MTSU Religious Studies Colloquium to touch on American Orthodoxy, far-right movement

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University’s Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies will welcome Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, assistant professor of religion and anthropology at Northeastern University, as the featured speaker for the fall Religious Studies Colloquium.

MTSU philosophy professor Dr. Mary Magada-Ward — Dr. Mary Magada-Ward

Free and open to the public, the event will be held at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 2, in Room 224 of the Student Union Building, 1768 MTSU Blvd.

Riccardi-Swarz’s lecture, “Become Ungovernable: Covert Tactics, Racism, and Civilizational Catastrophe,” examines racialized theo-political ideas espoused by far-right Christians in the American South and their paradoxical embrace of both government policing and anti-democratic visions of becoming “ungovernable” as citizens of heaven.

In her book, “Between Heaven and Russia: Religious Conversion and Political Apostasy in Appalachia,” Riccardi-Swartz shows how online networks of religion and racism link far-right Christians in the American South with allies of Vladimir Putin, the long-time Russian president.

“Eastern Orthodox traditions of Christianity have become a subject of interest among scholars as well as the public in recent years. Our students have been reading Dr. Riccardi-Swarz’s book in some of the classes, and we are looking forward to a lively lecture on the topic by a very well-respected scholar of the field,” said Mary Magada-Ward, chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies.

Cover of “Between Heaven and Russia: Religious Conversion and Political Apostasy in Appalachia,” by Sarah Riccardi-Swartz.

Riccardi-Swartz explores how narratives of a threatened Christian civilization at the hands of so-called “deep state” elites produce apocalyptic fears that democracy itself is a catastrophe. These anxieties, Riccardi-Swartz argues, drive covert sociopolitical tactics that attempt to free the far-right self from what is framed as the oppressive system of Western liberalism.

In tracing these dynamics, Riccardi-Swartz will explain how post-Soviet Russia emerges as a geopolitical refuge for those disillusioned with American democracy, Magada-Ward said.

For more information about the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, visit https://philosophy.mtsu.edu.

Off-campus visitors must obtain a temporary permit from the Parking and Transportation Services office at 205 City View Drive or pay by plate by visiting https://bit.ly/mtvisitorparking. Parking is available in the lots across the street from the Student Union off Blue Raider Drive. A searchable campus parking map is available at https://bit.ly/ParkingMapMTSU2025.

— Nancy DeGennaro (Nancy.DeGennaro@mtsu.edu)