LOUISVILLE — Was America founded as a Christian nation—or is the truth far more complex?

This piece appeared yesterday at the blog of the Christian Scholars Review. Here is a taste: Today, Christian universities can offer visible, comparatively inexpensive, signs of institutional seriousness on diversity issues: a lecture series, a strategic-plan commitment, retreats, or a new office with a diversity mandate attached to its title. This is all well and good. But these projects are happening within the same budget cycles that quietly let go of the more expensive, more permanent kinds of commitments to diversity: a language program, a philosophy line, a humanities position not refilled when its holder retires. These decisions are described to the faculty as “prioritization.” Read the entire piece here.

The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast is back for another season! In this episode, we talk to historian Marc Stein, the current president of the Organization of American Historians, about the 2…

The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast is back for another season! In this episode, we talk to historian Marc Stein, the current president of the Organization of American Historians, about the 200th anniversary of the United States. Stein's new book, Bicentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970s, chronicles the Bicentennial celebrations in Philadelphia and across the nation.  In the process, we learn more about American urban history, public history and commemoration, and the way diverse and under-represented communities challenged prevailing narratives of American identity. Apple Podcasts iHeartRadio…

Three biographies of America’s founders.

Still on vacation, but had some time to post this: Christianity Today has published my latest tripartite review of history books. It’s a unique format. They have asked me to review a new book, a book that is roughly one year old, and an older book. This month’s title is "The Founding Father Most Americans Couldn’t Name." The books are: Scott Greenberg, The Forsaken Founder: Gouverneur Morris, the Unsung Patriot Who Wrote the Constitution, Stood Up to Slavery, and Survived the Reign of Terror John Garrison Marks, Thy Will Be Done: George Washington’s Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory (University of North Carolina Press, 2026) Eric Foner, Tom Paine and Revolutionary America (Oxford University Press, 1976) Read the reviews here.

I'm taking a blogging vacation. My daughter is getting married! I may chime in every now and then if the spirit leads, but there will be no Author's Corners, Sunday Night Odds and Ends, or Evangelical roundups until the second week of October.

The College of Liberal Arts at Auburn University cultivates thinkers, creators, innovators and global leaders. We prepare our students to think beyond known solutions and solve real-world issues affec...

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics: "Du Mez is right: This story does end in a dark place, and she can’t find her way out of it." Caroline Fraser reviews Kristin Du Mez's Life, Laugh Love: The Secret History of White Christian Women and the World They Made. Here is a taste: But while she promises a “secret history,” her book largely corrals figures well known to those who’ve wandered in the weirder corners of our indigenous tradition: Joseph Smith, Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, Mary Baker Eddy, Norman Vincent Peale and Aimee Semple McPherson.

John T. Lowe is Senior Lecturer in the History Department at the University of Louisville and holds teaching appointments at Spalding University and Bellarmine University. This interview is based on his new book, Benevolence and Bondage: Jonathan Edwards, Slavery, Race, and the Paradox of Spiritual Equality (University of South Carolina Press, 2026). JF: What led you to write Benevolence and Bondage? JL: The book finds its origins back in 2015 at Yale Divinity. I was attending a summer seminar on “Jonthan Edwards and the Bible.” I remember as a young graduate student learning about Edwards’s participation in slavery and thinking “how could a leader of the Great Awakening defend something so evil?” It was there I decided to investigate how and why that was so.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics?: Donald Trump just nominated Franklin's Graham's daughter to serve as U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom: Tony Perkins and the Family Research Council are happy about it: So is PR guy and court evangelical organizer, Johnnie Moore: So is Eric Metaxas: *** Walter Kim, the president of the National Association of Evangelicals, recently spoke on Artificial Intelligence at The Pro-Human Assembly. *** Gary Bauer is upset that people are criticizing Tim Scott's speech at the GOP midterm convention.

On Thursday, September 17, 2026, I will be giving Auburn University's Constitution Day Lecture. Learn more here. If you are in the area, stop by and say hello!

