Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion Podcast
92 episodes - English - Latest episode: 29 days ago -Keeping it 101 is the podcast that helps our nerdy listeners make sense of religion. Why religion? Well, if you read the news, have a body, exist in public, or think about race, gender, class, ability, or sexuality, you likely also think about religion — even if you don’t know it yet. Let us show you why religion is both a lot more important and a little easier to understand than you might think. Put us in your earholes and let us show you why religion isn’t done with you — even if you’re done with religion.
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Episodes
You Don't Know African Diasporic Religions
September 29, 2021 04:00 - 48 minutes - 33.1 MBWell, you don’t. But luckily Drs. Fadeke Castor and Akissi Britton do, and they’re here to help us learn more. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
World Religions, But Better
September 15, 2021 04:00 - 28 minutes - 19.9 MBWe hate the “world religions” paradigm but we’re stuck with it. So this season, we’re bringing you this problematic approach to studying religion with a side of snark and the assistance of lots of smart folks who know more about these religions than we do! Homework: is all stuff we've assigned before. You can also go back and review the first few episodes from season 1 for extra credit. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ ...
LIVE! "Public Humanities, Public Jokes" with Dr. J. Barton Scott @ the University of Toronto
September 04, 2021 14:00 - 1 hour - 42.9 MB“Public Humanities, Public Jokes: An Interview with the Killjoys Behind Hit Religion Podcast 'Keeping it 101'” (11 March 2021) Being a live recording of our conversation with Dr. J. Barton Scott for the Department of the Study of Religion at the University of Toronto. Thanks to Bart and all the amazing folks at UT for having us! Watch the video recording of the event here. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101...
LIVE: "Public Humanities, Public Jokes" with Dr. J. Barton Scott @ the University of Toronto
September 04, 2021 14:00 - 1 hour - 42.9 MB“Public Humanities, Public Jokes: An Interview with the Killjoys Behind Hit Religion Podcast 'Keeping it 101'” (11 March 2021) Being a live recording of our conversation with Dr. J. Barton Scott for the Department of the Study of Religion at the University of Toronto. Thanks to Bart and all the amazing folks at UT for having us! Watch the video recording of the event here. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more!
Review Session: Teamwork Makes the Dreamwork
May 19, 2021 04:00 - 35 minutes - 24.4 MBWhat have we learned this semester? Why did so many smart folks agree to talk to us about so many interesting topics? What happens next? You’ll have to tune in to find out, nerds! Homework: Go walk some children in nature. Don't forget your sunscreen! As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Twitter, Jinn, and the Great Conjunction with Dr. Ali Olomi
May 05, 2021 04:00 - 49 minutes - 34 MBGuest lecture chat with Prof. Ali Olomi, reigning king of Wednesdays, the smart+fun twitter thread, and host of the Head On History Podcast. Keyword: jinn (duh) Homework: Routledge Companion to the Qur'an, eds. George Archer, Maria M. Dakake, and Daniel A. Madigan (forthcoming Sept. 2021) As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Netw...
Islam Is More than You Think It Is
April 21, 2021 04:00 - 52 minutes - 36.4 MBWe (mostly Ilyse) show you why there’s way more to know about Islam and Muslims than the life of the Prophet or the latest travel ban. Keywords: Qur'an, exegesis, hadith, sunnah, shariah Storytime: from Shahab Ahmed's What is Islam? As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Was Jesus a Wizard? with Dr. Shaily Patel
April 07, 2021 04:00 - 50 minutes - 34.5 MBNeither of us are professionally or confessionally equipped to answer this question, so we’re bringing in Prof. Shaily Patel, Assistant Professor of Early Christianity at Virginia Tech and baller scholar of magic & religion. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Very Special Episode: 'Rona Revisited
March 31, 2021 04:00 - 39 minutes - 27.4 MBCan you believe it's been a full freaking year of this mess? Ilyse and Megan do a quick round-up of how religious communities are responding to global crisis AND are re-joined by a very special guest. Homework: still no, because still having a freaking pandemic. But maybe check out Love Island UK if you need a trashy distraction. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is pro...
Early Christianity Is Actually Kind of Interesting
March 24, 2021 04:00 - 42 minutes - 29.5 MBIn which we (mostly Megan) walk you through three things you maybe don't know about early Christianity: Christianity was kind of a mistake The New Testament is a messy bitch Christianity = imperialism Keywords: BCE/CE, gospels, apocrypha, canon, epistles Storytime: Becket, Waiting for Godot As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcas...
