Winter College Conversations
Religion in the American Public Sphere
Philip Goff, Liberal Arts
While much is made of the increasing role of religion in American politics, the interaction between religion and public life actually has a long history in the United States. Tracing such important issues as freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and the disestablishment of religion (including issues related to governmental entanglement in religion), this presentation seeks to offer light, rather than just heat, to a controversial topic. The talk employs historical and sociological materials to show how we have arrived at the current state of affairs — including current law on church-and-state relations, how civil religion differs from personal religion, and the fine line between public religion and illegal state-sponsored religion.
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About Philip Goff
Philip Goff is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies and the Director of the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis.
About Winter College Conversations
Winter College Conversations are a series of interviews with faculty members who lectured during the
Winter College program in 2007. The series was produced by the IU Alumni Association with special
support from Ken Beckley and the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI. Winter College
takes place in February at Sanibel Island, Florida. To learn more, visit the
Winter College home page.