended analysis of the testimony of the Capitol Police officers before the 1/6 committee. Their words are shocking and harrowing. They reflect on the words hurled at them that day as they were being attacked, words marked by the racism, xenophobia, Trumpism, and Christianity of the capitol rioters. They then turn to the explicit Christian nationalism of the rioters. This leads Dan to comment on how "religions are what religions do." There is no calling them insurrectionists not real Christians. We have to face up to the fact that some people of faith think their faith teaches them to raise gallows with the words "God Bless America" and attack the Capitol. This leads Brad to reflect on how what is happening is myth making in real time--a revival of the Lost Cause and the denial of reality right in front of us.
They finish with a segment on the renewed attempt to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Extended Segment: The Delta Variant and Binary Thinking Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad revisits the idea that exvangelicals are just broke and giving up on faith. He responds to an interview at the Remnant Radio with Skillet's John Cooper.
Topics discussed:
Do non-Evangelicals allow culture to shape them, while Evangelicals allow Scripture to be the formative influence?
Is Truth all or nothing?
Why are Evangelicals so upset when exvies "share the Gospel" of their deconstruction?
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Brad speaks once again with Dr. Susannah Crockford. They discuss her new book, Ripples of the Universe, which provides an ethnographic account of New Age spiritual practitioners in Sedona, Arizona. Dr. Crockford explains the various spiritual beliefs, cosmologies, and rituals that makeup the peculiar and dazzling form of spirituality in the Arizona desert. She also explains the term "conspirituality," which denotes the combination of conspiracy + spirituality. One of the most interesting parts of this interview is the discussion of the deep resonances between Christian nationalism and New Age Spirituality when it comes to nostalgia for a mythical past, the centering of Whiteness, and belief in a global conspiracy to ruin the country and the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin by discussing what's behind the anti-vax attitudes of many Americans, especially White Christians. After reviewing the staggering and heartbreaking numbers, they draw on scholarship related to wraparound media and conspiracy theories to examine what resisting vaccines does for people--especially as it relates to themes of power, belonging, and authority. They then discuss the 1/6 Select Committee debacle and how the GOP can't decide if we need to investigate or not, why it's not okay to allow Jim Jordan to investigate himself, and the potential fracturing in the Republican caucus in the wake of recent events. Brad and Dan finish by discussing the decision in Texas to stop requiring teachers to teach that the KKK was morally wrong, stop teaching about MLK Jr. life and legacy, and many other issues, because they are not supposed to give "deference" to one perspective. For two lifelong educators, this is reprehensible and undermines the very nature of teaching and pedagogy.
On the extended segment they discuss the sex abuse scandal at Liberty University and why White Evangelical spaces are unsafe for young women, girls, and members of the LGTBQ+ community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Last weekend theologian and former head of the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood Owen Strachan tweeted that taking away even one comma from the Bible would demean it. This let to a Twitter storm and many folks pointed out the misguidedness of attributing things like commas to the original composition of the biblical texts. Brad digs deeper into this controversy to show how Strachan's approach to the biblical textual body lines up with his complementarian theology and his White Christian nationalist approach to social justice and history. Strachan's comments on 'biblical commas' are easily debunked. There is no historical case for them. The deeper question is what such rhetoric does for him and other biblical literalists. Strachan is clearly someone who wants to control borders and bodies. His theology of gender, marriage, and family is based on a strict patriarchal order. His new book resists any examination of the American social body's structuring, labeling "Whiteness" an imaginary category. Read in this context, the "biblical comma" tweets reflect a desire to put clear borders and boundaries around the biblical text just as he has sought to do with marriage, family, and the nation. For him, the Bible is scary if it offers permeable categories and ambiguity; complex texts and difficult histories. Instead, a fortified virginal text protected from any intrusion. A wall built around Scripture in order to make it--or keep--it sacred. This, as a whole, is a theology of fear.
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Dr. Megan Goodwin is the author of Abusing Religion, which explores how White Christians and their influence in our "secular" institutions have constructed religious outsiders as sexual predators as a pretext for persecution and othering. The American body politic is envisioned as a White Christian woman in need of protection from religious (and racial) foreigners who seek to infiltrate and contaminate her. According to Goodwin, this is mobilized through the "catholicization of public morality" as it comes to sex, contraception, and the body--what she calls a "contraceptive nationalism." It also rests on latent White supremacy, which is manifest in both Protestant and Catholic institutions, communities, texts, and so on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin with a discussion of the revelations from the new book, "I Alone Can Fix It," including General Mark Milley's preparing for Trump's Reichstag Moment, Pence's belief that his Secret Service detail was part of a Trumpian conspiracy, and the ways our democracy have been pushed to the limits before, during, and after 1/6. They then discuss what the Texas Dems self-exile to DC means for saving voting rights and how democracies often undergo autoimmune moments wherein democratic processes are used to end democracy. They finish by discussing the child tax credits and how they reflect good policy that can counteract the Right Wing Media Machine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad discusses a new article at WaPo on the Trumpism and Christian nationalism of non-denominational churches.
He points out that this is not a new phenomenon to anyone who has been paying attention
He points out that the identity of non-denominational Christian might replace the Evangelical identity for some people--which helps make sense of recent data on a decline in Evangelical numbers across the country
He spends the bulk of the episode explaining how non-denominational churches are ripe for political mobilization because they have removed all guard rails. As independent churches with no larger affiliations, they open an authority vacuum for toxic political personalities and movements to take hold of their community. Thus, it's no coincidence that Trump spent significant time courting non-denominational Christians and why these churches are at the heart of MAGA Nation.
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Brad speaks with Dr. Lucas Kwong of CUNY about the far-reaching implications of Christian xenophobia. They discuss the explicit White nationalism of AZ Representative Paul Gosar and far-right commentator Nick Fuentes (who was just banned from Twitter for his hateful content). They also touch on the more cunning versions of Christian xenophobia in pastors such as Tim Keller and Ralph Drollinger, the latter of whom taught a weekly Bible study at the White House throughout the Trump presidency, who use the buzz words of "racial reconciliation" to smuggle in a more subtle xenophobic message. For Kwong, this topic is personal. As an Asian American Christian, he has experienced being a "stranger" and "outsider" in a number of ways. During the COVID pandemic he witnessed his community ravaged by hate and violence due to the racialized slurs leaders used to describe the virus and the blame they placed on China for its spread. In the wake of the Atlanta massacre he wondered how faith, race, and sex played into the unspeakable tragedy of that day. So, he formed the "Open Letter Against Christian Xenophobia" and is now working to bring awareness to this issue. His scholarship, personal history, and Asian American Christian identity come together in his activism against Christian xenophobia and White nationalism. Find the Open Letter Against Christian Xenophobia here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
"Whatever natural good was present in the piety and community of the pagan past is an infinitesimal fraction of the grace rendered unto those pagans’ descendants who have been received into the Church of Christ. Whatever sacrifices were exacted in pursuit of that grace—the suffocation of a noble pagan culture; an increase in disease and bodily death due to government negligence; even the sundering of natural families—is worth it." Declan Leary writing at the American Conservative
Brad responds to this article and similar comments by Jesse Waters, Dave Rubin, and Matt Walsh, all of whom have taken the stance that "this land was conquered just like all populated land on Earth. And thank God that it was. Our civilization is far superior to what came before it."
He also discusses the explosive new data from PRRI on the decline of White Evangelcalism and the rise of the Nones--the USA's biggest religious group to date. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad begins by responding to Pennsylvania Senate candidate Josh Mandel who claimed last week that the Bible and the Constitution were "not supposed to be separate." He then spends the bulk of this response episode dissecting the comments of conservative "theocratic fascist" Matt Walsh, who spent last week whining that the House voted to remove Confederate statues from the Capitol. Brad uses the metaphor of family and representation to demonstrate how bogus it is to maintain that any Confederates should be represented in the legislative and symbolic epicenter of our nation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Benjamin E. Park is a historian who has become a national voice on issues related to religion and politics, particularly as they relate to the Church of Latter Day Saints. His work has appeared at the Washington Post, Newsweek, Houston Chronicle, Religion & Politics, Talking Points Memo, Religion Dispatches, Dallas Morning News, Salt Lake Tribune, Religion News Service, and Patheos. He speaks to Brad about the hidden histories of Christian nationalism and triumphalism in the LDS Church and how they are manifest in the politics of current Utah senator Mike Lee. This history is contrasted to the more moderate wing of Mormon politics as represented by Mitt Romney--the other senator from Utah--and his dad, George, before him. Using Lee and Romney as a means to understanding LDS politics illuminates how and why so many members of the LDS church have become part of MAGA Nation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this 4th of July weekend episode with thoughts from James Baldwin, who discussed his love for America as a "lover's quarrel." They then lay out the evidence for the fact that the Cold Civil War is escalating--from Trump's Revenge Tour, to new data on how White Evangelicals voted in 2020, to Governor Kristi Noem turning the South Dakota National Guard into soldiers-for-hire, to the Oath Keepers admitting the armed conspiracy to prevent Biden from becoming president on 1/6. They finish by examining what the Supreme Court's decision on voting rights means moving forward, and how bipartisanship with a toxic party is not a virtue to pursue. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with author and pastor Ruth Everhart about her new book, "The #MeToo Reckoning: Facing the Church's Complicity in Sexual Abuse and Misconduct." They discuss the connections between rape culture and purity culture, how patriarchal theology contributes to toxic church environments. Link to Ruth Everhart The #MeToo Reckoning: https://www.ivpress.com/the-metoo-reckoning "The #MeToo movement has revealed sexual abuse and assault in every sphere of society, including the church. But victims are routinely ignored by fellow Christians who deny their accounts and fail to bring accountability to the perpetrators. All too often, churches have been complicit in protecting abusers, reinforcing patriarchal power dynamics, and creating cultures of secrecy, shame, and silence.
