Published in Muse , Johns Hopkins University Careful and timely study In this careful and timely study, Martin explores themes of white Christian nationalism, militant anticommunism, and the use and abuse of power. Such subjects align The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism with the work of other scholars, like Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Anthea D. Butler, Andrew L. Whitehead, and Samuel L. Perry. Like these scholars, Ma

Published in The Journal of Church & State Engaging new book In this engaging new book, Lerone Martin (Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Stanford University) persuasively argues that J. Edgar Hoover was one of the central figures of mid-twentieth century US religious history. Martin shows how Hoover combined mainline Protestant respectability, traditionally conservative ideas about gender and race as well as—thanks to his leadership of the Federal Bureau of Investig

Published in History Today A diligent use of archives and a relentless pursuit of the truth J. Edgar Hoover, 16 May 1932. Wikimedia Commons J . Edgar Hoover believed the United States was God’s chosen nation. Hoover, who was director of the FBI from 1924 to 1972, thought the Bureau’s mission was to defeat the godless forces of liberalism, feminism and civil rights. In Hoover’s view, to overcome these foes America had to yield to his preferred brand of Christianity – a Christi

Published in The Guardian An elegantly written book Photograph: Corbis/Getty Images Martin now delivers a fresh perspective. In an elegantly written book, The Gospel of J Edgar Hoover : How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism, he makes a persuasive case that Hoover was a white Christian nationalist and convenient ally for evangelicals, embedding race and religion in the foundations of the national security state – and allowing white supremacy to

Review Published in Publishers Weekly Impressive research and sharp character sketches In this revealing history, Martin ( Preaching on Wax ), director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University, contends that J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI “joined forces with the founding architects of white evangelicalism to aid and abet the rise of white Christian nationalism as a legitimate force in American politics.” Drawing on recently declassified doc

The right’s claims about weaponization of the FBI don’t stand up to the historical test Published in The Washington Post The exterior of the J. Edgar Hoover Building, the headquarters of the FBI, in August 2015, in Washington. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post) House Republicans have empaneled a Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government to investigate the widespread belief on the right that the FBI and other agencies are attempting to “purge conservative vie

Published in Reading Religion Martin’s prose brilliantly illustrates that to overcome these godless foes (in Hoover’s estimation), it was the FBI founder’s outlook that the nation had to succumb to his own personal faith J. Edgar Hoover, the founding director of the FBI who led the agency from 1924 to 1972, has become a prototypical avatar of today’s debates about white Christian nationalism, especially in law enforcement. In The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided a

Elder Michaux, a popular black evangelist, aided the bureau’s campaign to destroy King’s reputation. Published in ARC Magazine (Getty/Polaris/Lawrence Schiller) n 2017, the National Archives released a new trove of FBI files in response to a Freedom of Information Act request I made. The security-screened documents reveal how the bureau solicited and received sacred assistance in their crusade to discredit Martin Luther King, Jr. during the civil rights movement. The FBI’s ef

Published in The Immanent Frame Image credit: By Brunswyk (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons “Dear Professor Martin,” the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) wrote to me, “This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.” I could not believe the FBI responded to my FOIA request for Reverend Charles E. Fuller (1887–1968) so quickly. An initial response to a FOIA request normally takes twenty