Berkley Center

Senior Fellow Paul Elie has received wide attention for his new book, The Last Supper: Art, Faith, Sex, and Controversy in the 1980s (2025). Reviews in the Financial Times and National Catholic Reporter have highlighted the book's timely exploration of art, religion, and culture in the 1980s. In addition, Elie has spoken about his work with the American Writers Museum, Christianity Today, and New Orleans Public Radio, among others. 

From August 10-14, 2025, the G20 Interfaith Forum is hosting an annual conference centered around the theme of "Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability" and rooted in the philosophy of Ubuntu, which emphasizes shared humanity and mutual responsibility. The gatherings bring together faith leaders, scholars, and policymakers from around the world to explore how interfaith collaboration can advance social justice, peace, and sustainable development. Berkley Center participants in the week-long event include Senior Fellows Katherine Marshall and José Casanova, Senior Research Fellow Rabbi David Saperstein, and Research Fellow Susan Hayward.

The Missing Dimension is dedicated to exploring and analyzing efforts to build greater awareness of global religious dynamics and to increase the capacity of the United States to engage with religious actors in the areas of diplomacy, development, and defense. 

Published in Politics & Rights Review, this article by Senior Research Fellow Peter Mandaville explores the growing role of religion in geopolitics. Drawing on the contributions from the volume The Geopolitics of Religious Soft Power: How States Use Religion in Foreign Policy (2023), which he edited, Mandaville examines how religion is reemerging as a strategic instrument of statecraft among major global powers.