<p>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 <em>Left Behind </em>series and the <em>Turner Diaries</em>, 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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p><p>We finish this episode with a new segment, "He's No James Madison".&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>Dan begins by explaining why Biden didn't underperform and why emotionally this should feel like a big win&nbsp;</p><p>He and Brad also discuss the White religious voters who fled Trump for Biden and why it is/and is not a big deal&nbsp;</p><p>They touch on SCOTUS and the Affordable Care Act, including the surprising comments from Justice Kavanaugh&nbsp;</p><p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

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. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>As we process the unfolding events related to the election, Brad and Dan discuss:&nbsp;</p><ul> <li>why Tuesday night felt so dismaying, despite knowing it would be a long road&nbsp;</li> <li>the disappointing turnout for Trumpism and the need to reckon with Whiteness</li> <li>the myriad of reasons to be not only relieved, but hopeful&nbsp;</li> <li>Madison Cawthorn = future of the Religious Right&nbsp;</li> <li>Stacey Abrams, Raphael Warnock, Cori Bush, and the Squad = Vanguards of the Religious Left</li> <li>Why Christian nationalism is far from defeated</li></ul><p><br></p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

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. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p><p>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.&nbsp;</p><p>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.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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, <em>After Evangelicalism: &nbsp;The Path to a New Christianity.</em> 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.</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p><strong>Opener</strong>: Brad and Dan each get 2 minutes uninterrupted on the last debate&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Explainer:</strong> Hunter Biden non-scandal mularkey&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Explainer</strong>: Pope announces he is in favor of same-sex couples having civil unions (but not marriages?)</p><p><strong>Deep Dive</strong>: The American Values Survey from PRRI</p><ul> <li>-critical issues for Republicans and Democrats (one thinks COVID is a big deal; the other doesn't)</li> <li>-how White Evangelicals are different from any other religious group in the country&nbsp;</li> <li>-attitudes toward race, income inequality, and climate change across party and religious lines.&nbsp;</li></ul><p><strong>Audience Question</strong>: What do we think of court packing?&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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!&nbsp;</p><p>We begin this episode by discussing the VP debate, particularly Mike Pence as a familiar type: <em>The White Evangelical pastor.&nbsp;</em></p><p>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.&nbsp;</p><p>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!"&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p><br></p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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:&nbsp;</p><ul> <li>Prosperity Gospel positive thinking,&nbsp;</li> <li>racism,&nbsp;</li> <li>capitalism,&nbsp;</li> <li>hypermasculinity.&nbsp;</li></ul><p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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, <em>Behold, America (</em>Bloomsbury 2018<em>) </em>she explores the entangled history of America First and the American Dream.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;'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'.</p><p>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.&nbsp;</p><p>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. <em>Behold, America </em>recounts the unknown history of these two expressions using the voices that helped shape that debate, from Capitol Hill to the newsroom of the <em>New York Times</em>, students to senators, dreamers to dissenters.</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>Brad and Dan discuss four main stories on this week's roundup:&nbsp;</p><p>1. 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.&nbsp;</p><p>2. 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?&nbsp;</p><p>3. The peaceful transfer of power, the GOP's ongoing efforts to suppress voting, and the threat of election insecurity.&nbsp;</p><p>4. Following on a new piece by Chrissy Stroop, we ask: Have "respectable" evangelicals lost control of the extremist movement they built?&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>Brad speaks with historian Ricard Steigmann-Gall, author of the <em>Holy Reich: Nazi Conceptions of Christianity 1919-1945</em>. 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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>

<p>Brad interviews Dr. Leslie Dorrough Smith about her new book, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/compromising-positions-9780190924072?cc=us&amp;lang=en&amp;">Compromising Positions: Scandals, Politics, and American Christianity</a>. 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.&nbsp;</p>--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/messageSupport this podcast: <a href="https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support" rel="payment">https://anchor.fm/straightwhiteamericanjesu/support</a>