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics: What do MAGA evangelicals think about foreign policy? I contributed to this report published today by the Council on Foreign Relations. *** The creator of one of the earliest evangelical religious liberty organizations is having second thoughts about the whole "religious liberty" racket he helped found. *** Evangelicals continue the conversation about Bonnie Kristian's Defending Evangelicalism and Kristin Kobes Du Mez's Live, Laugh, Love. Here is David Fitch, a Christian & Missionary Alliance pastor and theologian at Northern Seminary…

A few things online that caught my attention this week: “The United States of Earth” “Scalawags,” “Mugwumps,” and “Woke” Francis Fukuyama revisits hi…

Joe Pagetta is the Director of Communications at the Tennessee State Museum. This interview is based on his new book, The Apostle of Tennessee: The Indefatigable Life and Ministry of Father Aloysius Orengo (Vanderbilt University Press, 2026). JF: What led you to write The Apostle of Tennessee? JP: I was already interested in Tennessee’s Italian and Catholic history as part of my own neverending cultural and faith formation and exploration, you might say. As a second generation Italian American -- my father immigrated from southern Italy in the 1960s -- and cradle Catholic, I’m continually trying to understand the great Italian Catholic diaspora I am a part of.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics? J.D. Vance is Catholic, but he sounds evangelical. More here. *** Two new books — one by Bonnie Kristian and the other by Kristin Kobes Du Mez — illustrate the ongoing debate over the definition and meaning of evangelicalism. Here is a recent exchange on Threads: Rick Piddock of Baptist News Global: The conservative evangelical complaints about Kristin Kobes Du Mez's new book "Live Laugh Love" are starting to come in. Here's my latest. Paul Putz of Baylor University: "I think Kristin Du Mez is an outstanding historian.

A few things online that caught my attention this week: "The United States of Earth" "Scalawags," "Mugwumps," and "Woke" Francis Fukuyama revisits his writing of "The End of History." More here. The Pan-American Highway Adam Hamilton is a Methodist minister running for the U.S. Senate in Kansas. He is a moderate Democrat. Does non-fiction have a future? Campus gates Lonnie Bunch's road to retirement at The Smithsonian Revisiting the Time cover: "Is God Dead" Before suburbs came to Long Island Young people are reading. They are…

Yesterday at Christianity Today, I wrote about how American evangelicals responded to the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Today, in a special evangelical roundup, we've collected some evangelical reactions to the 25th anniversary of 9-11. …

Here is a taste of my piece today at Christianity Today: Liberty University students who got up for an early class on September 11, 2001, may have skimmed a copy of the Liberty Champion at breakfast in the dining hall. If they did, they may have read about the university’s Spiritual Emphasis Week, or about renovations to the major academic building on campus, or about how international students added “flavor” to the Lynchburg, Virginia, campus. Some may have perused an editorial cautiously urging them to get vaccinations for meningitis and hepatitis B. 

Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Way of Improvement Leads Home: Evangelical roundup for September 7, 2026 Evangelical roundup for September 4, 2026 Sunday night odds and ends Evangelical roundup for September 9, 2026 Evangelical roundup for September 10, 2026 Evangelical roundup for September 8, 2026 Lonnie Bunch resigns as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Don’t Vilify Educated People The Atlantic tackles Seven Mountain Dominionism Evangelical roundup for September 3, 2026

Over at The Atlantic, Jonathan Chait reflects on George W. Bush's response to Islam in the wake of 9-11. Later in the piece, he compares Bush's response to Trump's approach to Islam on the 25th anniversary of this tragic day. Here is a taste: The current New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, has affronted one of his predecessors, Rudy Giuliani, by taking the inflammatory step of deciding to attend the city’s 9/11 commemoration. “It offends me,” Giuliani proclaimed earlier this week on Newsmax. One might suspect that the nature of Mamdani’s offense lay in his being a politician who is associating himself with a day that Giuliani prefers to associate with Giuliani.

The Brazilian Supreme Court has an "openly evangelical member" who is playing a role in the country's presidential election. *** Robert Jeffress, the court evangelical and pastor of First Baptist Church--Dallas, spoke at the GOP midterm convention in Dallas this week. He said that James Talarico, who is running for Senate in Texas, was "blasphemous" and "evil." He said the members of the Democratic Party were "advocates for evil." More here. He's also been tweeting about it: *** Evangelicals remember Charlie Kirk on the one-year anniversary of his death:

