EPISODE 34 - John Wilsey, Religious Freedom, and Conservatism

Josh Bowman talks with John D. Wilsey about his new book Religious Freedom: A Conservative Primer (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2025) https://www.eerdmans.com/9780802881908/religious-freedom/, which will be released April 24, 2025.

John is Professor of Church History and Philosophy and Chair of the Department of Church History and Historical Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. For a lengthier bio, visit: https://www.sbts.edu/faculty/john-d-wilsey/ 

We discuss Wilsey’s concept of “aspirational conservatism,” along with questions of religion and politics, nationality, the black conservative tradition, Russell Kirk, Peter Viereck and more.

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0:00 Introduction

2:55 Background for the Book

7:01 Aspirational Conservatism

15:39 Peter Viereck

22:00 Black Conservatism

26:33 Conservatism and Religion

34:00 Conservatism and Nationality