Complexified

Live from the American Academy of Religion, Amanda Henderson speaks with Cheryl Townsend Gilkes, a leading scholar, sociologist, and ordained Baptist minister, about the enduring power of African American spirituals. Discover how these songs of survival and liberation expose lies, sustain communities, and offer a prophetic voice for justice in today’s political climate. Learn more about your ad ch...

Katelyn Beaty, author and co-host of Saved by the City, joins to examine the striking gender shift in evangelical churches, where Gen Z men now outnumber women in the pews. Beaty explores how pastors are adopting hyper-masculine tactics, from Monster Truck-style events to “Indiana Jesus,” to appeal to men seeking structure and belonging. Meanwhile, young women are walking away, rejecting spaces th...

Colorado State Rep. Iman Jodeh reflects on the political conundrums faced by Muslim voters amid the Gaza genocide and a growing sense of betrayal by traditional political allies. Jodeh shares how her community channeled feelings of abandonment and anger into advocacy, pressing lawmakers for accountability and grappling with the hard choices of the recent election. From her unique position as the f...

In this deeply challenging conversation, Dr. Miguel De La Torre confronts the “God of Trump” — a figure he sees as rooted in colonialism, capitalism, and dominance — and argues that for the most marginalized among us, true faith might mean embracing hopelessness over the comforting (and often dangerous) promises of hope. For De La Torre, democracy has always been fragile, especially for those marg...

As the political landscape grows ever more polarized, religious language has become a tool for framing debates in extreme, all-or-nothing terms. On the eve of the presidential election, Reverend Rob Schenck joins Amanda Henderson to discuss his journey from staunch political activism to a faith that values human connection over ideological allegiance. Schenck reflects on the powerful pull of frami...

Recent research reveals that while only 10% of Americans strongly embrace Christian nationalist views, a broader 34% sympathize with its underlying principles. Reporter Jack Jenkins joins Amanda Henderson to explore how these unspoken alliances within soft Christian nationalism are shaping the political landscape. By examining the subtle ways these beliefs impact voting, policy, and discourse, thi...

The growing controversy surrounding school vouchers and their use in private religious education is once again emerging. With public dollars increasingly directed toward faith-based schools, the question arises: Does this expand educational choice or undermine public schools? Joined by RNS contributor, Dr. Charles Russo, research professor of law and expert on First Amendment issues, we dive into...

The changing political landscape of Hindu Americans: we explore their shifting alliances from traditional Democratic loyalties to a growing alignment with the right. Host Amanda Henderson and RNS Hindu reporter Richa Karmarkar discuss the factors driving this transformation, from the influence of leaders like Kamala Harris and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the impact of caste discriminati...

In this episode, we sit down with Claire Giangravé, a Vatican correspondent for Religion News Service, to explore the pivotal discussions happening at the Synod on Synodality. With nearly 400 leaders of the Roman Catholic Church gathered in Vatican City, the role of women in church leadership has become a central focus. We dive into the historical resistance, theological debates, and cultural shif...

"The modern world is impossible to narrate without the idea of land as property and the seizing of land as property." "Imagination is our gift in creating and building new worlds." In this episode, Amanda talks with Dr. Willie James Jennings about the profound impact of our conceptions of land on our world today. Our distorted understanding of land as a possession has led to a shallow sense of con...

What makes someone leave everything they know? Why do people risk their lives crossing treacherous deserts into a land they are not welcome in? Migration Activist and Humanitarian Dora Rodriguez shares her story of survival after fleeing political violence in El Salvador in 1980. She compels us to see the deep humanity of those simply seeking safety and opportunity. SHOW NOTES As the Biden Adminis...

Listening to the needs in their community for housing and childcare led this Colorado Church to make a big decision. Rather than building a bigger church on the 11 acres they sat on, they decided to give the land away and develop a new non-profit with community partners. Does awareness of our history of land ownership in the U.S. shift the way Churches think about their land? “We don't hear storie...

As bodies were burning from this massacre at the Mystic River in Massachusetts in 1637, pious settlers gave thanks to God for the victory- and even identified that the bodies burning were a “sweet-smelling savor in the nostrils of God.” Is this really the Land of the Free? Does freedom for some depend on violence against others? Rev Dr. Lee Butler, President of Iliff School of Theology, shares his...

