The intersection between church and state has always been a sticking point for Americans, especially for those in public office. During recent election cycles, we've witnessed spiritual compromise by self-described Catholic politicians and the attack of popular media against socially conservative candidates. This year, the tension between church and state came to a head with the major confrontation between the Catholic Bishops and the Obama administration over policy decisions.
Get to the Source
Dr. Bradley Birzer reaches deep into American history to present a study of the conflict between Catholics, the Church, and the federal government. The Founding Fathers made it clear they believed that personal religion had everything to do with politics - but somewhere in our country's history we've lost that understanding.
Professor Birzer discusses the Founding Fathers and highlights the influence Catholics have had in the formation of our country. After all, one of the Fathers was a Catholic named Charles Carroll. Professor Birzer provides an in-depth look at Carroll's role in the foundation of the United States of America in a dynamic treatment spanning two lectures.
Keeping the Faith Alive
Religion, and Catholicism in particular, continued to influence politics and culture through the great religious revivals of the Second Great Awakening in the late 19th century. In fact, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote in his 1835 classic, Democracy in America, that the United States enjoyed a "great unity of Christianity. . . . There can be no greater proof of its utility, and of its conformity to human nature, than that its influence is most powerfully felt over the most enlightened and free nation of the earth."
Dr. Birzer explains this great unity, and the soaring church membership that occurred during the Great Awakening . . . and what it meant for both Christianity and the state.
Down, but Not Out
Although Americans might not enjoy the same unity of Christianity we did a century ago, its fundamental principles continue to influence powerfully literature, academia, social issues, and political parties.
Join Professor Birzer for a study in American history and politics, and how Catholics have shaped our country in the past and continue to influence its direction into the future.
- Settling North America: Anti-Catholicism in the New World
- The Colonies: Islands of Intolerance in a Sea of Tolerance
- Charles Carroll: First Citizen and Catholic Founding Father
- The Second Great Awakening and Religious Democracy
- Alexis de Tocqueville’s America
- Progressivism, Nationalism, and the “Greater Good”
- The Moral Imagination: Rescuing the Modern Mind
- The Twentieth Century: Ideology, Horrors, and Heroism
Lecture Sample
About Your Professor
Dr. Bradley Birzer holds his Doctorate from Indiana University in Bloomington. He is the Russell Amos Kirk Chair in American Studies and a Professor of History at Hillsdale College, Michigan. During his academic career, he has taught at St. Francis College, Carroll College, and the University of Texas at San Antonio. In 2002–2003, he was voted Professor of the Year
by Hillsdale College students.
Professor Birzer is the author of Sanctifying the World: The Augustinian Life and Mind of Christopher Dawson (Christendom Press, 2007) and American Cicero: The Life of Charles Carroll (Intercollegiate Studies Institute, 2010). He is currently working on a book on the Christian Humanism of Russell Kirk.
In addition to his academic responsibilities, Professor Birzer serves as Chairman of the Board of Academic Advisors for the Center for the American Republic in Houston, Texas. He is also a board member for Sapientia Press, and contributor and co-editor of the blog, The Imaginative Conservative. He is a senior fellow with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville. In the fall of 2010, CSPAN named him one of the top professors of American History in the United States.
Homeschooling Products
The Homeschooling Set includes the Streaming Video and Homeschooling Course Guide. Each Course Guide contains everything needed for a student to complete the course, including:
- Lesson Plan
- Quizzes
- Final Essay
- Lecture Notes
- Answer Key
- Product Format:
- Streaming Video
