History From the Old Brick Church

The term race once meant any group of people with a common ancestor. But, by the late 17th century, it had taken on a new meaning as that of skin color. In 1682, the Maryland Assembly passed an anti-miscegenation law that, for the first time, designated a category of people using the term “white.” We will discuss with Dr. Cassandra Newby-Alexander how this novel legal terminology changed the cours...

History from the Old Brick Church is on hiatus for a few weeks to finish up our recording and editing of Season 2, which will air later this Spring. We will tackle such subjects as the Church and Race, Women's History, Bacon's Rebellion and the struggle of Indigenous Peoples in 17th Century Virginia. We'll also tell you about an interesting tale of a clergyman buried just beyond the...

Dr. Eric Mazur discusses challenges to religious freedom in the early American Republic. Religious minorities like the Mormons and Seventh Day Adventists were the victims of violence and discrimination. Several court cases have struggled to find the middle ground between anti-establishment and the freedom to express faith in the public square. We, as a nation, continue to pursue that “more perfect...

Podcast Host John Ericson interviews Author Tony Williams on the role of religion in the Constitution. This episode focuses on Article VI, which prevents religious tests for holding public office, and the 1st Amendment, which guarantees that the federal government will not establish religion or interfere in the free exercise of religion. Williams expounds on the challenges that continue to test us...

In this episode, we discuss the religious context of the American Revolution. Our guest speaker is an author, Dr. Spencer McBride, who writes about the role of clergy in influencing people on both sides of the conflict, the role of military chaplains, and the religious issues that were among the many grievances of the Colonists towards Parliament and King George III. While the American Revolution...

In the early years of the 17th Century, religious warfare was raging in Europe and England was struggling with various reform factions that caused deep divisions and violence. Recent archaeological evidence from Jamestown suggests that the Colony was far more religiously diverse than previously realized and those divides had an enormous impact on the shape of the Colony’s politics and governing pr...

People often confuse history with memory. History is the study of the past through the investigation of primary source materials, scientific data, and reportage. Memory is a community’s reflections on a past event or people, usually with a goal of influencing current agendas. Guest speaker, Dr. Sheri Shuck-Hall, will discuss the distinction between the two and why it’s important for us to understa...

Podcast host, John Ericson, interviews Rachel Popp, St. Luke’s Education Coordinator, about the mission of St. Luke’s Historic Church & Museum. This episode outlines the first part of the podcast series, which focuses on issues of Religious Freedom.  Rachel Popp is a graduate of Christopher Newport University with a Bachelor’s in History and Childhood Studies minor. Popp has been the Education...