Expensive Revealer readers,
For the previous a number of months, I’ve been fascinated by how I have no idea a lot about my mom’s household historical past. Due to my distinctive final title, my father’s household has been simpler to hint. However my mother’s household title, Weiss, is extra widespread. To study a bit about them, I’m touring to the Alsace area of France this summer time the place they as soon as lived, an space that went backwards and forwards between French and German management a number of occasions. The area was as soon as house to a large portion of France’s Jewish group. The Jews of Alsace confronted persecution and pogroms within the Center Ages, expulsion from the principle metropolis of Strasbourg, the flexibility to return to Strasbourg years later however with a prohibition from working most professions, citizenship beneath Napoleon, antisemitism beneath Napoleon when the Jewish group didn’t assimilate to his liking, and annexation by Germany throughout WWII. Though most of Alsace’s Jews fled, had been deported, or had been murdered throughout WWII, Alsace nonetheless has Jewish communities in the present day. However my household misplaced its connection to Alsace when my great-great-grandparents immigrated to the USA within the Eighteen Eighties. They embraced America; my nice grandfather even turned a “gentleman farmer” in Ohio when he retired from the corporate he ran. And now, a long time later, I do know virtually nothing about any connections to their previous in Alsace.
The June difficulty of The Revealer is about analyzing our pasts—private pasts, nationwide pasts, and non secular pasts—to make higher sense of our current. The problem opens with Noah Berlatsky’s “Christian Science as Jewish Custom,” the place he explores why so many American Jewish ladies, together with a number of in his circle of relatives, embraced Christian Science firstly of the 20th century and what which may inform us about assimilation and Jewish identification in the USA in the present day. Then, in “On the Banality of Evil in Catholic Horrors Movies,” Matthew Cressler appears to be like at two current movies, Killers of the Flower Moon and The Zone of Curiosity, to discover the Catholics in them who dedicated atrocities and what classes these movies maintain for in the present day’s world. Subsequent, in “Racism and Faith in America,” an excerpt from The Faith of Whiteness: How Racism Distorts Christian Religion, Michael Emerson and Glenn Bracey examine what has been taking place in American Christianity traditionally and presently that may assist clarify why the USA continues to have such profound race issues and inequities. After that, in “Homes of Worship Supporting Latino Communities and Defending Individuals from Deportation,” an excerpt from Sanctuary Individuals: Religion-Primarily based Organizing in Latina/o Communities, Gina M. Pérez highlights non secular communities which have provided sanctuary to immigrants going through deportation.
The June difficulty additionally consists of the most recent episode of the Revealer podcast: “Latino Religion-Primarily based Activism and the New Sanctuary Motion.” Gina Pérez joins us to debate faith-based activism inside Latino communities and the non secular roots of the sanctuary motion to guard immigrants. We discover how religion communities are serving to households after office raids and deportations, and what the potential for Donald Trump’s reelection portends for Latinos in the USA. You possibly can take heed to this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
On this difficulty we’re additionally spotlighting our current three-part podcast collection on “Conservative Faith and Politics in the USA.” The primary episode, “Ex-Evangelicals and U.S. Politics,” that includes NPR’s Sarah McCammon, explores ex-evangelicals’ insights into why white evangelicals stay loyal to Trump and why they proceed to maneuver additional to the political proper. The second episode, “Modern Christian Music’s Political and Non secular Messages,” that includes Dr. Leah Payne, examines the political and non secular aspirations of conservative white Protestants over the previous a number of a long time by way of the Modern Christian Music trade. And the third episode, “LGBTQ Republicans,” that includes Dr. Neil Younger, explores why LGBTQ Republicans have stayed inside the GOP and what their affiliation with the anti-trans and anti-queer non secular proper reveals about in the present day’s political coalitions.
Because the articles and podcast episodes on this difficulty spotlight, uncovering issues from our previous could be painful and disappointing, however they can be sources of perception. As we head into the summer time months, I hope our June difficulty evokes you to look into your individual histories. And I hope extra folks take the time to understand why figuring out our nationwide, cultural, non secular, and private lineages is of nice significance for addressing the urgent points we face in the present day.
Yours,
Brett Krutzsch, Ph.D.
P.S. We publish a mixed July/August difficulty each summer time. Search for The Revealer’s 2024 Summer season difficulty the primary week of August!