Pastor and survivor Ruth Everhart shines a light on the prevalence of sexual abuse and misconduct within faith communities. She candidly discloses stories of how she and others have experienced assault in church settings, highlighting the damage done to individuals, families, and communities." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
The Catholic Church is officially against abortion. But there are millions of Catholics around the world--including President Joe Biden--who are pro-choice politically. Only the 2nd Catholic president in our history, one would think that the Church, especially the Conference of Bishops, would be ecstatic to have Biden in the White House. But in a vote that portends an escalating culture war, recently the American Bishops took a vote that many saw as the first step in denying Biden and other pro-choice Catholics communion. Many see this as a fool's errand that could end up alienating even more young people, women, and members of the LGBTQ+ community than before. A group of pro-choice Catholic members of congress has already signed a letter warning against the escalation of this issue within the American Church. The question is why this move and why now? Why attack the first Catholic President since JFK? Why alienate so many American Catholics who hold complex political and social identities while remaining faithful to the Church? In order to figure out why the US Conference of Bishops decided to make this move now and what it means for the Biden administration and American politics going forward, Brad spoke with Dr. Annie Selak, Associate Director of the Women's Center at Georgetown University. Dr. Selak is an ecclesiologist by training whose work focuses on power relations within the Catholic Church. Her work has appeared at the Washington Post, America Magazine, Commonweal, and in several edited volumes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan do close readings of statements made by Insurrectionist Senator Josh Hawley and Representative Matt Gaetz in order to deconstruct the logic of their attacks on CRT, their resistance to facing the inconvenient truths of American history, and their rage against investigating the 1/6 Coup. Both of them use binary thinking, false dilemmas, and straw man arguments to mount attacks that amount to nothing more than what Dan calls "toddler epistemology." They then turn to the remarks made by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley who provides a counter to the close-minded, fabricated war on CRT by stating clearly that he wants to understand white rage and why white people attempted to overthrow the US Constitution. The last major segment examines the Christian nationalist origins of the new law in Florida, just signed by "Uncle Ron" Desantis, requiring university employees and students to register their political views with the state. It is straight out of an authoritarian regime, and backed by Christian nationalist lobbyists who want to "preserve" the Christian heritage of the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
We are thrilled to announce Straight White American Jesus's first affiliate podcast: Out of the Closet and Into the Pews, a show by Rachael Borthwick that asks what it means for religion to be a vehicle for liberation and freedom for queer people. Rachael is a burgeoning scholar of religion at the University of Pennsylvania who has written on queer communities of faith in the USA and beyond, served as a research assistant to our show, and worked as a campus activist. Out of the Closet and Into the Pews includes interviews with leading scholars in queer studies, religious studies, and gender studies, along with conversations with activists and practitioners. Brad and Rachael discuss it all in this conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Kyle J. Howard, a theologian and counselor trained at a Southern Baptist Seminary. He discusses his conversion at 18 at a Black Church in Georgia, his journey to ministry as a counselor of racial and spiritual trauma, and his insider perspective of the calculation made by leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention. It goes like this:
Demonize Critical Race Theory in order to divert attention from the sexual abuse scandal.
Anticipate losing a number of Black pastors and churches, along with other POC.
Retain political influence and the majority of White pastors and churches.
Overall, stoke fear in order to shape the denomination into a certain mold.
Steady the losses the denomination has experienced in recent years.
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Brad asks Dan to explain how the Southern Baptist Convention is a barometer for White American Christianity and what it means moving forward. They then discuss how the White panic over CRT has led to dangerous legislation and lawsuits. In AZ, a new law stipulates that teachers will be fined 5k if they discuss divisive topics without giving time to "both sides." In PA, a family is suing a school district for teaching about White privilege and BLM because is supposedly infringes on their "majority White religion," of Christianity. Their discussion finishes with a damning investigation of how MAGAites and QAnons are taking over election sites and polling places, leaving our democracy less stable and under threat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks again with journalist Jonathan Krohn who is covering the Southern Baptist Convention for the New Republic. Krohn takes Brad through all the major events at the convention: From an SBC presidential candidate leaving a sexual abuse survivor and activist in tears to the war on CRT and the surprise victory of Ed Litton in the presidential election. While the Southern Baptist Convention is a niche topic, Brad argues that what is happening in the country's largest Protestant denomination is a window into the present and future of American Christianity and politics. The SBC is deeply divided. There are already rumors of schism. In many ways, the Southern Baptist Convention mirrors the American political landscape as it grapples (or doesn't) with issues related to race, gender, sexuality, history, and authority. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad talks with Dr. Matthew Boedy, Associate Professor of English at the University of North Georgia, about the rising young star of Christian nationalist circles and the GOP writ large--Charlie Kirk. Dr. Boedy traces Kirk's "conversion" from young conservative to staunch Christian nationalist. According to him, one of the reasons Kirk has become America's Christian nationalist youth pastor is his marriage of traditional conservative talking points with apocalyptic rhetoric surrounding the fate of the nation and its departure from the Founders' vision for a "Christian" country. The scary thing: Kirk's organization is a 30 million dollar enterprise that is implementing Christian nationalist curricula in youth groups and schools all across the country in order to radicalize young people in the name of a Republican Jesus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin with insight from Prof. Jason Stanley: “History shows that propaganda can make a dominant group mad with panic and fear about the threat of a small minority subjugating them, supposedly by seizing the institutions and doing things to their children.”
They use this idea to explore the myths that are inciting panic and fear in White Americans, including White Christian nationalists, across the nation: the Big Lie, the propaganda against Critical Race Theory, the GOP's Myth of the Real American, and so on. The conclusion: If you tell the story a certain way, it becomes history. It becomes a factual record of the past in the minds of the people who tell the story over and over again. The danger: when history becomes open to distortion by the will to power, it opens the door for authoritarian leaders to create the story of the past--and the projection of the future--in dangerous ways. They finish by discussing the DOJ's approach to protecting LGBTQ+ students in a recent court case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Jonathan Krohn ahead of the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting. Jonathan is an investigative journalist and essayist whose work has appeared at Mother Jones, the Washington Post, and many other outlets. He also grew up in the SBC and was once considered a teenager star in the denomination. He will be covering the annual meeting for the New Republic. He and Brad discuss what he expects will happen at the convention. It appears that the USA's largest Protestant denomination is going to shift even further rightward by embracing Christian nationalism explicitly, by continuing the demonization of critical race theory, by ignoring sexual abuse allegations, and by cementing even deeper the commitment to patriarchal theologies. All in all, this is a startling window into one of the most influential Christian communities in the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speak with R.L. Stollar, a writer and advocate for homeschooled children. As someone homescholed from Kindergarten to high school graduation, Stollar knows firsthand how homeschool parents are radicalized into extremist Christian nationalist ideologies. He discusses why homeschool spaces open the doors for authoritarian personalities and abusive figures to operate without oversight. He also explains how White Christian nationalists are working to export these programs all over the globe. Their discussion finishes with analysis of the Josh Duggar case.
Ryan Stollar has an M.H.S. in Child Protection from Nova Southeastern University and an M.A. in Eastern Classics from St. John’s College. He has served on the board of and run numerous social media campaigns for child advocacy organizations, including the Child-Friendly Faith Project, the Coalition for Responsible Home Education, and Homeschool Alumni Reaching Out. Homeschooled from kindergarten through high school graduation, Ryan worked over eight years as a public communications educator to high school students in homeschooling communities. His advocacy work on behalf of homeschooled students has been featured in national and international media and academia including The Guardian, The American Prospect, CQ Researcher, Christian Science Monitor, Washington Post, Georgetown Law Journal, Texas Observer, New Yorker, ProPublica, and Oxford University Press. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad makes a big announcement regarding the show and a new direction in his professional life . . . with Dan on vacation he then discusses the long list of cases wherein Trump and Trump allies signal their desire to overthrow the democratic process in order to stage a coup. From General Flynn welcoming a Myanmar-style coup to Paul Gosar conspiring with the Proud Boys to Louie Gohmert speaking at a QAnon conference to an Oregon Rep letting militia in the side door to attack the state legislature. This anticipation of restorative violence is complemented by the methodical approach to curtailing voting rights across the country. This leads to a question: Will this era see the institution of a New Jim Crow or a New Reconstruction? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is joined on a special Wednesday episode by co-host Dan Miller to discuss a question that many will be hearing at BBQs and on social media: Why is the 1/6 insurrection bad but you have nothing to say about the BLM protests? Those protests led to property damage and violence. Aren't 1/6 and the BLM events the same? Dan draws on his expertise in populism and material from his new book, Queer Democracy, to explain why the very premise of the comparison is bad, how these movements represent two different types of popular responses to political and cultural events, and how to discuss this issue with friends and family members. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Jill Hicks Keeton about her critical review of Beth Allison Barr's popular new book "The Making of Biblical Womanhood." Here is an excerpt of the article: "Barr is certainly right that patriarchy is socially constructed and not a given or natural framework for organizing society. But one of the tasks of the historian, I think, is to make visible the work that has gone into making the contingent seem natural. Yet when it comes to the sacred anchor of Barr’s evangelical tradition, the Bible, Barr pulls her punches. The Bible, particularly Paul’s writings within it, manages to escape critical analysis. Christianity “rightly” practiced and the Bible “rightly” read are both, for Barr, anti-patriarchal. Barr reinterprets, for example, the so-called “household codes” in the New Testament, which uphold patriarchal order of man over wife (and master over enslaved), by attributing their oppressive hierarchies not to Jesus-followers but to the “fallen” world around them." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan begin this Memorial Day episode by discussing the theme of memory and erasure. They point out that there are some things we can't stop remembering--that's how trauma works. The replay of certain events plays on repeat even when we want it to stop. Other things are put under the banner of erasure--from the Tulsa Massacre 100 years ago to the Insurrection of 1/6 a few months ago. They then tie this to the concerted efforts to block a 1/6 Commission by GOP leaders and what this means for the ongoing Cold Civil War waged by Republicans and Christian nationalists against democracy. This is interwoven with the ongoing vitality of QAnon, the new Biblical Worldviews Center from the Family Research Council, and other aspects of the Christian nationalist ecosystem. