Faith and Law: Recent Episodes
Faith and Law
Over the past 30 years, Faith and Law has brought a wide variety of distinguished speakers to address contemporary political and cultural issues for the benefit of congressional staff.
Marking the 135th anniversary of Rerum novarum (reh-rum no-va-rum), Pope Leo the 14th released his first encyclical, entitled ‘Magnifica humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence.’
Father Michael Baggot, Associate Professor of Bioethics at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum (Pon-ti-fi-cal Athen-nee-um Regeena A-posto-lorum) and P. Bracy Bersnak, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Economics at Christendom College joined us for this timely and important conversion on AI and the Pope.
Support the show
Jefferson called the Declaration of Independence “an expression of the American mind.” What is that mind and what does it tell us for today, especially about the great questions of truth, happiness, and . . . God?
Matthew Spalding, Kirby Professor in Constitutional Government and Dean of the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale College and member of the board of Faith and Law joined us to discuss the founding document of the United States 250 years after its drafting.
Support the show
Sixty percent of women who had an abortion said they would not have if they had received adequate emotional or financial support. Women who seek abortions are typically already mothers living in poverty and facing food and housing instability. Churches and non-profits are essential sources of support for these moms – but what can Congress do to help them choose life?
Autumn Christensen, Executive Director of Her PLAN, joined us to discuss the prevalence of abortion post-Dobbs, the factors that contribute to abortion in America, and how local communities are responding so pregnant moms can make, and sustain, their decision for life. Her PLAN is a project of SBA Pro-life America’s Education Fund focused directly on solving the “resource problem” for pregnant women and the local ministries that serve them.
Support the show
The sports betting industry generated $16.96 billion in revenue in 2025 alone, with gamblers betting a total of nearly $167 billion on athletic contests. Is this working against the flourishing of our society?
Christine Emba, Senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and Dr. Johnathan Cohen, Sports Betting Policy Lead at The American Institute for Boys and Men joined us for a discussion on the impact of online vice and what it will take to regulate these activities.
Support the show
The patriotism and personal virtue of George Washington have long been admired by a grateful nation. In this lecture, Dr. Joseph Prud’homme, Burton Family Chair in Religion, Politics, and Culture and Associate Professor of Political Science and Affiliated Faculty member in Religious Studies at Washington College, delved more deeply into the specific traits of character which made George Washington the Indispensable Man of the American Revolutionary cause.
Support the show
Aristotle taught that every good deed requires a beautiful image. Then it stands to reason, America needs a great store of beautiful images designed to help us maintain our way of life and preserve equal justice, liberty, and law.
Dr. Matthew Mehan, Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Government for the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale College is at the end of a long research and writing project to complete his illustrated, semiquincentennial celebratory work, The American Book of Fables. He joined us for a discussion of what must be done to restore the American Imagination.
Support the show
What am I doing here? What steps can I take when at times I feel tempted to despair about my work? How will I be able to continue to do the work I love in a culture of such fracture, polarization and contempt that only seems to be intensifying?
This conversation with board certified psychiatrist, author, speaker, Dr. Curt Thompson, will provide practical ways of finding joy and resilience while discerning what it means to faithfully live out the vocational callings that perhaps for many of us feel so overwhelming.
Support the show
Honduras’ entrenched corruption, pervasive violence, narcotics flows, and weakened democracy continue to drive migration north and have consequences far beyond its borders. Amid these pressures, brave Christian civic leaders are stepping forward to uphold justice in a climate of impunity and inspiring others around the world to seek justice in their own contexts.
Our discussion with reporter Ross Halperin, Co-founder of ASJ-Honduras, Dr. Kurt Ver Beek, and director of criminal justice at the Niskanen Center Greg Newburn, examined how faithful Christian leadership can make accountability, rule of law, and democracy possible.
Support the show
Many Christians talk earnestly about ‘the Christian roots of America,’ but never say what they were. Equally the MAGA movement aims to ‘make America great again,’ but never stops to say what made America great in first place.
Dr. Os Guinness, foreign admirer of the US, will join us for a continuation of his Friday Forum from June 13, 2025 “2026: Recovering What Made America Great in the First Place,” and further dive into what it was that gave the American republic a freedom like no other – which needs to be recovered today.
Support the show
What is the significance of the Christian confession that God has made each person with a sense of the divine?
Dr. Gray Sutanto, Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at the Reformed Theological Seminary, joined us to discuss how the awareness of God arises in the human person, and its implication on apologetics as well as public discourse.
Support the show
American political life is increasingly fractured by generational conflict, growing distrust of institutions, and a willingness across the spectrum to exercise power arbitrarily. From Congress to town halls, an older generation seeks to preserve the past while a younger movement pursues change even at the cost of community bonds. This shift raises urgent questions about democracy, the rule of law, and the moral health of our political life.
Jake Meador, Editor in Chief of Mere Orthodoxy, joined us to explore how a renewed commitment to human dignity and the common good can provide hope and a unifying path forward.
Support the show
Common ground is hard to find in today’s politics. In a society teeming with irreconcilable political perspectives, many people have grown frustrated under a system of government that constantly demands compromise. More and more on both the right and the left have come to blame the Constitution for the resulting discord. But the Constitution is not the problem we face; it is the solution.
Yuval Levin, author of American Covenant and Director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at AEI, joined us to discuss Congress’s central role in the minds of the founders, and in the solutions to the political crises and challenges of the current age.
Support the show
Dr. Joseph Prud'Homme, Burton Family Chair in Religion, Politics, and Culture, and the director of the Institute for Religion, Politics, and Culture at Washington College, MD, joined us to discuss the classical liberal tradition.
