Explore every episode of the podcast The Revealer

How are Christian women empowering the political right, and what are the issues that unite them? Katie Gaddini, author of Esther’s Army: The Christian Women Who Power the American Right, joins us to discuss the large demographic of politically conservative Christian women in the U.S. How do these women see themselves and their fellow conservative Christians? How do they view issues of gender, sexuality, and race? And, what might people on the political left do to encourage Christian women on the right to work for a more just and equitable society?

Why should we consider women specifically when thinking about the conspiracy theories that haunt and shape American politics? Noelle Cook, author of The Conspiracists: Women, Extremism, and the Lure of Belonging, joins us to discuss the women who stormed the Capitol on January 6 and the conspiracy theories they believe. What are some of the most prominent conspiracy theories January 6 women insurrectionists believe? How do conspiracy theories function like a religion? How are conspiracy theory communities a reaction to the problems facing the world? And, what can be done about the massive problem of political conspiracy theories today?

What are the limits of today’s wellness culture and how might thinking about the religious roots of wellness trends give them more meaning? Liz Bucar, author of Beyond Wellness: How Restoring the Religious Roots of Spiritual Practices Can Heal Us, joins us to discuss today’s wellness industry. How might things like yoga and fitness classes offer more if we think about religion? How might religion counter some of the dangers of detox dieting? What can some of the religiously-rooted teachings in Alcoholics Anonymous offer all of us? And, even for those of us who feel uncomfortable with religion, what can religious insights offer that can help with genuine well-being?

What is the history of evangelical queer activism? William Stell, author of Born Again Queer: A History of Evangelical Gay Activism and the Making of Antigay Christianity, joins us to discuss what gay evangelical activists set out to achieve. Who were some of the most prominent evangelical gay activists and what were their goals? How did evangelical leaders and institutions respond to this activism? What led to the decline in evangelical gay activism such that many people today cannot imagine it was ever a viable movement? And, what is the state of evangelical queer activism right now?

How is vaccine hesitancy in America like a religion? Kira Ganga Kieffer, author of Unvaccinated Under God: Religion and Vaccine Hesitancy in Modern America, joins us to discuss connections between vaccine hesitancy and religion. What factors contributed to large numbers of people expressing skepticism at pharmaceutical companies and medical authorities? What led to an alliance between vaccine-hesitant Americans and religious conservatives? How have predominantly Black churches tried to promote vaccines as safe? Why did the Covid vaccine become such a prominent religious freedom issue? And, what needs to happen so that vaccine-preventable diseases are not a danger in the United States?

What is contributing to the number of Puerto Ricans converting to Islam, and what is the longer history of Latino Muslims in the Americas? Ken Chitwood, author of Borícua Muslims: Everyday Cosmopolitanism among Puerto Rican Converts to Islam, joins us to discuss Puerto Rican Muslims. How do Puerto Rican Muslims navigate life as a religious minority in Puerto Rico and throughout the United States? How do they approach being a racial and ethnic minority in predominantly Muslim spaces? How do they blend their Puerto Rican ethnic identity with their Muslim religious identity? And, what do Puerto Rican converts to Islam reveal about religion in the Americas today?

What was life like in Gaza before October 7, 2023, and what has it been like since the ceasefire at the end of 2025? Gilbert Achcar, author of Gaza Catastrophe: The Genocide in World-Historical Perspective, joins us to discuss Gaza today and historically. How do the Palestinians in Gaza view Hamas? Why did it become politically complicated to call the mass death and destruction in Gaza a genocide? How does the situation in Gaza have global implications? And, what needs to happen in Gaza, in Israel, and around the world to greatly improve life for Palestinians today?

Why do so many white evangelicals, the religious group with the highest gun ownership rates in the country, believe they have a “God-given right” to possess firearms? William Kole, author of In Guns We Trust: The Unholy Trinity of White Evangelicals, Politics, and Firearms, joins us to discuss evangelicals’ fixation with gun access. Why don’t mass shootings, even in schools, provoke more than “thoughts and prayers” from most evangelicals? How do ideas about race and gender contribute to white evangelicals’ insistence on having unrestricted access to firearms? And, what can we do to address America’s gun problems and get enough evangelicals on board so that it will have a real political impact?