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In a re-release from 2019, Dan and Brad discuss how evangelicalism is a fundamentalist worldview. They draw on scholarship on global fundamentalisms in order to explain why evangelicals are so prone to nostalgia and so resistant to societal and political change. They also illuminate why fundamentalists are willing to use symbolic and physical violence to advance their cause. This episode is especially pertinent given the ongoing vitality of the Big Lie and Evangelical reluctance to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Charles McKinney, a historian of the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Church in the South. Dr. McKinney puts the conservative war on Critical Race Theory in historical perspective, explaining how it works as a deflective strategy to demonize racial justice phenomena without directly demonizing Black people and other people of color. They finish by analyzing how White Christians have framed Rafael Warnock as neither a real Christian, nor a real American--the same tact used to castigate Martin Luther King Jr. and other Black Christian leaders before him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss the GOP's opposition to 1/6 commission and how the GOP is doing myth making in real time to change the perception and memory of the Insurrection. They then discuss SCOTUS' decision to hear a case about abortion that could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. The episode wraps with a discussion of the Ur-Christian Nationalist, Billy Graham, and the new PBS doc about his life; as well as a brief back and forth on Biden's decision to approve a sale of arms to Israel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In light of the Supreme Court agreeing to hear a case that could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, we are re-releasing Dan's interview with Professor R. Marie Griffith, author of Moral Combat: How Sex Divided American Christians and Fractured American Politics. Professor Griffith explains that evangelicals were once moderate on the whole on the issue of abortion. In the 60s, 90% of Texas Baptists approved of abortion in some form. But, then politics changed . . . Dan and Prof. Griffith discuss the surprising history of evangelical positions on abortion, and how evangelical extremism has left no room for nuance in the debate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dr. Audrey Clare Farley stops by to discuss her article, "The Eugenics Roots of Evangelical Family Values," which outlines how the family values discourse so prevalent in Evangelical culture has its origins in eugenics. Eugenics was a junk-science movement started in the early 20th century that tried to show the genealogical and biological superiority of Whites over other racial groups. It was used in tragic ways to justify forced sterilizations and other unwanted procedures on Black Americans, other people of color, and others deemed unfit to reprdouce. Dr. Farley explains how James Dobson, found of Focus on the Family, was an assistant to a prominent eugenicist and eventually imbued Evangelical teaching on the family with eugenicist--and racist--ideas. Audrey Clare Farley is a historian of twentieth-century American fiction and culture. She holds a PhD in English literature and is the author of The Unfit Heiress: The Tragic Life and Scandalous Sterilization of Ann Cooper Hewitt, about a long-forgotten case that helped to modernize the eugenics movement. Her writing has appeared in The Atlantic, The New Republic, The Washington Post, and many other outlets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan demonstrate how the only standard of Republican orthodoxy left is whether or not one supports Trump's Big Lie. Through examples from Liz Cheney, to Kevin McCarthy, to Internet-trolls-turned-congresspeople such as Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Lauren Boebert--one thing is clear: if you don't believe in and support the Big Lie, you will be ousted from the GOP. This portends a scary future wherein democratic processes are eroded at every turn. It also means that January 6th is the beginning, not the end of the Big Lie's effect on our public square. They finish the episode by discussing the new God Bless the USA Bible from Zondervan, a White Christian nationalists dream come true. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In light of recent events we are re-releasing Dan's interview with Chrissy Stroop, who helps explain the Evangelical obsession with Israel. One of the main themes is how Evangelicals profess love for Israel based on their need for it theologically, but rarely attend to the actual lives or politics of Jewish people. They explain how this works through an examination of supersessionism and Christian Zionism. This episode provides a background for why conservative Christians are so unquestionably pro-Israel even in times of conflict and war. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad discusses something that has been bothering him since his Twitter spat with Timothy Keller: Why are all the Reformed Theo-Bros always talking about worldviews. Brad unpacks the buzz words they use to uncover the will to power, the righteous arrogance, and the relativism at the heart of this theological system. After listening to this you will understand why Reformed pastors and theologians--John MacArthur, Timothy Keller, John Piper--often consider themselves the most intellectual, the most relevant, and the most manly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Philip Gorski, Professor of Sociology and Religious Studies at Yale University. They preview his new co-authored book (with Sam Perry) on the history and future of Christian nationalism in the United States. Professor Gorski illuminates how White Christian nationalism has been part of the American fabric since the Puritans. One of the reasons it is hard to combat is that its threads have become so embedded in our national narratives that we often don't see them. However, the Trump presidency created a situation where they could no longer be ignored. Yet that doesn't mean that the threats of authoritarianism, xenophobia, and racism they pose have been thwarted. One possible future, according to Gorski, is a Heerenvolk autocracy . . . listen to the conversation to learn what that is and why it could be our next national chapter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan examine the competing ideals often put forth by the GOP: 1) Be an individualist who thinks for herself vs. 2) work to unite the country behind a common cause. They discuss how these ideals are often contradicted by the GOP's actions and policies. First, they look at the ouster of Liz Cheney for thinking for herself by opposing Trump's Big Lie. Put in her leadership place: Elise Stefanik, someone who went from freethinking moderate to Trumpian acolyte. Then there is Mitch McConnell, who blames Biden for a lack of bipartisanship but says out loud that his goal is 100% to block the administration's goals. Finally, there is the wild goose chase of an audit in Arizona, where conspiracy theorists are sniffing for bamboo and looking for nonexistent watermarks in an effort to overturn an election that happened six months ago--if the election doesn't go how you want, tear down the nation. Is that how the saying goes? They finish with an explainer on the worker shortage debate raging in the wake of COVID and some brief comments on the Josh Duggar Case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Where is the GOP headed four months after an attempted coup? Even further down the rabbit hole of authoritarianism. In the wake of his jarring interview with Dr. Sarah Riccardi-Swartz on fascism in rural America, Brad shows that these anti-democratic impulses are not limited to fringe pockets of the country. They are at the heart of the contemporary conservative movement and GOP. This portends even more anti-democratic maneuvers, threats of violence, and repeats of the 1/6 coup attempt, even as Trump fades from public consciousness as time goes on. He may be on his way out, but the trendy fascism he instituted in our public square is not. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Recovering Truth Project (Arizona State University) about her recent article, "The Hybridity of Rural Fascism." She discusses the Evangelical converts to Orthodoxy in rural Appalachia, at least one of which self-identifies as a fascist. She explains how the group sees Trump as too conservative, and instead looks to Putin as the model leader for this--and any--country. As her and Brad explore, the community represents the extreme end of Christian patriarchy, authoritarianism, and trad-values. While it would be easy to label it as a fringe movement, Dr. Riccardi-Swartz reminds us just how prevalent these values are in contemporary White Christian America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss how racism and patriarchy stem from a desire for power and control. They relate this to comments by Rick Santorum on Native American culture, American culture, and the history of the nation. They also apply it to statements from Lyndsey Graham, who said we can't be a racist nation because we elected Obama, and Tim Scott who gave the response to Pres. Biden's address a few days ago. They discuss patriarchy in relation to the revival of Promise Keepers as a way hetero-patriarchal movement designed to combat the recognition of LGBTQ+ individuals and communities in this country. This leads to a discussion of Josh Duggar, who was arrested on child pornography charges this week and Rep. Matt Gaetz, who is alleged to have paid underage girls for sex. This episode finishes with a round of Falwell's Follies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Dr. Jill Hicks-Keeton, Associate Professor of Religion at Oklahoma University and co-editor of The Museum of the Bible: A Critical Introduction, about the Museum of the Bible in Washington DC. Started by the Green family, who own the Hobby Lobby franchise, the Museum of the Bible is what happens when an evangelical megachurch tries to transform into a Smithsonian museum--it mixes Evangelical propaganda with Christian nationalist rhetoric and a supersessionist theology that sees Judaism ending as soon as Christ comes on the scene. The result is more of a monument to White American evangelicalism rather than a museum operating at the highest standards of scholarship and curation. Dr Hicks-Keeton provides a critical view from the standpoint of biblical studies and the study of religion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan connect the threads of the Chauvin murder conviction, the proposed America First caucus, and racialized violence across the country. They use historical instances from the Civil War, the 1920s, and other moments in the nation's history to explain how we are still living in two countries with two sets of rules. They conclude by examining how Sikh individuals were targeted in the Indianapolis mass shooting and use this instance to explain how religion is raced in the United States and what that means for both White Christians and BIPOC from all religious traditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the wake of the conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, Brad argues that family values have been used for centuries as a vector for White supremacist Christianity. Not only are family values used today as a way to draw attention away from racial inequality and other systemic issues, but they have been used throughout American history to justify racism and white supremacy. There is a direct line connecting the concern for order, the vision of the family as the hierarchical structure wherein Godly character is formed, and the defense of slavery and contemporary forms of systemic racism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad speaks with Andrew Seidel, constitutional lawyer at the Freedom From Religion Foundation and author of The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism is Un-American. He explains how the Arkansas state legislature's anti-trans bill and the bill to legalize teaching creationism in schools are linked. By inserting creationism into school curricula, Seidel explains, there is the possibility of codifying the idea that there are only two sexes and two genders, which in essence codifies the exclusion of trans people. If you would like to get involved in fighting the bill, write to arklawsuit@ffrf.org. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss how returning to normal after the pandemic is tragic in contemporary America: from the murder of Daunte Wright during the Derek Chauvin murder trial to the propagation of White replacement theory by prominent pundits and politicians to the Evangelical reticence to get the vaccine. They draw on the work of James Baldwin and others to draw connections among these disheartening facets of American life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad's second (and hopefully final) response to Timothy Keller. Brad discusses Keller's reductionist view of modern conceptions of selfhood; the problematic approach he takes to criticisms that his sexual ethic erases queer people--and creates the context for violence against them; and the ways Keller uses academic and theoretical sources (Taylor, Asad, Foucault) to cover over what are classic evangelical maneuvers: reduce sexual identity to choice, label those who don't fit the heterosexual fold as deviant, and blame them for it by tracing their path to sinful desire. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan draw on Sophie Bjork-James' new book, the Divine Institution, to demonstrate how Evangelicals use the nuclear family in order to both attack members of the LGBTQ+ community and draw attention away from systemic issues related to race and other public health threats. In particular, they discuss a) the trans bill and healthcare for trans children in Arkansas b) Biden's executive order on gun control and the issue of gun violence as a public health threat c) the CDC's labeling of racism as a threat to public health. In all three instances, the individualist, patriarchal, and heteronormative Evangelical view leads to either active or passive complicity in marginalization and/or violence against racial, sexual, and gender minorities. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad is joined by Dr. Susannah Crockford, author of "Thank God for the greatest country on earth: white supremacy, vigilantes, and survivalists in the struggle to define the American nation," an article in which she shares her ethnographic field work from the Arizona desert, near the US-Mexico border. Her work illuminates how Christian nationalism works in the minds of those who see defending the border as the most pressing issue in maintaining the greatness of the USA. She also explores how certain people separate the "People" and the "Land" from the government, thus creating a populism of We The People apart from allegiance to the workings of US democracy.