This one goes out to all those who wore the cross of their calling on September 11, 2001.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics? Should we reclaim the word "evangelical" for the sake of the global church? *** Brandon Showalter of The Christian Post praises Charlie Kirk for the way he integrated faith and politics. More on the anniversary of Kirk's death: *** Focus on the Family urges evangelicals to vote in the upcoming midterm elections and choose candidates who defend the sanctity of human life, religious freedom and free speech, biological gender distinctions, traditional marriage, and the rights of children to be raised by their mother and father.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics?: Historian Daniel K. Williams reviews Robert Jones's Backslide: Reclaiming a Faith and a Nation After the Christian Turn Against Democracy. The review, published in Christianity Today, is titled "Rejecting Evangelicalism Is Not How We Restore Democracy." *** Christianity remains central to the Texas U.S. Senate race between James Talarico, a progressive Christian, and Ken Paxton, a right-wing evangelical. *** Former Obama adviser Michael Wear on civic literacy. *** World Relief's Matthew Soerens on evangelicals and immigration: …

Today we were in the studio recording Episode 137 of The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast with the Organization of American Historians president, Marc Stein. We discussed his new book, Bicentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970s. It was a great conversation. The episode will drop soon. We are still working on securing our Fall lineup, but we currently have confirmations from historians Frank Cogliano, Jonathan Earle, Vaneesa Cook, Annette Gordon-Reed, and Cory Haala. Stay tuned. It's going to be a great season. Don't forget to subscribe and, if the spirit leads, consider helping us keep this podcast going by hitting the black PayPal button below. (You don't need to have PayPal to contribute; you can use a credit card. We accept one-time and monthly donations!)

Here is The New York Times: After a seven-year run marked most recently by attacks from the Trump administration, Lonnie G. Bunch III announced on Tuesday that he was stepping down as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. The White House has escalated its criticism of how the Smithsonian presents American history and values, prompting concern from some about what they see as an assault on the institution’s autonomy and commendation from others for reining in an organization they view as overtaken by liberal bias. In an interview, Mr. Bunch, 73, said it was not the pressure that had led to his departure.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics? Concerned Women for America responds to the death of Gloria Steinem *** Lorenzo Sewall, a MAGA pastor in Detroit, is making news for his criticism of Christian Democrats. *** Southern Baptist theologian Daniel Darling reviews Jared Huffman's No Prophets: The Fight to Save Democracy from Christian Nationalism *** Tony Perkins: Putin's war on Ukraine is a spiritual war *** Jenna Ellis, the disgraced Trump election fraud lawyer, on "serious conservatives": Looks like Jenna Ellis and Shane Claiborne agree on something:

A few things online that caught my attention this week. (Blogger Ben Railton reminds us that this is my 819th “Odds and Ends.”) Barbara Kingsolver on Wendell Berry Jedidiah Britton Purd…

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics? Bonnie Kristian explains why her evangelical faith is not "a cancer" *** Richard Land, the former president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Commission, responds to Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Albert Mohler's call for a religious test for political office. Warren Throckmorton covers this story here. Bart Barber, the former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, supports Land: William Wolfe has Mohler's back: So do Rigney and Helfenbein: Should Mohler resign for his un-Baptist views?

A few things online that caught my attention this week. (Blogger Ben Railton reminds us that this is my 819th "Odds and Ends.") Barbara Kingsolver on Wendell Berry Jedidiah Britton Purdy on Wendell Berry The Yankees post-9/11 run William Hogeland on George Washington and the battle at Fort Necessity Jill Lepore on the "America that 9/11 made" Francis Fukuyama wants us to know that his "end of history" idea was misunderstood. Intellectual historian James Livingston on how AI might move us from capitalism to democratic socialism. Lindsay Chervinsky on…

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics? Wendell Berry: culture warrior *** Jim Wallis on loving your neighbor during election season *** Evangelicals and Muslims in McKinney, Texas. Another view on this case. *** Albert Mohler's Christian nationalism *** World Vision's work with UNICEF: *** "Junior partners" and "senior partners": *** Sean on resisting: *** Southern Baptist megachurch pastor J.D. Greear on a recent 1st Amendment case regarding AI-generated child sex abuse material: *** Southern Baptist pastor Tom Buck has some questions for Christian nationalist Joel Webbon:

Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Way of Improvement Leads Home: Wendell Berry and The Way of Improvement Leads Home Evangelical roundup for August 31, 2026 SPCK acquires Eerdmans Publishing Evangelical roundup for September 1, 2026 Evangelical roundup for September 2, 2026 Sunday night odds and ends Evangelical roundup for September 3, 2026 Endorsements for “In God We Trust: Was America Founded as a Christian Nation?* Early responses to the death of Wendell Berry Evangelical roundup for August 28, 2026

I encourage you to read Bob Smietana's piece at Religion News Service. It is titled, "We tried Christian nationalism in America. It went badly." It's a good piece of reporting on modern-day Christian nationalists like Charlie Kirk, Al Mohler, and Josh Abbotoy. But the piece's overall framing is problematic on several fronts. First, it claims that "Christian nationalism" was "tried" in colonial New England and it "did not go well." It celebrates Baptists like Isaac Backus and Roger Williams. Indeed, Baptists pushed the New England congregational establishment to respect their religious liberties.

