Ammon Hillman

Hillman's trade-press book The Chemical Muse (2008) argues that psychotropic drug use was pervasive in classical antiquity and shaped cultural and political developments.^[9] Reviews in academic and trade outlets were skeptical of the book's evidentiary base and argumentative method, with Bryn Mawr Classical Review faulting its generalizations and use of sources and Kirkus Reviews characterizing it as polemical.^[10][11][12]

Hillman taught as an adjunct at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota. In late 2015 he provided a translation for a campus staging of Medea that initially incorporated handheld phallic amulets (fascina) as stage props. Administrators objected to the props during production, while students and faculty protested the decision as censorship. Shortly thereafter a student involved in the production filed sexual-harassment complaints against Hillman. Hillman denied the allegations and the university informed him that his teaching contract would not be renewed. He was also dismissed from a custodial position. The university stated that sexual-harassment complaints were investigated and acted upon under federal law, and that outcomes are confidential.^[13] FIRE and the National Coalition Against Censorship criticized the university's actions as raising academic-freedom concerns related to artistic expression.^[14][15]

Public court documents reveal a pattern of overt sexual commentary directed at both female and male students, and perceived stalking of female students. In a January 22, 2019 memorandum (Index #35), Dr. Hillman openly admitted to sexual harassment during conversations with Judy Myers, the director of the Medea play.^[16] His full deposition from the same date (Index #38) provides extensive sworn testimony detailing the harassment allegations, his mental state, and his perspective on the situation.^[17]

Beginning in 2024 Hillman discussed his readings of the Septuagint and the Gospels on long-form podcasts and on his YouTube channel, including several appearances on the Danny Jones Podcast.^[18] Among other claims, he has argued that the Septuagint is the original text of the Hebrew Bible and that certain gospel passages have been mistranslated or misunderstood. These interpretations have been disputed by scholars. Carrier's 2025 critique rejects Hillman's philological and historical premises and contends that mainstream exegesis does not support his readings.^[19]

• The Chemical Muse: Drug Use and the Roots of Western Civilization (New York: Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press, 2008) ISBN 0-312-35249-2.
• Original Sin: Sex, Drugs, and the Church (San Francisco: Ronin Publishing, 2012) ISBN 1-57951-165-1.
• Hermaphrodites, Gynomorphs and Jesus: She-Male Gods and the Roots of Christianity (San Francisco: Ronin Publishing, 2014) ISBN 1-57951-185-6.