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. To learn more about us, our events, this Podcast, our journal, Pietas, to sign up for our newsletter, and make your tax deductible gift, please go to https://ciceroniansociety.org/  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