What does it mean to be intersex, and how have religious communities responded to the presence of intersex people? M. Wolff, author of Body Problems: What Intersex Priest Sally Gross Teaches Us about Embodiment, Justice, and Belonging, joins us to discuss intersex activism. What do intersex activists want from the medical field, religious communities, and the broader society? How did the Catholic Church react to the presence of an intersex priest? And what can everyone do to be more supportive and inclusive of intersex people today?

Why turn to the Bible to look for insights on transgender people and gender variation, especially when so many anti-trans people use the Bible to justify bigotry? Joseph Marchal and Melissa Harl Sellew, two editors of the book Trans Biblical: New Approaches to Interpretation and Embodiment in Scripture, join us to discuss what it means to do a trans interpretation of the Bible. What does the Bible have to say about gender variance? Why should cisgender people care about transgender interpretations of the Bible? And, as anti-trans rhetoric and policies proliferate, what can thinking about transgender people, the Bible, and religion help us with right now in today’s political climate?

How are some religious communities working to support and protect undocumented immigrants in the United States? Barbara Sostaita, author of Sanctuary Everywhere: The Fugitive Sacred in the Sonoran Desert, joins us to discuss why some religious people believe it is their duty to help migrants. What specific things are religious communities able to do for undocumented immigrants? What is life like for someone who takes sanctuary within a religious community? And, what can people who are outraged by ICE raids and deportations do to help immigrants today?

What is the history of Black Catholics in the United States, and what are the most pressing issues facing Black Catholics today? Tia Noelle Pratt, author of Black and Catholic: Racism, Identity, and Religion, joins us to discuss Black Catholics and racism in the Catholic Church. In what ways does the U.S. Catholic Church perpetuate systemic racism? How have Black Catholics tried to combat this racism? And, what should the Catholic Church and individuals do to address racism within Catholicism today?

Why have sex scandals been such a common feature of Protestant leadership in the United States? Suzanna Krivulskaya, author of Disgraced: How Sex Scandals Transformed American Protestantism, joins us to discuss the history of public sex scandals among Protestant pastors. What do these scandals say about the culture? How have disgraced ministers tried to rehabilitate their careers following scandals? And, what do recent sex scandals involving ministers like pastor Carl Lentz say about today’s culture, masculinity, and Protestant Christianity in America the 21st century?

What factors are contributing to the rightwing momentum among adolescent males in the United States? Angela Denker, author of Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood, joins us to discuss the rightward movement of white Christian boys and young men. What messages are teen boys receiving from social media influencers, youth pastors, and politicians about masculinity? What are the teachings in evangelical churches about Jesus and manhood? And, what should people do to try to reverse this rightwing movement among white Christian adolescents in the United States today?

What are the connections between borders, immigration, and religion? Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, author of Heaven Has a Wall: Religion, Borders, and the Global United States, joins us to discuss the United States’ deep investment in and fixation on national borders. What legal rights does anyone have within 100 miles of any of America’s national borders? How does a country that promotes religious freedom also enact a Muslim ban? How does the United States’ support for Israel and the maintenance of the borders Israel wants connect to religion? And, as the Trump regime moves to deport more immigrants and spend more tax dollars on ICE and Homeland Security, what should people do who want to protect immigrants, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion?

What exactly was the Black Panther Party, what did it set out to achieve, and what parallels exist between today and when the Black Panthers first started? Mary Frances Phillips, author of Black Panther Woman: The Political and Spiritual Life of Ericka Huggins, joins us to talk about a prominent member of the Black Panthers, the spiritual practices she developed while incarcerated, how her spiritual wellness practices helped other activists, and what lessons all of this offers activists today.

Given the amount of police and prisons in the United States, why is there still so much crime and what does that say about the effectiveness, or lack thereof, of policing and incarceration? Andrew Krinks, author of White Property, Black Trespass: Racial Capitalism and the Religious Function of Mass Criminalization, joins us to discuss the reasons police and prisons exist and if they actually make the country safer. What role does religion play in America’s system of criminalization? What are the racial disparities in the criminal justice system? And, what types of things should be established that might do a better job at preventing crime that would also create a more equitable society for everyone?