Properly understood, classical liberalism has been the foundation of the American Republic since its founding. The core tenets of this tradition include its commitment both to personal liberty and moral responsibility; its commitment to the rule of law and to limited government; its support for free markets and free enterprise, coupled with a confined but crucially important role for government in aiding those in need; and its support for the freedom of churches and religious associations to spread the Gospel and to leaven society with the spirit of Christian truth.
Support the show
Public policy making wrestles with competing visions of what it means to be human and of how we can live well individually and in community.
In a lecture titled "The Public Policy Calling", Dr. Jennifer Patterson, Lecturer in Public Theology and Director of the Institute for Theology and Public Life at Reformed Theological Seminary in Washington DC discussed how christians in public policy are called to bring clarity to these questions.
Support the show
In a culture that prizes outrage over reconciliation, forgiveness is increasingly seen as weakness--an outdated concept that fails to take harm seriously. But what if forgiveness is not about minimizing justice but about restoring hope?
In a Friday Forum titled “The Power of Forgiveness in a Culture of Rage”, international author, speaker and theologian Amy Orr Ewing joined us to discuss the transformative power of this important biblical command.
Support the show
In a recent interview, the campus free speech advocate, Greg Lukianoff, noted that Americans are waking up from the “Vegas Delusion” when it comes to what’s happening at the nation’s colleges and universities regarding the freedom to express one’s views. No more does “what happened on campus, stay on campus,” he opined, this aversion to free speech was happening in our council chambers and corporate boardrooms.
Our First Amendment ensures important protections of speech, press, and religion. Often seen as separate freedoms, what if they were actually mutually supportive. In other words, what if our free speech was actually grounded in our faith? In this timely talk sponsored by Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy, Prof. Robert George (Reagan Honorary Professor at Pepperdine, and McCormick Professor at Princeton) helped us connect these treasured freedoms to more faithfully engage with a polarized public square.
Support the show
You're listening to the Faith and Law podcast.
This spring, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor,protecting the right of parents to direct the religious upbringing of their children and to opt their young children out of one-sided gender ideology curriculum in public schools.
Our panel of experts, in partnership with the Becket Fund For Religious Liberty, explored the Mahmoud decision and what it means for the future of parental rights and religious freedom
Support the show
The culture of freedom we enjoy in the United States is deeply shaped by religious minorities seeking to honor God in their beliefs and orders of worship from the colonial period to the present day. Marc Wheat, General Counsel for Advancing American Freedom, introduced the historical and legal context for the First Amendment, thereby establishing the foundation for our Friday Forum titled “Religious Liberty and Parental Opt-Outs: School Choice at the Supreme Court” in partnership with Becket.
Support the show
Most Americans either do not understand legislative politics, or if they do, they are repulsed by the process. But Congress is the most important institution in the American government because without it, democracy is impossible. Working in Congress gives you the opportunity to do good for thousands, perhaps millions of people. Where else in the world can you do that, so early in your career?
Mark Strand, former President of the Congressional Institute and current member of the Faith and Law Board of Directors joined us for a lecture titled “Politics and Sausage Making” about glorifying God through work on Capitol Hill.
Support the show
In 1988, Ben Spencer was sentenced to life in prison for a murder he did not commit. He spent 34 years wrongfully imprisoned. Now, Ben has teamed up with award-winning journalist Barbara Bradley Hagerty to share his story – and larger story about the flaws in the legal system that allow mistakes to occur, and how some states are trying to fix them.
Conversation was moderated by Scott Peyton, director of government affairs at Prison Fellowship.
Support the show
Many Christians talk earnestly about ‘the Christian roots of America,’ but never say what they were. Equally the MAGA movement aims to ‘make America great again,’ but never stops to say what made America great in first place.
Dr. Os Guinness, foreign admirer of the US, joined us to discuss what it was that gave the American republic a freedom like no other – which needs to be recovered today.
Support the show
Ed Simcox, author of In the Room and Indiana’s 55th Secretary of State joined us for a reflection on his personal encounters with Chuck Colson and the early days of the national justice movement. As Prison Fellowship marks its 50th anniversary, this discussion explored how faith shaped a generation of public leadership and why the call to second chances remains vital for policymakers today.
Our conversation was moderated by Scott Peyton, Director of Government Affairs at Prison Fellowship.
Support the show
People with disabilities are created in the image of God, imbued with the same intrinsic value and bestowed the unalienable rights declared in our nation’s founding document. However, the history of disability policy and social norms have not always mirrored this foundational truth.
Drawing from her experience, surviving a life threatening and rare spinal cord tumor that left her as a quadriplegic and her decades working on Capitol Hill, Rachel Barkley director of the National Center for Public Policy Research’s Able Americans program, first discussed what the Bible says about people with disabilities, then in light of this, how we should approach disability policy.
Support the show
Is the purpose of religious liberty to end religious oppression or is it to change, perhaps even eradicate, religion as it has been known across history? That question has been at the heart of America’s debates about religious liberty since the founding era and it still plagues us today.
Dr. Richard Samuelson, Associate Professor of Government at Hillsdale College, presented a study of this founding era debate to help us understand this important tension that has persisted across American history.
Support the show
In his 1962 book, Propaganda, Jacques Ellul outlines three conditions for propaganda’s success. Bombard people with excessive information so they will forget, always have “breaking news” so they do not reflect or think critically, and have no North Star or standard to measure deviation. As Christians we are called to remember, called to think, and called to follow our certain and firm North Star. Dr. Stephen J. Nichols, president of Reformation Bible College and chief academic officer for Ligonier Ministries, discussed how a Christian worldview speaks to these conditions and encourages us to both speak and live truthfully in difficult times.
