RQ's FOUNDER'S WEEKEND: FRANKLIN LECTURE WITH MOLLY WORTHEN

What is the role of religion in American civic life over the next 250 years?
This year's Founder's Weekend Franklin Lecture is by Molly Worthen, author of Spellbound: How Charisma Has Affected American Politics from the Puritans to Donald Trump. This exclusive dinner is for invited guests, partners, sponors.
We have 25 tickets only open to the public, and there is no free or scholarship ticket for this event.
Pennsylvania was founded in part as a place that valued religious tolerance, and many sought refuge here. Since then, our modern world has become increasingly secularized, and some argue that politics has replaced religion for many. But religion and spirituality feel ascendent again. Is a 60s- and 70s-era new-age grab-bag spiritualism giving way to older practices as people seek out spiritual and philosophical wisdom again? Should non-religious Americans fear a future with more faith? What is in store for the next 250 years of religious tolerance and our freedom to assemble? Root Quarterly has invited Molly Worthen, author of Spellbound: How Charisma Has Affected American Politics from the Puritans to Donald Trump to speak to these questions for 30 minutes in our second annual Franklin Lecture to be followed by dinner and table conversation.
Molly Worthen is a professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she teaches courses on North American religious and intellectual culture, global Christianity, and the history of ideas. She is the author of three books, most recently Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump (2025). She writes about religion, politics, and higher education for the New York Times and other publications.

WHAT IS ROOT QUARTERLY'S FOUNDER'S WEEKEND?
It's a grassroots convening by Root Quarterly magazine with many partner organizations, all of whom are intersted in promoting a pluralistic culture of free expression. A thousand years from now, the first 500 years of our country will be considered early-American history. That means we are all founders, responsible and accountable for the direction of the United States. America is an experiment. Be part of it.
HOW DO I GET TICKETS TO OTHER FOUNDER'S WEEKEND EVENTS?
There are two options. First, you can buy a "Founders Ticket," from this event, which gets you access to all public and private events, including our exclusive "Franklin Lecture" at the Franklin Inn Club. Or, you can register for each event separately. The homepage of Founder's Weekend list all events and has links to ticketing for each program. If you cannot afford a ticket, email [email protected] to ask for a scholarship; no one will be turned away for need. Events are also free for students.

WHAT IS ROOT QUARTERLY?

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RQ is one part magazine, one part collaborative art project, and one part social experiment. We’ll offer you insightful and provocative essays, profiles of regional makers and artists, national cultural criticism, fiction, poetry, and carefully-curated recommendations for getting the most out of life in our city and region—all in a beautifully designed and printed magazine you can hold in your hands and settle down with on a Sunday afternoon, or argue over at Thursday night happy hour.

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