Eric Patterson

Prior to coming to the Berkley Center, Patterson spent three years working for the Federal government. He served as a White House Fellow and Special Assistant to the Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (2007-2008). Before that he was on university leave of absence as William C. Foster Fellow in the State Department’s Bureau of Political and Military Affairs, where he worked on international small arms and light weapons security issues (2005-2007). Previously he was on the faculty at Vanguard University in California.

At Georgetown, Patterson leads two Berkley Center initiatives. The Case Studies program is devoted to teaching and scholarship on the intersection of religion, conflict, and peace. The program has developed a number of teaching resources, including twenty case studies and nine film guides available for classroom use at the Center’s Knowledge Resources page. He also leads the Center’s Government Outreach program, which attempts to bring expertise and resources on religion and world affairs to government agencies. He has led seminars for government audiences in tandem with the Armed Forces Chaplains Center, National Defense University, and the Naval Postgraduate School.

Patterson earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California at Santa Barbara, an MSc in International Politics from the University of Wales at Aberystwyth, and B.A. degrees in Biblical Studies and Music Education from Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri.

Patterson has edited two volumes on Christian realism: one on Cold Warrior Christian realists like Reinhold Niebuhr and John Foster Dulles (The Christian Realists, 2004), and a later volume applying Christian realism to contemporary political debates on globalization, conflict, and international institutions (Christianity and Power Politics Today, 2008). His first book, Latin America’s Neo-Reformation, focused on the effect of religious dynamics on the politics of Brazil, Mexico, and Chile. He has published in numerous journals such as Survival, International Studies Perspectives, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, International Politics, International Relations, Security Studies, Journal of Diplomacy and International Affairs, International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence, Ethnos Brasil: Cultura e Sociedade, Latin American Politics and Society, and Journal of Political Science.

Patterson is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a member of various scholarly associations, and has been awarded Calihan and Rotary Ambassadorial Fellowships. He also continues to serve as an officer in the Air National Guard.