White Evangelicalism Racism with Dr. Anthea Butler
March 10, 2021 05:00 - 50 minutes - 34.5 MBGuest lecture chat with Prof. Anthea Butler, possibly the public face of why you need to care about religion in the US? Most recently the author of White Evangelical Racism (UNC 2021). As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
White Evangelicalism Racism with Dr. Anthea Butler
March 10, 2021 05:00 - 50 minutes - 34.5 MBGuest lecture chat with Prof. Anthea Butler, possibly the public face of why you need to care about religion in the US? Most recently the author of White Evangelical Racism (UNC 2021). As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more!
White American Evangelicalism + Racism = BFF
February 24, 2021 05:00 - 44 minutes - 30.7 MBIn which we (mostly Megan) quickly survey the long and sordid history of white supremacy, American politics, and evangelicalism in what’s now the US. Keywords: racism, white supremacy, evangelicalism Storytime: Baldwin, from "Letter from a Region in My Mind" As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Simran Jeet Singh Keeps Going
February 10, 2021 05:00 - 45 minutes - 31.3 MBGuest lecture chat with Prof. Simran Jeet Singh, author of oh so many things, but most recently Fauja Singh Keeps Going, which both NPR and the New York Public Library listed as a top 2020 title. As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Public Scholarship and Representation
January 27, 2021 05:00 - 41 minutes - 28.3 MBIn which we talk about why it's important for minoritized scholars to share what they know with the public, why it can be daunting and exhausting and dangerous to do so, and why we're so excited for writer/teacher/scholar/activist Dr. Simran Jeet Singh to join us next time. Storytime: Sucharov, Public Influence As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of th...
Welcome Back, Nerds!
January 13, 2021 05:00 - 37 minutes - 26 MBIn which Ilyse and Megan provide a quick refresher on what we covered in seasons 1& 2 and set up the new format for season 3: intros to public scholarship, white evangelical racism in what's now the US, why early Christianity is way more complicated (and interesting!) than you might know, and why the study of Islam can, should, and does include djinns, magic, and astrology. Storytime: Mary Hunt's WATERtalk, where she once again teaches us that "together, we are a genius." Homework: check ...
BONUS: Keeping It 101 Course Evals with Prof. Kristian Petersen
January 04, 2021 22:00 - 28 minutes - 19.6 MBFriend of the pod and OG Religion Nerd podcaster Prof. Kristian Petersen made us this incredibly thoughtful compilation of "course evaluations" of the pod! OUR EMOTIONS, Y'ALL OUR EMOTIONS Thanks to Prof. Petersen for pulling together and producing this episode, and to Profs. Alyssa Maldonado-Estrada, Tara Baldrick-Morrone, Richard Newton, Candace Mixon, Shobhana Xavier, Greg Soden, Molly Bassett, Diana Murtaugh Coleman, Simran Jeet Singh, and Shreena Niketa Gandhi for their generous con...
Review Session: What Did We Learn? Where Do We Go From Here?
December 09, 2020 05:00 - 36 minutes - 25.1 MBIn which we review this season's big take-away lessons, reflect on what's working and how we can improve, and get our collective Grinch on. Homework: have fun! As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Extra Credit with Professor Judith Weisenfeld
November 25, 2020 05:00 - 1 hour - 46.6 MBIn which Megan and Ilyse fangirl out at Prof. Weisenfeld, who generously shares her 101 on race, religion, and why historians ARE theorists (even when they think "theory" is some nonsense talk) As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Gender, Sexuality, and Religion in what's NOT the United States
November 11, 2020 05:00 - 59 minutes - 41.1 MBAll aboard the Global Religion+Gender+Sexuality Are Complicated and Historically, Geographically, and Culturally Contingent Express! (We leaned hard into the train jokes for this episode.) Storytime: Mahmood, from Politics of Piety As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Gender, Sexuality, and Religion in what's now the U.S.
October 28, 2020 04:00 - 54 minutes - 37.5 MBIn which we offer you a collage of historical examples about non-men doing religion and insist that all the people who do religion have gender Keywords: patriarchy, exegesis Storytime: Bynum, from Gender and Religion As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Race and Religion in South Asia &, well, Not-the-US
October 14, 2020 04:00 - 52 minutes - 36.3 MBIn which Ilyse helps us think about the racialization of Muslims and why racialization of religions in not-the-US is both similar to and different from the American kind Storytime: Aydin, The Idea of the Muslim World As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Race and Religion in what's now the United States
September 30, 2020 04:00 - 35 minutes - 24.5 MBIn which we shock and/or awe you with the ways Americans built race out of religion (also violence -- you know how we do) Keyword: orientalism Storytime: Abdul Khabeer, Muslim Cool As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Intersectionality
September 12, 2020 22:00 - 41 minutes - 28.4 MBIn which we build upon the work of Prof. Kimberlé Crenshaw to think about how race-, gender-, and sexuality-based oppressions overlap and inform how our understandings of religion Keywords: intersectionality, womanism, discrimination, oppression Storytime: Audre Lorde, "An Open Letter to Mary Daly" As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify P...
