Research On Religion » Mormonism

Ron Hassner on Sacred Spaces & Holy Conflict

tonygill — Sun, 29 Sep 2013 08:00:06 +0000

Note: This is an encore performance of one of my favorite interviews from three years ago, yet it remains as timely as ever given the current politics of the day. The RoR staff has been busy recently, but we will return soon with some fresh episodes shortly. Please stay tuned for more details and subscribe to our Facebook Fan Page for regular updates.

Prof. Hassner argues in plain and simple language that the nature of “sacred ground,” specificially its indivisibility, frequently makes conflict impossible to resolve between two parties who are contesting the ownership or control of sacred space. Prof. Hassner vividly illustrates his theory with a number of intriguing examples including the conflict over the Temple Mount / Haram el Sharif in Jerusalem, the controversy over the building of a mosque and Islamic cultural center near the World Trade Center in NYC, and several other historical conflicts.

Near the end of the podcast, Prof. Hassner notes that it may be impossible to end conflict over various sacred spaces, but there are means for mitigating the negative effects of such conflict. He appeals to diplomats to include the views of religious authority when crafting mutually agreeable settlements to conflict. Since the initial interview back in 2010, Prof. Hassner has been granted tenure in his academic department. Us folks at RoR would like to think that his appearance on our show had a big hand in that decision. Recorded: October 15, 2010.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. Ron Hassner’s website at UC-Berkeley.

War on Sacred Grounds, by Ron E. Hassner (Cornell University Press).

The Religion, Politics and Globalization Program at UC-Berkeley.

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Sean Everton on Dark Networks.

Monica Toft on Religion, Terrorism, and Civil War.

Eli Berman on religious terrorism.

Rod Stark on the Crusades.

Who Would Jesus Vote For? A Redemption Church Small Group

tonygill — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 08:00:39 +0000

Visit our Facebook Fan Page to see how this group of evangelicals are planning to vote in the 2012 presidential election.

Scholars have long known that religious belief and practice plays a salient role in determining one’s voting behavior. Those scholars have relied upon opinion polls and statistical analysis to flesh this out, though rarely do we get a glimpse into the actual thought process of how religious folks think about their politics. In this very unusual podcast, we open that “black box” to listen in on how a group of sixteen evangelical churchgoers and their pastor talk about politics with a presidential election coming up. These folks belong to Redemption Church in Duvall, WA (a church featured several times on this show), and they are participating in one fo the church’s “small groups” (or “regroup”) known as Theology on Tap, wherein interested church members gather in a local bar, drink beer, and discuss some heady theological issues. The topic for this evening’s discussion was “Who would Jesus vote for?” The conversation defies a typical linear narrative (as do many small group discussions), so we won’t provide one here. However, become a “fly on the wall” to this exchange of ideas and be prepared to hear some interesting and suprising statements from the congregants. The participants hit on topics ranging from whether an evangelical can conscientiously vote for a Mormon, to figuring out what constitutes “moral” issues as compared to “policy” issues, to why white evangelicals vote differently than African-American evangelicals. One of the members even makes the bold claim that Jesus would vote Republican, though he himself would vote Democrat. Hear the surprising justification for this that harkens back to the economist Simon Kuznets! Near the end of the discussion (at about the 57 minute mark), Pastor Matt Boswell claims that Jesus wouldn’t vote for anybody, but for use regular folks that is a cop-out for not voting, to which an audience member agreed. Listen in to how this evangelical dilemma is resolved, with the most profound answer of the evening coming by one of the participants at the 1 hour and 7 minute mark. If anything, this will disavow you of your notion that all rural evangelicals are just a bunch of dumb hillbillies. Or maybe not. The discussion is passionate, but at the end they all raise a glass and proclaim their true love for Jesus, their church, and one another. Go to our Facebook Fan Page and “like” us to find out the poll results of how these backwoods evangelicals are planning to cast their vote and possibly for a little discussion of what happened at the “after party.” Special thanks to the Duvall Grill and Tap Room for hosting this event and allowing us to record. Recorded: October 16, 2012.

Duvall Grill & Tap Room.