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Brad responds to a Twitter thread by Timothy Keller, pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Keller argues for sex in a lifelong covenant marked by deep permanent union. He calls this biblical. Brad points out that the only biblical soulmate story we have of this kind is between God and Israel, which is a problematic example since God is both Israel's Husband AND maker. How do you have consent and symmetry if your spouse is your creator? He then shows that the soulmate myth Keller is advancing comes from Plato, not the Bible. And this non-biblical source of biblical sexual ethics is problematic for Keller because it includes same-sex soulmates and is articulated by a comic poet. In other words, it's meant to be a joke. Shoutout to Cindy Wang Brandt in this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan are happy to announce that SWAJ is joining the Irreverent Media Group--a collective of podcasts that offers content on deconstruction, rediscovery, and everything in between. We outline the details at the top of the episode. Check out irreverent.fm for more details! We spend the major segment discussing the 82 anti-trans bills up for vote across the country. Dan shares analysis about how and why the trans body is so disruptive to the Christian nationalist vision of the USA. By using the metaphor of the social domain as a body, it's clear that Christian nationalists see trans people as an aberration from nature--and thus they are trying write laws that make it almost impossible to acknowledge trans existence, much less trans rights. On the second segment, they discuss the Evangelical leaders trying to defend purity culture and how sexual ethics in the Bible is a complex--and often disdainful-thing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
TEDx speaker and author Asha Dahya is the Creator and Editor in Chief of GIRLTALKHQ. She was born in the UK, raised in Australia, and now lives in the USA. Of Indian descent, Asha grew up in Evangelical churches and was imbued with the teachings of purity culture. She discusses how it shaped her understanding of love, embodiment, and relationships, and why it prevented her from seeking the proper help when her marriage turned abusive. She also discusses how being a woman of color in the United States adds another layer of otherness and objectification within the confines of Evangelical spaces. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad’s response to Focus on the Family head Jim Daly, who mentioned him in a recent article. In the article Daly tried to deflect the analyses that connect the Atlanta shooter with Evangelicalism and purity culture. Brad dissects Daly’s argument that:
The Atlanta shooter’s actions were born from insanity, and thus warrant no further investigation
This is unfair to Christianity
Purity culture = healthy
Marriage is for procreation = biblical
He concludes by extolling Daly to focus on his own family so that the rest of us don’t have to continue living with its violent and abusive effects. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dan provides a detailed rebuttal to a piece claiming that there the concern about Christian nationalism is an overblown conspiracy by liberals and celebrities. Brad links this to the draconian voter-suppression law signed in Georgia last night. The law was bankrolled by Christian nationalists organizations and is a direct reaction to Black women and POC organizing to flip the state Blue. It even makes it illegal to give people in line to vote a glass of water. Talk about freedom, eh? They finish the episode by talking about the comically bad arguments against DC statehood and why they reflect the fear of the "wrong kind of person" voting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad talks with Adrian Gibbs, co-host of the Dirty Rotten Church Kids and an ex-evangelical of Filipino descent, about the connections between Ravi Zacharias' abuse of spa workers of Asian descent and the killing of six Asian women of Asian descent at day spas near Atlanta next week. They discuss the themes of misogyny, racial otherness, and purity culture as ways to understand why both cases involve Evangelical men carrying out violence against women of color. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad was featured in a NYT article about purity culture and its affect on the Atlanta shooter along with other academics and advocates including Sam Perry, Joshua Grubbs, and Rachael Denhollander. Soon thereafter Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, derided the article and our comments on his podcast. This is Brad's response. He touches on the selective literalism of Evangelical readings of the Bible, queer theologies and lives from the Bible to the present, and how Mohler's approach is incoherent to say the least. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss the various threads connecting the massacre in Atlanta: from the history of anti-Asian racism, to the various dimensions of purity culture, to the cover Christian nationalism provides to acts of violence. They then discuss the Vatican's statement on why the Church can't bless same-sex unions. To Brad and Dan this is an instance of the hurtful "loving the sinner, hating the sin" ideal used in Evangelical spaces. They conclude with a segment on Russian interference in our election, masculinity, and the ease in which many are willing to write off democracy. Rest in Peace, You Will Not Be Forgotten: Daoyou Feng Hyun Jung Grant Suncha Kim Paul Andre Michels Soon C. Park Xiaojie Tan Delaina Ashley Yaun Yong A. Yue Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In the wake of the mass shooting of 8 people, 6 of whom were Asian women, Brad ties together the threads of anti-Asian hate, purity culture, and Christian nationalism. Killing half a dozen Asian women and attributing it to sex addiction, not racism, is Christian nationalism in a nutshell: "Purity culture made me feel bad about my sexual needs, so I eliminated the temptation. What does race have to do with that?" (Hint: everything) Purity culture is not simply about sexual "purity." Sexual ethics is a way to slip racial, ethnic, and nationalistic purity into equation. As my co-host says, focusing on the purity of the individual body leads to trying to purify the national body. Purity culture is a step away from a pure national body. A body whose borders are not breached by foreign invaders, including "sexual tempters and those of low morals." If purity culture puts undue pressure on women to remain pure, think about what it does to non-white women who are seen as hyper-sexual seducers not only because of their gender, but also because of their race/ethnicity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad explains how evangelicalism destroys faith, because it destroys any sense of uncertainty and unpredictability. By working in a register of moral, political, and theological certainty, evangelicalism becomes the anti-thesis of faith. Brad calls this disenchanted theology. By contrast, he argues that as a secular person he has become a person of faith in ways he never experienced as an evangelicals. For him, even as a non-religious person, the world is enchanted--full of unknowability and unpredictability--in ways that mean the human condition is always marked by vulnerability and wonder. He goes so far as to say that inter-faith dialogue is possible among secular people and religious. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Voter suppression laws are Christian nationalist policy. They are part of a long lineage of movements that see White Protestants as the only legitimate power brokers in the American landscape. The 253 voter suppression bills put forth by the GOP over the last month are the result of the belief that not everyone should be able to vote and thus not everyone should be able to govern. After this first segment, we turn to Beth Moore's departure from the SBC, and discuss why it is and is not a big deal. From there we talk about conservative secessionist fantasies and finish with a few comments on the racism scandal surrounding the Royal family.
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This is a re-release of an episode from last year. Brad talks to journalist Katherine Stewart, author of the Power Worshipers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism. Her reporting takes us inside the world of Christian nationalism on the level of lived-experience. She conveys what she has seen at BBQs, political rallies, and even revival meetings at the Trump Hotel in DC. What emerges is a frightening picture of the mechanics of MAGA Nation and its religious communities. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Sam Kestenbaum is an award-winning freelance journalist who regularly contributes to the New York Times. He recently wrote a feature on Godspeak, a Calvary Chapel church in Ventura County, CA. At Godspeak, Sam writes, defiance to COVID mandates takes on a holy aura. It is the reason business is booming--attendance has tripled during the pandemic and the head pastor, Rob McCoy, is a rising star in the Right-Wing influencer world. Sam shares his experiences reporting on Godspeak and how it is a nexus for understanding what's happening in conservative churches all over the country.
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Brad compares the current moment to other times in American history when crisis and conflict led to a new normal. What will be our new normal after COVID? Will myth or policy drive us forward? On one hand, the Dems are tepidly putting forward legislation on COVID relief, voting rights, and protections for the LGBTQIA+ community. On the other, the GOP is driving the Big Lie forward, along with culture war items like Dr. Seuss and Potato Head. Which story--and which future--will prevail?
Brad and Dan also discuss how 1/6 was an inside job and an Evangelical adoption agency deciding to work with LGB families.
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"Conversion therapy" is a discredited practice of trying to change an individual's sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Lucas Wilson is a Liberty University grad who took part in the university's ongoing "conversion therapy" program. Now a writer and scholar, he shares his experiences and those of others who endured the efforts to change their sexual orientation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
At CPAC this week, there is a golden calf, um, statue of Trump making the rounds. Brad and Dan explore how this emblematizes Trump's continuing reign over the GOP. A majority of Republicans view him as a true patriot. Almost half say they would defect if he started a new party. Kevin McCarthy and Jim Jordan say Trump is the figurehead of the GOP and will be for the indefinite future. This means, we believe, that the type of violence seen on 1/6 will happen again. In the second segment we discuss the GOP's and Religious Right's attacks on trans people. This week Marjorie Taylor Greene posted a sign outsider her window proclaiming there are two genders--male and female. Dan breaks down the pseudo-science behind this claim and why it has insidious effects on our public square. Brad links it to other pseudo-scientific movements in American history--most notably eugenics. We finish by talking about why the term Judeo-Christian is propaganda for Christian nationalists. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad lays out the case as to why the REvangelical movement coming from The Gospel Coalition and other voices in the Evangelical universe should not be considered deconstruction.
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Brad talk to Dr. Ruth Braunstein, Professor of Sociology at the University of Connecticut, about the nostalgic myths that drive MAGA Nation. Their conversation centers on how recognizing the structure of these myths enables us to better see how Christian nationalism pervades right-wing movements that don't have any explicit religious identity markers or symbols. Think: the Proud Boys and the NRA. These groups structure their identities around a certain Christian nationalist interpretation of American history, even when they don't claim an explicitly Christian mantle.
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What is the point of government? Is is capitalist profit or the common good? Brad and Dan explain how these questions connect notable events from this week--from Rush Limbaugh's death, to the energy disaster in Texas, Ted Cruz's Cancun misadventure, and one small town mayor's cruel understanding of how to treat people suffering through a weather catastrophe. We finish with a favorite segment: He's No James; Madison Cawthorn.
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Brad and Dan's interview with Reilly, Associate Pastor at Presbyterian New England Church in Saratoga Springs NY. Reilly shares how she grew up evangelical, realized she was gay right about the time she received the call to ministry, and her role as a possibility model to young people.
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Brad discusses the Ravi Zacharias scandal and why sexual abuse is so rampant in Evangelical spaces: authoritarian leadership structures, patriarchal theology, in group/out group mentality, and a lack of oversight. He then relates it to Evangelical theologies of sex and gender by examining how Kamala Harris has been given the Jezebel label. Not is it sexist, but its origins are racist in nature. The Jezebel type is a slur against Black Women.
