Is religion in the Constitution?

In this re-released episode, we look at the Constitution for a legal foundation of the place of religion in the U.S.

This episode introduces a special series of bonus content that will focus on the freedom of religion, free speech, and democracy.

Bonus Content Series Needs a Name

If you’re a newsletter subscriber, you know that I’ve been trying to figure out a name for this bonus content series. When I first developed it the name was going to be SCOTUS Watch as I thought I would only look at Supreme Court cases. Well—events of the intervening five years lead me to want to explore a range of content.

This series will explore religious freedom, free speech, and democracy in the US. I envision these bonus episodes to be the scholarly observations and audio op-eds about current events, Supreme Court cases, and everything to do with narrating the nation.

But what should it be called?

Help me name this series. Vote in the poll below or go to Instagram to vote there!

Suggested Reading

All books can be found at the Religionish Bookshop.

First up, The Constitution—obviously.

Here is a detailed history about the process of writing the U.S. Constitution written for the National Archive.

If you have any interest in the scholarly debate over the intentions of the Founding Fathers in including the religion clauses, take a look at these texts:

Adams & Emmerich — A Nation Dedicated to Religious Liberty (2015)

Levy — Original Intent and the Framers’ Constitution (2000)

Levy — The Establishment Clause (2017)

*Balmer — America’s Best Idea: The Separation of Church and State (2025)

Schaff — Church and State in the United States (2017)

Carter — The Culture of Disbelief (1994)

Muñoz — “The Original Meaning of the Establishment Clause and the Impossibility of Its Incorporation” (2007)

*Will probably be a Book Club book!

Religionish Book Club

Join us for the inaugural Religionish Book Club! We’ll be reading American Prophets by Jack Jenkins. Jack is a reporter for Religion News Service. Reading will begin in September 2026.

His book came out in 2021 and looks at the activism of various groups often called the “Religious Left.” Even though we can consider this to be recent history, it remains relevant as conversations continue about alternatives to the conservative Christian Right. For instance, an op-ed in the Salon recently explored the way the “Christian left” could impact the 2028 presidential election.

The Religionish Book Club is a subscription feature of the podcast. With your subscription you get access to special community features including a private chat group, live video discussions, exclusive content such as Ashley’s reading notes and interviews with the author, and the bonus episodes such as this one on the Constitution. I’m also designing a sticker exclusive for Religionish Book Club that includes the adorable cassette logo.

Be one of the first 10 subscribers and get a discounted membership of $10/month. After the first 10, the subscription will go up to $20/month.

There will be two books per calendar year. We’ll start American Prophets right after Labor Day and I’ll send out a reading schedule by September 1.

September — 1 live video discussion to be scheduled; chat with folks in the private group

October — bonus episode of an interview with Jack; keep chatting with folks in the private group

November — 1 live video discussion to be scheduled; keep chatting with folks in the private group

December — bonus episode about the book; keep chatting with folks in the private group; announcing the next book club

Then the next book will begin in either January or February 2027!

Book club content will be separate from the usual podcast feed, so it’ll be important that you provide an email address that you check often. Sign-up now!

Get your copy of American Prophets through the Religionish Bookshop page.