The Center on Faith and International Affairs equips members of the international affairs community with a balanced understanding of the role of religion in public life worldwide. It fosters a pluralistic forum where people of different faiths and worldviews can constructively discuss religion's impact on the world today. This approach provides rigorous analysis and thoughtful commentary to scholars, policy makers, and practitioners.
Too often there is misunderstanding among and between professionals in the fields of religion and international relations. Academic disciplines and journals that address international affairs have generally given religion short shrift, while seminaries have seldom taught international relations in depth. The Center builds bridges of understanding and provides realistic assessments of both the virtues and pitfalls of faith-based participation in international affairs.
The Center is Christian-based and takes seriously the integration of faith and vocation. However it is not an exclusive sectarian association; its programs serve leaders of any faith or none who seek a more constructive role for religion in today’s complex global issues. Nor is the Center just another think tank or academic center. Embracing a pluralism that is respectful and robust, not relativistic, the Center goes beyond purely academic analysis to provide a candid forum open to diverse voices—from the decidedly secular to the devoutly orthodox.
The Center runs programs in four main areas. First, it sponsors conferences and books on ground-breaking themes such as religion and foreign assistance strategies, religion and law, and more. A 2003 conference on religion and security provided Jewish, Christian and Muslim perspective on this critical and evolving issue, and was later published as Religion & Security: The New Nexus in International Relations by Rowman & Littlefield.
Second, the Center convenes task forces on cutting-edge issues. The findings of a recent CFIA task force on faith-based diplomacy in conflict zones has been featured prominently in Peaceworks, the periodical of the U.S. Institute of Peace.
Third, the Center organizes public lectures by today's most innovative global thinkers, such as: Marc Gopin (Director, Center for World Religions, Conflict Resolution and Diplomacy); Walter Russell Mead (fellow, Council on Foreign Relations), Liu Peng (professor, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences), and Edward Gnehm (former U.S. Ambassador).
Fourth, the Center publishes The Review of Faith & International Affairs, a scholarly yet practical journal. The Review is the first and still the only journal of analysis and opinion devoted exclusively to examining the significance of religion for contemporary world issues. Its international distribution is now over 5,000. In a time of sharp polarization about the role of religion in public life, both at home and abroad, The Review is that rare kind of publication that is seen as credible and relevant not just by religious conservatives, nor just by religious progressives, nor just by secular academic specialists, but which broadens horizons across all these divisions.
Subscriptions to The Review start at only $25. For more information about the Center on Faith and International Affairs, task force reports and other resources, and invitations to Center events, contact the Executive Director, Dr. Dennis Hoover, at
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