Did you know that for some enslaved Africans, small plots of land became ways to maintain culture and heritage- and even pathways to freedom? Soul Food Scholar, Adrian Miller joins us to share stories that tie land to belonging and survival. Amanda Henderson and Adrian Miller dive deep into the stories about navigating the ways of the land to cultivate food sovereignty within African American comm...

Amanda Henderson and Steven Newcomb discuss the Doctrine of Discovery and the ways in which religion has impacted the social and political frameworks amongst Native nations and the United States government.  In this conversation, Amanda Henderson and Steven Newcomb dive deeper into how the founding documents of the US contain a claim of a God-ordained right for Christians to take land from non-Chr...

Amanda and Amy dive into the complex relationship between land ownership and belonging in the US, drawing on biblical interpretations. Amanda emphasized the significance of land in shaping political and religious beliefs, while Amy offered nuanced interpretations of the Hebrew Bible, revealing how it has been used to justify land ownership and extraction. In this conversation, Amy and Amanda discu...

In this episode, Amanda Henderson talks to Dr. Kristina Lizardy-Hajbi, a biracial scholar and professor at the Iliff School of Theology. They explore the American dream through the lens of personal experiences and the stories of ancestors, especially focusing on the immigrant journey. Dr. Lizardy-Hajbi shares tales of her grandparents from Italy and Puerto Rico, revealing the challenges they had t...

In this episode, Amanda Henderson interviews Dr. Albert Hernández - a Cuban-American academic with a unique perspective on the American Dream. Dr. Hernández discusses the challenges faced by those who exist in-between cultures, feeling a lack of belonging to either.  He shares historical perspectives on the experience of immigration to the U.S, particularly from Cuba, and explores how global polit...

In this episode, Amanda Henderson talks to Nga Vương-Sandoval, a refugee from Việt Nam and United States Refugee Advisory Board Project Manager. The conversation explores the transformation of the American Dream, immigration histories and policies, and the experiences of refugees.  Vương-Sandoval shares her insights on the true meaning of the American Dream, which she believes should not be drowne...

Last month, we had our first live audience recording of Complexified! Amanda Henderson and Lex Dunbar welcomed Denver Drag Performers Juiccy Misdemeanor and Dixie Krystals for a provocative conversation confronting the efforts across the U.S. to ban drag performances. We laughed, we cried, we learned, and we laughed some more!  00:02 Introduction and Welcome 00:27 The Complexified Live Episode: Wh...

In this episode, recorded before the attacks by Hamas on Israel and the devastating response by the Israeli Military in Gaza, Colorado State Representative Iman Jodeh shares her family story of leaving Palestine in the late 1960s seeking refuge from daily discrimination and violence. Making a way meant teaching Americans about Islam and building bridges of understanding and awareness. Rep. Jodeh s...

In this episode, recorded before the attacks by Hamas on Israel and the devastating response by the Israeli Military in Gaza, Rabbi Joe, from Temple Emanuel in Denver, Colorado, shares his family story. His father’s family fled persecution in the late 19th century to find safety in the U.S.  After the terror of Kristallnacht, the night of the broken glass, his mother’s family fled to the U.S. Rabb...

Why is homeownership such an integral part of the American Dream? Why have some been systematically excluded from homeownership while others have been incentivized and subsidized to own their home? In this episode, Dr. Ben Sanders shares his family story of ownership and belonging from an experience as a Black American, as we continue to peel apart the myth of the American Dream.    Guest Bio  Ben...

One afternoon, her clothes, hair, language, name, and even her parents were taken from her.  In this episode, Navajo woman Bessie Smith, who survived the Indian Boarding Schools, shares her story of losing everything and then reclaiming the traditions she learned as a child to find healing.  Join us in this episode as we go to Bessie's home in Denver, Colorado, and hear about the day her parents w...

As debates rage in state legislatures and school boards about history curriculums or critical race theory or the impact of slavery, we know that how we imagine our future has everything to do with how we remember our past. In this episode, we begin our series pulling apart the stories we have been told about the American Dream through our own multiple, honest, complicated stories of Dreaming Ameri...