"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." These words, penned by Thomas Jefferson more than 240 years ago, continue to inspire many Americans. And yet they were written by a man who owned hundreds of slaves, and fathered six children by an enslaved woman. As we mark Independence Day this week, we return to a 2018 episode wit ... Show More
Jul 6
Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 2
Last week, we talked with psychologist Lisa Miller about the science of spirituality. Today, we explore what those ideas can look like in everyday life. Miller explains why moments of connection, spiritual practices, and even periods of suffering can sometimes open the door to de ... Show More
1h 33m
Jun 29
Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 1
Food, safety, and strong relationships are essential to our survival. Psychologist Lisa Miller says our brains also crave something else: transcendence. She suggests that spirituality is a universal human capacity, and that feeling connected to something larger than ourselves may ... Show More
50m 5s
Apr 2025
How you can move forward and learn from the past (w/ Clint Smith)
How do you grapple with national history, legacy, and the stories you tell yourself? Clint Smith is the author of the narrative nonfiction, How the Word is Passed, and the poetry collection, Above Ground. Clint joins Chris to talk about the cognitive dissonances that shaped Ameri ... Show More
39m 20s
Oct 2022
The Truth About Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings
November 5, 1998. Using DNA evidence, the scientific journal Nature publishes findings that put to rest a centuries-old mystery: Was Sally Hemings, an enslaved woman at Monticello, the mother of six of Thomas Jefferson’s children? Until then, the historical consensus had been thi ... Show More
34m 52s
Jul 2018
Revolution | The Free Man | 5
The Revolution was fought for freedom, at least in name. Calls for freedom filled the air. No taxation without representation! Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness!The Marquis de Lafayette, who had fought valiantly at Washington's side throughout the war, spoke for many whe ... Show More
35m 57s
Jan 2023
A Fuller Measure of Witherspoon on Slavery
A Princeton University president, teacher, preacher, politician, Declaration of Independence signatory, and a slave owner. As an early American patriot, John Witherspoon has been the center of some recent controversy as a statue of him may be removed from historic Princeton Unive ... Show More
19m 30s
Jul 2023
349: The Birth of the United States (Part 3)
“O ye that love mankind! Ye that dare oppose, not only the tyranny, but the tyrant, stand forth!” The U.S. Congress votes for independence on the 2nd of July 1776, and George Washington reads the Declaration of Independence to his troops a few days later, after which they pull do ... Show More
48m 8s
Jan 2025
The Declaration of Independence
Episode Description:In this episode, we talk about the Declaration of Independence and why it’s so important. We’ll learn how it was written, who helped create it, and why America wanted to be free from Britain. We’ll also explore the big ideas about freedom and fairness that mad ... Show More
7m 54s