[applause] >> thank you, rag john ragosta and now john fea. >> thank you. usually when the talk is advertised with this title, most people come to the talk already with their minds made up, yes or no, and then they expect me to sort of confirm their belief. [laughter] one of the first questions i get asked about the title of my book is well, is the answer yes or no, was america founded as a christian nation? i approach the question as a historian. one of the things that bothered me is the way this question is politicized. the founding era has been politicized by the right and also by the left. cherry picking from the past to try to find something to institute their own needs and present agenda. i like the quote from the famous historian who said, "all this to littization of history is like indoctrine by historical example." this is what happened. as a historian, i look at the question, again, to say that i'm completely objecteddive would probably be a myth or probably not be true. i don't think any historian can be, but i am trying to cut through some of th

and now john fea. >> thank you. so was america founded as a christian nation, which is in the title of my book. john just talked a little bit about this. i speak a lot on this topic, and usually when i, when the talk is advertised, you know, with this title most people come to the talk already with their minds made up yes or no, and then they expect me to sort of confirm their beliefs. [laughter] one of the first questions i always get asked about the title of my book is, well, is the answer yes or no? was america founded as a christian nation? most people who are looking for ammunition on that question, i think, are going to be disappointed. i approach this question as an historian. one of the things that bothers me is the way this question is politicized, the founding era has been politicized, i think, by the right, but also by the left. cherry picking from the past to try to find something to suit their own needs and their own present agenda. i like the quote from the famous historian, bernard bailyn, who said all

john fea has written about religion in american history and contemporary culture in scholarly articlesspapers and online publications including a blog called the way to improvement leads home. with that, barbara clark-smith. >> thank you. well, my book offers a new interpretation of the american revolution. you only get a few minutes of it, but it does that by