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...
Oct 14, 2022•10 min
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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listen...
Oct 12, 2022•12 min
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 m...
Oct 10, 2022•8 min
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 inc...
Oct 07, 2022•8 min
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 tha...
Oct 05, 2022•11 min
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-K...
Oct 03, 2022•9 min
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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the entire 5...
Sep 30, 2022•9 min
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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https:/...
Sep 28, 2022•12 min
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 impos...
Sep 26, 2022•8 min
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 peo...
Sep 23, 2022•8 min
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. Subscri...
Sep 21, 2022•13 min
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 r...
Sep 19, 2022•7 min
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 a...
Sep 16, 2022•8 min
“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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https://axismundi.supercast.com/ Linktree: https://linktr.ee/Stra...
Sep 14, 2022•10 min
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 h...
Sep 12, 2022•8 min
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 issu...
Sep 11, 2022•9 min
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 procl...
Sep 09, 2022•8 min
“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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https://axismundi.supercast.com/ Li...
Sep 07, 2022•12 min
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 follower...
Sep 05, 2022•8 min
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 Philadelph...
Sep 02, 2022•9 min
“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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the en...
Aug 31, 2022•10 min
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. syst...
Aug 29, 2022•8 min
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 crisi...
Aug 26, 2022•9 min
“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. Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free ...
Aug 24, 2022•9 min
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 Chris...
Aug 22, 2022•11 min
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...
Aug 19, 2022•8 min
“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 r...
Aug 17, 2022•9 min
Brad speaks with journalist and pastor Angela Denker about the updated version of her book, Red State Christians. Red State Christians: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9781506482507/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 mega...
Aug 15, 2022•8 min
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 b...
Aug 12, 2022•7 min
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! Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get bonus episodes, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500...
Aug 10, 2022•8 min
