Batting away simplistic caricatures about intelligent design and evolution is a large part of what we do here. By contrast, there’s something deeply refreshing about scholarship that acknowledges the complexity of its subject. An example would be the work of our colleague Richard Weikart, the historian and author more recently of Hitler’s Religion: The Twisted Beliefs that Drove the Third Reich.

In an ID the Future conversation with Todd Butterfield, Professor Weikart reveals the complexity of his topic — Hitler’s true religious views, which are so often subjected to, yes, simplistic caricature. Sometimes you’ll see Hitler portrayed as a Christian, other times as an occultist. Neither is true. You could call him a pantheist.

As Weikart acknowledges, that gets a lot closer to the truth. But the complexity and contradictions are fascinating in Weikart’s portrayal. It’s a really interesting conversation. Find the podcast here.

Photo: Hitler in 1941, via Wikicommons.