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Stephens, Randall James
(2024).
"Religion and Migrant Labor in the Golden State"
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
Comment, book launch roundtable on Chris Evans's Do Everything: The Biography of Frances Willard (Oxford University Press, 2022), Manchester Wesley Research Centre, June 10, 2023.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
Book talk and discussion of The Devil's Music with the Religious Studies Reading Group, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
“‘Tell me where you feel our government can better serve our people’: FDR, the New Deal, and Dust Bowl Clergy,” Department of Religious Studies seminar, University of Virginia.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
"'Sanctified people got more fire': The Pentecostal Roots of Early Rock 'n' Roll," the Blake Lecture in the History of Christianity, Virginia Commonwealth University.
Vis sammendrag
The annual Blake Lecture in the History of Christianity is pleased to present the 2023 lecture, "Sanctified people got more fire: The Pentecostal Roots of Early Rock 'n' Roll," presented by Professor Randall James Stephens of the University of Oslo. This event will be in person.
American church leaders and laypeople alike went on the defensive shortly after rock and roll became a national youth craze in 1955-56. Few of those religious critics would have known that rock and roll and rhythm and blues, in fact, had deep religious roots. Early performers, all southerners—like Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, B.B. King, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and James Brown—grew up in or regularly attended pentecostal churches. Pentecostalism was a vibrant new religious movement that traced its origins to the early 20th century. Its adherents broke with many of the formalities of protestantism. Believers held mixed-race services during the height of Jim Crow segregation. The faithful spoke in tongues, practiced healing, and cultivated loud, revved-up music.
Looking back on his childhood religious experiences, James Brown said the saints “had the beat. . . . Sanctified people got more fire.” This talk will look at how the fire of Big Beat performers come from vibrant churches, charismatic pastors, and flashy singing itinerants. It will also focus on the intense negative reaction of clergy and church officials and consider what this tells us. In a region that novelist Flannery O’Connor called “Christ-haunted,” the line between secular and sacred, holy and profane was repeatedly crossed by rock and rollers.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
"Anti-Communism, Anti-Catholicism, and the Politicization of Holiness-Pentecostal Groups in the US, 1940s-1960s".
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Guthrie, Jason & Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
Recollecting Carter Podcast: Rock 'n' Roll President.
[Radio].
Morrow, Georgia, USA.
Vis sammendrag
[President] Carter's genuine love for popular music was used to great effect during his political career. On this episode of Recollecting Carter, I talk with Dr. Randall Stephens about his book The Devil's Music: How Christians Inspired, Condemned, and Embraced Rock 'n' Roll. Our conversation revealed unexpected and interesting intersections in faith, race, and American popular culture.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
Chair, "Evangelical Aesthetics: The Art They Hated and the Art They Made".
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
Chair, “Female Bodies, Ecclesiastical Bodies, and Authority in Early Modern Christianity".
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Stephens, Randall James
(2023).
"'Days of need and want and natural unrest': Clergy, the Dust Bowl, and the Roosevelt Administration".
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
"'Catholicism and Communism are swiftly advancing': White Holiness-Pentecostal Politicization in the 20th Century United States".
Vis sammendrag
This paper focuses on white holiness and Pentecostal anti-communism and anti-Catholicism in the 20th century and a particular kind of political engagement and public concern. These traditions developed robust arguments against communism and Catholicism. The latter posed, in the eyes of believers, serious threats to missions, national integrity, the American government, and personal morality. Such concerns placed believers in a wider context of a shared Cold War experience. The climate of fear anti-communism and anti-Catholicism generated is still a critical feature of 21st-century white evangelical politics. Yet decades before politicized white believers rallied to the Republican Party over abortion, gay marriage, school curriculum, immigration policy, and other culture war issues, many found communism and Catholicism to be the most pressing national and international problems of the day. This paper will look at the nature of such conflicts and campaigns, which culminated in the 1960 presidential candidacy of John F. Kennedy.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
"The Dust Bowl and the Roosevelt Administration’s Religious Outreach," Seminar on the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the Grassroots in the US, University of Oslo.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
"Religion and the Origins of Rock ‘n’ Roll," ILOS-akademiet, University of Oslo.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
"Class discussion of The Devil’s Music, History of Rock and Roll Music," Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
“The Dust Bowl, the Depression, and American Protestant Responses to Environmental Devastation," KLIMER: Climate, Environment, and Energy seminar.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2022).
“‘Catholicism and Communism are swiftly advancing’: White Holiness-Pentecostal Politicization in the 20th Century US,” Manchester Wesley Research Centre, Manchester, UK.
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Stephens, Randall James
(2021).
"Why the Beatles Never Stopped Being Fab".
Saturday Star.
ISSN 1816-4862.
s. 8–8.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2020).
"Pop Jesus and Rock ‘n’ Roll in Britain and America in the 1960s and 1970s." American Society of Church History, New York City.