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Is talking about Christian nationalism akin to demonizing White Christians? Some right-wing theologians and leaders would like you to think it is. But they are wrong. We provide strategies for talking about Christian nationalism without reducing all Christian political involvement as Christian nationalism. We then continue to outline why it is essential to recognize the threat of White Christian nationalism, especially as it relates to rhetoric of war, violence, and political enemies. Our second major segment investigates how the Supreme Courts' recent decision regarding church openings during COVID sets a dangerous precedent for what counts as religious liberty and religious discrimination. Dan links this to broad themes concerning healthcare and inequalities in American society.
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Dan's 2018 interview with ethicist and former AAR president David Gushee, who left evangelicalism after changing his views of LGBTQ relationships.
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Brad talks about:
Christian nationalism and Bruce Springsteen's Meet in the Middle ad
Tom Brady's friendship with Donald Trump and White Privilege
Tom Brady and Colin Kapernick: The Center and the Margin
The Kansas City Football Team's name as the chef's kiss to all of this
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Brad and Dan talk about the false equivalence the GOP tried to draw this week between Marjorie Taylor Greene and Ilhan Omar. This takes place in the context of a discussion about the generational legacy Trump holds over the Republican party, which is now dominated by extremists, conspiracy theorists, and Christian nationalists. Dan breaks down why it's a big deal that Trump didn't attend the National Prayer Breakfast and what it says about how Christian nationalism is not about personal religious practice, but is instead about social identity. Brad finds hope in Biden's speech at the State Department and the beginning stages of bringing our international relations and diplomacy back to a normal level. The show finishes with a segment of Tubby's Flubbies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On an episode from fall of 2018 Brad and Dan share stories from their experiences with purity culture and provide a primer on gender and sexuality in Evangelicalism. They then interview Reverend Sarah Buteux about her journey from Evangelicalism (where she was told women couldn't be pastors) to ministering at an LGBT+ affirming church.
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Monica Rodden is a novelist and ex-evangelical. She wrote this recent piece in the Boston Globe about how she would have been the type of Christian to be part of the Capitol Insurrection. In her interview with Brad, she discusses the binary thinking that plagues Evangelical culture, how certainty can act as a shield from the harsh realities of the world--and why that's a bad thing--and how the Capitol Insurrection brought back all the memories of feeling hate and disrespect towards those who disagreed with her.
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Brad and Dan unpack how religions are what people do. The same goes for political parties. This means that White Supremacist Christians and QAnon Christians are Christians. They may not be the kind you like or want to be associated with, but it's unhelpful to write them off as lone wolves who can be dismissed. This also means that insurrection-inciters and conspiracists like Josh Hawley, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Kevin McCarthy are the real Republican party. After discussing why it's important to recognize people and groups based on what they do and how they identity, Brad and Dan discuss the Reddit/Game Stop controversy and how it is not equivalent to the populism of MAGA Nation. Just because you are for the people, or popular, does not make you a populist. The episode ends with an important thesis: Joe Biden is the most religious president since Jimmy Carter.
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In an episode from fall of 2018, Brad and Dan discuss the issue of abortion in Evangelical culture and how it became a litmus test for who is a "real Christian." Brad then interviews Dr. Myev Rees, an expert on reproductive rights and abortion in Evangelicalism. She discusses the concept of an "angel baby" and what it means for how Evangelicals understands life, conception, and embodiment.
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Dr. Peter Manseau is a curator of American religious history at the Smithsonian and the author of ten books. He started #capitolsiegereligion soon after the January 6 insurrection in order to facilitate a crowdsourced collection of religious symbols and imagery from the siege. He talks to Brad about the Christian (and non-Christian) symbolism among the participants, the ways religious media and rhetoric fostered the resentment and anger that fueled the riot, and the examples from American religious history that can help us make sense of what happened and think about what's next. What's clear from this conversation is that religion was everywhere on 1/6 and we have to reckon with that in order to move forward.
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Brad and Dan discuss the inauguration, including the theological aspects of Biden's speech and the civil religiosity of Biden's approach.
They then transition to how key members on the Right, including Tucker Carlson and Rand Paul, were "offended" by Biden's call to dismantle White Supremacy and what it means going forward.
Dan explains the troubling aspects of the 1776 Report. Brad explains why QAnon and the Proud Boys are in a moment of transition.
They wrap up by discussing how to have empathy for individuals, but persist with unflinching criticism of institutions and movements--especially when it comes to MAGA Nation.
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An episode from Season 1 where Brad and Dan discuss nationalism and populism in the White Evangelical subculture. This is a nice primer for understanding what we now call Christian nationalism and its pervasiveness in American politics.
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Brad is joined by Dr. Richard Steigmann-Gall, a historian and expert in Nazi Germany. They compare Hitler's failed coup of 1923 and the Jan. 6 Insurrection at the US Capitol. The discussion focuses on several themes present in 1923 Germany and 2021 USA:
Cultural resentment
Right-wing authoritarianism
Extra-military militias
The danger of unity with fascists
Christianity as a marker of cultural identity
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Brad and Dan begin by recalling their episode from the eve of Trump's first impeachment, when the quoted a number of Evangelical leaders threatening/predicting civil war if Trump was impeached. Then, it seemed hyperbolic. Now, it is terrifying. They relate this to the prevalent "cosmic war" motif among various White (Christian) nationalists: from the Proud Boys to White Evangelicals and QAnons. Brad talks about the Q Caucus (Madison Cawthorn, Lauren Boebert, and Marjorie Taylor Greene) and the likelihood that they will at some point pull a gun on the House floor. They finish by answering three questions 1) should the Republicans who voted to impeach lauded? 2) what is the difference between the Capitol siege and the BLM protests? 3) What to say to those who claim big tech censorship is at unfair to conservatives? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
In an interview from 2018, Brad and Dan talk to Dr. Glenn Bracey of Villanova University about his experiences in White churches as a Black man. Dr. Bracey unpacks racialized dimensions of the Evangelical culture that shed light on what's happened during the the last four years--and even the last few weeks. His firsthand account and researcher's sensibilities make for a compelling interview on the troubling dynamics of race and White supremacy in contemporary American Evangelicalism.
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Dr. Kelly J. Baker, author of Gospel According to the Klan: The KKK’s Appeal to Protestant America, 1915-1930, stops by to discuss how the January 6 insurrection was long in the making. Using the 1920s Klan as a historical precedent, she and Brad discuss White supremacy in American culture and politics, the longstanding entanglement of White Protestantism and White nationalism, the Confederate legacy, the class dimensions of both the Klan and the coup, and what we can expect in the near future.
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Brad and Dan analyze the January 6 Insurrection at the United States Capitol. They begin by discussing the unprecedented aspects of the events. Then, a discussion of Christian nationalism and its manifestation through insurrectionists, the actions and rhetoric of Senator Josh Hawley, and the activism of Ginny Thomas--wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. After discussing the new conspiracy theory that antifa was behind the Insurrection, they turn to details surrounding the Capitol Police. The episode finishes with reasons for hope: Abrams, Warnock, Ossoff--stalwart members of the Religious Left.
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What if I told you the Religious Right formed on the basis of racism and not abortion? What if segregation was the real issue and the unborn were used later to justify it? That's what we discover on this episode. Brad and Dan trace the history of the Religious Right from the 60s to the present. And then Brad interviews Dr. Randall Balmer, professor of religion at Dartmouth College and one of the world's leading scholars on American Evangelicalism.
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Think of this as a SWAJ primer. We cover many of the major themes of the show in a relatively brief conversation.
On our second ever episode, we put the White Evangelical support for Trump in historical perspective. Brad lays out the details on how more White Evangelicals supported him than Bush, McCain, or Romney. Dan then provides a sociological analysis as to how this happened.
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After many requests, we begin the re-release of Season 1! On this first episode Brad and Dan introduce themselves and tell their stories of being evangelical youth group kids, ministers, and seminarians, and then leaving the movement. They also explain why it was necessary to start Straight White American Jesus. This is our origin story. Take a listen!
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On the last Weekly Roundup of the year, Brad and Dan discuss: 1) the myth of the stolen election and how it has gained legitimacy through support from GOP leaders 2) comparing it to the lasting nature of the Birther controversy 3) examining the consequences of the myth, including the radicalization of a generation of White Americans, calls for implementing the Insurrection Act, and the development of a new Lost Cause (what Brad calls the Lost Pause).
We finish the episode by examining Beth Moore's call for Evangelicals to back away from Trumpism and Christian nationalism.
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Ken Kemp is not the person you'd expect to be leading small groups and table talks helping White folks understand the histories of racism and strategies to combat it. He's a White male Boomer. Someone born into evangelical culture. A guy who went through seminary and was almost ordained twice. But late in life he had an awakening through visits to India, South Africa, and via friendships and events that woke him up to the racialized dimensions of White Evangelicalism. He shares his story with Brad and talks about how other White people can do the work to become anti-racist.
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Brad and Dan briefly touch on three stories: MAGA rebellion in Georgia, Obama on "Defund the Police," and the federal government's abandonment of the American people in the face of COVID.
We then dig deeper into two stories about religion and politics:
-the attacks on Raphael Warnock as part of a long history of White Evangelical castigation of Black faith and movements.
-the Supreme Court's ruling that religious gatherings override COVID health measures
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Dr. Sophie Bjork-James is an anthropologist at Vanderbilt University. She is a specialist in race, gender, and religion with a focus on White nationalism and White evangelicalism. One of her recent projects is a close reading of the Left Behind series and the Turner Diaries, the latter many consider the Bible of the White supremacy movement. Reading these two texts together reveals the stunning similarities in White nationalism and Christian nationalism, including their belief that violence is justified to achieve their political goals, their fear of global organizations such as NATO and WHO, and their willingness to trample democracy if it means they can stay in power.
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Brad speaks with journalist Anne Nelson whose book Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right outlines in vivid detail the network of organizations, media empires, and churches that sync the Radical Right. She explains how groups such as the NRA, Susan B. Anthony List, and Family Research Council are all interwoven into a nexus that both helped create the presidency of Donald Trump and will continue the takeover of the United States even after he's gone. For example, they created a website promoting ACB's nomination to the Supreme Court way back in 2015. They are the people behind Parler. And they are the largest voter mobilization vehicle in the country. If you want to understand how we got to Trump's soft coup and where we are headed next, this conversation is essential.
