Eric Patterson

Eric Patterson, Ph.D., is President & CEO of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation in Washington, DC and scholar-at-large and past dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University. His expertise, informed by time at the US Department of State and in the military, is on just war thinking, the nexus of religion and national security, and Christian Realism. He is the author or editor of 22 books, including Just American Wars, Politics in a Religious World, and Ending Wars Well.

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What Memorial Day Should Remind Americans
What Memorial Day Should Remind Americans

Memorial Day should remind us of a debt that we, as citizens, owe to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, and it is a call to action to appropriately honor those who have served in the armed forces.

Religious Freedom and Democracy a Decade after the Arab Spring
Religious Freedom and Democracy a Decade after the Arab Spring

Although liberty movements swept the Middle East during the Arab Spring, an assessment of citizen’s rights and liberties in 2021 is disheartening. Little has changed.

Martin Luther King, Jr. on Power and Love
Martin Luther King Jr. on Power and Love

Long after his death, Martin Luther King, Jr. continues to stir our hearts with his appeal to the nobility of every human being made in the image of God.

America’s Theological Social Contract: The Mayflower Compact
America’s Theological Social Contract: The Mayflower Compact

At a time when some challenge the morality and religious character of America’s first founders, the plain facts of the 1620 Mayflower Compact, a theologically informed social compact for believers and non-believers alike, remind us of the good seeds planted in our shared past.

Jonathan Mayhew: Colonial Pastor against Tyranny
Jonathan Mayhew: Colonial Pastor against Tyranny

Today would be the 300th birthday of colonial pastor Jonathan Mayhew—a pastor, citizen, and prophet who articulated a rationale for self-defense by British citizens in North America.

Providence Christian Realism Happy Hour

Rough Transcript Tooley: …to post that online along with a transcript. So, if you have to check out early don’t…

Eight Principles for Christian Realism
Eight Principles for Christian Realism

Followers of Christian realism generally share these eight assumptions, which can be found in the works of Reinhold Niebuhr, John C. Bennett, Jean Bethke Elshtain, and others.

Eric Patterson Explains Christian Realism

Mark Tooley interviews Eric Patterson about Christian Realism. He’s executive vice president of the Religious Freedom Institute and scholar-at-large with…

Why We Need Religious Freedom for All: An Appeal and Invitation to the Church | Review of Luke Goodrich’s Free to Believe – The Battle Over Religious Liberty in America
Why We Need Religious Freedom for All: An Appeal and Invitation to the Church | Review of Luke Goodrich’s Free to Believe

Luke Goodrich’s “Free to Believe – The Battle Over Religious Liberty in America” is desperately needed because religious freedom is poorly understood and under assault across America. If it is lost here, can it thrive anywhere else?

Why Americans Should Worry about Religious Persecution in Nigeria: A Conversation with Eric Patterson

In his interview with Mark Melton, Eric Patterson, executive vice president of the Religious Freedom Institute, speaks about religious violence,…

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Christianity & National Security 2023

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