Support the show
During a time when political conversations are marked by deep division, polarization, and challenging moral questions, what resources do evangelicals have to think and act critically, coherently, and theologically about public life?
In their new book, Hopeful Realism: Evangelical Natural Law and Democratic Politics, political theorists Dr. Jesse Covington of Westmont College, Dr Bryan T. McGraw of Wheaton College, and Dr. Micah Watson of Calvin College lay out an evangelical theory of the natural law and show how it can be employed within the context of our pluralist democratic order.
Support the show
Dr. Amy E. Black, Professor of Political Science at Wheaton College (IL) joined us to share ideas from her forthcoming book, Civil Religion and the Renewal of American Politics. Dr. Black rejects strict secularism and Christian nationalism, suggesting instead that an inclusive civil religion is the best model for the interplay of religion and politics in a pluralist democracy like the United States.
Support the show
American Enterprise Institute Senior Fellow Timothy Carney challenges modern parenting strategies that prioritize over-scheduling, intense academic pressure, and material success. Drawing from years of research and his own experience as a father of six, Carney reveals how the relentless drive for perfection is harming both parents and children, is leading to skyrocketing rates of anxiety and depression, and how parents, policymakers, and believers, should respond.
Support the show
We partnered with the Institute for Human Ecology for a conversation between Dr. Joseph Capizzi, the first ever lay Dean of the School of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of America, and The New York Times columnist Ross Douthat. Our panelists discussed the “democratization of theology” facilitated by new media and parallel trends. Drawing from Douthat’s latest book, Believe: Why Everyone Should be Religious, the conversation highlighted the changes in the religious landscape and present opportunities for a religious revival.
Support the show
In this annual panel discussion with Capitol Hill veterans, we were joined by Michelle Altman, a former U.S. Senate Chief of Staff, Arne Christenson, a former Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the House, and A.T. Johnston, a former Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense. Panelists shared their stories of success and failure as they navigated the complicated ethical waters of faith and work on the Hill. John Palafoutas, Chairman of the board of Faith and Law served as moderator.
Support the show
In a democratic society, differences and disagreements are inevitable—but they don’t have to lead to dysfunction. For leaders, especially those guided by faith, understanding pluralism is key to navigating tensions and fostering unity. Ben Klutsey, Executive Director of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, will share insights on bridging divides and advancing the common good. Drawing from his experience growing up under military rule in Ghana and his research on pluralism, he will offer practical guidance on how to bring opposing perspectives together in today’s polarized political climate.
Support the show
In May 2025, respected academic journal, Nature/Springer will publish a special Global Flourishing Study collection of papers, a product of four years of collaboration among more than 40 leading experts from Harvard University, Baylor University and Gallup.
This $43.4 million dollar initiative involves data collection from approximately 200,000 participants, from 22 geographically and culturally diverse countries. Their goal, to answer questions such as what causes people in some countries to flourish, while others don’t?
In this follow up to their initial Friday Forum discussion from December 2023, Pete Peterson, Dean of the School of Public Policy at Pepperdine University interviewed Dr. Byron Johnson, Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University and Visiting Distinguished Professor in the School of Public Policy at Pepperdine University, to give us a “look under the hood” of what results we might expect to see in May, and what it might mean for American policymakers.
- The Global Flourishing Study (GFS) is a longitudinal research study being carried out in collaboration between scholars at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard and Baylor’s Institute for Studies of Religion, and in partnership with Gallup and the Center for Open Science.
- Watch Pete Peterson’s initial Friday Forum interview with Byron Johnson from December 2023.
Support the show
Deadly violence dishonors the innate, God-given dignity of all people and brings grave loss to families and communities.
In this Friday Forum in partnership with Prison Fellowship, a panel of experts in criminal justice joined us to discuss how policymakers both on Capitol Hill and in the states should act to reforms that prioritize violence reduction, proportional punishment, and rehabilitation.
Support the show
Secularists have failed spectacularly in their quest for a “naked public square”, devoid of religious values. Christians enjoy a dominant presence in public life, especially civil government. But how has this extraordinary opportunity impacted politics and public policy?
The Honorable Paul McNulty, the ninth president of Grove City College and co-founder of Faith and Law joined us to discuss the wisest road ahead for believers working in the public square.
Support the show
Is it correct or even possible to be optimistic about our future given the rapid pace of technological change and all the challenges these developments bring? Along with technology, our modern society has reaped great abundance and stands to gain more, but Christians must also think about how to steward a materially abundant society. What could a radically abundant future look like, especially for our children, and how might it be achieved? How might Christians think about a future of radical abundance enabled by advances in AI, energy, and the policy and cultural frameworks that will enable these technologies?
Rachel Barkley, President of RK Barkley Consulting, interviewed and discussed these topics with Taylor Barkley, Director of Public Policy at the Abundance Institute.
Support the show
War in the Middle East has the entire world on edge. Here at home, the war is also contributing to America’s divisions, from anti-Semitism on college campuses to hate crimes against Arab Americans to a significant breakdown in Jewish-Muslim relations. What has a year of peacemaking among America’s faith groups looked like amidst those tensions? And what does a biblical call to peacemaking (Matthew 5:9) look like for Christians here in the US?
Support the show
Faith and Law 2024 Leadership Conference Dr. Mark Hall, Regent University
Support the show
Brig. General (Ret.) John Teichert's opening prayer and devotional given during our 2024 Leadership Conference.
