Christopher Stedman

• Located in New Haven, CT
• Managing Director of State of Formation for the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue
• Huffington Post Blogger, NonProphet Status Founder, Freelance Writer
• Experienced Interfaith Dialogue Facilitator

Chris Stedman is the Interfaith and Community Service Fellow for the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard University and the Managing Director of State of Formation at the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue. A former born-again Christian, Chris continued his study of religion after he stopped believing in God, eventually completing an MA in Religion from Meadville Lombard Theological School at the University of Chicago, for which he was awarded the Billings Prize for Most Outstanding Scholastic Achievement. A graduate of Augsburg College with a summa cum laude B.A. in Religion, Chris is the founder and author of the blog NonProphet Status. He is the youngest panelist for The Washington Post On Faith and a columnist for The Huffington Post Religion, where his work is among the most commented upon in the site's history. His writing has also appeared in venues such as Religion Dispatches, Thought Catalog, The Journal of College and Character, Tikkun Daily, The New Humanism, and more.

Previously a Content Developer and Adjunct Trainer for the Interfaith Youth Core, Chris is an atheist and secular humanist working to foster positive and productive dialogue between faith communities and the nonreligious. In 2011, the University of Oregon Alliance of Happy Atheists recognized Chris' work with their first annual "Happy Heathen!" Award, and the Huffington Post named him one of the top interfaith activists on Twitter. Chris speaks frequently on his work both by invitation and as a member of the Center for Inquiry Speakers Bureau and the Secular Student Alliance Speakers Bureau.

He is currently at work on a memoir on his experiences as a former evangelical Christian, a queer person, and an atheist for Beacon Press. In addition, Chris serves on the Leadership Team of the Common Ground Campaign, a coalition of young people standing up in response to the recent wave of anti-Muslim rhetoric and violence violence in the U.S., on the Board of Directors of the interfaith social action organization World Faith, on the Advisory Board of the Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse, and as an advisor to the Foundation Beyond Belief's Challenge the Gap initiative. Portland, Oregon's GLBT newspaper Just Out called his work "brilliant" and labeled him an "emerging... vibrant and youthful queer voice for the secular humanist movement."

Christopher is available to discuss such topics as:

• Should the Nonreligious Join in Interfaith Work?

• The Ins and Outs of Interfaith Work

• The Impact of Blogging and New Media

• Storytelling and Narrative as Dialogue Tools

• LGBT Issues

Chris charges a small honorarium for his speaking engagements but is very willing to negotiate it.

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