Faithful Politics

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What should Christians do when global politics becomes personal, chaotic, and violent? 

Dr. Robert J. Joustra, Professor of Politics and Spoelhof Chair at Calvin University and author of Christ and Covenant in Global Politics, joins Faithful Politics to ask what Christian theology can actually contribute to international relations. Joustra argues that Christians have often thought carefully about domestic politics, but far less about diplomacy, war, trade, climate, Israel, China, Iran, and the moral responsibilities nations have to each other.

Drawing on John Calvin, Augustine’s idea of rightly ordered loves, covenantal pluralism, and the just war tradition, he explains why “Christ is King” should limit state power rather than sanctify it. The conversation moves from America’s 250th anniversary and Christian nationalism to Israel, Iran, World War II, Afghanistan, Iraq, and the moral purpose of force. At its core, this is a conversation about whether Christian politics can be serious enough to pursue justice without turning nations into idols.

Book Mentioned
Christ and Covenant in Global Politics: A Christian Introduction to International Relations by Robert J. Joustra
Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/christ-and-covenant-in-global-politics-a-christian-introduction-to-international-relations-robert-j-joustra/fe15a081a65ad89d
Relevant Links & Resources
Christ and Covenant in Global Politics - IVP Academic
URL: https://www.ivpress.com/christ-and-covenant-in-global-politics

Guest Bio
Dr. Robert J. Joustra is Professor of Politics and Spoelhof Chair at Calvin University. He is a political scientist whose work focuses on international relations, public theology, religious freedom, pluralism, and the moral responsibilities of political communities. He is the author of Christ and Covenant in Global Politics: A Christian Introduction to International Relations, a book that brings Christian ethics into questions of diplomacy, war, political economy, climate, global justice, and covenantal pluralism. He has also authored and edited other books and serves as Senior Editor with The Review of Faith & International Affairs.
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Have a comment? Send us a text! (We read all of them but can't reply). Email us: Will@faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
Why do people stay in political movements even after they begin to have doubts?

Rich Logis spent seven years as a committed MAGA activist, commentator, and organizer before ultimately leaving the movement and founding Leaving MAGA, a nonprofit that helps people who are questioning or leaving MAGA find community and support. In this conversation, Rich explains why he was initially drawn to Donald Trump, how political identity became intertwined with belonging, and what made it so difficult to walk away.
The discussion explores misinformation, political tribalism, Christian nationalism, media ecosystems, and the emotional cost of changing deeply held beliefs. Rich argues that leaving MAGA is often less about changing political opinions and more about losing a community that provided meaning, purpose, and connection.

The conversation also examines whether MAGA can outlast Trump, the role fear plays in political movements, and why people across ideological lines need spaces where disagreement does not require dehumanization.

Book Mentioned
One Betrayal Too Many: Why I Left MAGA by Rich Logis
Book page: https://leavingmaga.org/one-betrayal-too-many/
Relevant Links & Resources
Leaving MAGA
URL: https://leavingmaga.org/

Guest Bio
Rich Logis is the founder and executive director of Leaving MAGA, a nonprofit organization that helps people leave the MAGA movement, reconnect with friends and family, and share their stories publicly. A former MAGA activist, commentator, and podcaster, Logis spent seven years deeply involved in the movement before leaving in 2022. He is the author of One Betrayal Too Many: Why I Left MAGA, a memoir that examines political identity, misinformation, community, and the challenges of changing deeply held beliefs.
Support the show
🎧 Want to learn more about Faithful Politics, get in touch with the hosts, or suggest a future guest?
👉 Visit our website: faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
📚 Check out our Bookstore – Featuring titles from our amazing guests:
faithfulpoliticspodcast.com/bookstore
❤️ Support the show – Help us keep the conversation going:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/FaithfulPolitics
📩 Reach out to us:
Faithful Host, Josh Burtram: Josh@faithfulpolitics.com
Political Host, Will Wright: Will@faithfulpolitics.com
📱 Follow & connect with us:
Twitter/X: @FaithfulPolitik
Instagram: faithful_politics
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Have a comment? Send us a text! (We read all of them but can't reply). Email us: Will@faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
What does religious freedom actually protect when people are afraid of someone else’s faith? Maggie Siddiqi, Senior Advisor at Interfaith Alliance and former Director of the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Education, joins Faithful Politics for a conversation about Islam, pluralism, public schools, Christian nationalism, and the fear surrounding Sharia law.
Maggie shares her own story of growing up Baptist, converting to Islam, and still holding deep respect for her Baptist roots. She also explains why religious freedom works best when it protects every community equally, including Christians, Muslims, Jews, and people of no faith. The conversation gets into antisemitism, Islamophobia, public school religious expression, the politics of anti-Christian bias claims, and why Sharia law is often used as a political scare tactic. At its core, this episode is about how fear of religious difference can weaken democracy, and how pluralism gives Americans a better way to live together. 
Relevant Links & Resources
Interfaith Alliance
URL: https://www.interfaithalliance.org/
Guest Bio
Maggie Siddiqi is Senior Advisor at Interfaith Alliance, where her work focuses on religious freedom, interfaith solidarity, public policy, and standing against hate. She previously served as Director of the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Education, where she worked on religious freedom issues including antisemitism, Islamophobia, and church-state separation. She has also served as Senior Director of the Religion and Faith team at the Center for American Progress and is a Non-Resident Fellow on Muslim-Jewish Partnerships at MPAC. Her background in Christian-Muslim relations, public policy, and faith-based advocacy makes her a strong guide for this conversation about pluralism, democracy, Islamophobia, and religious freedom in American public life. 
Support the show
🎧 Want to learn more about Faithful Politics, get in touch with the hosts, or suggest a future guest?
👉 Visit our website: faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
📚 Check out our Bookstore – Featuring titles from our amazing guests:
faithfulpoliticspodcast.com/bookstore
❤️ Support the show – Help us keep the conversation going:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/FaithfulPolitics
📩 Reach out to us:
Faithful Host, Josh Burtram: Josh@faithfulpolitics.com
Political Host, Will Wright: Will@faithfulpolitics.com
📱 Follow & connect with us:
Twitter/X: @FaithfulPolitik
Instagram: faithful_politics
Facebook: FaithfulPoliticsPodcast
LinkedIn: faithfulpolitics
📰 Subscribe to our Substack for behind-the-scenes content:
faithfulpolitics.substack.com