Support the show
2024 Leadership Conference. John Shelton of the Advancing American Freedom interviews Dr. Yuval Levin of the American Enterprise Institute.
Support the show
2024 Leadership Conference.
Panel Discussion featuring Elaine Petty, Charmaine Yoest, and Dr. Bill Hurlbut.
Support the show
Genesis 1:26 reveals that God made humankind in His image and reflecting His nature for an awesome assignment: to rule responsibly over all He has made. Being good stewards of God’s creation is a biblical mandate.
In this lecture, Dr. Jessica Moerman, climate scientist and President and CEO of the Evangelical Environmental Network, addressed the debate over the causes of climate change, discussed the role of human activity on today’s global warming, while providing scripture based reasons for how environmental stewardship is part of our Christian witness and a matter of defending the life and health of the most vulnerable.
Support the show
Federal agencies have often used the regulatory process to impose mandates that infringe on key rights of religious exercise and conscience. But this spring, the Supreme Court overturned the longstanding doctrine of congressional delegation known as Chevron deference. What does that mean for congressional authority and how is religious freedom impacted by agency rules?
Our panel featuring Laura Wolk Slavis of Becket, Paul J. Ray of the Heritage Foundation, Rachel Morrison of the Ethics and Public Policy Center and Amy Vitale of Becket, discussed this question—and how congressional staff can effectively engage the regulatory process—through the lens of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
Support the show
Marriage and fertility rates are lower than ever seen before in America’s history. This means that a record share of today’s young adults will never marry or have children. But the paradox is that men, women, and children in married families are much more likely to thrive socially, emotionally, and financially than their peers who don’t enjoy that safety and stability.
University of Virginia Professor Brad Wilcox of the Institute for Family Studies and American Enterprise Institute joined us to reveal what’s happening to marriage and family life, why these two institutions are losing ground, and what Washington can do to revive their fortunes in 21st-century America.
Support the Show.
Disagreements are easy; productive disagreements require effort. But productive disagreements are the heartbeat of a healthy democracy, a healthy team, and even a healthy family. Dr. Rick Langer and Dr. Tim Muehlhoff of Biola University joined us for a look at productive disagreements and what they ask of our hearts as well as what they ask of our speech–both toward those on the other side and also toward our own in-group
Support the Show.
How should we, as Christians, think about the role of government? And how should we think about our own roles as public servants? Dr. Vince Bacote, professor of theology at Wheaton College, joined us in a partnership with the Center for Public Justice for a theological discussion on government, authority, and sphere sovereignty — a term coined by 19th century Dutch theologian, politician, and pastor Abraham Kuyper.
Support the Show.
In a polarized world, where the public square has become increasingly hostile, how do we continue to make progress on the things we are called to build? Is it even possible to build anything at the moment?
With a strong track record of working under challenging circumstances to bring about societal change, Baroness Philippa Stroud, Member of the House of Lords and a leading public influential in the UK, identified the steps needed to renew culture, starting with healthy institutions. Drawing on her work with the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, Stroud discussed how policymakers can foster changes in society that ensure that citizens can take hold of the opportunities in front of them and develop the personal resilience to serve over decades.
Support the Show.
How do we, as a people, hand down love, one generation to another? Is that the role of the law? What did previous generations know about this tradition of love and law that we, today, may have forgotten? Dr. Matthew Mehan, Associate Dean and Assistant Professor of Government at Hillsdale College joined us for a reflection on possible answers to these and related questions, drawn from revered foundational texts of the Americans who came before us. Such reflections may, perhaps, change the way we make, uphold, and, in a special way, love the law.
Support the Show.
Over 70 million adults in the U.S. have a criminal record. These individuals face over 44,000 government-imposed barriers to work, housing, education, and civil rights that limit their efforts to become responsible stewards of their families and communities. How can churches, businesses, law enforcement, and policymakers better unlock second chances for Americans who have paid their debt to society?
A panel of experts from Prison Fellowship joined us for a conversation about the importance of strategies that protect public safety and promote success for individuals with a criminal record.
Support the Show.
In the United States – and, indeed, around the world – changing demographics reflect a steadily aging population. As families grow smaller and more far-flung and as care costs escalate, conversations about elder care are complex and, often, heart breaking. While in the past it was generally presumed that care of elders was a family obligation, today that is less often the norm.
Public policy makers who navigate this complex arena have decisions to make as to whether policy should be viewed as a way to replace the care once provided by families, as a scheme to assist families in providing this care, or a blend of both.
Lucia Silecchia, Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Faculty Research at The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law joined us to discuss the ways in which subsidiarity can be a critical part of these urgent conversations.
Support the Show.
The days of Christianity providing a unifying moral vision for our culture (Christendom) are over.
Dr. W. Robert Godfrey, Chairman of Ligonier Ministries joined us to discuss how Abraham Kuyper anticipated this contemporary problem facing American Christians and can help us develop a persuasive and public Christian program.
Support the Show.
Declinism is in the air in certain circles, and it coincides with the conclusion of some historians that 250 years is roughly the lifespan of great superpowers. How do Christians understand such cyclical views of history, and what are the genuine grounds for confidence in the possibility of renewal. Christians are not called to be Pollyannas, but what should our realistic position be?
Os Guinness, Anglo-Irishman, author, and social critic, joined us to discuss this timely and important topic.
Support the Show.
We live in times when low-grade nihilism simmers just beneath the surface of everyday conversation, the desire for impact birthed in secular zeal soon stymied by chokeholds of institutional breakdown and pixelated trust.
