Having a difficult time making sense of the religious right? It is alien territory for many Americans in terms of the religious, political and public policy aspects. If we are going to be able to have conversations about the politics of the Christian right, it helps to have some foundational knowledge.

Yesterday, I did a round-up of some of the best and most important blog posts about the religious right from the past week. And as I did, it occurred to me that even as most people find it difficult to learn about the religious right, let alone have a thoughtful conversation about it, it is also hard to figure out how to learn the things that are most important to know. Blogs are helpful, but it is hard to get a foundation of knowledge from blogs alone.

Over the next little while, I will do a series of posts that can be your own personal home school curriculum on the subject. To start, here are five basic books (among many on the subject) that, taken together, provide a good foundation of knowledge that will be helpful in the run-up to this year's elections, as well as the elections of 2008. This foundation will also help to make sense of ongoing news reporting and blog posts you may encounter, and to provide some common knowledge and language among people who share your concerns about this powerful political movement.

There is always lots to blog about the religious right.  I blog on these things all the time here, and at Talk to Action.  But there are many fine blogs addressing aspects of these issues. Here is a round-up of recent interesting posts from the Greater Blogosphere, on the religious right and what people are doing about it.

Esther Kaplan will be the featured guest this Friday evening on on Writer's Voice, a weekly radio program devoted to discussion of books and publishing. The topic is Kaplan's recent book, With God on Their Side:  How Christian Fundamentalists Trampled Science, Policy, and Democracy in George Bush's White House.

Frederick Clarkson (that's me) will also appear to talk about Talk to Action, and the importance of books in the development of political culture.

It is possible to hear the show via streaming audio, over your computer.

Streaming audio is one way for us to hear things we need to hear, that may not be airing in our part of the country. It is very likely to be a crtical part of the communications infrastructure necessary to contend with the religious right.