Segments
With the Iowa Caucuses just days away, all political eyes are on the Religious Right. This week on State of Belief, Interfaith Alliance’s weekly radio show and podcast, Rev. Welton Gaddy sits down with some leading experts on the Religious Right to help us understand the forces we might see at play in the upcoming vote. We’ll hear from Frederick Clarkson of Political Research Associates about the proliferation of so-called religious freedom legislation, and Dr. Neil J. Young will discuss his new book about the Religious Right and interfaith politics. Finally, lest we convince ourselves that religion in America is all that matters today, The Rev. Elder Pat Bumgardner will update us on her important work to defend human rights abroad.
“When Exemption is the Rule,” Religious Freedom in America Today
For many years Interfaith Alliance and many of our allies have been deeply concerned about the proliferation of so-called religious freedom legislation. These laws seek to carve out broad exemptions to critical civil rights and health care laws, enabling people to force their faith on those around them and decimating our work toward equality. Frederick Clarkson is a senior fellow at Political Research Associates and he has literally written the book on religious exemptions. He’ll join Welton this week to discuss the startling new PRA report, “When Exemption is the Rule: The Religious Freedom Strategy of the Religious Right,” to examine how this new reality came to be.
The Religious Right and the Problem of Interfaith Politics
Here’s a tip: if you ever decide you’d like to be invited to appear on this show, just publish a book titled WE GATHER TOGETHER: The Religious Right and the Problem of Interfaith Politics. That’s what historian Dr. Neil J. Young did, and he’ll join us this week to walk us through this important book. Make sure to tune in to learn how an interfaith alliance (not ours, a different one) of rightwing religious conservatives has joined together to take control our political process.
The Annual Report: Bishop Bumgardner’s Update From Around the World
Our show typically focuses on domestic issues of religious freedom, but we know that our rights here at home can’t truly be divorced from the rights of people all over the world. That’s why we’ve developed a tradition of bringing Bishop Pat Bumgardner, executive director of the Global Justice Institute, on at the beginning of every year. She’ll give us an update on the critical work she’s doing to safeguard the rights of LGBT and other marginzalized individuals around the world, standing up for real religious freedom.
Green Means Go: The First Intersection Awards of 2016
In this regular feature, Welton Gaddy takes a look at several recent headlines from the intersection of religion, government and politics and awards color-coded recognition of how well they align with a constitutional view of our nation.
January 23, 2016 – When Exemption is the Rule; Interfaith Religious Right; Global Justice by State Of Belief Radio on Mixcloud