We call out injustice in public but feel squeamish about acknowledging our contributions to it. We text expressions of care to one another but lack the creativity to prove it off-screen. We feel exhausted by the ever-accelerating pace of modern life, by performative politics, by the cultural demand to keep up appearances and continually refine our own identities. Cynical indifference is tempting an entire generation of young adults.
Even as we long for experiences of beauty, transcendence, and meaningful co-creation have we lost the ability to find the quiet space required to discern the movement of God?
Anne Snyder, editor-in-chief of Comment magazine, joined us to explore a series of principles that can field regeneration, bear fruit, and change history’s direction for the better.
Support the Show.
The kind of people we are, has much to do with the kind of public life we have. Spiritual formation is central to civic renewal.
Michael Wear, Founder, President and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life, joined us to share ideas outlined in his new book, The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life.
He encouraged us to consider reframing how we view our political involvement as Christians, why who we are in our political life is not quarantined from who we are in "real life," and how we can seek a gentler, healthier politics, all while living and working on Capitol Hill.
Support the Show.
Every child is capable of being an agent of their own uplift provided they are given the resources to inform the decisions that will make them successful adults.
Ian Rowe, Sr. Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute discussed four factors that are crucial for children to overcome the victimhood narrative and discover their pathway to power: family, religion, education, and entrepreneurship.
Support the Show.
Faith and Law hosted our yearly panel discussion with Capitol Hill veterans to explore ethical issues encountered by Hill staff, especially as they reach senior leadership positions. Panelists including John Cusey, Melika McKinnis, and John Shelton shared their stories of success and failure as they navigated the complicated ethical waters of the Hill. The discussion was moderated by Bill Wichterman, President of the board of Faith and Law.
Due to technical issues with one of the hearing room microphones, parts of our recording have subpar audio quality. We regret any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.
Support the Show.
As a leader of the largest ever global study on human flourishing, Dr. Byron Johnson, Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University and Visiting Distinguished Professor in the School of Public Policy at Pepperdine University, joined us to discuss why a "focus on flourishing" is important for all policymakers whatever their political party.
In conversation with Pepperdine School of Public Policy Dean Pete Peterson, Dr. Johnson went beyond the theoretical to reveal what the latest data are telling us about the importance of faith in promoting healthy societies, and how policy decisions can either inhibit or promote human flourishing.
Support the Show.
Gary Haugen's firsthand experience investigating systemic human rights abuses helped him recognize a troubling pattern: people living in the world’s poorest communities experienced constant physical danger because their local justice systems weren’t equipped to defend them from the violence they faced every day. Haugen was told that this would never change, but he believed otherwise, leading to the founding of International Justice Mission (IJM). Since 1997, IJM's reach has expanded globally into 31 program offices in 16 countries working to combat trafficking and slavery, violence against women and children and police abuse of power.
Still, these issues of violence persist, affecting millions around the world – an estimated 50 million people live modern slavery globally and nearly 736 million women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime.
Government officials in the United States are uniquely positioned to create policies and foreign assistance programs that protect vulnerable people from these human rights abuses. How can policymakers work to increase access to justice, hold criminals accountable, and reduce the prevalence of violence and exploitation?
Support the Show.
The American political order, and the civilization from which it emerged, are under unprecedented assault—from both the political Left and the New Right. Yet the ideals and institutions that have shaped Western Civilization—concepts such as individual freedom, natural rights, and belief in a loving God—have made profound contributions to human flourishing. Dr. Joseph Loconte, Presidential Scholar in Residence at New College of Florida and the C.S. Lewis Scholar for Public Life at Grove City College, joined us to discuss how transmitting this part of the human story is the most urgent educational task we face.
Support the Show.
Mark Tooley, president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy joined us to discuss how Dutch and English Whiggish principles birthed by Anglo Protestantism created ordered liberty and self government. These principles are not static but dynamic. And once shaping society they are not easily erased. Confidence about tomorrow can come if we recall and better live out these principles. They remind us that we each bear God’s political image and are stewards of His creation. And they point us away from nostalgia or temptations towards authoritarianism and instead towards enriched democracy amid providential hope.
Support the Show.
In our day, "social justice" is a loaded term. While it is easy to agree that every relationship carries responsibilities -- friend and friend, business and client, government and people -- identifying the terms and principles of those responsibilities is a trickier task. What makes one party a giver and another a receiver? When injustice abounds, who is to blame? Is it correct to associate "social justice" with an image of the people pressing its government for goods and services?
Dr. Russell Hittinger, Executive Director of the Institute for Human Ecology at Catholic University, presented clear principles, classical and timeless, for identifying what justice is, who gives it, and what order it upholds.
Support the Show.
V. Bradley Lewis, Associate Professor Philosophy at Catholic University, and Jonathon Askonas, Assistant Professor of Politics at Catholic University, engaged in an interview-style discussion on the current standing, risks, and allure of artificial intelligence.
Support the Show.
The development of medical treatments often requires use of human subjects, as well as human cells and body parts as models of human systems, to investigate mechanisms of action and to test therapeutics. Biotechnology has provided many successful therapies for previously intractable conditions, but also increasingly complex techniques that can alter what it means to be human and blur ethical lines. When we consider stem cells, cloning, gene editing, human-animal chimeras, organoids, embryoids and so-called synthetic embryos, what is ethical and what crosses the line of human dignity? Is any scientific endeavor justifiable because of a potential for cures, or are there ethical limits to efforts to heal or eliminate certain diseases all together? Do ethical alternatives exist that would benefit humanity without losing our ethical integrity?