RELATED PODCASTS

Gerald de Maio on the Electoral Religion Gap.

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elections, and the God Gap.

Ken Wald on the Puzzling Politics of American Jews.

The Redemption Church podcast series. (Learn about this fascinating church, the spiritual home of your host.)

Jeremy Lott on America’s Shifting Religious Election Coalition

tonygill — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 08:00:19 +0000

What hath Election 2012 wrought? Are we witnessing a re-alignment of religious voters with Catholics shifting away from the Democrats and evangelicals becoming comfortable with a Mormon running for national office? Jeremy Lott, author and editor of RealClearReligion (among other sites), joins us to talk about his new, free e-book entitled Mitt Romney’s Mormon-Christian Coalition. We start off first, though, by examining if there have been any trends in how the media have dealt with the religious angle in the current election. Jeremy’s role with RealClearReligion gives him an advantage in answering this question and he provides some interesting insights on how places like The New York Times have covered religion. We then spend a short bit of time to look at how atheists have tried to get in the mix of electoral politics by putting up images of Jesus on toast and a man in glowing underwear before the Democratic and Republican national conventions. Our discussion then turns to how Democrats have dealt with religion in recent years and how President Obama’s seeming lack of faith (as viewed in opinion polls) and how the debate over contraception and abortion in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (i.e., Obamacare) has affected religious voters, particularly Catholics. Indeed, the politics behind getting Obamacare passed and how regulations were later imposed despite initial understandings of what that legislation would do may have shattered a fragile coalition that Democrats have maintained with Catholics since Roe v Wade and the Hyde Amendment prohibiting funding for abortion at the federal level. Tony wonders how much lay Catholic voters will respond to criticisms of the Obama Administration levelled by various Catholic Church leaders. We then look at how Mitt Romney may be using this growing rift to his advantage, in part by choosing Paul Ryan, a practicing Catholic, as his running mate. We also look at how Romney has tried to assuage the fears of evangelical leaders who have had a suspicion of Mormon religious views, and how Romney infused the Republican National Convention with how Mormon values are American values without making overt appeals to Mormonism. Jeremy also notes how Mitt’s missionary background has been influential in crafting his political career, including a life-threatening car crash. The claim is made that his ability to speak to different audiences as a missionary has affected how he positions himself on various political issues, sometimes giving him the image of being a flip-flopper. But Jeremy notes that this is also an indication of how Romney learns over time and that there is no “Romney-ism” but rather a pragmatic turn-around artist who is also a skillful politician. During an earlier point in the podcast, Jeremy claims that he will “eat his hat” if the Republicans take Pennsylvania in the presidential election, a claim that Tony intends to revisit in several weeks. Recorded: October 15, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

Real Clear Religion. (You can access Real Clear Politics, Real Clear Books, Real Clear Science and other portals at this website as well.)

Jeremy Lott’s Diary on Patheos.com (pithy and profound insights galore).

Mitt Romney’s Mormon-Christian Coalition by Jeremy Lott courtesy of Human Events (asks for your email to download).

In Defense of Hypocrisy: Picking Sides in the War on Virtue, by Jeremy A. Lott.

The Warm Bucket Brigade: The Story of the American Vice Presidency, by Jeremy A. Lott.

William F. Buckley (Christian Encouter Series), by Jeremy A. Lott.

I’ll Never Forget It: Memoirs of a Political Accident from East Baltimore, by Marvin Mandel, Jeremy Lott, and Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr.

RELATED PODCASTS

Jeremy Lott on Episcopalians, Ex-Athiests, Health Care, and German Circumcision.

Jeremy Lott on Real Clear Religion.

Philip Muñoz on Catholic Bishops, Religious Liberty, and Health Care Mandates.

Gerald de Maio on the Electoral Religion Gap.

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elections, and the God Gap.

Lynita Newswander on Mormons in America

tonygill — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 08:00:18 +0000

Greetings to the new visitors to our website. We hope you enjoy this interview and invite you to visit our archives for over 100 other great episodes on a wide variety of topics, all free to the public. And please sign up for our Facebook fan page to get regular updates on future topics and guests. Help us get to 300 fans by September 1.