Who are the organizations, people, religious communities, and think tanks that are working to erode America’s democracy and push the country to authoritarianism? Acclaimed investigative journalist Katherine Stewart, author of Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy, joins us to discuss these groups, how they’re funded, and the power of their propaganda. How do things like anxiety over gender roles feed this antidemocratic momentum? How do some of these groups plan to make the country a more clearly conservative Christian nation? And, what can those of us who want to protect democracy do to push back against this authoritarian movement in the United States?

What are the countless insidious ways religion manifests in our culture, in our politics, and in our daily lives even if we ourselves are not religious people? Megan Goodwin and Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst, authors of Religion Is Not Done with You: Or, the Hidden Power of Religion on Race, Maps, Bodies, and Law, join us to discuss how religion shapes everything from our calendars to our healthcare systems and our laws. How are things like adoption tied up with religion? How do we fail to address social injustices if we don’t account for religion? And, once we begin to recognize how religion is everywhere, what should we do to help bring about a more just society?

Why does our culture celebrate forgiveness and how can the pressures to forgive cause harm to people who have already been wronged? What role does Christianity play in this cultural pressure, and what are common Christian message about forgiveness? Kaya Oakes, author of Not So Sorry: Abusers, False Apologies, and the Limits of Forgiveness, joins us to discuss the potential problems with forgiveness and their connections to religion. We also explore how religious institutions have sought forgiveness when they have harmed people. How have the Catholic church and the Southern Baptist Convention sought forgiveness for clergy abuse and why might those actions fail to convince many that sincere change and justice will happen? And what are possible models for forgiveness that could be helpful when one has been harmed by an institution, a religious leader, or another individual?

What exactly happened following the Supreme Court’s decisions outlawing prayer and devotional Bible readings in public schools, as well as the outlawing of racial segregation? Leslie Beth Ribovich, author of Without a Prayer: Religion and Race in New York City Public Schools, joins us to discuss public school secularization and desegregation, and the legacies of these monumental Supreme Court decisions. How did religion continue to appear in public schools? How did communities of color put forth their own visions for how to educate children? And, given the many battles over public education today, how does this history shed light on the ongoing debates about what can be taught in America’s public schools right now?

For the past few decades, several Black Christian denominations have seen a significant decline in religious affiliation and church attendance. Jason Shelton, author of The Contemporary Black Church: The New Dynamics of African American Religion, joins us to discuss what has contributed to these changes and how the Black church’s decline is altering Black life more broadly in the United States. How are Black religious leaders responding to these challenges, and why are their efforts to win over younger Black Americans not particularly successful? Why is the fastest growing denomination of Black Christians seeing an increase in people voting for Republicans? And, how are Black churches responding to today’s political and social issues?

What role did the substantial movement of Charismatic Christians play in January 6, and how are they shaping today’s Christian nationalism? Matthew D. Taylor, author of The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That is Threatening Our Democracy, joins us to discuss Charismatic Christianity, its prominent growth, and its place in the Republican Party. How have Charismatic Christians moved from the periphery of the Christian Right into the center? How do their beliefs influence their politics? And what should we expect from them and other Christian nationalist supporters following the election if Harris wins or if Trump wins?

For our 50th episode, we’re discussing American Jews who participate in activism to support justice for Palestinians. What has taken place over the past decade or so that has pushed many American Jews, especially younger Jews, to criticize Israel and to express solidarity with Palestinians? Oren Kroll-Zeldin, author of Unsettled: American Jews and the Movement for Justice in Palestine, joins us to discuss how Jewish activists infuse Jewish teachings and customs into their pro-Palestinian protests, why the visible presence of Jews at the college and university protests against Israel’s war in Gaza this spring was crucial, and what to expect this fall as students return to campus and as the situation in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank is far from resolved.

