A review of the original seven Articles of the Constitution and its twenty-seven Amendments. The 7,495 words of these documents have provided the foundation for the oldest and most successful republic in history.

In this seminar we explore the dangers of Christian Nationalism and related apocalyptic and end-time movements. These movements are by all reports growing and cast a dark cloud over America in this hyper-polarized political moment. Adherents to these religio-political movements have the goal of turning America into a theocracy: One nation under God; but their God and for their ends. Those associated with these movements typically see themselves as literally girding their loins for what they contend to be the final battle between Good and Evil. Scholars and social critics suggest that there are legions among us who have one unshakeable goal: To establish in the United States the Kingdom of God, one ruled by the Elect, and premised on authoritarian and patriarchal principles. Their objective is to radically remake key aspects of American government and education so as to impose their version of Christianity and morality upon the rest of us. This seminar will challenge participants to reflect on the rise of these troubling religio-political movements within contemporary American Christianity; movements that can only be viewed as a perversion of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thomas Jefferson referred to the First Amendment as creating a “wall of separation” between church and state as the third president of the U.S. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black famously stated in Everson v. Board of Education that “[t]he First Amendment has erected a wall between church and state,” and “[t]hat wall must be kept high and impregnable.” This two-hour seminar will look at the origins of “the wall of separation” as well as its supporters and critics.

This seminar uses On Tyranny by Dr. Timothy Snyder to examine the historical strategies autocratic leaders have used to gain and maintain control over civilian populations. Topics include information manipulation, economic pressure, and the use of implied or direct violence. Equal attention is given to how individuals and communities can recognize, resist, and counter these tactics. Discussion will explore how passive compliance and the temptation to trade freedom for perceived security often enable authoritarian systems. The seminar emphasizes maintaining personal dignity, ethical agency, and civic responsibility under duress. This is not a political philosophy course and does not focus on contemporary political figures or partisan debate, but rather on well-documented historical examples and the preservation of freedom within authoritarian contexts.