Faith Angle

Time and again in American life, technology has made room for new, better things that ease human burdens and free up RAM—think just of dishwashers, vacuum cleaners, microwaves, and airplanes. Of course today, Silicon Valley represents this new frontier perhaps better than anyplace else in the world. It’s there that Carolyn Chen –  a sociologist and Professor of Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley, where she’s co-directs the Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion – has discovered something compelling in her new book Work Pray Code: When Work Becomes Religion in Silicon Valley (Princeton 2022).    Time after time, a Silicon Valley job provided what religion used to provide a Georgia Tech college student or Ohio megachurch volunteer. From company yoga studios to meditation apps, from cafeterias to enriching professional development opportunities, young, mobile, hi-tech workers allured by the perks often work 60 or 70 hour-weeks. If the company is changing the world, why go to church?   For Millennials and Gen Z in particular, the trend toward “no religion at all” or remaining agnostic on the religion survey is increasingly popular. But Trae Stephens, a venture capitalist and Partner at Founders Fund where he invests across multiple sectors and stages, argues the story is more complex.    Enjoy these two short talks, given live to a group of 18 journalists working at outlets primarily west of the Mississippi—first on how work in Silicon Valley has come to take the place of religion once held, and then Trae on why that is, and what we can do about it.   Guests Carolyn Chen Trae Stephens   Additional Resources  Work, Pray, Code: When Work Becomes Religion in Silicon Valley, by Carolyn Chen  "Choose Good Quests," by Trae Stephens 

Professor Joshua Ralston is a scholar and theologian who teaches Christian-Muslim Relations at the University of Edinburgh. His three books look at Sharia law from a Christian perspective, at the impact of global migration on the church, and at Europe’s rich religious diversity. He is engaged in the work of bridging divides between Christians and Muslims—each vast, diverse communities who often fundamentally misunderstand one another.  Joining him is Rim-Sarah Alouane, a French legal scholar and commentator who’s nearly completed a PhD in comparative law at the University Toulouse-Capitole, in France. Her scholarship focuses largely on religious freedom, human rights in France, the balance of civil liberties and religion, and constitutional law. Listen in for a rich dialogue between a Muslim legal scholar in France and a Christian theologian in Scotland.    Guests Joshua Ralston Rim-Sarah Alouane   Additional Resources  Law and the Rule of God: A Christian Engagement with Shari'a, by Joshua Ralston The Spirit of Populism: Political Theologies in Polarized Times, co-edited by Joshua Ralston "Publicly French, Privately Muslim: The Aim of Modern Laïcité," by Rim-Sarah Alouane  "The Weaponization of Laïcité," by Rim-Sarah Alouane

Yuval Levin is the kind of thinker, policy analyst, public servant, and scholar you really want in DC. The talk you’re about to hear is one he gave to a group of 15 Michael Cromartie Forum journalists, a highly promising group of early-career journalists. The topic is declining trust in our politics, in religion, and in American journalism—and it’s a deeply insightful and challenging talk that we hope you’ll feel just as stirred by as our group did.   Guest Yuval Levin   Additional Resources  A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream, by Yuval Levin  The Fractured Republic: Renewing America's Social Contract in the Age of Individualism, by Yuval Levin "The Crisis in America's Institutions: Religion, Journalism, and Politics," full video of Yuval Levin's session at the 2023 Michael Cromartie Forum   

At the moment, 193 countries in the world hold membership in the United Nations, and, of that group, 50 are currently Muslim-majority countries. This is a data-point referenced by each of this episode's guest scholars, in their thinking about how Islam and liberalism intersect and in their reflections on the future of Islam in the modern era and on Muslim life in America. First up is Mustafa Akyol, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, where he focuses on the intersection of public policy, Islam, and modernity. He is followed by Dalia Mogahed, who is Director of Research at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. Dalia previously served on President Obama’s Advisory Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and, prior to that, was for six years Director of Gallup’s Center for Muslim Studies.     Guests Mustafa Akyol  Dalia Mogahed    Additional Resources  Full video of Faith Angle Miami session on "Islam and American Pluralism"  Reopening Muslim Minds: A Return to Reason, Freedom, and Tolerance, by Mustafa Akyol Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think, by Dalia Mogahed and John Esposito 

