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PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
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Princeton, New Jersey 08544-5264
Telephone 609-258-3601; Fax 609-258-1301Contact: Marilyn Marks, (609) 258-3601
Sept. 28, 2000
Lecture series to address international issues of religion and politics
Princeton, N.J. -- A Princeton University lecture series about the role of religion in public life begins Oct. 2 with a talk on Catholics in China, reflecting a focus on international topics.
"Just as we have seen recently in the United States, the role of religion in the political arena continues to be a matter of debate in many countries around the world," said Robert Wuthnow, director of Princeton's Center for the Study of Religion. "The Crossroads of Religion and Politics lecture series will bring key speakers to campus to help us understand these timely and important issues."
Richard Madsen, professor of sociology at the University of California at San Diego, will give the premier address Oct. 2, discussing "China's Catholics: Tragedy and Hope in an Emerging Civil Society." He will speak at 4:30 p.m. in Bowl 1, Robertson Hall on the Princeton campus.
Other subjects to be addressed during the academic year include the role of religion in post-communist Eastern Europe, women in the Middle Eastern Islamic world, conflict resolution programs in the developing world, and Zionism in Israel. Future speakers include William Vendley, secretary general of the World Conference on Religion and Peace International; Arthur Hertzberg, Bronfman visiting professor of the humanities at New York University; Ann Elizabeth Mayer, associate professor of legal studies at the University of Pennsylvania; James Billington, librarian of Congress; and DeForest B. "Buster" Soaries, Jr., New Jersey secretary of state.
The series is co-sponsored by the Center for the Study of Religion and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Last year, the series focused on religion's role in American political life.
Information about the series is available from the Center for the Study of Religion (609-258-5545
www.princeton.edu/~csrelig)
or the Office of Public Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School (609-258-1792
www.wws.princeton.edu/~pubaff/).