Johnny Cash in the Holy Land: Christian Zionism and American Popular Culture

Shalom Goldman, Professor of Religion, together with folksinger Lisa Deaton, will present "Johnny Cash in the Holy Land: Christian Zionism and American Popular Culture," October 11 in Goodson Chapel. This event is is free and open to the public and is sponsored by the Duke Center for Jewish Studies and the Duke Divinity School.Professor Goldman will be teaching his popular course "Zionism: Christian and Jewish Perspectives this fall." He is also the author of "Zeal for Zion: Christians, Jews, and the Idea of the Promised Land" (University of North Carolina Press, 2009), in which he argues that Christian Zionism in America actually is much older and broader than most realize and involves an understanding of America as a kind of Israel-like promised land for people escaping religious and political persecution.Goldman refers to Johnny Cash in his presentation title because Cash was baptized in the Jordan River; he and his wife, June Carter Cash, traveled to Israel five times. "Johnny Cash symbolized for me the American popular culture enthusiasm for Israel," states Goldman.Folksinger Lisa Deaton will perform music related to Goldman's talk. Deaton plays and sings with three bands, The Georgia Mudcats, an Appalachian String Band; Mulligan Stew, an Irish and old time band; and LD and The Blind Dates, an eclectic folkadelic acoustic band.Performances by Duke faculty musicians.