Symposium on Religion & Democracy
in the Foreign Policy of
the Obama Administration
November 3, 2009, 9:00am–4:30pm
Copley Formal Lounge (map)
RSVP Here
You are cordially invited to join Georgetown’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs for a day-long symposium to examine the critical, and often controversial, issues of Religion and Democracy in the Foreign Policy of the Obama Administration. Eminent scholars, public intellectuals and activists will explore new ways of thinking about the democratic religion-state relationship, what empirical research is telling us about the nexus between religion, religious freedom and democracy, and how religion impacts U.S. democracy promotion abroad. The symposium will conclude with an examination of Islamic political theologies and their influence on the rooting of democracy in key Muslim countries.
A light lunch will be served. During lunch, the keynote address will be delivered by former Spanish Prime Minister, Jose Maria Aznar.
A light lunch will be served. During lunch, the keynote address will be delivered by former Spanish Prime Minister, Jose Maria Aznar.
Symposium Agenda
9:00 am: Opening Remarks
Thomas Banchoff, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
9:10-10:30: The "Twin Tolerations" as a Model for Foreign Policy Thinking
Alfred Stepan, Columbia University
Jean Bethke Elshtain, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
Timothy Samuel Shah, Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs, Boston University; U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom
Moderator: Thomas Farr, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
10:45-12:00: New Trends in the Data on Religion and Democracy
Brian Grim, Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life
Harris Mylonas, George Washington University
Daniel Philpott, University of Notre Dame
Moderator: Allen Herztke, Brookings Institution
12:15-1:00: Keynote Address by Former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar
1:15-2:45: Religion and Democracy Promotion in the Obama Administration
Gerald Hyman, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Thomas Melia, Freedom House
Eric Patterson, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
Moderator: Jennifer Marshall, The Heritage Foundation
3:00-4:30: Thinking About Islam and Democracy
Hassan Abbas, Harvard University
Emile Nakhleh, Former Senior Intelligence Officer
Dalia Mogahed, Gallup Center for Muslim Studies
Moderator and Discussant: Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
Event Webpage: http://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/events/1770
