Berkley Center

In recent years, several issues have polarized the American people, including same-sex marriage and Obamacare’s HHS contraception services mandate. Discussions on these topics are naturally heated, but some fear that they have taken an illiberal turn and argue that religiously-based viewpoints are being met with increasing intolerance.

On October 27, 2015, the Religious Freedom Project, in partnership with Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, convened three thought leaders to address these complex issues from different points of view: Kirsten Powers, a renowned journalist and USA Today columnist; Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission; and Phil Zuckerman, a professor of sociology and founder of the nation’s first secular studies university department,

In a conversation centering on Powers’ book The Silencing: How the Left is Killing Free Speech (2015), the three articulated their varying perspectives and debated the premise that religious contributions to American society are no longer welcome. Their disagreements were vigorous but civil, and each brought us closer to understanding the state of religious freedom in our society.