The Charlotte Lozier Institute has developed the Handbook of Nascent Human Beings to explain the science and to stimulate discussion on the ethics and moral permissibility of modern medicine and biotechnology. The place of this research in policy will also be discussed.
David A. Prentice, Ph.D. is Vice President for Scientific Affairs at the Charlotte Lozier Institute. He is also Advisory Board Chair and a Founding Member for the Midwest Stem Cell Therapy Center, a unique comprehensive stem cell center in Kansas that he was instrumental in creating. In 2020, he was appointed by the Secretary of HHS to the federal Human Fetal Tissue Ethics Advisory Board. Dr. Prentice has almost 50 years’ experience as a scientific researcher and professor, including previous service as a staff member at Los Alamos National Laboratory, senior fellow at the Family Research Council, Professor of Life Sciences at Indiana State University, Adjunct Professor of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, and Adjunct Professor of Molecular Genetics at the John Paul II Institute, The Catholic University of America. He has provided scientific lectures, policy briefings and testimonies in 40 states and 21 countries, including before the U.S. House and Senate and numerous state legislatures, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the President’s Council on Bioethics, European Parliament, British Parliament, Canadian Parliament, Australian Parliament, German Bundestag, French Senate, Swedish Parliament, the United Nations, and the Vatican.
Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D., is Vice President and Director of Life Sciences at the Charlotte Lozier Institute. A scientist with over 20 years’ experience in academic and clinical medicine with an emphasis on the cause of pediatric disease, Dr. Sander Lee earned a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Medical College of Wisconsin followed by postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital in molecular and cell biology. Dr. Sander Lee was an appointed faculty member at the Medical College of Wisconsin, where she directed a research laboratory investigating congenital heart disease in children and served as Scientific Director of Molecular Diagnostics at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. She has also served as a scientific consultant and is currently a member of the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Advisory Committee on Infant and Maternal Mortality.
Dr. Sander Lee is dedicated to promoting ethical advancements in healthcare that protect the sanctity of every human life. She has given expert legislative testimony, numerous national media interviews, and provided scientific advice for legislators, policymakers, and organizations. Dr. Sander Lee is published in various medical journals and textbooks, including her most recent contribution to the book, Choose Life: An
Support the Show.
The divisions in America increasingly create an environment where everything is political, and the places in society where people who disagree can come together are dwindling as a result. How does our faith act as a compass to guide us through this culture of litmus tests and virtue signalling? When our culture wants us to pick sides and put our faith in politics, how do we lead a different way?
Andrew Hanauer, President and CEO of the One America Movement, joined us to discuss how to reject toxic forms of division and offer a moral vision that transcends our divisive and disconnected culture.
Support the Show.
For over half a century, pro-life advocates have fought to protect the sanctity of human life. Now that the decision the pro-life community has been waiting and praying for has finally become a reality, a question remains: Now what? How do we continue to stand for life for everyone who bears the image of God—from womb to tomb? And if abortion disproportionately impacts the poor and the marginalized, specifically Black Americans, why should we seize this new opportunity to make right what has gone terribly wrong?
Benjamin Watson, author and a former NFL player who now serves as VP of strategic relationships with Human Coalition, joined us to discuss how we can create a culture where abortion is both unthinkable and unnecessary by relentlessly pursuing a more just world—for everyone.
Click here to order Benjamin Watson's latest book "The New Fight for Life Roe, Race, and a Pro-Life Commitment to Justice".
Support the show
For nearly a decade, federal policies meant to address homelessness have centered around “Housing First,” which begins with an assumption that the crisis is driven primarily by a lack of affordable housing. But is it really? Studies show that most individuals experiencing homelessness suffer from severe addiction, untreated mental illness, or a combination of the two. Others end up on the streets because they have no one to turn to, typically owing to broken familial relationships. It’s time for a change.
Steven Buri, Robert Marbut and Wesley J. Smith of the Discovery Institute joined us to explore a new approach that acknowledges the inherent dignity of those suffering and that focuses on restoration, recovery, and self-sufficiency.
Support the show
In celebration of 40 years of ministry on Capitol Hill, Faith and Law hosted a special panel discussion moderated by alumni Katherine Haley. The panel consisted of current Members of congress, representative Mike Johnson, representative Julia Letlow, and representative Adrian Smith, who shared stories about how their Christian faith has guided them to reflect Jesus to the Halls of congress, our nation, and around the globe.
Support the show
What do the pro-life and racial justice movements share in common? How can these shared values lead to greater advocacy and more effective outcomes in society. Gloria Purvis, Catholic author, commentator and the host and executive producer of The Gloria Purvis Podcast, joined us to discuss Life and Race in Post-Dobbs America.
Before we begin playing the lecture, we’d like to apologize for the poor quality of the audio recording. We hope that you will still appreciate the insight shared by Mrs. Purvis.
Support the show
Civil-military relations have often been tense and the current age of high political polarization poses particular challenges to maintaining healthy civil-military relations. Dr. Peter Feaver, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at Duke University and former Special Advisor on the National Security Council during both the Clinton and Bush administrations, joined us to review best practices in civilian control of the military in light of recent controversies and ongoing political divisions.
Support the show
More than one in three adults in the U.S. have a criminal record. These individuals face over 44,000 government-imposed barriers to work, housing, education, and civil rights that limit their efforts to become responsible stewards of their families and communities. How can churches, businesses, law enforcement, and policymakers better unlock second chances for Americans who have paid their debt to society? What can our society do to reduce cycles of recidivism, addiction, and unemployment among individuals leaving our nation's prisons and jails?