Happy to see this. The book releases on September 29th. Pre-order today from your favorite bookstore! I recommend Byron Borger at Hearts & Minds Books. Debates about whether the U.S. was founded on Christian principles require a close understanding of “the relationship between the past and the present,” according to this clear-eyed account, a condensed version of the 2016 edition of the book. Historian Fea (Believe Me) tackles different reasons America is said to be a Christian country, putting each one into context, as when he notes that while many of the founding fathers were Christian, their religious identities differed dramatically from modern-day definitions of faith.

I am happy to have my first piece published at Mere Orthodoxy, a thought journal situated in the broader evangelical tradition that is doing some really good things. The piece focuses on the report that Donald Trump's Religious Liberty Commission issued in June 2026. The dek reads: "The deeper question this report raises is not whether religious Americans deserve protection. It is whether “religious liberty,” in this administration’s hands, means freedom for all faiths to practice without government interference." Here is a taste: The report also invokes religion’s “prophetic” role in American life.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics: First Things publishes an excerpt of Bonnie Kristian's In Defense of Evangelicalism: A Response to Its Cultured Despisers. *** Victor Marx, a GOP candidate for governor in Colorado, claims he has "met Satan in person." *** Two right-wing evangelicals wonder why young evangelicals are rejecting "boomer conservativism." *** Evangelical theologian Wayne Grudem on immigration: "We need some kind of third solution that is midway between 'open borders' and 'deport all illegal immigrants.'" *** Did the Smithsonian erase the founders?

A bit of news from the Christian publishing world: LONDON, 2 September 2026 – The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK Group) announced today it has acquired Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. With a history dating back to 1698 and a joint backlist of over 5,000 titles the combined group becomes the world’s leading independent Christian publisher of theology, biblical studies, and Christian trade books. SPCK Group and Eerdmans will be uniquely positioned to provide authors with full coverage of marketing, sales representation, and distribution on both sides of the Atlantic.

Thomas F. Rzeznik is Professor of History at Seton Hall University. This interview is based on his new book, A Monument of Charity: St. Vincent’s Hospital and Catholic Health Care in New York City (NYU Press, 2026). JF: What led you to write A Monument of Charity? TR: My interest in St. Vincent’s Hospital came in 2010, when news of its sudden closure made headlines. As a scholar of American Catholicism, I was struck by the fact that New York City had lost its last remaining Catholic hospital. I wanted to know more about the history of Catholic health care and its distinctive contributions to health and welfare in the United States.

What is happening today at the intersection of Evangelicalism and politics?: The Gospel Coalition reviews Bonnie Kristian's In Defense of Evangelicalism: A Response to Its Cultured Despisers *** Over at Christianity Today, Bonnie Kristian reflects on the "religious freedom showdown" at a nude spa in Seattle. More Bonnie Kristian: She reviews Kristin Kobes Du Mez's new book on Christian women and asks "where are the Bible studies?" *** Christianity Today reports on Franklin Graham's rejection of $300 million in Trump administration money. Lance Wallnau also has a view on this subject:

When I was writing The Way of Improvement Leads Home, my fellow historians would ask me about the "theory" that informed the book. I usually answered that the thinker who most influenced the book's moral framework was Wendell Berry. Here are some examples of Berry's influence in the book: The writer Wallace Stegner once said that "no place, not even a wild place, is a place until it has a poet." Philip Vickers Fithian was Cohansey's. He was a patriot in the classical Greek sense of the word--a lover of his…

I was reading in my commonplace book this morning and ran across this quote from Wendell Berry. It come from his essay "Discipline and Hope" published in the 1972 collection: A Continuous Harmony: Essays Cultural and Agricultural: Training is a process of conditioning, an orderly and highly efficient procedure by which a man learns a prescribed pattern of facts and functions.  Education, on the other hand, is an obscure process by which a person’s experience is brought into contact with his place and his history.  A college can train a person in four years; it can barely begin his education in that time.