Following scholars deep into America's religions history and the story it tells about today.

Religion in the American Experience

Our Podcast

Religion has profoundly influenced the sweeping American narrative, perhaps more than any other force in our history, from the time before European settlers to the present day. The start-up National Museum of American Religion is working to build a museum in the nation’s capital that tells the story of what religion has done to America and what America has done to religion, inviting all to explore the role of religion in shaping the social, political, economic and cultural lives of Americans and thus America itself. I’m your host Chris Stevenson – join me for our podcast series, Religion and the American Experience, as we follow scholars deep into America’s religious history, and learn how it can inform and animate us as citizens grappling with complex questions of governance and American purpose in the 21st century. You can find episodes on Podbean under Religion in the American Experience and Apple Podcast.

Episodes

Episode
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Transcript
1. “Tornado God: Religion and Violent Weather” with Peter Thuesen.
2. “Religion in the 1800 Election” with Ed Larson.
3. “Evangelicals’ Influence on U.S. Foreign Policy, 1970s – 1990s” with Lauren Turek.
4. “The Civil War as a Theological Crisis” with Mark Noll
5. “Religion and the Shaping of Native Cultures in Early America” with Linford Fisher.
6. “Are Race and Religion Intertwined in American History? ” with Paul Harvey.
8. “The Political Mobilization of Black Churches” with Eric McDaniel
9. “The Missionaries Who Spied for the United States During the Second World War” with Matthew Sutton

10. “How Have Baptists Influenced the American Narrative?” with Barry Hankins

11. “For What Purposes Has Religious Freedom Been Invoked in US History” with Tisa Wenger
12. “What Role Did Religion Play in the Founding of the American Republic” with Mark David Hall and Daniel Dreisbach
13. “The Women and Men of American Religion” with Richard Bushman
14. “The Women and Men of American Religion. Story 2” with Billy Graham
15. “January 6, 2021 & the History of Religion and Politics in the United States”
16. “The Women and Men of American Religion. Story 3” with Maegan Parker Brooks
17. “The Women and Men of American Religion. Story 4” with Catherine O’Donnell
18. “How Are Sports and Religion Interconnected in America?” with Rebecca Alpert
19. “What Counsel are America’s Places of Faith Offering During the Pandemic?”
20. “What Is the Relationship Between Religion, Race and Sports in America?” With Jeffrey Scholes
21. “Why Does Religion Play So Prominently in the Saga of American Oil?” With Darren Dochuk
22. “What is American Civil Religion & Why Was It On Display at President Biden’s Inauguration?”
23. “An Unusual Feast: Gumbo and the Complex Brew of Black Religion” With Derek Hicks
24. “God Says Come or God Says Stay Away: The History of Religion & Immigration in America”

25. “American Minority Religions and Their Foodways” with Kate Holbrook

26. “America Still Believes: Religious Beliefs About History’s End and American Political Behavior”
27. “The Making of US: Lived Religion in America with David Black”
28. “How Has Religion Seen and Treated Mental Illness Throughout American History?”
29. “What Roles Has Religion Played in the American Environmental Movement?” with Mark Stoll
30. “How Has Religion Influenced the Development of the U.S. Prison System?”
31. “Religion at the National Museum of African American History and Culture”
32. “What Have America‘s Clergy Told Us During Times of National Tragedy?”
34. “The History of Christian Nationalism”
35. “SPECIAL EPISODE: The War in Gaza”
36. “Religion and the Life and Work of Charles Schulz”
37. “Martin Luther King and His Religion”
38. “The Making of US: Lived Religion in America with Kristy Nabhan-Warren”
39. “The Religion of Thomas Jefferson”