Category Archives: Civility

American Individuals – A Conversation with Alex Zakaras

Posted on February 21, 2023 by Eric

Alex Zakaras is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Vermont. In his new book, The Roots of American Individualism: Political Myth in the Age of Jackson, he returns to the early nineteenth century to trace the mythology … Continue reading →

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Disruptive Witness – A Conversation with Alan Noble

Posted on September 9, 2018 by Eric

Alan Noble is Assistant Professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University and editor-in-chief of Christ and Pop Culture. In his Disruptive Witness: Speaking Truth in a Distracted Age, Noble argues that the constant stimulation of the social media era poses … Continue reading →

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Art of Gratitude – A Conversation with Jeremy David Engels

Posted on May 30, 2018 by Eric

Jeremy David Engels is Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute and Associate Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences at the Pennsylvania State University. (In the not too distant past, he served on my dissertation committee!) In his … Continue reading →

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Over the Empathy Wall – A Conversation with Arlie Hochschild

Posted on November 15, 2016 by Eric

Arlie Russell Hochschild is Professor Emerita of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. For five years she traveled in the bayous of southern Louisiana, interacting with Tea Party conservatives and trying to understand their thinking about life, hope, faith, … Continue reading →

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Rescuing Jesus – A Conversation with Deborah Jian Lee

Posted on April 21, 2016 by Eric

Deborah Jian Lee is an award-winning journalist and radio producer. She has written for Foreign Policy, Forbes, and Slate, among others, and has taught journalism at Columbia University. Her book, Rescuing Jesus: How People of Color, Women, & Queer Christians … Continue reading →

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Superchurch – A Conversation with Jonathan J. Edwards

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Eric

Jonathan J. Edwards is Instructor in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of South Carolina. His book, Superchurch: The Rhetoric and Politics of American Fundamentalism, was published in April by Michigan State University Press. In it, … Continue reading →

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The Fate of Freedom – A Conversation with Steven D. Smith

Posted on January 15, 2015 by Eric

Steven D. Smith is the Warren Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of San Diego. His most recent book, The Rise and Decline of American Religious Freedom, advocates a return to what he calls “the American settlement”— an arrangement … Continue reading →

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Beyond Right and Left – A Conversation with Karin Fry

Posted on September 19, 2014 by Eric

Karin Fry is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point. Her new book, Beyond Religious Right and Secular Left Rhetoric: The Road to Compromise, explores the positions commonly advocated by culture war adversaries, searching for opportunities for … Continue reading →

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