The 2024 Erasmus Lecture: Against Christian Civilization
Union League Club, 38 E 37th Street, New York, NY 10016
Western culture appears more and more insecure by the year. Social and political schism, economic malaise and spiritual emptiness are more and more apparent. In response, voices can be increasingly heard calling for a return to something called “Christian civilization.” Religion, we increasingly hear, is a “social glue” than can bind us together, regardless of its actual truth. Paul Kingsnorth argues that this idea, far from being a solution to our malaise, is a deadly trap that Christians should avoid.
About the Lecturer
Paul Kingsnorth is an English writer and thinker living in the west of Ireland. He is the author of nine books of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including the novel The Wake, which was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. The story of his unexpected conversion to Eastern Orthodox Christianity in 2021 was published in First Things as “The Cross and the Machine.” He returned to the pages of First Things in 2023 with the publication of “A Wild Christianity.”His forthcoming book Against the Machine explores the cultural and spiritual impacts of the rising religion of technology.
Dress Code
Jackets are required for gentlemen and equivalent dress for women. Jeans and sneakers are not permitted.
Photography Policy
Attendance at First Things events constitutes consent to be photographed for use in print and electronic media for marketing purposes. Images will not be identified without written approval. Please notify us at ft@firstthings.com if you would prefer that your photo not be used.
Reserve your ticket
Reserve your ticket for the 2024 Erasmus Lecture below! Tickets will be sent out via email in September.
If you would like to attend the annual Erasmus poetry reading with Adam Kirsch on Sunday, October 27 at 5 p.m., please register here.
This lecture is made possible in part through the generosity of our Erasmus sponsors:
Premier Sponsors
- Brandon Brown and Arielle VanSyckel
- Rein Staal
Sponsors
- Brian Broderick
- Michael Caponiti
- Lucinda Falk
- Robert Hatfield
- Solveig Lucia Gold and Joshua T. Katz
- Melanie Kazlas
- Edward Kerson
- Liz and John Soriano
- Forbes and Miriam Tuttle
- Michael Wilkerson
Institutional Sponsors
- 1792 Exchange
- Center for Autism, Assertiveness, and Social Skills
- Crossway
To sponsor this year’s Erasmus Lecture, please fill out the form below. If you would like to be a Presenting Sponsor for the Lecture, please contact Carter Skeel, Director of Institutional Advancement, at cskeel@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
