Reinhold Niebuhr and the Importance of Faith

Krista Tippett: Reinhold Niebuhr was not merely a religious figure but a public intellectual who wrote widely on foreign policy and the conduct of war. He coined the term Christian realism to describe a middle way between arrogance and idealism in social action and foreign affairs. EJ Dion: The notion that you can believe that American power can be used for good and have no illusions about ourselves, about American power is I think what Niebahr taught us. After a short break, more conversation with EJ Dion and David Brooks, including what Christian realism can and should look like in a pluralistic 21st century culture.