Ep. 07: Christian nationalism, race and white supremacy

What is the connection between the history of racism and Christian nationalism? On this podcast, Jemar Tisby shares a historical view of white Christian nationalism in America, including how conflations of politics, race and religion in our past continue to impact conversations today. The author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism, Tisby discusses how American Christianity and racism have overlapped for more than 400 years, including examples across several centuries of history. Don’t miss this important conversation to better understand our country’s origins and how we can work together to dismantle the idea of white Christian nationalism.

This is episode seven of our 10-week podcast series on Christian nationalism. Visit BJConline.org/ChristianNationalism for more on the series and the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign. Other episodes are available at this link or wherever you listen to the BJC Podcast – we’re available on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), SoundCloud, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Google Play and more. 

Scroll down for additional resources related to this podcast.

Show notes:

Jemar Tisby is president of The Witness, a black Christian collective that engages issues of religion, race, justice, and culture from a biblical perspective. He also co-hosts the Pass the Mic podcast and is the author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism. You can follow him on Twitter at @JemarTisby.

As mentioned at the end of the podcast, Tisby is also part of the Joy and Justice Conference, taking place October 4-5 in Chicago. Organized by The Witness, this conference continues the 400-year history of black joy and justice.

During the conversation, several authors, books, and projects were mentioned:

When defining racism, Tisby mentioned the work of psychologist and author Beverly Daniel Tatum, who is also a former president of Spelman College.

Tisby also mentioned the work of Daniel Hill, author of White Awake: An Honest Look at What it Means to be White.

When discussing solutions and how we can work together to dismantle white Christian nationalism, Tisby mentions Ibram X. Kendi’s book How to Be an Antiracist.

During this conversation, Tyler and Tisby discuss the 1619 Project from The New York Times and the backlash it has received. The project aims to reframe the country’s history, placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the center of the story.

The Christians Against Christian Nationalism statement includes this statement: “It often overlaps with and provides cover for white supremacy and racial subjugation.” Read the entire statement and add your name at ChristiansAgainstChristianNationalism.org. And, read the FAQ page that talks more about that part of the statement.

This episode is a companion to episode 3 of our podcast series, which discusses the religious and political history behind the idea that we were founded as a “Christian nation,” featuring Dr. Steven Green and Dr. Bill Leonard. You can listen to that episode here.