Vis sammendrag
In the summer of 1966, amid a scandal about The Beatles’ popularity compared with that of Jesus and Christianity, John Lennon tried to clarify what he meant. He was just making an
observation, not a judgment, he pleaded. He also noticed other trends in the church that seemed to confirm that believers wanted to reach out to youth. "Even church people are trying to be with it," he said at a press conference, "with sort of pop groups and things." Indeed, by the mid-1960s and into the 1970s American and British evangelicals and mainline Protestants, as well as Catholics, embarked on new missions to young people. They sponsored rock and folk bands at Christian coffeehouses. They created new record labels, and radio shows for what was being called "Jesus rock." And they enlivened their services with drums, electric guitars, and shouting singers. Stalwarts reported on the activities of brethren across the Atlantic and gained ideas from each other about innovation and musical exploration. British efforts—sponsored by Anglicans and non-conformists—preceded American experimentation with pop music and pop culture. But by the late 1960s, American fusions of evangelicalism and rock helped define a new countercultural Christianity. This paper will explore how religious groups hoped to bridge the generation gap in the 60s and 70s. It will also look at the ministerial and musical cooperation that developed between Brits and Americans, asking how promoters, fans, and musicians differed in their political, theological, and cultural orientation. Finally, it will judge the relative success and failures of these efforts amid the troubles of post-Christian Britain and the religious successes of evangelical America.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2020).
Går i samme kirke, men nå truer hudfargen samholdet av Alice Tegle
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[Avis].
Korsets Seier.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2019).
“The Environmental Catastrophe of the Dust Bowl and American Culture.” Fagdag for engelsklærere i Osloskolen, Edvard Munch videregående skole, Oslo .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2019).
“Making Sense of the American Christian Right.” Nettverksdagen for Engelsklærere i Asker og Bærum, Gyldendalhuset, Oslo.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2019).
"Race, Rock, and the American South." Lived Religion Symposium, Nord Universitet, Bodø.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2018).
“‘Christian rock musicians come from pentecostal ranks!’ Rock ’n’ Roll and Conservative Christianity in Modern America.” Southern Music Symposium, University of Mississippi .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2018).
“The Dust Bowl and the Congregational Council for Social Action in the 1930s.” God’s Climates: Religion and Disruptive Weather, Environmental Humanities seminar, Northumbria University .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2018).
“Writing a Book on Rock Music and Religion.” Organization of American Historians Distinguished Lecturer program, American Studies Department, University of Kansas.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
"'The WORD OF GOD not the WONDER OF THE CROWD!!!!’ The Fundamentalist Rejection of Christian Rock in the 1970s and 1980s." American History Seminar at the Institute of Historical Research, London.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
"‘They dress like devils and wear Spandex costumes’: Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, and Jesus Rock." Jimmy Carter and the “Year of the Evangelicals” Reconsidered, St Anselm University, New Hampshire.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
“‘Swinging, blue-jeans religion’: Christian Rock and Evangelical Culture in the 1960s and 1970s.” Congregational Library and Archives, Boston .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
“‘You can’t just sneak Jesus into music!’: Fundamentalism, Popular Culture, and Christian Rock in the 1970s and 1980s.” Colloquium on Religion and History, University of Notre Dame .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
“‘Like natives at a voodoo ritual’: Race, Rock, and Evangelicalism in the 1950s and 1960s.” Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis .
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2017).
"Seeing Red: Evangelical and Fundamentalist Anti-Communism and Political Engagement." Nordic Association for American Studies, University of Southern Denmark.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2016).
“‘BEWARE that ye are not led astray': The Fundamentalist Rejection of Jesus Rock in the 1970s and 1980s.” American Studies Association of Norway, Oslo.
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McAuley, Roisin & Stephens, Randall J.
(2014).
"The Devil's Music".
[Radio].
Sunday Sequence, BBC Ulster.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2014).
"Unbucklin’ that Ole Bible Belt: Learning about the Solid Religious South from Freaks, Geeks, Outcasts, Losers, Wide-Eyed Prophets, Cranks, and Mountebanks".
Fides et Historia.
ISSN 0884-5379.
46(1),
s. 66–69.
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Remillard, Art & Stephens, Randall J.
(2013).
"Podcast Episode 16: Interview with Randall Stephens".
[Internett].
Journal of Southern Religion.
Vis sammendrag
In this podcast, Art Remillard talks with Randall Stephens, who was the keynote speaker for the sixth annual North American Undergraduate Conference in Religion and Philosophy, held at Saint Francis University. Stephens’s address was entitled, “Evangelical Anti-Intellectualism in Modern America,” which draws from his book, The Anointed: Evangelical Truth in a Secular Age, co-authored with Karl Giberson. Stephens is Reader in History and American Studies at Northumbria University in the UK, and he is a former editor of the Journal of Southern Religion. Stephens begins the conversation by explaining how his keynote will contribute to the conference’s theme, “The Future of Reason.” He also talks about the book’s research, which includes interviews with David Barton and leaders of Focus on the Family. The interview concludes with Stephens discussing his newest project, an examination of rock music and American Christianity.
