"A Diverse Nation", Grant Steves on Atheists Talk

Stephanie Zvan

This program, “The Founding of a Diverse Nation and Ensuing Struggles”, will cover the diversity of our Founders. It will also discuss Colonial citizens as a religiously diverse group with multiple competing interests who came together to form a secular Constitutional Republic. Our European past and Colonial history was one of religious persecution and conflict that had a major influence in separating government from religion. As our country evolves and both becomes more religiously diverse and sees its nonreligious population grow, our nation’s Founders wisdom of secular governess becomes more essential to reduce religious strife and conflict.  This program will explore this history with interviewer George Kane, host Brianne Bilyeu, and guest Grant Steves.

Grant Steves has been active in Minnesota Atheists and has hosted the Atheists Talk Television program, as well as been a host and guest on the Atheists Talk radio program, a cofounder of the Secular Bible Study, newsletter contributor, and a retired public school teacher. He has a Doctorate degree in Theology.

Steves recommends the following books:

Related Links

Listen to AM 950 KTNF this Sunday at 9 a.m. Central to hear Atheists Talk, produced by Minnesota Atheists. Stream live online. Call in to the studio at 952-946-6205, or send an e-mail to [email protected] during the live show. If you miss the live show, listen to the podcast later.

Follow Atheists Talk on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates. If you like the show, consider supporting us with a one-time or sustaining donation.

 

{advertisement}
"A Diverse Nation", Grant Steves on Atheists Talk

About the author

Stephanie Zvan is one of the hosts for the Minnesota Atheists' radio show and podcast, Atheists Talk. She serves on the board of Secular Woman. She speaks on science and skepticism in a number of venues, including science fiction and fantasy conventions. Stephanie has been called a science blogger and a sex blogger, but if it means she has to choose just one thing to be or blog about, she's decided she's never going to grow up. In addition to science and sex and the science of sex, you'll find quite a bit of politics here, some economics, a regular short fiction feature, and the occasional bit of concentrated weird. Oh, and arguments. She sometimes indulges in those as well. But I'm sure everything will be just fine. Nothing to worry about. Nothing at all.
{advertisement}

One thought on “"A Diverse Nation", Grant Steves on Atheists Talk”

  1. lpetrich
    1

    The best thing I’ve ever read on that theme has been Colin Woodard’s “American Nations”. He identifies several rival cultural nations whose ideals and values and practices are the result of which (white) settlers got their first. He wasn’t the first. Someone wrote “Albion’s Seed” about how different US cultural nations were the result of settlers from different parts of the British isles.

    The big ones in the US have been Yankeedom (New England and the northern Midwest), New Netherland (NYC and nearby), the Midlands (in between), Greater Appalachia, Tidewater (E MD, VA, NC), the Deep South, the Far West, and the Left Coast.

    Much of US history can be interpreted as a contest between Yankeedom and the Deep South, with the other cultural nations taking one side or the other.

    On religion, Yankeedom started off as intolerant scriptural-percussionist Puritans, who considered celebrating Christmas to be “Papist” idolatry.

    It was Appalachia that developed revival meetings and snake handling and the like, and that spread to Tidewater and the Deep South after their defeat in the Civil War. Appalachia had sided with the North in that war because of dislike of Southern slave lords, but after that war, they decided that they hated blacks too much to like the North.

Comments are closed.