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NEWS RELEASE

Discussion on American Evangelicals Will Launch New CSUN Lecture Series

(NORTHRIDGE, Calif., Nov. 17, 2006) -- Journalist Monique El-Faizy, author of "God and Country: How Evangelicals Have Become America’s New Mainstream," will inaugurate Cal State Northridge’s new Richard W. Smith Lecture Series on Tuesday, Dec. 5, at the university.

The series is named for psychology professor Richard W. Smith, who retired in 2003. Smith, a two-time Distinguished Faculty Award winner and CSUN’s 1991-92 Professor of the Year, established the Richard W. Smith Endowment for Cultural Studies, which includes the lecture series, in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences earlier this year as a way of encouraging students to think like cultural psychologists "from the perspectives of other peoples, other cultures."

"We’re delighted that Richard Smith, who was a stellar faculty member, has entrusted the college with this lecture series," said Dean Stella Theodoulou. "It is an opportunity to build an intellectual community outside the classroom and it speaks volumes to who he is as an academic and an individual."

Theodoulou said it is fitting that El-Faizy should kick off the series.

"I think that many people have been looking at the rise of the Christian Right in American politics and society," she said. "What Monica El-Faizy is going to talk about, and what her work has been about, is understanding the role Christians have in American politics and society. Evangelism is a subculture that we need to understand, as it is a political force that has impact on public policy and everyday life."

El-Faizy, whose work has appeared in such publications as The Guardian, the Washington Post and The New York Times, inaugurates the Richard W. Smith Lecture Series with her talk, "How Evangelicals Have Become America’s New Mainstream," at 7 p.m. on Dec. 5 in the Whitsett Room on the fourth floor of Sierra Hall, on the west side of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St.

Evangelical Christianity and its cultural and political influence have provided fodder for speculation by media and pundits, particularly after the 2004 U.S. presidential elections underscored the role it plays in so many Americans’ lives.

A former fundamentalist Christian, El-Faizy offers an examination of the movement, from its beginnings to its myriad of incarnations, in "God and Country: How Evangelicals are Becoming America’s New Mainstream."

El-Faizy was raised by immigrants in a fundamentalist Christian community in California. Within weeks of leaving home to attend the University of Pennsylvania, she began to question her faith; soon after she abandoned it altogether. But years later, after noticing a megachurch in Times Square, she wondered why so many Americans were embracing a faith she had rejected.

Based on her own experiences, El-Faizy will discuss the change in the evangelical movement, from the fire and brimstone of the Jerry Falwell era of her youth to the inviting, franchiseable message of Rick Warren.

El-Faizy’s presentation is free and open to the public. A reception will immediately follow the program. For more information, call (818) 677-3317.

California State University, Northridge has 34,500 full- and part-time students and offers 62 bachelor’s and 50 master’s degrees as well as 28 teaching credential programs. Founded in 1958, CSUN is among the largest single-campus universities in the nation and the only four-year public university in the San Fernando Valley. The university serves as the intellectual, economic and cultural heart of the Valley and beyond.