With Mitt Romney running for president of the United States, there has been a heightened interest to learn about the Mormon faith. We tackle this subject once again on our show by examining the historical legacy and contemporary impact that members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has had on US culture and politics. Prof. Lynita Newswander, and adjunct professor of political science at the University of South Dakota, joins us to discuss her recent book, LDS in the USA, co-authored with Lee Trepanier. The book itself is interesting given that it represents a collaboration between a scholar who is Mormon (Newswander) and one who is not (Trepanier). We discuss the reasons for this interesting collaboration as well as for why the book ended up with the title that it did. Tony proposes the book should have its own theme song based upon the popular Bruce Springsteen song “Born in the USA” and actually sings a few lines from what he thinks that song should sound like — a very special treat for our regular listeners. We then dive into a brief history of Mormonism with Lynita pointing out that Mormons, due to persecution, became emigrants from their own country only to have that country catch up with them in the midst of Westward expansion, making them immigrants in a nation which they still retained citizenship in. This creates a certain tenor to LDS history, wherein members have seen themselves as both outsiders and insiders in American history making them what Brigham Young called “a peculiar people.” Our discussion covers how Mormons have conformed to and shaped “core American values” including the notions of diversity, tolerance, and family. Prof. Newswander shares her unique perspective on Mormon identity growing up outside of Utah and as a member of a religious minority group in Texas and why she found her recent trip to Salt Lake City to be rather interesting. She notes that there is a strong tendency within the LDS Church for members to want to group together, which in effect continues to make the religion rather distinct, a feeling that she experienced when she went to school at BYU. We continue with the interview noting how Mormon influences have made their way into American culture, from Donny and Marie Osmond in the 1970s to the best-selling author Stephenie Meyer (the “Twighlight” series) and to their appearance on reality TV shows more recently. The conversation then turns to the controversial topic of Jell-O consumption and whether Utah or Iowa holds the title for highest per capita consumption of that convenient snack food. We also discuss how the non-Mormon media has recently portrayed the LDS faith through such shows as Big Love and Sister Wives. This brings up the issue of polygamy and Lynita clarifies how the main branch of the LDS Church has long ago renounced this practice even though some offshoot sects of the faith still practice it. We discuss how shows such as Big Love often give a skewed view of what Mormons actually believe and do. All of this is within the context of the American ideal of religious tolerance, which we note that Americans sometimes have a hard time living up to. Our podcast finishes with a discussion of Mitt Romney and the role that he is playing in making Mormonism a more accepted faith within American society. Recorded: August 22, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

LDS in the USA: Mormonism and the Making of American Culture, by Lee Trepanier and Lynita K. Newswander.

Mitt Romney’s “Faith in America” speech at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library (December 6, 2007).

RELATED PODCASTS

Michael McBride on Religious Free-Riding and the Mormon Church.

Patrick Mason on Anti-Mormonism and Mitt Romney.

Allison Pond on Being a Mormon Missionary.

