Religion

R. Ward Holder (Associate Professor of Theology at St. Anselm College) will deliver the final talk in the 2025 Scott Lecture Series. Christian nationalists insist that the US was founded by and for Christians. As a resurgent populist movement in contemporary American politics, Christian nationalism aims to establish the legal, moral, and cultural dominance of an ultra-conservative, exclusivist interpretation of the religion, and it views diversity and pluralism as existential threats to that objective.

Mark Douglas (Associate Professor of Christian Ethics at Columbia Theological Seminary) will deliver the second talk in the 2025 Scott Lecture Series, which invites a variety of scholars to explore the theme of Christian nationalism. 

This talk by Emma McDonald Kennedy, Ph.D (Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics at Villanova University) considers the history of the eugenics movement and its links to contemporary biotechnological innovation. With resources from Christian ethics, reproductive justice, and disability rights, this talk will sketch a more inclusive vision of social progress and argue for regulation and public consultation in biomedical research.

The Rohatyn Center for Global Affair Global Fellows Program presents “Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy” with Katherine Stewart. 

Peter Beinart is Professor of Journalism and Political Science at CUNY. He is also a Contributing Opinion Writer for The New York Times, a political commentator on MSNBC, and Editor-at-Large of Jewish Currents. Over the years he served as Editor of The New Republic and wrote for publications like The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Die Zeit, and the Financial Times. He is the author of four books including The Icarus Syndrome: A History of American Hubris (Harper, 2010) and The Crisis of Zionism (Times Books, 2012).

Remarks and awards for Religion department seniors and their families.

Commencement reception for seniors and their families for the departments of Dance, Theatre, Classics & Classical Studies, Literary Studies, Philosophy, Religion, and Education Studies.

The Religion Department at Middlebury College will present the Scott Symposium titled “What Is Religious Studies?: Two Examples from India” on the afternoon of Thursday, April 4 in the Orchard Room (Hillcrest 103) at 4:30 p.m. Community members are welcome. Sponsored by the Department of Religion with generous support from the Charles P. Scott Memorial Fund.

Remarks and awards for seniors and their families in Mahaney Center for the Arts Room 126.