Podcast Series: Christians Against Christian Nationalism
The Christians Against Christian Nationalism movement is a significant Christian coalition. Resources include podcasts, webinars, study materials, books, and a sign-on statement, can be found on the BJC Center for Faith, Justice and Reconciliation.
BJC Podcast is a collection of archived podcasts from previous Supreme Court cases, early seasons of Respecting Religion, and the 2019 podcast series on the dangers of Christian nationalism. The original 10 podcasts can be found here (from 2019), which feature interviews with theologians, historians, authors and activists, including Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, Walter Brueggemann, Sen. John Marty (D), MN, author Steven Green and many others.
Search for “BJC Podcast” on your favorite provider, or click on the links for the podcast on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Spotify, Stitcher, and Amazon Music.
Ep. 01: Christian Leaders On Christian Nationalism: In the first episode of this podcast series on Christian nationalism, hear what Christian leaders have to say about the ideology. BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler speaks with Bishop Elizabeth Eaton of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (starting at 5:19); Rev. Dr. Paul Baxley of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (10:12); Diane Randall from the Friends Committee on National Legislation (15:02); Sister Simone Campbell of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice (19:14); and Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Haggray of American Baptist Home Mission Societies (23:13).
Ep. 02: Academic view of Christian nationalism: Dr. Andrew Whitehead talks about his work researching Christian nationalism in the second episode of our special podcast series. A professor of sociology at Clemson University, he explains what Christian nationalism is, how he and other researchers measure the ideology, and how it affects the way individuals see the world. Whitehead also shares how Christian nationalism differs from religious practice and the way it impacts all Americans.
Ep. 03: Were we founded as a Christian nation?: Learn about the political and religious history behind the idea that the United States was founded as a “Christian nation” in this episode of our podcast series on Christian nationalism. BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler talks with Dr. Steven Green, author of "Inventing a Christian America: The Myth of the Religious Founding," about the political history of this concept. On the second half of the episode, we hear from church historian Bill Leonard (starting at 21:38) on what religious leaders said and did during the founding of the United States.
Ep. 04: Theological view of Christian nationalism with Walter Brueggemann: What does the Bible have to teach us about Christian nationalism? Author and scholar Walter Brueggemann talks about the theological dangers of Christian nationalism in the fourth episode of our podcast series. Hear his thoughts on what the prophets have to teach us about our current times, the importance of the crucifixion and resurrection narrative in these conversations, and what the Bible says about oppression, hope, truth and power.
Ep. 05: Understanding Project Blitz: “Project Blitz,” a coordinated effort to draft and pass bills informed by Christian nationalism, is showing up in state legislatures across the country. What is this effort, and what are its goals? Frederick Clarkson, the writer who broke the story about Project Blitz, discusses its origins, motivations and definitions of success.
Ep. 06: Standing against Project Blitz in a state legislature: What happens when bills influenced by Christian nationalism appear in state legislatures? Minnesota State Sen. John Marty discusses his experience standing against legislation from the “Project Blitz” playbook in this episode of our podcast series. He talks about how his Christian faith influences his work defending the rights of all people, and he shares stories about the pushback and accusations he received as he worked to make sure his faith isn’t used to crush others. This is episode six in our 10-week series on Christian nationalism.
Ep. 07: Christian nationalism, race and white supremacy: What is the connection between the history of racism and Christian nationalism? On this podcast, Jemar Tisby shares a historical view of white Christian nationalism in America, including how conflations of politics, race and religion in our past continue to impact conversations today. The author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism, Tisby discusses how American Christianity and racism have overlapped for more than 400 years, including examples across several centuries of history. This is episode seven of our 10-week podcast series on Christian nationalism.
Ep. 08: Christian nationalism and white nationalism: As we continue to explore the overlap of Christian nationalism and white supremacy, this week’s episode looks at their connection and the impact on communities. Hear from the Rev. Dr. Aidsand Wright-Riggins about race, reconciliation, religious liberty, Christian supremacy and more.
Ep. 09: Religious freedom, church-state law and Christian nationalism: In light of our conversations about Christian nationalism, this podcast takes a broader view of work in the church-state realm. BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler is joined by Rabbi Ambassador David Saperstein, Melissa Rogers and BJC General Counsel Holly Hollman to look at the challenges to our constitutional commitment to religious liberty for all people. As they note, disagreement on the proper application of the First Amendment’s religion clauses is not necessarily evidence of Christian nationalism. Hear them discuss the complexity in this area of the law, the role of religion in public life, the dangers of government promotion of religion, how the Supreme Court tends to interpret the religion clauses, the protections provided by the separation of church and state, and more.
Ep. 10: Embracing civic pluralism: What’s the antidote to Christian nationalism? To conclude our podcast series, we take a look at what it means to embrace civic pluralism with Eboo Patel, the founder and president of Interfaith Youth Core. He talks with BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler about the difference in religious and civic pluralism, the origins of the term “Judeo-Christian,” connections between anti-Muslim bigotry and anti-Catholic bigotry, and how we can create a “potluck nation,” where everyone brings their unique contributions to the table.
Amanda Tyler, the podcast host, recently spoke in Phoenix and Tucson at the invitation of Arizona Faith Network, and will be a guest at the ELCA Advocacy's State Public Policy Retreat in September, 2023.
Take action today!
The threat of Christian nationalism is not new. But this movement, which promotes the idea that to be a real American you must be Christian, is growing with a dangerous intensity. It’s not only behind the push for bills that advance a revisionist historical view of the United States and promote government-sponsored religious exercise; it also has inspired religious hate crimes, arson and deadly attacks on houses of worship. The same thing is happening abroad.
There’s no time to waste. A strong response from the Christian community is necessary. We must loudly denounce Christian nationalism as a distortion of our faith and a divisive force in our country — one that poses a threat to religious freedom for all.
If you agree, sign the statement and join Christians from all denominations to take a powerful stand.