Race, Gender, and Sexuality: What's Religion Got to Do with 'Em?
September 02, 2020 04:00 - 52 minutes - 35.8 MBIn which we are BACK, our Chili Babies! And bringing you a whole new season looking at the intersection(s) of religion, race, gender, and sexuality. Keywords: social construct, race, racialization, gender Storytime: Weisenfeld, New World A-Coming As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, homework, transcripts, & more! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
#ScholarStrike - September 8th & 9th, 2020
September 02, 2020 04:00 - 9 minutes - 6.3 MBIn which we urge you to join us in using what we have to strike at racism: strike it down, strike at it, strike against it. Join us in a #ScholarStrike on September 8th and 9th, 2020 PDF transcript available here More info available in the show notes ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Smart Grrl Summer: Religion & Pop Culture
July 22, 2020 04:00 - 55 minutes - 38.1 MBIn which Megan yells about Not Without My Daughter and why we should care about how American pop culture shapes our understanding of religion, whilst Ilyse tries to keep her from citing All The Things Keywords: popular culture, pulp, American minority religions Storytime: Goodwin, Abusing Religion Homework: ditto As always, be sure to visit keepingit101.com for full show notes, transcripts, & more. ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Ampl...
Smart Grrl Summer: Religion & Sound with Prof. Vicki Brennan
July 08, 2020 04:00 - 1 hour - 48 MBIn which Dr. Vicki Brennan blows our tiny little minds by teaching us what we miss when we don't listen hard to religion Keywords: soundscape; acoustemology Homework: Brennan, Singing Yoruba Christianity As always, be sure to see the extended show notes for links, definitions, and other hidden gems at keepingit101.com! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Smart Grrl Summer: Religious Nationalism
June 24, 2020 04:00 - 47 minutes - 32.8 MBIn which Ilyse yells about nationalism and religion and why religion and politics are never really separate, whilst Megan agrees emphatically and consumes a bubbly beverage Keywords: nationalism (especially religious nationalism); election Storytime: we skipped it! it's summer Homework: Ramaswamy's The Goddess and the Nation; Baker's The Gospel According to the Klan; and a bunch of other stuff -- come on, you know how we are. Go to the show notes page at Keepingit101.com for our very, v...
Smart Grrl Summer: Religious Nationalism
June 24, 2020 04:00 - 47 minutes - 32.8 MBIn which Ilyse yells about nationalism and religion and why religion and politics are never really separate, whilst Megan agrees emphatically and consumes a bubbly beverage Keywords: nationalism (especially religious nationalism); election Storytime: we skipped it! it's summer Homework: Ramaswamy's The Goddess and the Nation; Baker's The Gospel According to the Klan; and a bunch of other stuff -- come on, you know how we are. Go to the show notes page at Keepingit101.com for our very, v...
Smart Grrl Summer: Cults
June 10, 2020 06:00 - 45 minutes - 31.2 MBIn which Megan yells about how the word "cult" gets used to discourage and police radical religious innovation while Ilyse tries to get a word in edgewise. Storytime: JZ Smith, from Imagining Religion Homework: Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents. But go read them outside -- it's summer!! Visit keepingit101.com for detailed show notes & more resources! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Review Session: What Have We Learned and What Happens Next?
May 06, 2020 04:00 - 36 minutes - 24.8 MBIn which we review what we've learned and what we hope you've learned, dear listeners, in this, our very first season/semester of Keeping It 101 Storytime: Sylvester Johnson, African American Religions 1500-2000 Homework: NAH, it's summer break! But we did make some recommendations for religion-related funtime readings. ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
Extracurriculars: Ru-ligion Ru-vealed! the T on Religion & Drag Race
April 22, 2020 05:00 - 59 minutes - 40.7 MBIn which we spill the T on "Drag Race," the prosperity gospel of RuPaul Andre Charles, and why queerness and religion aren't mutually exclusive. Not a Race Chaser? Definitely check out the show notes for this episode - we have a bunch of images and videos to help you follow along. And after all, if you're not gagging over the lewks these queens are serving, you're only getting half the story, squirrelfriend. Keywords: queer/ness, ball culture Homework: it's our longest episode this season...
