In recent years, scholars of religion and American studies have agreed that our public contributions as humanists and social scientists are vital. Recent innovative work in journalism, environmental studies, popular and material cultures, affect studies, race, ethnicity, gender studies, and the digital humanities has shown us just how much can be said at the intersection of Religious Studies and American Studies. What are our ethical responsibilities for bringing our disciplines to bear in simultaneously learning about and educating a diverse American public in a transnational vein? This symposium brings together an eclectic mix of scholars for innovative roundtables on key themes in studying religion as a public production—and studying religion in public-- at the turn of the twenty-first century, at a time when intellectuals are charting new pathways for public engagement.

Schedule here. I’ll be speaking after lunch on Monday on a roundtable about religion and capitalism, which is one of my fave topics. Teaser: What do tidy closets, sugar addiction, and human rights have in common?