Miroslav Volf teaches theology at Yale University, where he also directs the Yale Center for Faith and Culture. He is the author of 17 books, and his 1996 book Exclusion and Embrace was named by Christianity Today as one of the 100 Most Influential Books of the 20th Century. This new book, rooted in a popular Yale undergraduate course, is Life Worth Living: A Guide to What Matters Most, co-authored by Matthew Croasmun and Ryan McAnnally-Linz, both fellow teachers. Joining Miroslav for this conversation is Tim Alberta, a brilliant, ascending journalist and bestselling author in his own right, who is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of American Carnage. At the moment, Tim is working on a new book, provocatively titled The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism.    Guests Miroslav Volf Tim Alberta   Additional Resources Life Worth Living: A Guide to What Matters Most, by Miroslav Volf, Matthew Croasmun, and Ryan McAnnally-Linz American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republic Civil War and the Rise of President Trump, by Tim Alberta "War and Religion in Ukraine," Faith Angle Europe session with Miroslav Volf  

In this episode, we are joined by Shaun Casey, former director of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Religion and Global Affairs, and Rachel Donadio, a Paris-based journalist, a contributing writer for The Atlantic and a former European Culture correspondent for The New York Times. Our guests discuss Shaun's new book, Chasing the Devil at Foggy Bottom, which makes the case that understanding the role of religion in global politics is crucial for effective diplomacy.   Guests Shaun Casey Rachel Donadio   Additional Resources  Chasing the Devil at Foggy Bottom: The Future of Religion in American Diplomacy, by Shaun Casey "Why Is France so Afraid of God?" by Rachel Donadio "Portrait of Bravery: Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska," by Rachel Donadio   

In this episode, Ryan Streeter of the American Enterprise Institute and Tevi Troy of the Bipartisan Policy Center join us to discuss the history of the White House Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, as well as to provide a roadmap for the office's potential growth and impact under future administrations.    Guests Ryan Streeter  Tevi Troy   Additional Resources "The False Choices Facing the Republican Party," by Ryan Streeter "The Life and Times of the Faith-Based Initiative," by Tevi Troy

This episode is lifted directly from one of the most fascinating sessions of November’s Faith Angle Europe, where Dr. Peter Frankopan opened a two-and-a-half-hour session available in its entirety below. Peter is the Professor of Global History at Oxford University’s Worcester College, and alongside Theresa Fallon, the founder of a Brussels think tank focusing on Russia and China, he spoke with 18 transatlantic journalists about trade, culture, and the easily-misconstrued history of the Eastern and Western worlds that have intersected in China for centuries.     Guests Peter Frankopan   Additional Resources "Past Is Prologue in China," full length Faith Angle Europe 2022 session with Peter Frankopan and Theresa Fallon The New Silk Roads: The Present and Future of the World, by Peter Frankopan Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research

Recently, President Biden signed into law the Respect for Marriage Act, requiring all US states and territories to recognize same-sex and interracial civil marriages. But that isn’t all the new law does: it also fortifies religious liberty protections. As today’s guests describe, it’s perhaps because the Respect for Marriage Act does both things that it garnered bipartisan congressional support. In this episode, we're joined by Tim Schultz, president of the 1st Amendment Partnership, a DC advocacy organization that has worked for the last decade to advance religious freedom in state legislatures. Tim worked closely with leaders of diverse religious minority organizations—and national gay rights lobby organizations—to help foster the conditions needed to make this law and its commitment to Christian pluralism possible. Joining him is Tim Dalrymple, president and CEO of Christianity Today, one of the country's most influential evangelical publications.    Guests Tim Schultz Tim Dalrymple   Additional Resources "Everything You Need to Know About the Respect for Marriage Act," by Carl Esbeck in Christianity Today 1st Amendment Partnership Christianity Today Respect for Marriage Act 

In this episode, we are joined by Rev. Russell Levenson, Rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, TX. In conversation with Kelsey Dallas of Deseret News, Levenson discusses his new book, Witness to Dignity, about the life and faith of George H.W. and Barbara Bush who attended St. Martin’s for over fifty years. Guests Russell Levenson Kelsey Dallas   Additional Resources  Witness to Dignity: The Life and Faith of George H.W. and Barbara Bush, by Russell Levenson "People of faith, pessimism and American politics," by Kelsey Dallas