show bio James Carse

James Carse directed the Religious Studies Program at New York University for thirty years as Professor of the History and Literature of Religion. He received a Bachelor’s from Ohio Wesleyan, a Master’s from Yale, and his PhD from Drew University. He has been selected as a member of a number of professional societies and has received of a number of teaching awards. In total, Professor Carse has written eight books, most recently “The Religious Case Against Belief,” and he is a frequent lecturer at colleges and universities.

The Religious Case Against Belief
Date: 4/17/2009

As part of the Arkansas Literary Festival, religious scholar James Carse discusses his book, "The Religious Case Against Belief," which depicts a world where religion and belief have become erroneously conflated. From the Crusades to the contemporary Christian right, from the Inquisition to Islamic jihadists, Carse argues that belief — with its restriction on thought and encouragement of hostility — has corrupted religion and spawned violence around the world.

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