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Brad and Dan begin by drawing on a famous speech by Frederick Douglass in order to put the nail in the coffin on the idea that it is the Democrats' job to reach across the aisle. They then explain why Republicans think it is okay to attack the faith--including the sermons--of Raphael Warnock, but would not allow one utterance of criticism related to Amy Coney Barrett's religious belief and practice. They finish by looking at stats that tell the real story of American Exceptionalism--the presence of almost equal numbers of highly religious people (85 million people) and non-religious people (100 million). No other developed country has this kind of religious/non-religious make up. It has important consequences for our politics and culture.
We finish this episode with a new segment, "He's No James Madison".
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Brad speaks with Sarah Posner, author of Unholy: Why White Evangelicals Worship at the Altar of Donald Trump. They discuss how Trump is the result of strategies used by GOP operatives in other countries. The approach is simple: label liberal democracy as an assault on family, faith, and nation; sell a strong, charismatic leader as the only hope to save the country from ruin at the hands of godless socialists; then systematically weaken all democratic guardrails in order to ensure the leader has maximal power over the country. Unfortunately, this strategy has worked by uniting the Religious Right and the Alt-Right into an alliance of aggrieved White Americans-or MAGA Nation. With Trump's loss to Biden, MAGA Nation is carrying on a cultural secession with Trump at the helm of the alternative United States of America.
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Dan begins by explaining why Biden didn't underperform and why emotionally this should feel like a big win
He and Brad also discuss the White religious voters who fled Trump for Biden and why it is/and is not a big deal
They touch on SCOTUS and the Affordable Care Act, including the surprising comments from Justice Kavanaugh
The bulk of the episode is then spent on discussing the real meaning behind Trump's refusal to concede. Dan explains why a hard coup is not imminent; Brad sets what he calls Trump's "Lost Pause" in the context of the "Lost Cause," the myth and civil religion that emerged from the Confederacy and eventually shaped Southern politics and culture for a century.
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In his new book, The Brown Church, Robert Chao Romero speaks from spiritual borderlands. As a Latino pastor and scholar trained in critical race theory, he speaks to those managing what many times feel like mutually exclusive identities. In the process his book has something essential to teach all of us about the history of the Brown Church in North America and how Indigenous and Latina/o peoples have been fighting to decolonize faith, decenter Whiteness, and create more inclusive and equal communities for all. In the course of our conversation, we touch on liberation theology, ways faith communities have been practicing resistance for half a millennium, and the ongoing work to recognize the power and import of the Religious Left.
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As we process the unfolding events related to the election, Brad and Dan discuss:
why Tuesday night felt so dismaying, despite knowing it would be a long road
the disappointing turnout for Trumpism and the need to reckon with Whiteness
the myriad of reasons to be not only relieved, but hopeful
Madison Cawthorn = future of the Religious Right
Stacey Abrams, Raphael Warnock, Cori Bush, and the Squad = Vanguards of the Religious Left
Why Christian nationalism is far from defeated
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In an episode recorded as part of a public lecture at Skidmore College, Brad speak with Dr. Richard Newton about his new book, Identifying Roots: Alex Haley and the Anthropology of Scriptures. They discuss how Haley's book Roots and the ensuing TV mini-series marked a new chapter in telling the story of Black Americans, how Roots became the "Black family Bible," and what it means in regard to our current cultural moment. Professor Newton explains how the story has become a sacred narrative about American national identity and how its legacy reverberates in contemporary movements for racial justice.
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In the week before the election, Brad and Dan begin with another chapter of Falwell's Follies. Dan then explains why the polls are similar, but different from 2016 and how Trump's surrender to COVID has hurt his reelection chances. Brad expands on his explanation of why the Supreme Court should be expanded by providing numbers on how many unfit and inexperienced judges--including ACB--Trump and McConnell have pushed through, explaining how the Senate process has been tainted, and reminding everyone that Trump lost by 3 million votes.
From there, they spend time on a host of Christian nationalism stories--from Patriot churches, to GOP officials riding around with Bibles and guns to protest COVID safety measures, and finally the immoral Trumpism of theologian Wayne Grudem.
The episode finishes with analysis of Paula White's editorial in Christianity Today and how it symbolizes Evangelicals' ongoing commitment to Christian nationalism and the Trump presidency.
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Dan speaks with Dr. David Gushee, Professor of Ethics and Director of the Center for Theology and Public Life at Mercer University. The former president of the American Academy of Religion, he is a prolific author who writes often about his journey out of evangelicalism. He and Dan discuss his new book, After Evangelicalism: The Path to a New Christianity. Their discussion delves into issues such as community, race, and sexuality--and how White evangelicals are getting those tragically wrong. Gushee proposes new ways of Christian believing, belonging, and behaving, one that emphasizes being a light the world rather than a vector of exclusion and political power.
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Opener: Brad and Dan each get 2 minutes uninterrupted on the last debate
Explainer: Hunter Biden non-scandal mularkey
Explainer: Pope announces he is in favor of same-sex couples having civil unions (but not marriages?)
Deep Dive: The American Values Survey from PRRI
-critical issues for Republicans and Democrats (one thinks COVID is a big deal; the other doesn't)
-how White Evangelicals are different from any other religious group in the country
-attitudes toward race, income inequality, and climate change across party and religious lines.
Audience Question: What do we think of court packing?
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The episode that started it all! On one of our very first shows, we went to the historical record to quote all the evangelical leaders who did everything possible to decry Bill Clinton after his sex scandal/impeachment. They called for integrity, morality, and virtue in the White House. They feared for a country without a godly leader. Those same leaders are remain Trump's most vocal supporters. Weeks before the election, a great episode to remind us of where we have been and what's at stake.
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Dan briefs us on the dueling presidential town halls before he and Brad explain the tenets of Constitutional Originalism, a legal philosophy Amy Coney Barrett claims to hold. They compare it to a separate, but related issue--biblical literalism. In both cases, conservative actors claim to hold the "original" meaning of the text in order to combat social and cultural progress. But, as Dan and Brad explain, a century of philosophy and hermeneutics has shown both to be untenable. From there they discuss the voter suppression efforts the GOP has waged in TX, CA, and GA. They wrap up by analyzing the shocking comments from pastor John MacArturthur, who claimed recently that God made Earth a disposable planet for humans to use and then discard. For Brad, this signals a creeping turn to authoritarianism and scorched-earth (literally in this case) politics.
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Brad speaks with Sarah Levin, the Co-Chair of the DNC's Interfaith Committee and the Founder of Secular Strategies, a firm dedicated to mobilizing secular voters. They discuss the values that matter to non-religious voters and how they can be mobilized politically. Perhaps most importantly, they dig into the possibilities for including secular people in interfaith dialogue at the political level. Sarah articulates her commitment to working with, rather than against religious voters who want to cultivate an inclusive, science-based, and democratic ethos in the United States.
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Some major announcements! We are now a proud partner of the Capps Center at UCSB! Capps is dedicated to ethics, religion, and public life in a way that matches up seamlessly with our approach on SWAJ. Check out their new series on indigenous religions!
We begin this episode by discussing the VP debate, particularly Mike Pence as a familiar type: The White Evangelical pastor.
We then discuss a cluster of issues surrounding science and COVID--Trump's use of medicines that made from aborted fetuses (a big deal to the Religious Right, supposedly), the New England Journal of Medicine's endorsement of Biden, and the general ignoring of scientific counsel on the part of the Trump administration.
We also analyze Senator Mike Lee's comments that democracy is not necessarily the best form of government--statements in line with Dominionist theology and part of what Brad calls "the dangerous allure of totalitarianism." The danger of these comments was brought into stark relief when news of a kidnapping plot against Governor Gretchen Whitmer emerged. While the major media outlets won't call it what it is, we will: this was an act of homegrown White terrorism and it is related to Trump's call to "liberate Michigan!"
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Brad speaks to Professor Anthea Butler, a captain in the Biden campaign's "Catholics for Biden" initiative, and chair of the Religious Studies department at the University of Pennsylvania. They discuss the details of Trump's COVID diagnosis and how his recklessness is fueled by four things:
Prosperity Gospel positive thinking,
racism,
capitalism,
hypermasculinity.
These themes ground a conversation that ranges from Trump's lack of empathy for Americans, especially BIPOC, who have contracted the virus, his supporters' call for empathy after telling the nation that it was okay if "grandma dies" to save the economy, the conservative Evangelicals and Catholics who held a superspreader prayer rally at the Lincoln Memorial, and the belief that whiteness is a shield against the iniquities that plague other people.
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On an abbreviated Weekly Roundup Brad discusses the first presidential debate, the media's inability to call out Trump's threats of violence and election delegitimization, the ways White Catholics and young Evangelicals might be souring on the president, the new documentary that shows how the White House worked with churches to radicalize marginalized people, and how "The Office" warned us about the 2020 hellscape.
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Sarah Churchwell is Professor of American Literature and Chair of Public Understanding of the Humanities at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. In her book, Behold, America (Bloomsbury 2018) she explores the entangled history of America First and the American Dream.
'The American dream is dead,' Donald Trump said when announcing his candidacy for president in 2015. How would he revive it? By putting 'America First'.
The 'American Dream' and 'America First' are two of the most loaded phrases in America today, and also two of the most misunderstood. The American Dream began as a pledge for equality rather than as a dream of supremacy and 'making it big'. America First has not just served as an isolationist term, but as an early slogan of the Ku Klux Klan with surprising links to the present.
Both phrases were born nearly a century ago and instantly tangled over capitalism, democracy and race, coming to embody opposing views in the battle to define the soul of the nation. Behold, America recounts the unknown history of these two expressions using the voices that helped shape that debate, from Capitol Hill to the newsroom of the New York Times, students to senators, dreamers to dissenters.
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Brad and Dan discuss four main stories on this week's roundup:
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The passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg has led to Amy Coney Barrett as the frontrunner to replace her. Brad outlines the history and contours of the charismatic Catholic community to which she swore an oath and asks how it affects her nomination.
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Through a discussion of Locke and American history, Dan helps us understand why protecting public property is always such a priority in cases involving the destruction of human life. Why was her apartment complex more valuable than Breonna Taylor's life?
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The peaceful transfer of power, the GOP's ongoing efforts to suppress voting, and the threat of election insecurity.
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Following on a new piece by Chrissy Stroop, we ask: Have "respectable" evangelicals lost control of the extremist movement they built?
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Brad speaks with historian Ricard Steigmann-Gall, author of the Holy Reich: Nazi Conceptions of Christianity 1919-1945. They discuss how the Nazi party used a Christian social identity as a way to signal who the true and good citizens were, how the melding of religious and national identities was the first step for racism and anti-semitism, and how the USA was an example for Nazi eugenicists. Throughout the conversation both of them make comparisons to the pervasiveness of Christian nationalism in the contemporary United States and how it is feeding fascist instincts, violence, and division.