Prison Fellowship joined us for a conversation about the importance of fostering a culture that promotes second chances.
Speakers:
- Stanley Ball, Vice President and Chief Litigation Counsel at Eaton Corporation
- Ja’Ron Smith, Partner at Dentons Global Advisors Government Relations
- Jermaine Wilson, Regional Director at Prison Fellowship and Mayor of Leavenworth, Kansas
- Kate Trammell, Esq., Vice President of Advocacy at Prison Fellowship
Support the show
Anxiety seeps into everything–into our own individual lives, relationships, and even our politics. As Christians, how might a transformed view of anxiety change the way we participate in politics? Curtis Chang demonstrates how anxiety is not a sin that should be prayed away, but how it is an opportunity to invite God into our individual and political lives in new and exciting ways.
If you would like to learn more about how Christians are invited to experience anxiety differently, you can pre-purchase Curtis's upcoming book, The Anxiety Opportunity: How Worry is the Doorway to Your Best Self (May 15 release date).
For additional content on anxiety and other topics highly relevant to the Faith and Law community, you can subscribe to Redeeming Babel (Curtis's non-profit) at this link. Members of Redeeming Babel receive their monthly newsletter, access to member-only events, member level participation in Curtis's weekly Good Faith podcast, and other special resources.
Support the show
Faith and Law Executive Director, Lauren Noyes was joined by special guest panelists Russell Moore and David French for a discussion on some of the issues of deepest concern to the Faith and Law community, including, life, religious liberty, and building unity in today's polarized political environment.
Support the show
When it comes to religious freedom, should Christians support diversity or are there any limits to religious freedom? If so, what are those limits and how do we determine them in a diverse society?
Stanley Carlson-Thies, Senior Director at the Center for Public Justice, Lauren Baas Residential Program Coordinator for the American Studies Program and Emily Fromke, Program Director at the Center for Public Justice joined us to discuss how Religious Freedom is Vital for the Common Good.
Support the show
Every day, police officers step up to fill an irreplaceable role in the community, responding to neighbors in crisis. However, access to important and lifesaving training for officers is often limited—increasing the risk of excessive use of force and undermining officer well-being. How can federal, state, and local leaders foster more effective and ethical policing and crisis response strategies?
Featured panelists included:
- Ernie Stevens, Deputy Division Director of Law Enforcement, The Council of State Governments
- Dr. Quintin Williams, Program Officer, Gun Violence Prevention and Justice Reform
The Joyce Foundation - Kate Trammell, Esq., Vice President, Advocacy, Prison Fellowship
Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops follows two Texas officers who are changing the way law enforcement responds to mental health calls. Ernie and Joe have unique insight into that crisis response as part of the San Antonio Police Department’s Mental Health Unit. This film examines Ernie and Joe’s daily encounters with people grappling with mental and behavioral health challenges. The full-version of ERNIE & JOE CRISIS COPSis available on HBO for streaming. The film is also available free to all U.S. law enforcement and public safety personnel thru 2024. For more information, visit www.ernieandjoethefilm.com.
Prison Fellowship’s recently published, “Building Blocks of Trust”, complete with illustrations and data, this report looks at the history of police training, current training requirements, challenges of modern policing, and community-oriented solutions that promote public safety. To learn more, visit www.prisonfellowship.org/policetraining.
Support the show
Joseph Capizzi, Ph.D. in Theology, is the Executive Director of the Institute for Human Ecology and an Ordinary Professor of Moral Theology at The Catholic University of America. He has published widely on just war theory, bioethics, the history of moral theology, and political liberalism. Dr. Capizzi worked as a research fellow at the VADM James B. Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership at the U.S. Naval Academy from 2013 to 2014.
Bradley Lewis, Ph.D. is Associate Dean and Associate Professor at the School of Philosophy at The Catholic University of America. Dr. Lewis specializes in political and legal philosophy, especially in classical Greek political thought and in the theory of natural law. He holds a B.A. from the University of Maryland and a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. He has published scholarly articles in Polity, History of Political Thought, the Southern Journal of Philosophy, Philosophy and Rhetoric, Communio, the Josephinum Journal of Theology, the Pepperdine Law Review, the Oxford Journal of Law and Religion, and the Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association, as well as chapters in a number of books. He is currently working on a book project provisionally titled “The Common Good and the Modern State.” He is also a fellow of the Institute for Human Ecology and serves as associate editor of the American Journal of Jurisprudence.
Support the show
Faith and Law will host a panel of Capitol Hill veterans to explore ethical issues encountered by Hill staff, especially as they reach senior leadership positions. Panelists will share their stories of success and failure as they navigated the complicated ethical waters of the Hill. Discussion will be moderated by John Palafoutas, co-founder of Faith and Law.
Panelists include:
Mark Epley, Partner at Arnold & Porter. Epley previously served as Senior Advisor and General Counsel, Office of the Speaker of the US House of Representatives. He also served as General Counsel of the House Ways and Means Committee and Chief Oversight Counsel.
Melika Willoughby McKinnis worked in political strategy and communications for nearly the last decade. She held senior positions in both the House and Senate, was Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, served at the State Department, and was Communications Director for Kansas Governor Sam Brownback—a job she first tackled at 24 years old. She holds a B.A. in Politics with honors from Hillsdale College. Ms. McKinnis lives in Washington, DC with her husband Seth, now spending her days with the most intensive and rewarding principal of her career, their infant son, Brennan.
Bill Wichterman, Senior Advisor in Covington’s Public Policy practice.
