Secularism and the Political Culture of Modern Societies

Dec 22

Written By The Center on Modernity in Transition

Charles Taylor and Akeel Bilgrami think together about secularism’s influence upon the political culture of modern societies. The conversation will re-examine some of the questions raised in the edited volume, Beyond the Secular West, which examined the applicability of Taylor’s vision of North Atlantic secularism to other regions of the world. Bilgrami and Taylor also discuss the future of capitalism and democracy, questions of collective identity, and our prospects for meaningful social change.

Speakers

AKEEL BILGRAMI

**The Sidney Morgenbesser Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University and author of *Secularism, Identity, and Enchantment* (2014).**

CHARLES TAYLOR

**Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at McGill University and author of *A Secular Age* (2007).**

Moderators:

SHAHRZAD SABET

Shahrzad Sabet is Co-Director of the Center on Modernity in Transition (COMIT) and a Fellow at New York University’s Institute for Public Knowledge. Her current book project, which spans a variety of disciplines, makes the case for a reimagined universalism that reconciles the oneness and the diversity of humankind.

BENJAMIN SCHEWEL

Benjamin Schewel is Co-Director of the Center on Modernity in Transition (COMIT). He is author of Seven Ways of Looking at Religion (2017) and is currently working on a second book, Encountering the Axial Age, both from Yale University Press.

2020-2021 SPEAKER SERIES

The Liberal Imaginary and Beyond

Explore this series

The Liberal Imaginary and Beyond brought together leading thinkers to examine the origins, contents, and development of post-war liberalism, and to consider significant attempts to move beyond the resultant liberal imaginary without casting aside its impressive moral and political achievements. Sponsored by the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, New York University’s Institute for Public Knowledge, and COMIT.

Events