For what reasons do some people express shock when they learn that celebrities like Zac Efron and Drake are Jewish? What does their surprise say about people’s assumptions about Jewish identity and race? Jonathan Branfman, author of Millennial Jewish Stars: Navigating Racial Antisemitism, Masculinity, and White Supremacy, joins us to discuss stereotypes of Jews in the media and how some celebrities navigate them. We discuss the public personas of people like Seth Rogen, Lil Dicky, Ilana Glazer, and Abbi Jacobson. How do they attempt to address antisemitism but sometimes reinforce other things like misogyny? And what important lessons do representations of Jews in the media reveal about antisemitism and racism today?

Elisabeth Elliot was a longtime leader and icon within evangelical Christian communities who taught about marriage, sexuality, and gender roles. Liz Charlotte Grant, author of The Revealer article “Elisabeth Elliot, Flawed Queen of Purity Culture, and Her Disturbing Third Marriage” joins us to discuss her article about Elliot that went viral as soon as we published it. What were Elliot’s teachings about marriage and gender? What was taking place within her third marriage as she taught countless audiences about the supposed ideal Christian marriage? And how have evangelicals and others responded to our viral article about Elliot’s disconcerting life with her third husband?

With workplace raids, family separation, detention centers, and deportations, how are religious communities responding to issues facing Latinos in the United States? Gina Pérez, author of Sanctuary People: Faith-Based Organizing in Latina/o Communities, joins us to discuss faith-based activism within Latino communities and the New Sanctuary Movement. We discuss the religious roots of the sanctuary movement and how some religious communities are working to protect immigrants, how they’re helping families after workplace raids and deportations, and what the possibility of Donald Trump’s reelection portends for Latinos in the United States.

How have media depictions of Muslims been changing in recent years? Rosemary Pennington, author of the new book Pop Islam: Seeing American Muslims in Popular Media, joins us to discuss the place of Islam in American media. We discuss how Muslims have turned to pop culture to broaden ideas about Islam, how some Muslim performers have used humor to present a more robust picture of Muslim life, what we should make of the depictions of Muslims in shows like Ms. Marvel and Ramy, and what the place of Muslims in pop culture reveals about Islam in the United States today.

LGBTQ Republicans and LGBTQ conservatives are more common than many people may realize. Neil Young, author of Coming Out Republican: A History of the Gay Right, joins us to discuss LGBTQ conservatives and their place within the Republican Party. We discuss how gay Republicans responded to the rise of the anti-queer religious right in the GOP, how they worked to convince church-going Americans that it is okay to be gay, how they are responding to the current barrage of anti-trans legislation, and what they want for America as we head into the 2024 election.

What are the religious and political messages the massive Contemporary Christian Music industry broadcasts? Leah Payne, author of God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music, joins us to discuss why evangelical leaders invested so heavily in this industry and why they especially wanted it to resonate with teenagers. We discuss the racial, religious, and nationalistic ideas this music promotes, the music’s messaging about gender, and what Christian pop culture reveals about what evangelicals, Pentecostals, and other conservative Protestants envision for the United States and what they want in the 2024 election.

What is contributing to the growing and prominent movement of ex-evangelicals in the United States? Sarah McCammon, a National Political Correspondent for NPR and author of the forthcoming book The Exvangelicals: Loving, Living, and Leaving the White Evangelical Church, joins us to discuss why so many people are leaving white evangelicalism and how that exodus impacts the broader culture. We discuss ex-evangelicals’ insights about why so many evangelicals are primed to accept “alternative facts,” why most white evangelicals remain loyal to Trump, and what all of this portends about the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

How has Russia used religion as a tactic and justification for its invasion of Ukraine? Dr. Nicholas Denysenko, author of The Church’s Unholy War: Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and Orthodoxy, joins us to discuss the place of Orthodox Christianity within Russia’s war against Ukraine. How has Russia used the Orthodox Church to influence life in Ukraine? How have Russian Orthodox Church leaders justified the invasion and the horrific violence? And what can Orthodox Christians and other concerned people around the world do to help bring an end to this war?