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Beneke, Chris & Stephens, Randall J.
(2013).
"Why Republicans and Academics Need Each Other".
The Chronicle of higher education.
ISSN 0009-5982.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2013).
"High Holy Rollers".
The Wilson Quarterly - WQ.
ISSN 0363-3276.
Summer 2013.
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Jakobsen, Hanne Østli & Stephens, Randall J.
(2012).
«Den religiøse populismens valgkamp».
[Internett].
Forskning.no.
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Restad, Hilde Eliassen & Stephens, Randall J.
(2012).
«De kristenkonservatives innflytelse i amerikansk politikk».
[Avis].
Aftenposten.
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Giberson, Karl & Stephens, Randall J.
(2012).
"Conservative Christianity and Its Discontents".
Religion Dispatches.
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Beneke, Chris & Stephens, Randall J.
(2012).
"Lies the Debunkers Told Me: How Bad History Books Win Us Over".
Atlantic Monthly.
ISSN 1072-7825.
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Zoll, Rachel & Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"Election-year Goals of Christian Group Questioned".
[Avis].
The Des Moines Register, Iowa.
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Barabak, Mark Z. & Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"A Scathing Critique of FDR".
[Avis].
Los Angeles Times.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"The Sunbelt Coalition: Evangelicals and Politics in a New Light".
Books & Culture.
ISSN 1082-8931.
January/February.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"Tocqueville’s Discovery of America, by Leo Damrosch".
Christian Century.
ISSN 0009-5281.
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Giberson, Karl & Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"The Evangelical Rejection of Reason".
New York Times, USA.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2011).
"On Teaching with God in America (PBS)".
Fides et Historia.
ISSN 0884-5379.
43(2),
s. 103–106.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2010).
"New Media and the Reshaping of Religious Practice".
The Immanent Frame [blog].
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2010).
"The Old New Right".
Christian Century.
ISSN 0009-5281.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2010).
"The Past Is No Foreign Country".
History News Network.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2009).
"Devout Racism".
Christian Century.
ISSN 0009-5281.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2008).
"What Does Azusa Have to Do with Washington?".
The Immanent Frame [blog].
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Stephens, Randall J. & Case, Delvyn
(2006).
"Hidden Under a Bushel: Sufjan Stevens and the Problem of Christian Music".
Books & Culture.
ISSN 1082-8931.
November/December.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2005).
"Fire-Baptized Holiness Church of God of the Americas".
I Hill, Samuel & Lippy, Charles H. (Red.),
The Encyclopedia of Religion in the South.
Mercer University Press.
ISSN 0865547580.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2005).
"Jones, Charles Price".
I Hill, Samuel & Lippy, Charles H. (Red.),
The Encyclopedia of Religion in the South.
Mercer University Press.
ISSN 0865547580.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2005).
"Christian and Missionary Alliance".
I Hill, Samuel & Lippy, Charles H. (Red.),
The Encyclopedia of Religion in the South.
Mercer University Press.
ISSN 0865547580.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2005).
"Redeeming the Dial: Radio Religion, and Popular Culture in America. By Tona J. Hangen".
Gulf South Historical Review.
ISSN 0892-9025.
Spring.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2005).
"Tell about the South: The 2005 Conference of the St. George Tucker Society".
Historically Speaking.
ISSN 1941-4188.
September/October.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2004).
"Mountain Holiness: A Photographic Narrative. By Deborah Vansau McCauley, Laura A. Porter, and Patricia Parker Brunner".
Religious Studies Review.
ISSN 0319-485X.
30(4).
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2002).
"The Serpent Handlers: Three Families and Their Faith. By Fred Brown and Jeanne McDonald".
The Southern Historian.
Spring.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2002).
"Rebuilding Zion: The Religious Reconstruction of the South, 1863- 1877. By Daniel W. Stowell".
Fides et Historia.
ISSN 0884-5379.
Winter/Spring.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2002).
"Hallelujah Lads and Lassies: Remaking the Salvation Army in America, 1880-1930. By Lillian Taiz".
Religious Studies Review.
ISSN 0319-485X.
July.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2001).
"A Wheel within a Wheel: Southern Methodism and the Georgia Holiness Association. By Briane Turley".
Fides et Historia.
ISSN 0884-5379.
Winter/Spring.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2001).
"Barry W. Hamilton, William Baxter Godbey: Itinerant Apostle of the Holiness Movement".
Register of the Kentucky Historical Society.
ISSN 2161-0355.
Autumn.
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Stephens, Randall J.
(2000).
"Redeeming the South: Religious Cultures and Racial Identities among Southern Baptists, 1865-1925. By Paul Harvey".
Fides et Historia.
ISSN 0884-5379.
Winter/Spring.