Debating the Divine: Religion in 21st Century American Democracy

June 24, 2008, 12:30pm – 2:00pm

About This Event

When people of faith participate in the public square, should civic patriotism trump their religious loyalty? How can we embrace our many differences and still uphold a common civic life? How do we forge alliances between religious and secular citizens to work for the common good?

These were some of the questions that panelists grappled with at an event to launch a new book, Debating the Divine: Religion in 21st Century American Democracy. The event was sponsored by the Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative at the Center for American Progress.

In his opening remarks, moderator E.J. Dionne said that the role of religion in public affairs raises old and vexing questions about how to reconcile reason and faith. Referring to the book’s essayists, Dionne said that all agreed that when religious people put forth arguments in the public square, these arguments should not be narrowly sectarian, but should be accessible to people of other faiths, and to people of no faith. Dionne also spoke of the necessity to compromise and negotiate as political realities.

David Hollinger, who wrote one of the book’s opening essays, said that religious ideas are too often given a pass in the United States, and escape the serious scrutiny that is given to ideas about race, gender, and more. He called for a robust debate in which religious ideas are critically evaluated. Such a debate would signify respect for religion, he said, rather than the timid dismissiveness, which is now the case with many critics.

Eboo Patel, who wrote the book’s other opening essay, said that the United States is a religiously devout and diverse nation in a world where religious conflict is tearing people apart. Patel called for a commitment to building religious pluralism, whereby citizens are loyal to their own tradition, respect the tradition of others, and work together on behalf of the common good.

Melissa Rogers, who wrote a responding essay, made a distinction regarding the different levels in which religion is active in public life. One level involves government activity, which is regulated by the Constitution; another involves debate about public policies, which is illuminated by the spirit of the Constitution. A third level involves cultural life. Rogers argued that religious and secular citizens have equal rights and responsibilities, but she disputed Hollinger’s notion that civic patriotism should trump religious loyalties.

The panelists engaged in a vigorous discussion about the issues raised, ranging from philosophy to pragmatism. In response to an audience question about how to build coalitions with religious and secular groups, Melissa Rogers said she was a fan of single-issue coalitions because they are more likely to be successful than broader coalitions that demand agreement on several issues. For instance, if a coalition focuses only on torture, it can include groups that disagree on many other things, as long as they are committed to the abolition of torture.

The book that was released at the event, Debating the Divine: Religion in 21st Century American Democracy, contains essays by David Hollinger, Eboo Patel, Melissa Rogers, Mark Lilla, Martha Minow, Alan Wolfe, Mark Noll, Susan Jacoby, Nicholas Wolterstorff, Jeremy Gunn, Vincent Miller, Susan Thistlethwaite, Charlene Sinclair, Shaun Casey, and John D. Podesta.

Introduction:

Sally Steenland, Senior Policy Advisor to the Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative, Center for American Progress

Featured Panelists:

David Hollinger, Preston Hotchkis Professor of American History, University of California, Berkeley
Eboo Patel, Founder and Executive Director, Interfaith Youth Core
Melissa Rogers, Visiting Professor of Religion and Public Policy, Director of the Center for Religion and Public Affairs, Wake Forest University Divinity School

Moderated by:

E. J. Dionne, Jr, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, syndicated columnist, and author of Souled Out: Reclaiming Faith & Politics After the Religious Right

 

Location

Center for American Progress
1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

Resources

Full event video

The Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative of the Center for American Progress works to identify and articulate the moral, ethical, and spiritual values underpinning policy issues, to shape a progressive stance in which these values are clear, and to increase public awareness and understanding of these values. The Initiative also works to safeguard the healthy separation of church and state that has allowed religion in our country to flourish. In all its efforts, the Initiative works for a society and government that strengthen the common good and respect the basic dignity of all people. The Initiative informs the wide-ranging efforts of the Center for American Progress to promote a strong, just and free America that ensures opportunity for all.