How do your sexual behaviors reflect and influence your broader social interactions? Ethicist Dr. Rebecca Epstein-Levi, author of When We Collide: Sex, Social Risks, and Jewish Ethics, joins us to discuss sexual ethics for today’s world. What does it mean to be sex positive? What might the rabbis of the Talmud, writing more than a thousand years ago, have to say about social risks that could help us think about sexually transmitted infections and other sexual risks? And in a world that seems to be falling apart from climate change, war, and right wing politics, why is it especially important to pay attention to sexual ethics now?

The fight to make abortion access legal, just like the fight to outlaw abortion, is one replete with religious voices. For this episode, two experts on religion and reproductive rights join us to discuss these issues. First, we chat with Dr. Gillian Frank about religious leaders, like Reverend Elinor Yeo, who helped thousands of people in the U.S. get abortions before and after Roe v. Wade. Then, we chat with Dr. Sophie Bjork-James about pro-life evangelicals and connections between their opposition to abortion and their approach to climate change. – This episode is part of The Revealer’s 2023 special issue on “Religion and Reproductive Rights” that goes live October 4 at therevealer.org.

What is the spiritual birthing movement? Ann Duncan, author of Sacred Pregnancy: Birth, Motherhood, and the Quest for Spiritual Community, joins us to discuss the organizations and businesses that imbue pregnancy with a sense of the sacred. What do these groups offer pregnant people that they aren’t finding in traditional medical settings or traditional religious communities? How do they use spirituality and rituals to help with pregnancy, parenting, and the loss of a child? And what does the presence of these companies reveal about social inequalities among pregnant people throughout the United States today?

Why are some Muslims using female pronouns for God? Hafsa Lodi, author of The Revealer article, “The Muslim Women Using Feminine Pronouns for Allah,” joins us to discuss a growing trend among Muslim women. We explore Islam’s teachings about God’s gender, why Muslims have primarily used male pronouns for Allah, what some believe using female pronouns for God can achieve, and how discussions about pronouns reveal broader issues of gender within Islam, including the place of modest fashion industries around the globe.

What were Ronald Reagan’s religious views, how did they shape his politics, and how did they transform the United States? Diane Winston, author of Righting the American Dream: How the Media Mainstreamed Reagan’s Evangelical Vision, joins us to discuss how the media normalized Reagan’s conservative Christian influence on American politics. We explore how his evangelical ideas about welfare and communism became “normal” American perspectives, how religious rhetoric informed the AIDS epidemic, and what role Reagan played in shaping today’s Republican Party and the interplay of religion and politics in the United States.

How did summer camps become such an important aspect of the American Jewish experience? Sandra Fox, author of The Jews of Summer: Summer Camp and Jewish Culture in Postwar America, joins us to discuss what led to the growth and popularity of sleepaway camps for Jewish adolescents. We explore why Jewish communities invested so heavily in summer camps, the camps’ goals, and why Jewish leaders saw sleepaway camps as key places to protect the future of Jewish life in the United States.

Countless people find Vodou meaningful as a spiritual tradition and as a source of inspiration within a white supremacist world, and yet the tradition remains largely misunderstood. Eziaku Nwokocha, author of Vodou En Vogue: Fashioning Black Divinities in Haiti and the United States, joins us to discuss Vodou practices, especially as they relate to issues of gender, sexuality, and race. We explore how Vodou transcends gender and sexual binaries, how the gods of Vodou inhabit people’s lives and influence their decisions, and how Vodou helps Black Americans and others counter racism today.

Why do so many white evangelicals, despite holding tremendous political power, feel threatened by feminism, LGBTQ progress, and movements for racial justice? Sarah Diefendorf, author of The Holy Vote: Inequality and Anxiety Among White Evangelicals, joins us to discuss how evangelicals’ anxieties shape their political involvement. We explore their image problem among people who are turned off by their reactions to societal changes, how they are recruiting new members to their churches, and how white evangelicals are responding to issues like Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ equality today.

What is the connection between comedy and American Jews? Jennifer Caplan, author of Funny, You Don’t Look Funny: Judaism and Humor from the Silent Generation to Millennials, joins us to discuss the place of humor within American Jewish communities. How did Jews become disproportionately represented in comedy fields like standup and television writing? For what reasons have American Jews developed a reputation as a funny people? How has Jewish humor changed over time? And, as the image of American Jews continues to expand to include more people of color and queer people, how will Jewish humor change in the future?