Have a comment? Send us a text! (We read all of them but can't reply). Email us: Will@faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
How is Christian nationalism showing up inside the U.S. military chaplaincy, and why does it matter for religious freedom?
In this episode, Will talks with Leigh Larson, a theologian, Air Force veteran, public scholar, and founder of Follow the Leighder. Larson’s research focuses on Christian nationalism in U.S. military chaplaincy, giving her both personal experience and academic grounding for this conversation.
Military chaplains serve at one of the most complicated intersections of church and state. They are religious leaders inside a government institution, but their job is supposed to protect the spiritual care of every service member, including people of different faiths and no faith at all.
Larson explains how chaplains are trained, why endorsing bodies and faith codes matter, and what happens when spiritual care shifts toward proselytizing or political theology. The conversation covers religious pluralism, Wiccan and humanist recognition, Cold War civil religion, post-9/11 evangelical influence, and the growing concern over Christian nationalism inside military culture. 
Relevant Links & Resources
Follow the Leighder: https://www.followtheleighder.com/
Follow the Leighder Substack: https://followtheleighder.substack.com/
Guest Bio
Leigh Larson is a theologian, veteran, and public scholar, and the creator and host of Follow the Leighder, a multi-platform society and culture brand reaching 245K+ followers across five platforms.

She holds a Master of Theological Studies from Phillips Theological Seminary, where her thesis examined Christian Nationalism in US military chaplaincy through original research including 22 interview subjects and a 116-response survey. She is a 2025–2026 Disciples of Christ HELM Global Theological Fellow (one of nine selected nationally) and a 2025 Stone-Campbell Journal Graduate Essay Finalist. During her first year of seminary, she served in the United States Air Force Reserve as a Chaplain Candidate and Second Lieutenant. She holds a BA in International Relations from the University of Texas at Austin, where she was both a Presidential Scholar and Jefferson Scholar.

When she is not recording or writing, Leigh is somewhere on the road with her dog, Professor Huckleberry.
Support the show
🎧 Want to learn more about Faithful Politics, get in touch with the hosts, or suggest a future guest?
👉 Visit our website: faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
📚 Check out our Bookstore – Featuring titles from our amazing guests:
faithfulpoliticspodcast.com/bookstore
❤️ Support the show – Help us keep the conversation going:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/FaithfulPolitics
📩 Reach out to us:
Faithful Host, Josh Burtram: Josh@faithfulpolitics.com
Political Host, Will Wright: Will@faithfulpolitics.com
📱 Follow & connect with us:
Twitter/X: @FaithfulPolitik
Instagram: faithful_politics
Facebook: FaithfulPoliticsPodcast
LinkedIn: faithfulpolitics
📰 Subscribe to our Substack for behind-the-scenes content:
faithfulpolitics.substack.com

Have a comment? Send us a text! (We read all of them but can't reply). Email us: Will@faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
What happens when feelings become the test of truth?
Robert P. George joins Faithful Politics to talk about what he calls “the age of feeling,” a moment where many people treat personal emotion as the final word on what is true. George argues that this does not lead to tolerance. It often makes disagreement feel like a personal attack, which shuts down honest conversation and creates real problems for democracy. 
The conversation moves through faith, reason, truth, tribalism, intellectual humility, and the challenge of disagreeing with your own side. Will brings in Jonathan Haidt’s work on intuition and political identity, while Josh and George work through harder questions around same-sex marriage, gender, Obergefell, Loving v. Virginia, and the deeper moral assumptions underneath those debates.
At its core, this episode is about whether Americans can still disagree seriously without turning each other into enemies. George’s answer is that truth-seeking requires more than strong opinions. It requires reasons, evidence, humility, and the courage to listen when your tribe says one thing and your conscience says another.
website: robertpgeorge.com
Guest Bio
Robert P. George is the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. He is a legal scholar, political philosopher, and public intellectual whose work focuses on natural law, constitutionalism, religious liberty, conscience, civil discourse, and moral reasoning in public life. He is the author of several books, including Conscience and Its Enemies, Making Men Moral, Seeking Truth and Speaking Truth, and Truth Matters, co-authored with Cornel West. 
Support the show
🎧 Want to learn more about Faithful Politics, get in touch with the hosts, or suggest a future guest?
👉 Visit our website: faithfulpoliticspodcast.com
📚 Check out our Bookstore – Featuring titles from our amazing guests:
faithfulpoliticspodcast.com/bookstore
❤️ Support the show – Help us keep the conversation going:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/FaithfulPolitics
📩 Reach out to us:
Faithful Host, Josh Burtram: Josh@faithfulpolitics.com
Political Host, Will Wright: Will@faithfulpolitics.com
📱 Follow & connect with us:
Twitter/X: @FaithfulPolitik
Instagram: faithful_politics
Facebook: FaithfulPoliticsPodcast
LinkedIn: faithfulpolitics
📰 Subscribe to our Substack for behind-the-scenes content:
faithfulpolitics.substack.com