David Nanninga

Academic life update: I’ve been largely absent from social media for the last few months, but that was because I was studying for my comps, which as of today, I have officially passed! I’m relieved and very excited to do nothing but sit by the pool, at least once it stops raining in Waco😂

My new favorite fun fact about progressive evangelicalism: Sojourner’s Wes Michaelson wrote in Donald Duck for President in 1976 instead of voting for Carter or Ford.

The typo in the description of the event 🤪

Ila J. Yonker - View Obituary & Service Information Share Memories and Support the Family.

While there is grief, there is also comfort in knowing that my grandma’s wonderful legacy lives on in our families, that she’s no longer in any pain, and that she’s with her savior now, with whom she will be with always.

www.langelandsterenberg.com/m/obituaries...

Gotta say, not a great sign of the times that the A24 movie Civil War is on my mind more and more…

Exorcists, Omens, and Heretics: Religion Horror in the 2020s As a genre, horror cinema has always spoken to the broader fears and values of cultures and societies at particular moments in time. During the 1950s, the As a genre, horror cinema has always spoken t...

In a co-written essay, I looked at the growth of religious horror in the 2020s and what that says about America with my Baylor history colleague and dear friend, Aaron Ramos. Give it a read, even if horror isn’t your thing! (There are no jump scares, I promise😂)

www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiou...

NEW from our very own @davidwanninga.bsky.social 👇

Was Carter a Progressive Evangelical or Centrist Politician? When President Jimmy Carter died on December 29th, 2024, almost every obituary on the 39th president made some mention of his deep Christian faith. A New When President Jimmy Carter died on December 2...

Today at The Anxious Bench —

After Jimmy Carter's passing, many hailed him as a beacon of progressive evangelicalism. But how did the leading progressive evangelical magazine see Carter in the election of 1976? @davidwanninga.bsky.social tells the story.

www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiou...

I had a great time going back and looking at some of these sources again in light of Carter’s passing-It’s an interesting and complex story, which is part of why Carter is such a compelling figure. Check it out!

Something that Ezra Klein’s take on the inaugural has me wondering: Is this a new, strong resurgence of the imperial presidency, or is it continuity? Did the imperial presidency ever really leave? Either way, the definition of presidential power being whatever they can get away with is so terrible.

Absolutely, gonna be epic haha

The uncanny valley of this photo is so out of this world, the Biden’s look like giants😂

"Cowboy Carter" with David Nanninga Recollecting Carter · Episode

Here I talk about how Jimmy was a different kind of evangelical in politics: open.spotify.com/episode/1eOw...

And, I will also add, he was a different kind of evangelical in politics who was led by his faith to promote peace and justice in the world to the best of his ability.

His remarkable life and legacy will continue to be studied and debated for years to come, but this one thing cannot be disputed in my mind: he was a good man who did his very best. RIP Mr. Carter.

BRB gotta update my 2026 calendar

This is the hardest book I have ever written. It is the culmination of 5 archive trips, 150 pastor’s wife books, more than 2000 years of history, and my own experiences.

@kkdumez.bsky.social thinks it will be just as disruptive as #MakingBiblicalWomanhood.
Get it while you can at this great price!

How do I explain to people that I'm not getting a PhD because I have an excellent work ethic. I have no work ethic whatsoever. What I do have is insatiable curiosity and a deep need for external validation. That's it.

A lot of interesting comparisons to be made to Knute Rockne and Notre Dame football being assimilationist tools for Catholics in the 1920s as well!

Let me say first, I adore the level of access that I get via my institution’s library. I am very blessed, no doubt about it. That being said, there are few things more dissatisfying then seeing a book that was available via J-Stor inexplicably no longer available, especially mid final papers😂🙃

WE WANT MORE

Ok, fascinating-so similar rhetoric, but the target swung from commercial consumerism to supposed “political correctness” at some point.

Serious question-is there rhetoric about a war on Christmas in that issue already? I thought that was something that Bill O’Reilly especially kickstarted in the 90s/2000s, but now I’m curious if that rhetoric went back earlier…

Oh nice, will need to grab that one as well!

Fun fact I learned from @pastpunditry.bsky.social’s partisans today-Bill Clinton appeared on MTV during the ‘92 campaign. He definitely leaned into the baby boomer/next generation of it all in that campaign.

That definitely checks out knowing him haha😂

Oh I can’t wait for this! Paul Putz and I have both agreed that a book like this needed to be written, especially since this is likely to continue to be a thing.

This also happened during the 30th anniversary of the Waco siege-definitely something that was not lost on many of us in Waco…

I’ve given a guest lecture on Charles Lindbergh and America First in a class on fascism in the Americas the past 3 semesters, and each time I’ve been more convinced of 2 things. 1, Lindbergh was a fascist, and 2, the America First movement never left American politics.Very disconcerting stuff now…

Yup-and will definitely feed into increasingly hyperbolic/silly commentary to get eyeballs, as is tradition 😂