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What role do religious organizations play in constructing and reconstructing states? Denis Dragovic joins us from Australia to discuss his new book “Religion and Post-Conflict State-Building” and how he not only studied this topic, but also was an active participant in helping people around the world, and primarily the Middle East. Prof. Dragovic explains how religious groups — both international and domestic — help to contribute to the three key areas of state-building: legitimacy, security, and basic needs. Along the way, he also recounts how he helped rescue one of his aid workers who was kidnapped by rebels!

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Spring break is upon us, and while many of you are heading to the sunshine, we revive a popular interview from our archives on dark networks. We will return shortly with new episodes.

Dark networks are clandestine organizations that often engage in nefarious behavior. Often associated with religious terrorist groups, these dark networks are the focus of our discussion with Prof. Sean Everton of the Naval Postgraduate School. He covers the nature of these groups, how we learn about them via network analysis, and how counter-insurgency efforts are being crafted to disrupt these networks in places like Colombia, Indonesia, and Iraq.

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Author and professor Jim Papandrea returns to our podcast to discuss his new book “Seven Revolutions,” explaining how Christianity helped to alter our perceptions of, and actions toward, the human rights, community responsibility, and governance. We discuss what historical changes occurred in Christianity’s first four centuries and what that historical experience can tell us about religion’s role in the “post-Christian era” of today.

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Why would a Presbyterian who spent time in the ministry decide to convert to Catholicism? With a number of high-profile individuals making the same choice, we discuss this journey with Jim Tonkowich, former president of the Institute on Religion & Democracy. This interesting life story is peppered with sociological insights into church authority and structure, and the state of our religious environment today.

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In 19th century America, Jews disproportionately filled an important role in the US economy as peddlers and merchants who brought supplies to settlers in the westward expansion. Prof. Colleen Haight of SJSU explains the logic behind this phenomenon and links it to the economics of religion and the role that religious distinctiveness played in solving reputational problems. She also addresses the matter of hostility towards Jews and how this factored in to their chosen profession.

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What is it like to be Mormon and political in the United States? We invite Prof. David Campbell (Notre Dame) and Prof. Quin Monson (BYU) to discuss why members of the Latter Day Saints are considered a “peculiar people” (a term adopted from the Old Testament) and how this has affected their political affiliation and attitudes on a variety of issues. Both scholars also share their own perspectives growing up Mormon and how being a religious minority can affect one’s identity.

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Dr. Frank Newport, the Editor-in-Chief at Gallup, discusses the process of public opinion research and what it tells us about America’s changing religious landscape. We spend a significant amount of time discussing how polls are conducted, what their limitations are, and how survey companies like Gallup try to overcome these problems. This is a fantastic primer for those who are unfamiliar with survey research. We spend the second half of the interview discussing Dr. Newport’s book, “God Is Alive & Well,” which argues that America is still a vibrantly spiritual nation.

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With Independence Day quickly approaching, we once again take a look at the role of religion in shaping America’s Founding. Historian Jonathan den Hartog surveys the life, times, and influence of John Jay, one of the “forgotten Founding Fathers.” With a spiritual mix of French Prostantism and Anglicanism, we follow Jay through various phases of his life including his role during the struggle for independence, the tumultuous crafting of a new federal government, his time in public service, and his life in building civil society. Jay’s life provides a number of interesting insights that are still relevent for political and civic engagement today. Show off your impressive knowledge of this intriguing character at your Fourth of July celebration.

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You constantly hear how our contemporary era is in the throes of a “culture war” pitting the forces of secularism against religious fundamentalists. Would you be surprised to learn that this is not particularly new in American history? Prof. Barry Hankins (Baylor), author of “Jesus & Gin,” notes that cultural wars are quite common in American history. We spend time discussing one of the more prominent moments when this was true, The Roaring ’20s. We focus on Prohibition, big-name evangelists such as Billy Sunday, and the fundamentalist-modernist divide that was growing within Christianity. This podcast is a great antidote to those who think that we are living in unique times and that the secular is now conquering the religious.

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Frequent guest and popular academic author Rodney Stark joins us to discuss his new book “America’s Blessings: How Religion Benefits Everyone, Including Atheists.” We discuss whether or not spiritual life in the United States is actually on the decline, and then review how the activities of religious Americans have positive spillover effects for society as a whole in a wide range of areas including health, voluntarism, pro-social behavior, the economy, and intellectual life. We even talk about “s-e-x.” This is a wonderful “starter” podcast for new listeners as it covers a number of different themes we have addressed over the past three years.

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