Telling Jefferson Lies
The series was active from January-April, 2024. I am periodically posting bonus episodes throughout the remainder of 2024. Please subscribe so you will be notified.
Telling Jefferson Lies chronicles how history can be hijacked for ideological and political purposes, as well as a much broader story about the surge of Christian nationalism and the misuse of history which often goes along with it. The series begins with an in-depth consideration of the methods of Christian nationalist story teller David Barton. Then I tell the story of how his book on Jefferson was pulled from publication in 2012 and the response of evangelicals to that rare event. From there, I broaden the scope to examine the varieties of Christian nationalism and the negative consequences of this way of thinking about church and state. The last segment examines the reasons why the separation of church and state is good history, good civics, and good religion.
For more information, go to http://www.gettingjeffersonright.com.
Telling Jefferson Lies
The Spirit of Justice: A Bonus Episode with Jemar Tisby
On September 3, 2024, author and historian Jemar Tisby's new book The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance officially drops everywhere. Today, I am posting most of the interview I conducted with Jemar for use in my podcast series Telling Jefferson Lies.
In this episode, I recreate my questions because of a recording glitch in the original. The recording on Jemar's end was excellent with brilliant content to match, so this is a quality and thought provoking episode. We cover much of the podcast material (e.g., Thomas Jefferson as an enslaver, David Barton's faux history, the need for accuracy in history), but he also ventures into some discussion of why racism still persists in the present-day and the definition of evangelical and the need to see that category in political terms as much as or more so than religious terms. Add in the smooth tunes, and these 26 minutes are well worth your time.
Tisby, who is also Professor of History at the Simmons College of Kentucky appears in episodes 5, 6, 9, 11, and 13 of Telling Jefferson Lies.
The opening music is "That Guy" provided by Dustin Blatnik and Robo Surgeon Fish, and the closer is also Dustin Blatnik and Lo-Fi Hymnal with "Ain't No Grave."
Tell a friend and thanks for listening.