The State Of Belief

Interfaith Alliance

Every week, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush hosts lively, funny and poignant conversations with inspiring religious and civic leaders; as well as artists and activists from across the country. Listeners get a potent mix of spiritual wisdom, political strategy, and hopeful commentary from national and local leaders who are rising up to meet this urgent moment in America. With the tagline: “Where Religion and Democracy Meet,” State of Belief is a celebration of our nation’s diversities and an invitation to join together to, in the words of the great James Baldwin, "achieve our country.”

  1. Religious Liberty for All: Celebrating This Founding Freedom at America 250

    5d ago

    Religious Liberty for All: Celebrating This Founding Freedom at America 250

    As the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary, Americans still believe that religious liberty is a cornerstone of our democracy. Against that backdrop, the Trump administration’s creation of a Religious Liberty Commission in May 2025 that is utterly lacking in diversity, and risks favoring some voices while leaving out others – called for a comprehensive response. Called to respond, Interfaith Alliance, in partnership with Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU), the American Humanist Association (AHA), and the Center for American Progress (CAP), brought together 20 leading voices from across the spectrum of religions and beliefs to author Religious Liberty for All: Celebrating This Founding Freedom at America 250. The release event, held June 16th at CAP, featured US Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) as the keynote speaker, words from CAP’s Neera Tanden, and panel discussions featuring Rachel Laser of AU, Fish Stark of AHA, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush of Interfaith Alliance, Interfaith America’s Chris Crawford, Ria Chakrabarti of Hindus for Human Rights, and Adam Russel Taylor from Sojourners. This week, Interfaith Alliance Senior Vice President for Policy and Outreach Dr. Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons joins Paul to describe the origins and importance of this report, and to share highlights of the release event itself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 9m
  2. Paul, Brad, and the Kids: A Snapshot of an American Family for Pride

    Jun 20

    Paul, Brad, and the Kids: A Snapshot of an American Family for Pride

    Can a family be radical, and radically ordinary, at the same time? The question came up as I interviewed my guest this week – author Brad Gooch, who happens to be married to host Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, and the other dad to their two kids. Brad has written a book, Good Morning Moon: A Snapshot of an American Family, that’s both a personal memoir and a loving telling of their family’s story. During Pride Month, as same-gender families are being challenged on religious and political grounds, it’s wonderful to step away from the struggles and celebrate just how beautifully ordinary this radical life has turned out to be. It’s also wonderful to celebrate how marriage equality, the law of the land since 2015, has turned out not to be the affront to religious freedom and traditional values despite all the fearmongering we’ve all endured. Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons authored a comprehensive new Interfaith Alliance report, Same-Gender Marriage and Religious Freedom, and he joins me to share some highlights. More about our guests: Brad Gooch is a best-selling poet, novelist and biographer whose books include biographies of Keith Haring, Frank O’Hara, Rumi, and Flannery O’Connor. His latest book is titled Good Morning Moon: A Snapshot of an American Family. It’s part memoir, part mystery, and a profile of the way many of us have been living, particularly since marriage equality became the law of the land. Dr. Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons is Senior Vice President of Programs and Policy at Interfaith Alliance. Also living in a same-gender marriage, Guthrie is the author of Just Faith: Reclaiming Progressive Christianity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 5m
  3. What Democracy and Religion Look Like Across America

    Jun 13

    What Democracy and Religion Look Like Across America

    A backbone of the work we are able to do in the pro-democracy faith movement is the network of local Interfaith Alliance affiliates spread across the entire country—in red states and blue states and from sea to shining sea. As the attacks on religious freedom for all intensify, more and more communities are creating Interfaith Alliance affiliates. At the same time, the longest-active affiliate, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, just celebrated its 30th anniversary. So this week, we bring together the longtime leader of Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, Connie Ryan, as well as the head of one of our brand-new affiliates, Rev. Ingrid McIntyre of Nashville, TN. Leading our nationwide affiliate program is Victoria Strang, and she’s also with us to provide a big-picture view of the crucial work happening in so many parts of our nation. Any group can become an affiliate. Whether you are an existing interfaith organization or looking to start one in your community please reach out to us. You can find the map of our existing affiliates on interfaithalliance.org/affiliate-network. You will see a button on that page titled "Start an Affiliate." just fill out that form and someone from the team will get back to you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    54 min
  4. "Congregation of the World": Union Seminary's Rev. Dr. Serene Jones

    Jun 6

    "Congregation of the World": Union Seminary's Rev. Dr. Serene Jones

    Rev. Dr. Serene Jones served as president of Union Theological Seminary in New York City for 18 years—long enough to see her own daughter graduate from the historic institution. During that time, she has been a strong advocate for integrating activism with theological education, mirroring her own calling and journey. We get Rev. Jones’ insights into how a seminary education has changed in the past two decades, and how today’s students are facing the challenges and realities of 2026 America. Her take on how churches and universities kept our democracy knitted together, and how the moral discourse that came from that has diasppeared, is a powerful warning, and an urgent call to action. More about Rev. Dr. Serene Jones Rev. Dr. Serene Jones has been a Yale professor, President of the American Academy of Religion, and, for the past 18 years, President of the historic Union Theological Seminary in New York City. The institution promises to “prepare its students for committed lives of service to the church, academy, and society,” and Serene Jones is the first woman president in Union Seminary’s 188-year history. This month, Rev. Dr. Jones is stepping down from this important role, but after a sabbatical she’ll be back at Union to teach, write, and continue her public theological engagement as Johnston Family Chair for Religion and Democracy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    52 min
  5. Lessons in Empathy From an Unlikely Rabbi: Angela Buchdahl