Jeremy Lott on Episcopalians, Ex-Atheists, Health Care, and German Circumcision

tonygill — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 08:00:31 +0000

What’s the news in the world of religion? We check in with author and blogger extraordinaire, Jeremy Lott of RealClearReligion (and other RealClear sites) to catch up with some of the more recent doings and happenings in the US and other parts of the world. We begin by talking about the most recent convention of the Episcopal Church of the USA. That conference produced a number of controversial actions on same-sex marriage, transgendered priests, and funeral rites for pets. We discuss this in the context of Ross Douthat’s New York Times’ column (see below) that Episcopalians are dropping in numbers rapidly and the trend looks gloomy for the future. Jeremy helps to put this in a larger context regarding liberal mainline denominations and the troubles they are facing in retaining members, while Tony wonders why these declining churches don’t adopt “best practices” from growing congregations just as many secular business do. Our continuing discussion on the supposed increase in “nones” (i.e., people declaring no religious affiliation in surveys) prompts Tony to reveal a new research project that he has been working on that deals with decreasing transportation costs. To figure out that link, you will have to listen closely in the podcast. Our conversation then transitions to the issue of atheists recently announcing their religious conversions, including Kaya Oakes who recently wrote a book about her conversion back to Catholicism. Jeremy gives his take on her recent book, pondering why she would go back to Catholicism when many of her ideological and philosophical views don’t match well with Church. All this discussion allows for Tony to help Jeremy with a recent moral quandry he found himself in. Readers of this passage will have to listen deep into the interview to find out what this issue was and the surprising solution your podcast host proposed. Speaking of moral quandries, the next issue to arise in our interview involves the struggle that the Catholic Church and Wheaton College are having with some of the mandates that have come down the pipeline from the Department of Health and Human Services via the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a topic we have addressed a few times previously on our show. Jeremy provides his insight into this matter and discuss what might become of the new lawsuit and what will happen in various election scenarios. We then pivot quickly to talk about the issue of Mormonism in the upcoming presidential election with Jeremy providing his thoughts on that topic, including how evangelicals including Robert Jeffers are coming around to the idea of supporting a Mormon candidate in Mitt Romney. We next deal with an issue that is on the cutting edge of the news — the German circumcision controversy that arose when a four-year old died during this procedure and prompted calls for legally ending the practice. That in turn prompted calls of religious discrimination and Jeremy explains how all of this played out. Finally, Tony poses Jeremy with a question that we presented to other scholars on an earlier podcast: Would you have, as a Christian, fought in US War of Independence? Hear Jeremy’s answer in our closing moments. Recorded: July 19, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

Real Clear Religion. (You can access Real Clear Politics, Real Clear Books, Real Clear Science and other portals at this website as well.)

Jeremy Lott’s Diary on Patheos.com (pithy and profound insights galore).

In Defense of Hypocrisy: Picking Sides in the War on Virtue, by Jeremy A. Lott.

The Warm Bucket Brigade: The Story of the American Vice Presidency, by Jeremy A. Lott.

William F. Buckley (Christian Encouter Series), by Jeremy A. Lott.

I’ll Never Forget It: Memoirs of a Political Accident from East Baltimore, by Marvin Mandel, Jeremy Lott, and Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr.

“Can Liberal Christianity Be Saved?” by Ross Douthat in The New York Times (July 14, 2012).

“The Church Vanishes,” by Philip Jenkins on Patheos.com.

“Perhaps Atheists Should Be Hitting the Panic Button,” by Timothy Dalrymple on Patheos.com.

Radical Reinvention: An Unlikely Return to the Catholic Church, by Kaya Oakes.

RELATED PODCASTS

Jeremy Lott on RealClearReligion.

Hunter Baker on the End of Secularism.

Philip Muñoz on Catholic Bishops, Religious Liberty, and Health Care Mandates.

Should Christians Have Fought in the US War of Independence?

Allison Pond on Being a Mormon Missionary

tonygill — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 09:00:11 +0000

What is it like to be a young missionary in a foreign country that is undergoing major religious and legal changes? Allison Pond, an editorial writer at the Deseret News (Utah) and formerly with the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, recounts her days as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Russia from 1997 to 1998. Mormons are well-known for their missionizing activity around the world, so we explore the preparation, training, experience, and results of such missionizing work. Allison begins by describing her spiritual upbringing in the LDS Church and reveals that she never thought of mission work until volunteering for a youth program while at BYU. She then discusses the process for being selected as an LDS missionary, which includes an interview with a local bishop. We inquire as to whether her work teaching English in Moscow played a role in her being selected for her to missionize in Russia. Following this, we look at how Mormons, who are mostly young adults at the time, are trained in the Missionary Training Center and what goes on during the first few weeks in the field. We discuss language training as well as preparation for hostile situations. Allison then tells us what it was actually like to be in the field, especially the anxiety she felt on the first day and how this dissipated over time. The typical routine of a missionary is discussed and we also focus on what is like to be a female missionary, considering that roughly 80% of all Mormon missionaries are young men. We then discuss the changing religious scene in Russia and what complications that may have played in the mission trip. Russia, which experienced the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, initially allowed a great degree of religous freedom leading to a rapid influx of foreign religions. By 1997, the Russian Orthodox Church was pushing back with intensified rhetoric against foreign missionaries and with legal changes that made it difficult for such folks to operate. Allison closes with some reflections about what she learned while on her sojourn and provides a bit of “looking back” advice for people considering missionary work, be it for the LDS Church or any other faith. Recorded: January 6, 2012

RELATED LINKS

Allison Pond’s biography at the Deseret News.

