Jim Papandrea on Christianity’s Seven Revolutions

tonygill — Sun, 22 Mar 2015 08:00:43 +0000

What difference does a religious tradition make? If it is Christianity, Prof. Jim Papandrea of the Garrett-Evangelical Seminary at Northwestern University says it matters a great deal. Jim returns to our show for the third time (hat trick) and discusses his new book Seven Revolutions: How Christianity Changed the World and Can Change It Again, coauthored with Mike Aquilina. The general thrust of the book is that Christian theology introduced to the world (at least) seven new ways to envision human society, starting with the individual person and proceeding up through the state.

Jim starts us off by listing the seven great revolutions introduced by Christian thought, including how we look at: the person, the home (and gender roles), work (and the laborer), religion, community, death, and (finally) the state. He also notes how Christianity promoted a “God of love” that opened the door to an inclusionary religion that shaped all of these critical areas. We then look into the fourth revolution — religion — more closely and Jim notes that although based upon a Judaic foundation, Christianity opens the door to proselytizing and including all peoples into one single religion. This has a major impact on how individuals and neighbors are conceived, and will impact the how early Christians opened the door to new thinking on government. We cover the reaction to this new message amongst the Romans of the day, which wasn’t always welcoming. Persecutions were common, yet Christianity kept growing culminating in its final acceptance under the Edict of Milan (313 CE). Jim discusses the role that Constantine played in this process and notes that the Edict of Milan, contrary to the notion that it established Christianity as the official church, was really the world’s first document on religious liberty. This springboards us into another one of Jim’s seven revolutions regarding the role of the state. Here we spend some time talking about how Christianity changed the notion of sovereignty by not placing the “person at the top of the governing pyramid” as the ultimate authority, but rather noting that God is a separate authority. Jim discusses how this translates into the role of citizen sovereignty and how it relates to the foundation of the US government some 230 years ago. We also take time to cover the revolutions of community (“love thy neighbor”) as well as how Christianity developed the concept of human dignity for all and how this helped change views on labor and family roles, not to mention the topics of euthanasia, abortion, and infanticide (practices common in the Roman Empire).

Our conversation ends with some reflection on Christianity in the “post-Christian era.” Jim qualifies that term by noting that there have been moments in history that have looked dire for the demise of the Christian faith, but he raises concern about a secular ethos that may be returning our culture towards the mindset of the pre-Christian era. We ruminate about the role that violent sport and reality TV (a form of entertainment that relishes in humiliation) and what role Christianity can play in addressing the contemporary culture. Jim ends on an optimistic note by asserting that Christianity is always primed for a revival and that by joining together across denominational lines, Christianity can remain highly relevant in the world. Recorded: March 17, 2015.

Lynita Newswander on Mormons in America

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

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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.

Research On Religion » reality television

Jim Papandrea on Christianity’s Seven Revolutions

Lynita Newswander on Mormons in America