By Maya Boddie, Baptist Joint Committee intern

America’s story cannot be told without mentioning religion, and Peter Manseau has been tasked with telling that story at the Smithsonian. The Lilly Endowment Curator of American Religious History spoke to the D.C. Chapter of the Religion Communicators Council about how he works to bring religious history to life.

Manseau earned his doctorate in religion from Georgetown University, and is the author of several books, including One Nation, Under Gods: A New American History. He joined the Smithsonian team in 2016.

The museum’s first religion curator since the 1890s, Manseau is implementing innovative exhibit ideas and organizing concerts and theatre programs to expose guests to the many intersections of religion and history.