James Hudnut-Beumler

Media Appearances

• Religious liberty has a long and messy history – and there is a reason Americans feel strongly about it

  At the close of its recent term the Supreme Court ruled on the cases of Carson v. Makin and Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, rekindling controversy over one of the most enduring issues in American history: religious liberty. Another of this term’s blockbuster decisions, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, underlines the fact that religious beliefs and actions in the public realm matter. Whether the issue concerns religion and education, prayer or reproduction, Americans feel strongly about their religious liberties.

  July 19th, 2022

• Despite Supreme Court rulings, religious liberty has always been a contentious issue | Opinion

  Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the cases of Carson v. Makin and Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, giving the justices yet another occasion to wrestle with one of the most difficult issues in American history: religious liberty.

  July 6th, 2022

• A year after Gwen Shamblin Lara's death, her presence looms large at Remnant Fellowship

  The sudden passing of several church leaders itself caused disbelief and trauma among the congregation, but that was further complicated by the fact that Lara ran a personality-based ministry, said James Hudnut-Beumler, a professor of American religious history at Vanderbilt Divinity School.

  May 29th, 2022

• Symbols brought to Capitol raise questions about role of Christian belief in riot

  It is easy to find Christian symbolism in the movement supporting Trump's reelection and the sense of embattlement that accompanies it, said James Hudnut-Beumler, a Vanderbilt University professor of American religious history. Adversity is a trope of Christian life, he said.

  January 8th, 2021

• Masks keep churches from being superspreaders. But they make sermons tough

  As congregations reopen, often with social distancing and masks, preachers have faced new challenges, said Jim Hudnut-Beumler, professor of American religious history at Vanderbilt Divinity School in Nashville.

  October 16th, 2020

• 'Regular' mom builds a million followers by posting a simple prayer on Facebook each night

  That's no surprise to Vanderbilt religion professor James Hudnut-Beumler, who said that Thompson is speaking for many moms. "Most people struggle with prayer," he said, "and here’s a woman just like them who’s got it down."

  May 3rd, 2020

• The Methodist Church will probably split in two over homosexuality, and that's bad for all of us

  "The mainline Protestants are like the shock troops," said James Hudnut-Beumler, a professor of religious history at Vanderbilt University. "They absorb the first body blows. But as the mainline goes, so more conservative and evangelical will go eventually."

  January 17th, 2020

• Suicide of prominent pastor Jarrid Wilson forces church leaders to confront mental health

  For a long time, that was the teaching, according to James Hudnut-Beumler, a professor of American religious history at Vanderbilt University’s divinity school in Nashville, Tennessee.

  September 14th, 2019