Christianity and National Security Conference: Christian Realism

On October 26–27, IRD’s journal of Christianity, foreign policy and statecraft, Providence, was grateful to host Christianity and National Security 2023. This was the sixth iteration of Christianity and National Security, a series of conferences lasting two days on the intersection of Christian ethics and national security.

Speakers ranged from experienced diplomats to well-known scholars and practitioners of international relations. Close to 100 students, professors, professionals and speakers gathered at the Army and Navy Club in Washington, DC, a few blocks from the White House to enjoy illuminating lectures and community among like-minded Christians.

The conference invites college students and professors to two days of presentations by distinguished scholars addressing international and national defense issues from the perspective of Christian Realism.

Below is the first session of the conference by Eric Patterson (PhD, UC-Santa Barbara), who serves as President of the Religious Freedom Institute. Patterson is past dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University and a Research Fellow at Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, where he previously served full-time. He is also a contributing editor for Providence.

Rebeccah L. Heinrichs is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute and the director of its Keystone Defense Initiative. She currently serves as a commissioner on the bipartisan Strategic Posture Commission. She also serves on the US Strategic Command Advisory Group and the National Independent Panel on Military Service and Readiness. She is an adjunct professor at the Institute of World Politics and a contributing editor for Providence. She earned her MA in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College and is pursuing her doctorate in defense and strategic studies with Missouri State University.

J. Daryl Charles is an affiliate scholar of the John Jay Institute and has served as the Acton Institute Affiliated Scholar in Theology & Ethics. He is author, co-author or editor of 21 books, including (with Eric Patterson) Just War and Christian Traditions (University of Notre Dame Press, 2022), (with Mark David Hall) America and the Just War Tradition: A History of U.S. Conflicts (University of Notre Dame Press, 2019), (with David D. Corey) The Just War Tradition: An Introduction (ISI Books, 2012), (with Timothy J. Demy) War, Peace, and Christianity (Crossway, 2010), and Between Pacifism and Jihad (IVP, 2005).

We look forward to hosting next year at the same location the last Thursday and Friday in October.