Religion, nationalism, conflict and community: in conversation with Rory Stewart
While religion continues to be perceived as of diminishing significance by many in Western Europe, religious nationalisms are on the rise around the world and the religious dimensions of many conflicts are becoming more pronounced.
While the early twenty-first century focused on political Islam, we now see new political formations across all the world’s faith traditions, as well as new faith-based initiatives to engage more constructively with global issues such as conflict and climate change. Rory Stewart – academic, podcaster and former politician – will share his perspectives on why this happening and what can be done about it, in this conversation with James Walters, founding director of LSE Faith Centre, chaired by LSE's Mukulika Banerjee.
Meet our speakers and chair
Rory Stewart (@RoryStewartUK) is the former UK Secretary of State for International Development, the Brady-Johnson Professor of Practice in Grand Strategy at the Jackson School of Global Affairs at Yale, a Senior Adviser for GiveDirectly and co-presenter of The Rest is Politics podcast. He has written five books – most recently Politics on the Edge – and presented three BBC television documentaries. He was awarded an OBE for his work in Iraq, and holds two honorary doctorates.
James Walters (@LSEChaplain) is founding director of the LSE Faith Centre and Religion and Global Society research unit, and a Professor in Practice affiliated to the Department for International Relations. He writes on the interface of theology, philosophy, and political science. His books include Loving Your Neighbour in an Age of Religious Conflict and Religious Imaginations: How Narratives of Faith are Shaping Today’s World. Professor Walters is an honorary canon of Chichester Cathedral.
Mukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Professor in Social Anthropology at LSE and was inaugural director of the LSE South Asia Centre. Her books include Cultivating Democracy: Politics and Citizenship in Agrarian India, Why India Votes?, The Pathan Unarmed and The Sari (with Daniel Miller); and the series Exploring the Political in South Asia. She created the BBC R4 documentary Sacred Election: Lessons from the biggest democracy in the world on the 2009 Indian National Elections.
More about this event
This event will be available to watch on LSE Live. LSE Live is the new home for our live streams, allowing you to tune in and join the global debate at LSE, wherever you are in the world. If you can't attend live, a video will be made available shortly afterwards on LSE's YouTube channel.
The LSE Faith Centre (@LSEFaithCentre) is home to LSE's diverse religious activities, our acclaimed interfaith leadership programmes, and the Religion & Global Society research unit which coordinates and promotes interdisciplinary religion-related research.
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