Allison Pond’s “Houses of Worship” column for Wall Street Journal (subscription required) and reprinted in the Deseret News.

Mormons in America at The Deseret News.

Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

RELATED PODCASTS

Patrick Mason on anti-Mormonism and Mitt Romney.

Michael McBride on Religious Free-Riding and the Mormon Church.

Jeff Rose on Street Preaching.

Jason Jewell on John Locke & Religious Toleration

tonygill — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 09:00:16 +0000

John Locke is a name that comes up frequently on our podcast when discussing religious liberty and toleration. To find out more about this great philosopher and political economist, we invite Prof. Jason Jewell to our program to enlighten us as to the life, times, and philosophy of Locke. Jason is the chair of the Department of Humanities at Faulkner University (Alabama) and the creator of The Western Traditon, a blog that is devoted to all things Christian and Classical. We begin our chat by setting the historical table on which Locke was feasting, covering the important events occuring in England and Europe during the 17th century, including the English Civil War, Cromwell’s Commonwealth and the Glorious Revolution. We then discuss Locke’s general intellectual contributions to Western civilization and contrast him to another famed philosopher of the 1600s, Thomas Hobbes. Our discussion then leads to Locke’s (First) Letter Concerning Toleration, which Tony admits to being the longest “letter” he has ever read. Jason explains that since they didn’t have television or football back then, intellectuals usually spent their time writing. We look into Locke’s thoughts on whether or not individuals can be coerced into their faith and how this affects Locke’s view of church-state relations, followed by Locke’s views on religious toleration in an environment of increasing pluralism. Tony pushes Prof. Jewell on the issue of Locke’s toleration as it related to Catholics and how Locke may have viewed Mormons had he lived today. (Hat tip to Prof. Ruth Arnell, an avid listener, for suggesting that question on our Facebook page.) We wrap up by reviewing what Jason has been doing at Faulkner University and on his blog, The Western Tradition, as it pertains to the canonical readings of Western literature. Jason disappoints Tony by indicating that The Political Origins of Religious Liberty did not make the list of all-time classics. Listeners are encouarged to join Jason Jewell’s journey as he tackles several thousand pages of reading. Recorded: November 22, 2011.

RELATED LINKS

The Western Tradition, Jason Jewell’s blog where he is reading and reviewing the great works of Western literature.

Prof. Jewell’s specific post on John Locke on The Western Tradition.

Faulkner University.

RELATED PODCASTS

Allen Hertzke on Religious Liberty.

Mark David Hall on Roger Sherman, Puritan Patriot.

Roger Finke on Religious Persecution.

Patrick Mason on Anti-Mormonism and Mitt Romney

tonygill — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 08:00:31 +0000

With Mitt Romney making waves as a presidential candidate frontrunner for the Republican Party, we visit with Prof. Patrick Mason — the Howard W. Hunter Chair of Momon Studies at the Claremont Graduate University — to discuss the history of anti-Mormon bigotry in the United States tracing it back to the founding of the faith in the 1820s. We start be examining the diaspora of Mormons westward and into the postbellum South, the latter which is the focus of Prof. Mason’s most recent book. Patrick provides a detailed description of the Cane Creek Massacre, which exemplifies some of the violent hostility faced by Mormons in the 19th century. Our conversation covers Mormon relations with Native Americans and African Americans, and then moves on to cover one of the most controversial aspects of Mormon history — polygamy — which served to animate a great deal of the animosity that the LDS Church faced. Prof. Mason explains the historical aspect of that practice, how it was viewed by non-Mormons, and why it was eventually abandoned by the main church. Tony then raises two interesting questions about why Mormons have become one of the most patriotic segments of American society, and why anti-Mormonism has persisted even though many of the issues that gave rise to bigotry have been resolved for over a century, namely the polygamy question. As to the former question, we speculate about why a persecuted religious minority would strongly embrace the patriotic norms of a nation that once excluded them. The latter question leads us into a discussion of whether lingering bias against Mormons will affect the presidential aspirations of Mitt Romney, and we make comparisons to the cultural obstacles that Catholics and Jews had to overcome to be accepted into the mainstream of American political life. Recorded: September 19, 2011

RELATED LINKS

Patrick Q. Mason’s website at the Claremont Graduate University.