    May 30

    Lessons in Empathy From an Unlikely Rabbi: Angela Buchdahl

    What does it mean to be a stranger? Rabbi Angela Buchdahl’s journey of faith, identity, and belonging teaches us the value of embracing the strangers among us—and our inner strangers, as well. In our increasingly divided world, the struggle to find belonging often leads us to question our identities. A cantor as well as a rabbi, she brings the experience of coming to a strange land, and the joy of leading Central Synagogue in New York City, one of the largest Jewish congregations in North America, to the conversation—as well as to her memoir Heart of a Stranger: An Unlike­ly Rab­bi’s Sto­ry of Faith, Iden­ti­ty, and Belonging. Rabbi Angela has been a trailblazer in the Jewish community since 1999, when she became the first East-Asian person to be invested as a cantor anywhere in the world. In 2001, she became the first East-Asian American to be ordained a rabbi in North America. She came to Central Synagogue in New York as senior cantor in 2006 and was appointed senior rabbi in 2014. Newsweek and The Daily Beast have included Rabbi Angela Buchdahl in their lists of America's "Most Influential Rabbis." Read the Interfaith Alliance Marriage Equality White Paper by Dr. Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons that Paul introduces at the top of the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    51 min
  6. Vanita Gupta on Public Trust and the Role of Law in Our Democracy

    May 23

    Vanita Gupta on Public Trust and the Role of Law in Our Democracy

    What hope is there for the rule of law when the Justice Department is deployed to settle political scores and privilege one religion over others? A lot, as it turns out—but the work of rebuilding our nation's voting and justice systems won't be fast, and it won't be easy, according to this week's guest, Vanita Gupta, a civil rights attorney and former Associate Attorney General of the United States. In conversation with host Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, she emphasizes the fragility of our democracy due to eroding trust in institutions and urges moral courage among lawyers and citizens to defend justice and fairness. Vanita's insights on the power of faith communities in restoring trust and her call for cross-faith solidarity offer a hopeful path forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    51 min
  7. Dr. Matthew Taylor: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists

    May 16

    Dr. Matthew Taylor: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists

    A seismic shift is happening in America’s religious and political landscape—and we need to understand it now. Religion scholar and theologian Dr. Matthew D. Taylor unpacks how Christian nationalism, spiritual warfare, and authoritarian mythologies are reshaping democracy, fueling violence, and distorting faith. If you're wondering why faith is being weaponized to justify tyranny, or how religion fuels the dangerous myth of angels vs. demons in today’s politics, this episode reveals the startling truth behind the headlines. Drawing from his work as the author of The Violent Take It By Force and his upcoming book Defying Tyrants: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists, Matt argues that understanding and confronting these spiritualized political narratives is essential to protecting both democracy and the integrity of faith. Dr. Matthew D. Taylor is a visiting scholar at the Center on Faith and Justice at Georgetown University. His Substack is “Matthew D Taylor’s Reckonings." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    55 min
  8. The Black Church and the Gutting of the Voting Rights Act with Rev. Thomas L. Bowen

    May 9

    The Black Church and the Gutting of the Voting Rights Act with Rev. Thomas L. Bowen

    In the same two weeks, the Trump Anti-Christian Bias Task Force filled 560 pages with reports of deliberate discrimination by the Biden administration (and pretty much everyone else), and the Supreme Court ruled that anti-minority bias is gone from our elections and the landmark Voting Rights Act is no longer needed. That’s exactly backwards, and we’ll get a chance to hear the expert opinion of Rev. Thomas L. Bowen, General Secretary of the Progressive National Baptist Convention—the denominational home of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Thomas was Senior Advisor for Faith Engagement in the Biden White House, so he had a front-row seat for how decisions of faith were actually handled. He’s also already organizing to reduce the damage to democracy that the high court’s anti-VRA decision is sure to cause. More about Rev. Thomas L. Bowen Rev. Bowen is General Secretary of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. (PNBC). Headquartered in Northwest Washington, D.C. and boasting more than two and a half million members, the denomination is known as the spiritual home of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Rev. Bowen previously served as Senior Advisor for Faith Engagement in the Biden White House Office of Public Engagement. He also served as the African American Strategic Engagement Director, while holding dual positions as Director of the Mayor’s Office on Religious Affairs and the Mayor’s Office on African American Affairs in Washington, D.C.  An ordained Baptist minister, Rev. Bowen has maintained his ties to the community and the local church, serving in various positions at the historic Shiloh Baptist Church since 2002.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    48 min
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Ratings & Reviews

4.9
out of 5
32 Ratings

About

Every week, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush hosts lively, funny and poignant conversations with inspiring religious and civic leaders; as well as artists and activists from across the country. Listeners get a potent mix of spiritual wisdom, political strategy, and hopeful commentary from national and local leaders who are rising up to meet this urgent moment in America. With the tagline: “Where Religion and Democracy Meet,” State of Belief is a celebration of our nation’s diversities and an invitation to join together to, in the words of the great James Baldwin, "achieve our country.”

Information

  • Creator
    Interfaith Alliance
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    193
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2023
  • Show Website
    The State Of Belief

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