Francis Fukuyama famously declared that liberal democracy and mixed capitalism represented "The End of History." However, liberal democracy lacks the transformative, enchanted storyline that animates religions or pseudo-religions like socialism and nationalism. Increasingly, religion is filling the ideological void left by the departure of socialism and the eclipse of the liberal ideals of the 1960s. It is also helped by a powerful ally: demography. We are in the midst of a period of unprecedented, and uneven, global demographic transition. This has resulted in sharp disparities in age structure and population growth between nations, ethnic groups, and religions. These pressures have already generated rapid ethnic change in the West, with attendant political fallout. But ethnic differences in fertility tend to fade over time unless powered by conflict. Differences by religiosity within ethnic groups do not. Instead, the religious fertility advantage appears to be widening, and we are beginning to see the growth of conservative religious populations in many modernizing societies. Based on the speaker's current book project (Profile Books, September 2009), this seminar uses census and survey data to generate projections and demographic trends for conservative religious populations in Europe, the United States, Israel, and the Muslim world. It asks whether religious fertility and the moribund state of today's secular religions will combine to usher in an age of conservative religious politics. Finally, with a special focus on Israel and the Muslim world, it asks what this trend may mean for international security.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come-first served basis.
