American Heretics: The Politics of the Gospel

American Heretics: The Politics of the Gospel takes audiences into the buckle of Bible belt, where a group of defiant Oklahomans are rising up to challenge deeply rooted fundamentalist Christian doctrine. Labeled as “heretics” for their beliefs and actions, they refuse to wield their faith as a sword sharpened by literal interpretations of the Bible, especially those interpretations that continue to justify nationalism and hack away at landmark civil rights protections for women, minorities, immigrants, and the LGBTQ communities. These American Heretics are still interested in saving you from hell, but it’s the earthly one, where poverty, discrimination and nationalism oppress those “who are the least among us.”

Directed and Produced by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers Jeanine and Catherine Butler; edited by award-winning editor Jamie Lee Godfrey (National Geographic, Newseum); and lensed by Peter Hutchens (Showtime’s “The Trade,” and Oprah Winfrey’s “Belief” series).