Just Liberty

What happens to refugees who have survived years of screening, separation, and uncertainty—only to see the door to safety suddenly close? Refugee attorney Mevlüde Akay Alp discusses the suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, its impact on families and persecuted religious minorities, selective exceptions to the suspension, and why several faith-based resettlement organizations have gon...

Canada and the United States share a border, but they approach religious freedom from markedly different legal and cultural starting points. We talk with Canadian attorney Kevin Boonstra about Quebec’s restrictions on religious symbols, Canada’s new Combatting Hate Act, and the difficult line between protecting vulnerable communities from hatred and preserving space for religious teaching and disa...

What happens when Christianity becomes entangled with the pursuit of political power? Religious studies scholar Matthew D. Taylor discusses his new book, Defying Tyrants, and what the anti-authoritarian witness of Jesus can teach Christians navigating today’s political divisions. Watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/e5oCuWqm_kA   Show Notes Website: Matthew D. Taylor’s website  Book: Defying Tyrants...

What exactly did our colonial forebears have in mind when they forbade laws "respecting an establishment of religion"?  And why have we been arguing about it ever since?  We take a tour through American history and Supreme Court jurisprudence with First Amendment scholar and author Charles Haynes.    Note: The interview in this episode was published on October 29, 2024. Watch the full episode on Y...

Christian nationalism has been in the media spotlight ever since the tumultuous events of January 6, 2021. But finding an agreed-upon definition for this phenomenon has proved elusive. What are we really talking about when we call someone a Christian nationalist? And how accurate, really, is that "Christian" label? Interview with Amanda Tyler, Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee for Religi...

On paper, the Seventh-day Adventist Church is one of America's smallest protestant Christian denominations. Yet through the years, it's had a surprisingly outsized influence on the national discourse around religious freedom issues. How and why did this happen? We unpack the fascinating and little-known history of Adventist advocacy with one of the church's foremost historians. Note: This intervie...

Could historical mis-readings of America's founding be helping fuel today's political polarization? What difference does it make what we believe about Thomas Jefferson's religious views or his attitude toward slavery? We talk with Warren Throckmorton, a psychologist, podcaster, and co-author of the book, Getting Jefferson Right: Fact-checking Claims About Our Third President. Note: This interview...

How and when did evangelical Christians become a predictable voting bloc? And what does this shift mean--not only for American politics, but for the church itself?     We talk with Barry Hankins, an author, professor, and renowned historian of the evangelical movement, about the consequences of politicized Christianity and the forces that drive it. This interview was originally published in Episod...

The Trump-created Religious Liberty Commission is studying how to protect faith in American public life. Its draft report raises a basic question: can free exercise thrive if establishment limits are weakened? Show Notes Document: Draft Report of the Presidential Religious Liberty Commission . Article | David Katibah, Four Key Takeaways from the Religious Liberty Commission's Draft Report , Religi...

The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Landor raises a basic question: what good is a religious-liberty right if the person harmed can't get a meaningful remedy? This episode explores whether American religious liberty works equally well for everyone—or whether minority traditions face higher practical barriers. Show Notes Article | Amy Howe, " Court rules former Louisiana inmate cannot sue prison...

Can people of deep religious conviction live together politically without trying to dominate one another? A Christian theologian and a Muslim political scientist believe that religion can strengthen American democracy, and that more religion in American life won't necessarily fuel more Christian nationalism. Show Notes Facebook: Matthew Kaemingk X: @matthewkaemingk LinkedIn: /in/matthew-kaemingk/...

A look at the contested legacy of Thomas Jefferson, religious liberty, and the way Christian nationalist arguments use—and misuse—the founding generation. Today's guest is Warren Throckmorton. Show Notes Substack: @warrenthrockmorton Facebook: WarrenThrockmorton Book | The Christian Past that Wasn't: Debunking the Christian Nationalist Myths that Hijack History, by Warren Throckmorton. Book | Gett...