How did the Federal Bureau of Investigations contribute to the rise of white Christian nationalism? Lerone A. Martin, author of The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism, joins us to discuss the place of religion and race at the FBI. Why did J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI’s long-serving director, believe a Christian America was a safer America and what did he do to make that vision a reality? How did the FBI form partnerships with conservative Christian leaders and institutions, and what religious activities took place at the FBI for its special agents? And how does knowing this history about religion and race at the FBI help us make sense of the rise in white Christian nationalism today?

Why are corporations and billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos invested in space exploration? Mary-Jane Rubenstein, author of Astrotopia: The Dangerous Religion of the Corporate Space Race, joins us to discuss the corporate space race and its connections to religion. We explore why the corporate space race is so concerning, what religious ideas undergird Americans’ beliefs that we have a right to colonize the cosmos, and how Indigenous religious teachings could help us think differently about our relationship to outer space in ways that could also help our planet.

In what ways are atheists stigmatized, and what are some reasons for social divisions among atheists? Chris Stedman, author of Faitheist: How an Atheist Found Common Ground with the Religious, joins us to discuss the 10th anniversary of his landmark book. We explore how atheists have partnered with religious communities to address social issues, why some atheists have been drawn to right-wing politics and white supremacy, and how atheists can respond to rising Christian nationalism in the United States.

This episode explores gender diversity in present-day Islam and in Jewish history. We chat with Dr. Katrina Thompson to learn how transgender and nonbinary Muslims are transforming Islam and creating spaces specifically for trans and queer Muslims. And we chat with Dr. Max Strassfeld to learn about the eight gender categories the rabbis of the Talmud devised during the first six centuries of the common era, and what their awareness of bodily gendered diversity can tell us about transgender politics and equality today.

What is religious cultural appropriation, and how might many of us be engaged in it right now? Dr. Liz Bucar, author of the forthcoming book Stealing My Religion: Not Just Any Cultural Appropriation, joins us to discuss why religious appropriation is so common. We explore prominent examples of religious borrowing, from non-Muslim women wearing a “solidarity hijab” to white Americans teaching yoga. And we discuss how one can respectfully borrow from religious communities in responsible ways.

What connections can be made between horror films and novels where Catholicism is prominent to actual horrors committed by the Catholic Church? Three experts of American Catholicism – Drs. Jack Downey, Matthew Cressler, and Kathleen Holscher – join us to discuss Catholic horror, both fictional and real. We explore why Catholicism has been such a popular source of inspiration for horror filmmakers and writers, what horror can reveal about contemporary society, and why examining horror can help us make sense of the clergy abuse crisis and other atrocities committed by the Catholic Church.

Why are various religious communities, as well as some non-religious Americans, deeply concerned about the place of pornography in the United States? Dr. Kelsy Burke, author of The Pornography Wars: The Past, Present, and Future, of America’s Obscene Obsession, joins us to discuss longstanding battles over pornography. We explore why various religious communities oppose pornography, why evangelical Protestants in particular are anxious about masturbation and sex addiction, and what disputes over pornography reveal about today’s political climate.

What happens when people go to Christian organizations that promise to help them change their sexuality or gender identity? Kristine Stolakis, director of Netflix’s acclaimed documentary Pray Away, and Lynne Gerber, author of Seeking the Straight and Narrow, join us to discuss conversion therapy and ex-LGBTQ ministries. We explore the beliefs these organizations promote about gender and sexuality, why such groups remain prominent today, and how to end conversion therapy for good.

How are Black Buddhists using Buddhism to heal from the traumas of racism? Dr. Rima Vesely-Flad, author of Black Buddhists and the Black Radical Tradition, joins us to discuss why Black Americans have been turning to Buddhist teachings and practices to deal with living in a white supremacist society. We also explore how Buddhism has helped Black Americans confront misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia, and how Black Buddhists have found a sense of stability within a deeply racist world.