Dr. Julie Ingersoll analyzes the incorporation of David Barton's biblical views into conservative policy.
I am always interested in helping people better understand religion and how it works in the world. To that end, I blog, assist print, radio and television media on topics related to my research, and do lots of public speaking to churches and community groups as well as national organizations such as People for the America Way. I have served as an expert witness in court cases where complex understanding of religion is important. Topics include:

  • The religious right
  • The Tea Party
  • Women's and LGBT issues
  • Creationism and evolution
  • Legal conflicts such as religious freedom exemption
  • Introductory lectures on world religions

My work has been cited in national publications such as:
  • The New Yorker (Bully Pulpit June 6, 2012)
  •  New York Times (Christian Reconstruction Meets the Anti-union Movement April 29, 2011)
  • The Chronicle of Higher Education (I Suffer not a Woman to Teach April 13, 2007)
  • as well as Salon, Beliefnet, American Prospect, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Ms Magazine, a French quarterly magazine Alternatives Internationals and The Nation.

Addressing general audiences requires a commitment to a making complex issues comprehensible to non-specialists but beyond that, it also requires a certain tone to be effective; strong partisanship and advocacy too often get in the way of understanding.

Recognizing that objectivity is never attainable, I work hard at what we in religious studies phrase “making the strange familiar and the familiar strange” as an exercise in critical thinking, with the goal of teasing out how religion functions to construct the worlds in which we live, give shape to the controversies that occupy us. and promote certain ways of understanding the conflicts and what is at stake.

I always seek to explore contentious issues while trying to dial back the vitriol that too often accompanies such conversations. Occasionally reviewers of my work have noted this quality and those are the reviews of which I am most proud.

Please contact me to discuss a visit to your group.
Copyright © 2015 Julie Ingersoll. All rights reserved.