Balmer was nominated for an Emmy for scriptwriting and hosting the three-part PBS documentary Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory, based on his book with the same title.[1] He also wrote and hosted two other PBS documentaries: Crusade: The Life of Billy Graham and In the Beginning: The Creationist Controversy.
In various books and articles, Balmer has criticized the politicization of the American Christian evangelical movement. In an article titled "Jesus is not a Republican" in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Balmer writes:
Indeed, the most effective and vigorous religious movements in American history have identified with the downtrodden and have positioned themselves on the fringes of society rather than at the centers of power. The Methodists of the 19th century come to mind, as do the Mormons. In the 20th century, Pentecostalism, which initially appealed to the lower classes and made room for women and people of color, became perhaps the most significant religious movement of the century.
The leaders of the religious right have led their sheep astray from the gospel of Jesus Christ to the false gospel of neoconservative ideology and into the maw of the Republican Party. And yet my regard for the flock and my respect for their integrity is undiminished. Ultimately it is they who must reclaim the gospel and rescue us from the distortions of the religious right.
The Bible I read tells of freedom for captives and deliverance from oppression. It teaches that those who refuse to act with justice or who neglect the plight of those less fortunate have some explaining to do. But the Bible is also about good news. It promises redemption and forgiveness, a chance to start anew and, with divine help, to get it right. My evangelical theology assures me that no one, not even Karl Rove or James Dobson, lies beyond the reach of redemption, and that even a people led astray can find their way home.[3]
The title of Balmer's book about the religious right, Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right (2021), was used for the documentary film of the same name.[4]
Political career
In 2003, Balmer ran for a seat on his local school board and lost by four votes.[5]
In 2004, Balmer won the Democratic nomination for a seat representing the 111th District in the Connecticut House of Representatives. Balmer ran in the general election against incumbent Republican John H. Frey, despite the fact that Balmer had lived in the district for less than three years, Frey had never drawn an opponent, and the town of Ridgefield (which the 111th District represents) was "two-to-one Republican."[5] Ultimately, Balmer was defeated in the election. Frey won 8,824 votes, and Balmer won 4,478 votes; Frey won more votes than anyone else in the Connecticut House that year.[6]
(2006) Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: A Journey into the Evangelical Subculture in America. 4th ed. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN0-19-530046-7
(2006) Thy Kingdom Come: How the Religious Right Distorts the Faith and Threatens America: An Evangelical's Lament. New York: Basic Books. ISBN0-465-00519-5
(2008) God in the White House: How Faith Shaped the Presidency from John F. Kennedy to George W. Bush. San Francisco: HarperOne. ISBN0-06-073405-1
(2010) The Making of Evangelicalism: From revivalism to politics and beyond. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press. Pp vii + 89. [Paperback edition 2017.]
(2014) Redeemer: The Life of Jimmy Carter. New York: Basic Books. ISBN978-0465029587
^Ujlaki, Stephen; Chris Jones (co-directors) (2024). Bad Faith (motion picture). United States. Event occurs at 1:27:17. Quote: "The title of the film is used with the gracious permission of Randall Balmer, the author of "Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right" 2021 by Wm. B Eerdmans Publishing Company. The title design is based on the cover of the same book."