Expensive Revealer readers,
For the previous a number of months, I’ve been fascinated by how I have no idea a lot about my mom’s household historical past. Due to my distinctive final title, my father’s household has been simpler to hint. However my mother’s household title, Weiss, is extra widespread. To study a bit about them, I’m touring to the Alsace area of France this summer time the place they as soon as lived, an space that went backwards and forwards between French and German management a number of occasions. The area was as soon as house to a large portion of France’s Jewish group. The Jews of Alsace confronted persecution and pogroms within the Center Ages, expulsion from the principle metropolis of Strasbourg, the flexibility to return to Strasbourg years later however with a prohibition from working most professions, citizenship beneath Napoleon, antisemitism beneath Napoleon when the Jewish group didn’t assimilate to his liking, and annexation by Germany throughout WWII. Though most of Alsace’s Jews fled, had been deported, or had been murdered throughout WWII, Alsace nonetheless has Jewish communities in the present day. However my household misplaced its connection to Alsace when my great-great-grandparents immigrated to the USA within the Eighteen Eighties. They embraced America; my nice grandfather even turned a “gentleman farmer” in Ohio when he retired from the corporate he ran. And now, a long time later, I do know virtually nothing about any connections to their previous in Alsace.
The June difficulty of The Revealer is about analyzing our pasts—private pasts, nationwide pasts, and non secular pasts—to make higher sense of our current. The problem opens with Noah Berlatsky’s “Christian Science as Jewish Custom,” the place he explores why so many American Jewish ladies, together with a number of in his circle of relatives, embraced Christian Science firstly of the 20th century and what which may inform us about assimilation and Jewish identification in the USA in the present day. Then, in “On the Banality of Evil in Catholic Horrors Movies,” Matthew Cressler appears to be like at two current movies, Killers of the Flower Moon and The Zone of Curiosity, to discover the Catholics in them who dedicated atrocities and what classes these movies maintain for in the present day’s world. Subsequent, in “Racism and Faith in America,” an excerpt from The Faith of Whiteness: How Racism Distorts Christian Religion, Michael Emerson and Glenn Bracey examine what has been taking place in American Christianity traditionally and presently that may assist clarify why the USA continues to have such profound race issues and inequities. After that, in “Homes of Worship Supporting Latino Communities and Defending Individuals from Deportation,” an excerpt from Sanctuary Individuals: Religion-Primarily based Organizing in Latina/o Communities, Gina M. Pérez highlights non secular communities which have provided sanctuary to immigrants going through deportation.
The June difficulty additionally consists of the most recent episode of the Revealer podcast: “Latino Religion-Primarily based Activism and the New Sanctuary Motion.” Gina Pérez joins us to debate faith-based activism inside Latino communities and the non secular roots of the sanctuary motion to guard immigrants. We discover how religion communities are serving to households after office raids and deportations, and what the potential for Donald Trump’s reelection portends for Latinos in the USA. You possibly can take heed to this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
On this difficulty we’re additionally spotlighting our current three-part podcast collection on “Conservative Faith and Politics in the USA.” The primary episode, “Ex-Evangelicals and U.S. Politics,” that includes NPR’s Sarah McCammon, explores ex-evangelicals’ insights into why white evangelicals stay loyal to Trump and why they proceed to maneuver additional to the political proper. The second episode, “Modern Christian Music’s Political and Non secular Messages,” that includes Dr. Leah Payne, examines the political and non secular aspirations of conservative white Protestants over the previous a number of a long time by way of the Modern Christian Music trade. And the third episode, “LGBTQ Republicans,” that includes Dr. Neil Younger, explores why LGBTQ Republicans have stayed inside the GOP and what their affiliation with the anti-trans and anti-queer non secular proper reveals about in the present day’s political coalitions.
Because the articles and podcast episodes on this difficulty spotlight, uncovering issues from our previous could be painful and disappointing, however they can be sources of perception. As we head into the summer time months, I hope our June difficulty evokes you to look into your individual histories. And I hope extra folks take the time to understand why figuring out our nationwide, cultural, non secular, and private lineages is of nice significance for addressing the urgent points we face in the present day.
Yours,
Brett Krutzsch, Ph.D.
P.S. We publish a mixed July/August difficulty each summer time. Search for The Revealer’s 2024 Summer season difficulty the primary week of August!