Randall Balmer, an Episcopal priest and part-time resident of Gualala, is the John Phillips Professor in Religion at Dartmouth College. He is also a New York Times bestselling author and a CNN Contributor. He is the author of eighteen books, including Redeemer: The Life of Jimmy Carter; Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right and Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: A Journey into the Evangelical Subculture in America, which was made into an award-winning, three-part series for PBS. His commentaries on religion in America appear in newspapers across the country, including the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the Concord Monitor, the Santa Fe New Mexican and the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.

His latest book, America’s Best Idea: The Separation of Church and State, examines the history behind the First Amendment and argues that church-state separation has ensured both political stability and a vibrant religious culture in the United States. Those who would compromise the First Amendment—Christian nationalists, the Supreme Court—risk undermining one of the foundational principles in American society.

Monday evenings, February 2, 9, 16, 23, from 6:30-7:15.