Extra Credit with Professor Omid Safi
April 08, 2020 05:00 - 57 minutes - 39.3 MBin which we chat with our dear friend and scholar-goals icon Omid Safi, Professor of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at Duke University. Homework: Radical Love, "Sufi Heart," and MLK's Riverside Church speech ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.
You might be done with religion, but religion is not done with you
March 25, 2020 03:00 - 43 minutes - 29.6 MBIn which we discuss who gets to choose their religious belonging, why "spiritual but not religious" gives us the agita, and how--even if you're not religious--religion is lurking under your floorboards. Keywords: voluntarism, racialization, secular/ism, perennialism Storytime: Jakobsen and Pellegrini, Love the Sin Homework: LOTS, so check out the shownotes. But be sure to look for Patti Miller's Good Catholics even if you skip everything else. ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introductio...
Very Special Episode: Religion in the Time of 'Rona
March 18, 2020 02:00 - 36 minutes - 24.8 MBIn which we give you a quick (okay, it's not that quick) rundown on where we're at in this challenging time, what religious communities are doing to respond to the crisis, and how COVID-19 helps us think about our own religiosity. PLUS very special guest host joins us in the studio to talk about how she's responding to the Coronavirus in her community. Homework: NOPE. It's a pandemic. Read or watch something fun and distracting! We have lots of recommendations in the shownotes. ____ Keep...
Religion in the Time of 'Rona
March 18, 2020 02:00 - 36 minutes - 24.8 MBIn which we give you a quick (okay, it's not that quick) rundown on where we're at in this challenging time, what religious communities are doing to respond to the crisis, and how COVID-19 helps us think about our own religiosity. PLUS very special guest host joins us in the studio to talk about how she's responding to the Coronavirus in her community. Homework: NOPE. It's a pandemic. Read or watch something fun and distracting! We have lots of recommendations in the shownotes.
What does it mean to be "religious?"
March 11, 2020 04:00 - 42 minutes - 29 MBIn which we think about how personal religious commitments and practices get mediated by the state, why and how millions of Muslims make pilgrimage to Mecca every year, why the Archdiocese of Philadelphia thinks Megan is still Catholic, and why tiny Ilyse tortured her siblings with rice during Pesach Keywords: religious; hajj; hagiography Storytime: Bell, Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Net...
World religions: shall we not
February 27, 2020 04:00 - 32 minutes - 22.2 MBIn which we talk about WHY we're still talking about "major," "minor," or "world" religions -- because despite those models being racist and imperialist and white supremacist, "religion" can also help minoritized religion access rights and legal protections. Keywords: Native/Indigenous religions; social construct; agency Storytime: Wenger, "We Are Guaranteed Freedom" Homework: Dunbar-Ortiz, Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States; Denison, Ute Land Religion in the American West;...
Major religions? Minor religions? Must we?
February 12, 2020 05:00 - 40 minutes - 27.9 MBIn which we discuss the imperialist history of "religion," and ask why it's so major that some religions get minoritized. Keywords: imperialism; minoritization; structural/epistemic violence Storytime: JZ Smith, "Religion Is Not a Native Category" Homework: Tomoko Masuzawa's Invention of World Religions, plus Ilyse and Megan have both written shorter pieces on this topic. Check out the show notes for more info! ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be par...
Who gets left out of "religion?"
January 29, 2020 05:00 - 34 minutes - 23.6 MBIn which we discuss why we have to define religion in order to protect it, and who gets left out of those definitions & protections. Keywords: disestablishment; free exercise Show & tell: the Satanic Temple's statue of Baphomet Homework: Sullivan's Impossibility of Religious Freedom; Barringer Gordon's Mormon Question; Cusack's Invented Religions PLUS the documentary Hail Satan? AND Ilyse has some resources for more inclusive school calendars -- check out our show notes for more info! __...
What the heck is religion, and what the heck is this podcast?
January 14, 2020 04:00 - 44 minutes - 30.3 MBOur very first episode! In which we talk about what the heck religion is, why you should know more about it, and why it's probably more complicated than you think. Keywords: prescriptive; descriptive; creedal; votive Storytime: Bellah, from Habits of the Heart Homework: Nye, Religion: The Basics; Martel, Life of Pi; Walker, The Color Purple ____ Keeping It 101: A Killjoy's Introduction to Religion is proud to be part of the Amplify Podcast Network.