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Brad and Dan discuss a coterie of stories at the intersection of race, nation, and religion. First, they dissect the president's announcement of a new commission on "patriotic education" as a thoroughly Christian nationalist move. They then turn to William Barr's comments about how COVID shutdowns are the worst annulation of civil liberties in American history except for slavery. They link both these things to the "1619 Project," clarifying how this is a struggle over who gets to tell the story of the United States and what it means for our implications in it. This leads to a discussion of the many White folks who are recognizing that they can no longer identify with the GOP or the term evangelical because those groups are unwilling to face the realities--and responsibilities--of the American narrative. Finally, they reveal the hypocrisy of pro-life groups silent on the mass hysterectomies reportedly taking place at ICE detention centers.
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Brad speaks with Dr. Sara Moslener, author of Virgin Nation: Sexual Purity and American Adolescence from Oxford University Press. Dr. Moslener outlines the history of purity culture from the 19th century to the present, highlighting the eugenicist and racist ideologies that fueled it. One of the often overlooked tropes is how sexual purity was enforced through appeals to patriotism--as if keeping the borders of the body secure would help keep the nation's borders impenetrable. They also discuss contemporary purity movements, such as Silver Ring Thing, that convince young people that living their best life is a matter of sexual chastity and giving away one's virginity will ruin their life irrevocably.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing how 9/11 is an event marked by acts of civil religion--ceremonies, rituals, and symbols that enable the nation to remember and mourn. Brad asks why we haven't had such things implemented to help grieve the loss of the 200,000 Americans who have died of COVID. Dan breaks down the explosive recordings/material in the new book from Bob Woodward--including Trump's recognition of its deadly airborne transmission in February. They finish with a detailed discussion of how Trump has slipped with White Evangelicals and Catholics, how Biden has gained ground with those groups, and if there will be some real payoff there for the Democrats. Biden has crafted his message to these groups through his national director for faith outreach--who is an ex-evangelical. It's a complicated debate that includes issues like abortion, Christian nationalism, and religious liberty. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
During the first half of this episode Brad and Dan trace the racist and nationalistic origins of white evangelical politics. On the second half, Brad talks with Dartmouth scholar Randall Balmer, who is perhaps the world's leading scholar of the history of the Religious Right in American politics. He explains that racism in the form of opposition to the integration of schools and segregated churches was the catalyst for the rise of the Religious Right.
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Brad interviews Dr. Leslie Dorrough Smith about her new book, Compromising Positions: Scandals, Politics, and American Christianity. She breaks down an important concept: Sex scandals are not about sex. They are about the stories the nation tells about itself, gender dynamics, masculinity, and above all power. This means certain white, straight, heterosexual politicians survive such scandals unscathed, while others have their political careers ended by even minor mishaps. It also means that in a strange way certain facets of American Christianity actually encourage sexual misbehavior as part and parcel of the political and religious status quo.
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Dan confesses that 1st grade on Zoom is more intimidating than translating French philosophy or reading Hebrew. He and Brad then discuss the bombshell report on Trump calling soldiers losers, his defense of white nationalist vigilantism, and his encouraging people to vote twice. They then discuss the latest polls and Biden's chances in the electoral college. They then discuss how our political landscape has been reduced to an infuriating binary--as evidenced by Franklin Graham's approach to this election. They finish by covering terrifying stories from QAnon, Trump pushing through a vaccine unsafely, and the sidelining of Dr. Fauci.
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Brad and Dan discuss the vagaries of the new semester and the apocalyptic challenges posed by Zoom and Outlook. They then dissect the events in Kenosha, WI during the last week--from the shooting of Jacob Blake, the vigilantism of Kyle Rittenhouse, and the various political and social responses. From there they transition to the RNC’s themes of fear, alienation, and Christian nationalism--including a “fascism draped in the flag” final night at the White House. They conclude with an examination of evangelical and conservative approaches to masculinity and sexuality through Falwell’s follies, Eric Metaxas, and other sex scandals --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On this re-released episode, which takes on new significance in light of the Falwell scandal, Brad and Dan discuss how sexuality and gender are viewed in evangelical purity culture, including the notion that men are sexual aggressors and women are passive gatekeepers. They interview Rev. Sarah Buteux about her experiences as an ex-evangelical, a feminist, and a progressive leader.
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Brad and Dan discuss the latest of Falwell's Follies. They then analyze the presence of religion and faith at the Democratic convention, the fallout from the president's affirmation of QAnon, the GOP's problematic future, the arrest of Bannon and the Senate Intelligence Commitee's confirmation of Russian interference and collusion, and the criticism of Kamala Harris as not Black enough from pundits on the Right. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Dan laments the end of our favorite segment, Falwell's Follies. Then he and Brad discuss the interfaith and mixed-race background of Kamal Harris, Birtherism 2.0, the attempt to steal the election at the post office, Kanye West working for the Trump campaign, the illegal appointment of the DHS head, Latinx voters turning Republican, and the unraveling of American democracy. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad talks to Dr. Diana Butler Bass, distinguished scholar of American Christianity, about Jerry Falwell Jr's. demise. Last week, racy pictures posted by Falwell on social media led to him being put on indefinite leave from the university. Dr. Bass provides insight into why this particular scandal led to his downfall, the gendered dynamics of the situation, and the well marked path for Falwell's redemption.
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Brad speaks with Marc-André Argentino, a PhD candidate and public scholar at Concordia University in Quebec, and an Associate Fellow with the Global Network on Extremism and Technology (GNET) at King's College London. They discuss the origins of QAnon, its deep connections with evangelical Christianity, the new Q-Church, and the ways QAnon's conspiracies are worsening the public health crisis by spreading disinformation.
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Brad tells a story about a mishap during a colonoscopy. He and Dan then cover the myriad of stories from a crazy news week: -Eric Metaxas thinks Jesus is White -Tom Cotton: slavery was a necessary evil -Herman Cain dies from COVID after Trump rally -Remembering John Lewis -Trump's favorite doctor and her theology of demon insemination -Jared Kushner's failed COVID response -Trump's abysmal poll numbers on COVID, race, and the suburbs -John Ortberg resigns
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Dan talks about his house, or at least television, being struck by lightning. He and Brad then discuss Trump's messaging failures, Biden's candidacy as an appetizing saltine cracker, the scary situation in Portland, a baseball player who can't kneel for Black lives "because he's a Christian," the dangerous push to open schools no matter what, and AOC's absolute fire on the House floor.
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Dan and Brad hosted a live meeting with SWAJ listeners. We had a great discussion of important questions. They are listed below:
Questions for SWAJ Q+A, June 30, 2020:
Randall Balmer’s three point definition of evangelical does not directly mention a belief in Hell or an afterlife. The evacuation plan seems to be such a focus in many churches and I believe this is foundational to many conversions, ie, the fear of spending eternity in a firey Hell or the promise of spending eternity in a heavenly mansion. Has there been any research as to how many people are converted out of fear, especially children?
Would you consider the Great Commission a form of colonialism for Christian Nationalists?
How did you choose your show music?
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What does faith mean to you?
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What kinds of research from other PhDs in your field do you hope to see coming out of the movement for Black lives?
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The conservative takeover of the Southern Baptist convention - where did all those pastors, church members, and churches go that were either excommunicated or willingly left the SBC? Did they have any impact on evangelicalism, or did they just get out? Did they become a part of the religious left?
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Has understanding about the origins of the religious right helped you to communicate with people still heavily involved in it?
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Is it possible to be both libertarian and ethically concerned with social justice? Or do libertarian ideals always = alt right?
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Does populism result in authoritarianism? I ask because of this op-Ed by Francisco Toro https://tinyurl.com/y8ql725r
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Obviously American leadership contributes to our anti-science COVID tsunami. But rank and file citizens are the actual problem. Does Europe not have these people? Is the Brexit crowd an anti-mask crowd? Europe has an anti-vax movement. Why not this other garbage?
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A question for your Q&A: how much did the interest in your podcast from outside the US surprise you?
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I'm curious about your knowledge of the Falkirk Center at Liberty U?
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What made the charismatic and neo-pentecostal churches embrace right wing politics??
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In the past you mentioned 'non church going, self identified Evangelicals'? Can you expand on that, it doesn't make sense to me.
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Brad and Dan discuss the expanded recognition of Juneteenth and its significance for American history, the surprising new from SCOTUS on discrimination against LGBTQ people in the workplace and DACA, Louie Giglio's "White blessings," and the growing perception that white people are discriminated against as much as Black people and other minorities. Bonus: explainer on the distinction between taking down Confederate monuments and other historical memorials.
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Brad and Dan discuss Trump's decision to hold a rally in Tulsa on June 19. They dig into the historical significance of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre and Juneteenth. They also discuss the difference between history and collective memory in the Confederate flag/statue debate. Finally, they touch on Trump's conspiracy theories about protesters, the first QAnon congressperson, and the ways protests have worked so far.
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On this emergency episode, Brad asks religion scholars to weigh in on Trump’s violent Bible photo op.
He speaks with first with Dr. Richard Newton, Assistant Professor of Religon at the University of Alabama. They discuss how Christianity often offers a validation to racism and what he means by the term negrophobia.
Christian nationalism is a prominent theme on Straight White American Jesus. Brad discusses how it played into Trump’s photo op with Samuel Perry and Andrew Whitehead, authors of "Taking America Back for God," a new and important text on Christian nationalism in contemporary USA.
Using Christian nationalism as a lens helps clarify why Trump’s base is also populated by a good number of white Catholics. Brad discusses this with Matthew J. Cressler, Asst. Professor of Religion at the College of Charleston. They discuss his work on white Catholicism as a vehicle for segregation in the USA, and the work of black catholics who are working to dismantle the structures of racism in the church.
Brad turns next to Dr. Matt Recla, Associate Director of the University Foundations program at Boise State, to get a view of Trump’s weaponization of the Bible from the eyes of a scholar of the Roman empire. Dr. Recla explains the ways Christians and politicians have done the same throughout the last 1700 years.
Finally Brad asks his Skidmore college, Dr. Lucia Hulsether, author of the forthcoming book Capitalist Humanitarianism, to help him understand the term racialized capitalism.
