Conference: Religion and the American Founding

The Religion and the American Founding Conference will be held at the Harman Continuing Education Building at Brigham Young University on March 11th and 12th, 2026, in partnership with BYU’s History and Political Science departments, Wheatley Institute, and America 250 Utah.

Registration is required for in-person attendance on both days.

March 11

I. Keynote Speaker: Dr. Thomas Kidd

Thomas S. Kidd is among the most celebrated scholars of religion and the founding of the United States. He serves as Research Professor of Church History at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and is the John and Sharon Yeats Endowed Chair of Baptist Studies. Dr. Kidd completed a Ph.D. in history at the University of Notre Dame, where he worked with historian of religion George Marsden. He also earned Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees at Clemson University in South Carolina.

March 12

II. Religious landscape at the brink of revolution

• Lifeways of Indigenous peoples
• Religions of European colonists
• Religions of the enslaved and enslaver

III. Religions’ participation in the founding of the United States of America

• Religious artifacts from founding era

IV. Religion, Memory, and Meaning: The American Founding at 250