Everyone wants a simple answer: Is America a Christian nation or a secular republic? One historian believes that America's history resists both slogans and suggests that the real story is messier than either side would like. Watch this episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/SvZHBy_KdWY    Show Notes Book | In God We Trust: Was America Founded as a Christian Nation? by John Fea.

When government speaks about God, who is included—and who is pushed aside? A conversation about official prayer, government religious speech, religious equality, and changing First Amendment jurisprudence. Article | "Why there are (and should be) constitutional restraints on government religious speech," by Alan Brownstein and Vikram Amar.

Former U.S. Ambassador for Religious Freedom, Sam Brownback, knows better than most what happens when a government decides that faith itself is a threat. Join this conversation on China, surveillance, persecution, and the fight for freedom of conscience that has implications far beyond China's borders. Show Notes Book | China's War on Faith, by Sam Brownback with Michael Arkush - https://www.simon...

Charlie Kirk's book on the Sabbath, released posthumously, has created quite a stir. We explore the push for a national shared day of rest and why it’s more complicated than it sounds. We get into the religious meaning of Sabbath, the history of blue laws, and what happens when the government gets involved in something that isn’t just about taking a break. Guest: Jonathan Cherne, author, attorney...

A straightforward look at dominionism—what people mean by it, how it shows up in our politics, and why it matters. We talk through how some Christians think about influence and power, what’s changing, and what it could mean for America's tradition of religious pluralism. Guest: André Gagné, Professor and Chair, Theological Studies at Concordia University Special Host: Stephen Allred, Church State...

How does some Christian end-times thinking turn Jews and Israel into props, skew how people read conflicts like Iran, and blur the line between geopolitics and theological agendas? And, more importantly, what does a more biblically grounded approach look like? Guest: Alexander Bolotnikov, biblical scholar and Director, Hebrew Bible Institute *** Show Notes Website | Hebrew Bible Institute - https:...

In a country where blasphemy can carry a death sentence, Pakistani politician Shahbaz Bhatti understood the cost of defending religious minorities—and ultimately paid it. Fifteen years after his assassination, his story is being retold through a creative medium aimed at engaging a new generation in the fight for religious freedom. Show Notes Book | Matt Yocum, Jordan Holt, Blood and Water: The Lif...

Religious freedom in America may be headed toward the edge of a cliff. Why? Because survey after survey shows that younger generations of Americans neither understand nor value the crucial role religious freedom plays in our democracy. What's behind this worrying trend? And can anything be done to rehabilitate the reputation of religious freedom in the eyes of Gen-Zs and Millennials? Interview wit...

It's far more than simply charm, or rhetorical skill, or political savvy. Charisma is a powerful force that has shaped American public and religious life--for both good and ill--for more than four centuries. Could an undertanding of this phenomenon help us make better sense of our national story? And why does it seem that Americans of faith are particularly vulnerable to its allure? Interview with...

Replay: An investigative journalist spent years exploring the politicization of American Christianity. Her work resulted in not just two best-selling books, but also a documentary, God & Country, which was produced by Hollywood actor and producer Rob Reiner. What first sparked her interest in this topic, and what lessons has she learned about the dangers of Christian nationalism? Interview ori...

How can we make sense of competing visions for the role of religion in American governance? We can start by following the paper trail left by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Interview originally recorded March 27, 2025, and released in Episode 46: Skeptics of church-state separation versus the historical record" on April 29, 2025. Watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/2DWjEjg5vrg ___ Guest: Steve...

Replay: No--"In God We Trust" wasn't inscribed on our currency during the founding era. And the motto "One Nation Under God" has a more recent origin than many might suspect.  We take a fascinating journey into a little-known era of American history; a time when the government was in the business of creating an "American religion." Guest: Andrew R. Polk, Associate Professor and Director of History...

Many Christians are exhausted by politics—caught between culture wars, partisan pressure, and a sense that something vital has been lost. This episode explores a healthier vision of public faith, drawing on the Black church’s tradition to ask how moral clarity, spiritual depth, and faithful witness can take us beyond "politics as usual." This episode was recorded on January 14, 2026. ___ Guest: Ju...