Religion, public policy focus of series

The Joint Program on Religion and Public Life at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at the Kennedy School of Government (KSG) is sponsoring a research colloquium series beginning on Feb. 12. The series, which will run through April 28, aims to discuss the work of leading scholars who address the interaction of religion and public policy in the United States. Sponsors of the colloquium hope to connect and encourage graduate students working on related topics, and to strengthen the links between institutional centers of activity devoted to research and practice in this area.

Each luncheon seminar takes place on a Thursday, from 12:15 to 1:45 p.m., in the Taubman Conference Rooms on the fifth floor of the Taubman Building at KSG. A buffet lunch will be available at noon.

The following schedule includes the date, speaker, and topic of each seminar.

Feb. 14: Charles Glenn, Boston University School of Education; “Should Faith-Based Groups Be in Bed With Government?: Employment Practices,” to be held in rooms B and C.

Feb. 28: Diana Eck, Harvard Divinity School; “A New Religious America: Religious Pluralism and Public Policy” – based on her book “A New Religious America: How a ‘Christian’ Country has become the World’s Most Religiously Diverse Nation,” – to be held in rooms A and B.

March 14: Adam Seligman, Boston University; “Tolerance, Tradition, and Modernity,” located in rooms A and B.

April 4: Jean Bethke Elshtain, University of Chicago Divinity School; “When Believers Engage the Culture,” located in room A.

April 18: Susan Sered, Harvard Divinity School; “Religion and Healing in Urban America,” to be held in the Allison Dining Room.

For more information, contact Margot Murphy at (617) 495-7721 or margot_murphy@harvard.edu.