He finishes the episode with insight from his former colleague Dr. Charles McKinney Jr, professor of Africana studies at Rhodes College, who relays a lesson in how white people often view racist acts and how to begin doing anti-racist work.
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Brad and Dan discuss recent data that shows White Evangelicals are the only group who believes Trump's response to the pandemic has been appropriate. They connect this to recent studies that show how Trump supporters get their news/information directly from the president through the Trump App. This leads to a discussion of the proliferation of conspiracy theories and the problem of living in a post-truth world.
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Brad tells a story of an encounter with a French philosopher and . . . marshmallows. Then Dan and Brad discuss the DOJ decision to drop the case against Michael Flynn (4:00), William Barr's dominionist win-at-all-costs politics (12:40), the "Call me a grandma killer" tweet and what is says about the "culture of life" movement (20:00), Trump's unwillingness to wear a mask, and more.
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Brad speaks with Marc-André Argentino, a PhD candidate and public scholar at Concordia University in Quebec, and an Associate Fellow with the Global Network on Extremism and Technology (GNET) at King's College London. They discuss the origins of QAnon, its deep connections with evangelical Christianity, the new Q-Church, and the ways QAnon's conspiracies are worsening the public health crisis by spreading disinformation.
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Brad and Dan discuss the COVID culture wars: the armed "protest" at the Michigan capitol, the masculinity of face masks, in-person church meetings, the stunning decline in Trump's approval ratings, the Bill Gates conspiracy, and Justin Amash's third-party presidential bid.
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Brad discusses the correspondence between libertarian politics and evangelicalism. He points out that the stay at home orders undercut the central myth of both: working hard leads to God's favor and economic prosperity. The collective action of staying at home is, in this sense, a blow to core tenets of conservative and evangelical cultures.
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Brad tells the story of buying an heiress a crepe in France. Then he and Dan discuss the president's remarks on using disinfectant to help with COVID, the conspiracy theories about vaccines and the Mark of the Beast, a reporter who was kidnapped at a Re-Open protest rally, and more.
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Brad discusses the "re-open" protests happening at state capitols through the historical episode of the Puritans and their protests to inoculation efforts during a smallpox outbreak in 1721. The historical parallels shed light on why many are motivated to protest in God's name and reveal how fear and anxiety are at the root of backlash against the medical community, secular authorities, and science.
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Brad begins with another story of hijinks and nostalgia from Oxford. Then Brad and and Dan discuss a long list of religion, politics, and COVID-19 stories, including Gov. DeSantis classifying wrestling as essential business, Franklin Graham's homophobia, Confederate Flag and gun-laden protests at the Michigan capitol, churches receiving stimulus $ from the SBA, and pastors continuing to encourage their people to meet in person.
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Brad and Dan begin by discussing a the demand for in-person church meetings in Kansas, Liberty University's attack on the press, and Bill O'Reilly's comment that most of those who have died from COVID-19 were "on their last legs anyway." They then examine Franklin Graham's and Pope Francis' theologies on why this pandemic is plaguing the globe (14:00).
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During the COVID-19 pandemic many are discussing the liberty to hold religious gatherings despite the public health risks. In an interview from 2019, Dan speaks with Andrew Seidel, constitutional lawyer at the freedom from religion foundation, about how freedom from religion guarantees freedom of religion.
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Brad and Dan begin by adding some humor to the mix--they tell stories of how they didn't fit in at Oxford and the hijinks that ensued (00:30). They then discuss the pastors who continue to hold services and how a mix of toxic masculinity, resistance to science, and disdain for the government are factors in this phenomenon They also explain why theologically evangelicals should be the group most willing and able to halt large in-person gatherings (12:40).They finish by discussing how conservative media has covered the pandemic (27:50), Trump blaming states for lack of healthcare equipment (28:40), and the stunning admission of ignorance on the part of GA governor Brian Kemp (39:50).
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Brad speaks to Dr. Nathan Alexander about his new book on the entangled histories of Christianity, atheism, and racism in the 19th and 20th centuries. They try to answer some compelling questions: Are non-religious people more or less susceptible than Christians to supporting racism and racist policies? What can history tell us about this subject? They explore Darwin, early irreligious reformers, and 20th/21st century problems.
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Religion was in full view this week as it relates to COVID-19. Brad and Dan discuss evangelical leaders and politicians resisting shelter in place directives, the Trump Bible study leader blaming LGBT+ people for the pandemic, Hobby Lobby and visions from God, Liberty University going back to school, Pompeo railroading G7 talks by demanding it be called the Wuhan Virus, the faux-Trump Bump, strongman masculinity and disease, and reasons for hope (yes, there are reasons to hope).
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Asha Dahya was a happy evangelical when she moved to LA from Australia. But the politics of the Religious Right led her out of the faith. Indian by ethnicity, British-born, Australian raised, and living in the USA since 2008, in a few short years she has become a reproductive rights activist, editor in chief of a feminist website, and author of a new book on women who are changing the world in extraordinary ways. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
" . . only the invented part of life was satisfying." -Gerald Murphy to F. Scott Fitzgerald.
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Brad and Dan discuss why in this sort of crisis everyone's a socialist (2:55), the fallout from the Burr/Loeffler revelations (7:35), and then spend the bulk of the episode discussing why Bernie Sanders would be a revolutionary candidate in religious terms--the first None President in our country's history. They trace histories of anti-Jewish and anti-secular bias in the USA and discuss the dimensions of a non-theist as president(14:15), and reasons for hope--neighbors, neighborhoods, and the rediscovery of in-person interactions! (55:00)
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Brad discusses the moral failing of Senator Richard Burr and calls on him to resign, fact checks Sen. Cornyn on China, viruses, and more, and challenges us not to allow our fear to transform into racism and xenophobia.
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Aaron Simmons has been asked to leave numerous churches over the last decade. Not over theology or the Bible. But because he votes the wrong way and wants to have open discussions about abortion, race, justice, and other issues. A fourth-generation Pentecostal, he didn't leave evangelicalism. It left him. But he persists--attending an evangelical church whilst voting for Bernie and trying to create space for a more responsible and ethical American evangelicalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
On today's daily dispatch, Brad discusses why Trump labeling COVID-19 the "Chinese virus" is part of a long lineage of anti-Asian xenophobia and part of the Christian nationalism held by his supporters (4:00). He discusses a new piece on Christian nationalism and anti-immigrant ideology by Samuel Perry. Brad also touches on how Trump tried to buy the rights to a vaccine from a German company (11:45), the fight over the Democratic primary election in Ohio, where the governor canceled voting today (15:40), and the fact that we don't have a pandemic response committee, but we do have SPACE FORCE! (18:17)
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Brad and Dan discuss the conspiracy theories Evangelicals and the President are pushing about Corona Virus (0:30), Title IX exemptions for universities that discriminate against LGBT+ people (17:50), the surprising surge of Biden and his popularity with African American religious voters (27:05), who is the most "religious" candidate left (44:05), and a one-minute explainer on why COVID-19 is a serious threat to public health (as opposed to what Fox News is telling your mom or nana) (50:50).
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Dominionists are shaping your life: from your kid's sex-ed program, to local gun laws, and national elections. They see themselves as called to rule the world as proxies for God. Dominionists strategize as to how to infiltrate and control every aspect of human life--government, economics, culture, media, education, and so on. They are not fringe. They are operating in local, state, and national governments. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://swaj.supportingcast.fm
Brad and Dan discuss how we should interpret Mitt Romney's vote to convict Trump as an expression of how the Latter Day Saints view the president, and why they are less likely to be Christian nationalists. They also dig into the National Prayer Breakfast, the Southern Baptist Convention's views on the LGBT community, and Franklin Graham's woes in the UK.
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Brad's audio essay on his great grandmother, Hisao, a picture-bride who couldn't speak English, but who became an American, a Californian, and an Angelino through the Lakers; the woman who began four generations of his family's love of basketball. In the wake of Kobe Bryant's death, it's a reflection on the joy and sorrow of migration, love, and 'Ohana.
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Brad and Dan talk about Jerry Falwell's call for secession, harmful transgender treatment bills, and Paula White, Trump's spiritual advisor, the woman who called for the miscarriage of satanic pregnancies, and a prosperity preacher.
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On the Weekly Roundup Brad and Dan discuss Espinoza vs. Montana, a supreme court case that will determine if states must fund private schools. They discuss how currently millions of dollars in tax money is being sent to anti-LGBT institutions. They also discuss the whitewashed radicalism of MLK JR., and evangelical quietism on abortion.
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Brad talks with Deirdre Sugiuchi about her story of leaving a fundamentalist boot camp in the Dominican Republic. Deirdre, a writer whose work has been featured at Electric Literature, Guernica, and who contributed an essay to EMPTY THE PEWS, speaks of the emotional and sexual abuse at Escuela Caribe and the dangers she sees in the current administration's approach to religious education.
*WARNING: This episode does contain descriptions of sexual abuse.
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On the weekly roundup, Dan and Brad focus on a Politico story about the Trump campaign reaching out to Catholic voters. They explain how a sizable number of Catholics fall into the Christian Nationalist category, what it means for 2020, and how we should expand our vision of Trump's religious supporters beyond white evangelicals. They also talk about controversy between the two popes, a cringeworthy new center at Liberty University inspired by Braveheart, and the bar at Trump Hotel in DC.
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Brad and Dan discuss how Mike Pence and Mike Pompeo brought their end-times theology to bear on American foreign policy through the assassination of Quassem Soleimani. They explain how evangelical approaches to the end of the world are informing our nation's decision-making at the highest levels. Plus: Don Jr. Crusades gun, the Evangelicals for Trump Rally, and Jim Bakker says you must be saved in order to love Trump. Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5R6Vhmfhs8&t=209s
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Our discussion of purity culture, gender complementarianism, and our interview with the Revernd Sarah Buteux, Associate Pastor of First Churches in Northampton, which happens to be Jonathan Edwards' church.
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Part II of our three-part series on white evangelicalism and LGBTQ+ issues. Dan's interview with ethicist and former AAR president David Gushee, who left evangelicalism after changing his views of LGBTQ relationships.
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THIS INTERVIEW IS EYE OPENING!
Brad's interview with his Skidmore colleague Dr. Myev Rees. Dr. Rees is an expert in evangelical culture, particularly the issues of womanhood, motherhood, and "angel babies." We discuss martyr mommies, the potential end of Roe, and evangelical approaches to life.
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