The Mormon Menace: Violence and Anti-Mormonism in the Postbellum South, by Patrick Q. Mason.

Claremont Mormon Studies website.

RELATED PODCASTS

Michael McBride on Religious Free-Riding and the Mormon Church.

Douglas Baker on Dominionism, Michele Bachmann, and Rick Perry.

Louis Bolce on the Media and Anti-Fundamentalism.

Bradley R.E. Wright on Christian Stereotypes.

William Donohue on Secular Sabotage.

David Brody on the 2010 Midterm Elections and Religious Journalism

tonygill — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 09:00:42 +0000

What role did religion play in the 2010 midterm US elections? While scholarly assessments of this question may take awhile to be published, we turn to David Brody, chief political correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), to get his perspective from inside the beltway. Mr. Brody — an Emmy Award-winning journalist and frequent guest on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News — has interviewed a number of prominent politicians who played a role in the recent elections, including Barack Obama, John McCain, Christine O’Donnell and Sharron Angle. He shares his unique perspective on being a journalist for a religiously-affiliated news outlet regarding how the the 2008 and 2010 elections played out and what changes occured in the religious and political landscape over the past two years. We talk about the role that evangelicals played in the Tea Party movement, a story that Mr. Brody considers to be one of the most under-reported stories of the election. Our discussion also covers what happened to pro-life Democrats following their vote for major changes in health care insurance, the consequence for three Iowa judges following their decision to overturn a voter iniative on gay marriage, and what role religion played in the candidacies of Christine O’Donnell (Delaware) and Sharron Angle (Nevada). We explore the various tensions between evangelical Christians, secular libertarians and Mormons within the Tea Party phenomenon and David tells us about where “teavangelicals” came from. David also offers up some thoughts on the upcoming 2012 presidential election. We finish with an interesting discussion on what life is like for a Christian journalist in Washington, DC and a secular media world. Recorded: November 9, 2010.

NOTE: Shortly after posting this podcast, David Brody was promoted from wnior White House correspondent to chief political correspondent at CBN. Us folks at Research on Religion can only assume that we played a vital role in this promotion. After all, once you are on RoR, you’ve reached the pinnacle of your profession.

The Brody File blog on CBN.

RELATED LINKS

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elecctions and the God Gap.

Ron Hassner on Sacred Spaces and Conflict

tonygill — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 09:00:26 +0000

Religious conflict has been common throughout history. But why have conflicts over sacred spaces such as shrines or temples been so remarkably difficult to solve, especially when compared to conflicts over more “secular” territory or issues? Ron Hassner — assistant professor of political science at the University of California at Berkeley, and the co-director of the Religion, Politics, and Globalization Program — presents an intriguing explanation for the intractability of religious conflict. He argues in plain and simple language that the nature of “sacred ground,” specificially its indivisibility, frequently makes conflict impossible to resolve between two parties who are contesting the ownership or control of sacred space. Prof. Hassner vividly illustrates his theory with a number of intriguing examples including the conflict over the Temple Mount / Haram el Sharif in Jerusalem, the controversy over the building of a mosque and Islamic cultural center near the World Trade Center in NYC, and several other historical conflicts. Near the end of the podcast, Prof. Hassner notes that it may be impossible to end conflict over various sacred spaces, but there are means for mitigating the negative effects of such conflict. He appeals to diplomats to include the views of religious authority when crafting mutually agreeable settlements to conflict. Recorded: October 15, 2010.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. Ron Hassner’s website at UC-Berkeley.

War on Sacred Grounds, by Ron E. Hassner (Cornell University Press).

The Religion, Politics and Globalization Program at UC-Berkeley.

RELATED PODCASTS

Eli Berman on religious terrorism.

Rod Stark on the Crusades.