Salve Regina hosting “Spectacle of Toleration” conference

Salve Regina, along with Brown University, will host “No person shall bee any wise molested: Religious freedom, cultural conflict and the moral role of the state,” a scholarly conference marking the 350th anniversary of the 1663 Rhode Island Charter.

Scheduled for Oct. 3-6, the conference is part of “Spectacle of Toleration,” a multi-year project that aims to open up an international conversation about toleration and religious freedom.

“This conference provides a point of entry into a thoughtful consideration of a set of questions about religious freedom and tolerance,” said Newport Historical Society executive director Ruth Taylor, who developed the project. “Situated in historic Newport and Providence, the conference looks at the sources, consequences, changing meanings and lived experiences of religious freedom and intolerance.”

The conference will feature academic panel presentations, including 40 paper presentations, on topics such as politics/law, toleration within history, toleration in modern times, and toleration and freedom within the context of various religions.

Keynote presentations, which are free to the public, include:

“Toleration: Its Nature and Moral Justification”

7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 3, Bazarsky Lecture Hall

Presented by Brian Leiter, Karl N. Llewellyn Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Chicago, the lecture will explore the nature of tolerance and legal protections for religion. Registration is required. To register, visit https://brianleiter.eventbrite.com.

Panel discussion

7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, Brown University’s Manning Chapel

The panel will feature Morgan Grefe from the Rhode Island Historical Society, Maura Jane Farrelly from Brandeis University and Stephen Marini from Wellesley College, and will focus on how issues of religious tolerance are playing out in today’s world. Registration is required. To register, visit https://spectacleclosingkeynote.eventbrite.com.

The conference costs $75 for one day or $150 for all three days. For more information, or to register, visit http://www.spectacleoftoleration.org/.