Ep. 22 Politics of Conversion—A conversation with Rebecca Davis

What are the politics of religious conversion? When does conversion become public spectacle?

In this first episode of the Religionish Bookshelf, the new monthly bookclub series, we discuss Rebecca L. Davis‘ latest book Public Confessions: The Religious Conversions that Changed American Politics. Dr. Davis is the Miller Family Endowed Early Career Professor of History at the University of Delaware. Her research broadly examines 20th century gender, sexuality, and religion in US politics and culture.

Davis and I explore questions of authenticity, democracy, gender, and public performance of conversion. Her book brings together the seemingly disparate religious experiences of Clare Boothe Luce, Sammy Davis Jr, Marilyn Monroe, and former communist agents.

#ReligionNerd Moment

Prof. Davis brought us this episode’s #ReligionNerd moment. She said that she is currently nerding out about new indigenous histories, a form of scholarship that uses archeology, anthropology, oral history, and primary documents to recreate histories of indigenous cultures prior to European arrival in North America. Her current favorite in new indigenous histories is Our Beloved Kin: A New History of King Philip’s War by Lisa Brooks.

Also, Davis shared her favorite episode of the podcast she produces, Sexing History.

Religionish Bookshelf

The Religionish Bookshelf series is a book club for #religionnerds. Each month I’ll be speaking with an author about their book, the writing/research process, and answering any questions you have. In order to participate in the book club you need to subscribe to the Religionish newsletter. As a subscriber, you’ll learn in advance which book we’re reading next and have the ability to ask questions of the author. So subscribe now to see the Religionish Bookshelf!

Transcript

Coming soon…It’s currently being edited