Dr. Charles McCrary, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Eckerd College, will join us on campus this October for a continuation of last year’s lecture series on Religion and Politics! McCrary will deliver the lecture “Against the Christian Nationalism Industry.” In recent years, journalists, scholars, religious leaders, and many others have warned their audiences about “Christian nationalism.” But what is it? This talk interrogates the utility of the “Christian nationalism” discourse and the industries producing it, ultimately arguing that they are both academically and politically insufficient. The lecture is free and open to the public. Support for this event was provided by the Anonymous Fund.
Event Date and Time: Thursday, October 16th, 2025 at 4:00pm
Event Location: Room 1418, Van Hise Hall (on the 14th floor!)
Street Address: 1220 Linden Dr. Madison, Wisconsin 53706. (Note that parking is limited in this area of campus; please see Campus Transportation Services for more information on visitor parking. Madison Metro Routes 28, 38, 65, 80, and 84 stop directly at Van Hise Hall at the Linden and Charter Stop. Additionally, Van Hise is a short walk away from stops served by Madison Metro Routes A, C, D, F, J, O, and R.)
About the speaker: Dr. Charles McCrary received his PhD in Religion from Florida State University. He is currently Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Eckerd College (St. Petersburg, Florida). His research focuses on American religion, especially topics related to religious freedom, secularism, science, and race. He is particularly interested in how “religion,” as a category, operates in politics and culture—how certain people, ideas, and practices are labeled as “religious” and others are not, how those distinctions are made and by whom, and their ramifications. Professor McCrary is the author of Sincerely Held: American Secularism and Its Believers (2022), on “sincerely held religious belief” and its role in the history of American religious freedom. His work has been published in academic journals including the Journal of the American Academy of Religion and Religion & American Culture, as well as popular outlets such as Religion & Politics, The Revealer, and The New Republic.
Download the event poster as a PDF here: Against the Christian Nationalism Industry Event Poster (PDF)