Prior to joining Covington, Bill served as Special Assistant to President George W. Bush and as the President’s personal liaison to the conservative movement. Before serving in the White House, he held a number of senior staff-level positions on Capitol Hill, including as Policy Advisor to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, and Chief of Staff to Congressman Joe Pitts and Congressman Bill Baker.
Support the show
Ronald Reagan’s strategy for a peaceful victory in the Cold War combined military, economic, information, and political pressure with diplomatic outreach – all undergirded by Reagan's Christian faith.
Dr. William Inboden, Executive Director and William Powers, Jr. Chair at the Clements Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin joined us to discuss how Reagan’s strategy to defeat Soviet communism holds important lessons for America’s competition with China today.
Support the show
Crossing the aisle has never been easy in politics, but in recent years it has been increasingly seen as an act of betrayal rather than an act of bridge-building. Unfortunately, the same is true of disagreements in many non-political realms. Polarization has found its way into our churches, communities, and even our families. In today's argument culture, is there any hope for restoring civil discourse? Dr. Tim Muehlhoff and Dr. Rick Langer, co-directors of the Winsome Conviction Project, offer practical steps—rooted in communication theory, ancient wisdom literature, and philosophy—to help move away from destructive polarization to constructive dialogue.
Support the show
We are at a crossroads in the US on many fronts, including the intersection of sound logic with pressing concerns. Throughout our history we have had men and women with tremendous influence speak into contemporary issues through their thought, whether manifest in writing or speaking. We are navigating an era in which many have tried to discard the law of noncontradiction. The very humanities basis for life’s important questions is considered suspect as educational institutions are under pressure. We indeed can learn from the steps of public intellectuals with transferable lessons for such a time as this.
Dr. Jerry Pattengale’s recent book, Public Intellectuals and the Common Good, is one glimpse of these lessons, accenting his decade long project and book in progress, Borrowed Intelligence: Learning in the Shadows of Geniuses.
Support the show
It is difficult to know when to share information with others, especially when that information damages another person's reputation. The challenge is especially acute for those who work on the Hill, where information is currency. In this talk, Dr. Anderson developed an 'ethics of gossip' that both challenges our tendency toward "loose lips" and guides us toward knowing when and how to share damaging information about third parties.
Support the show
From the private to the public sectors, there is consensus that modern slavery exists and that it is wrong; yet around the world, prosecutions, victim identification, and quality victims services are all in decline. It is an urgent problem and demands our attention and action—but how do we solve human trafficking and other human rights issues today?
Ambassador John Cotton Richmond joined us for a conversation on modern slavery and current trends. He spoke about why cultivating a deep understanding of inherent human dignity provides common ground and hope for policymakers collaborating across the political aisle in advancing human rights, stopping perpetrators, and protecting victims through thoughtful and wise actions and policies.
Support the show
Western civilization is said to be the most powerful civilization the world has ever seen, because of its truly global impact. But two things are now obvious. The West has dominated the world for the past 500 years, and a mounting chorus of voices are now saying the West is in decline. Not only is the Christian faith at the heart of the understanding of this ‘civilizational moment, but the crisis of the West is the wider context in which we need to understand the present challenges within America.
Author and Social Critic Os Guinness joined us for a Friday Forum Lecture.
Support the show
In light of the recent Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, and our ongoing challenge to continue pushing for policies that protect and uphold the lives of mothers and of their born and pre-born children, should Christians all the more support (rightly designed) federal subsidies for child care and preK?
Stanley Carlson-Thies, founder and senior director of the Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance, and Stephanie Summers, CEO of the Center for Public Justice joined us to discuss when and how—if ever—should faith-based organizations accept government support to serve their neighbors?
Support the show
U.S companies are the driving force behind global innovation and the advancement of emerging technologies. A deeper understanding of God’s creativity and our roles as image-bearers can help Christians working on Capitol Hill shape policy that will encourage ingenuity and maintain America's technological cutting-edge while protecting intellectual property.
Phoebe Miles, co-founder of the Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention and daughter of the inventor of Gatorade and Dr. James Edwards, former Hill staffer and consultant on intellectual property discussed how the Creation Mandate and Common Grace relate to human innovation and human flourishing.
Support the show
Many Americans frame frictions with China not only as a set of conflicting interests to be managed, but as a decisive battle between Democracy and Autocracy, between Good and Evil. In this formulation, our interests are often equated with the maintenance of our power and our power is viewed in millenarian terms. This tendency is baffling not only to our adversaries, but to our allies as well. Why do we lean on normative language whenever we feel threatened? And how can we make convincing arguments about the threat of Chinese Communist Party governance in a complex, skeptical world that does not view the United States as a moral exemplar and or the last hope of Christendom?
Robert Daly, Director of the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars joined us to discuss this timely topic.
Support the show
The toxic divisions, cancel culture and partisan hatred that continue to grip America are a challenge not just for our country but for our faith. Many churches are divided, while many Christians are selecting out of churches they've been a part of for a long time to find a church that more fully lines up with their political views. More than a third of pastors have considered quitting their ministries. But faith is also the answer to our polarization.
Andrew Hanauer, President and CEO of the One America Movement joined us to discuss this timely and important topic.
Support the show
There is much public outcry about the Supreme Court's leaked draft majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health. Passions are high on both sides of this issue, further fracturing an already divided nation. However, there is one thing that both proponents and opponents of Roe can agree on -- women and children deserve to be empowered with real options and comprehensive care.
Studies have shown that approximately 75% of pregnant women seeking abortion would prefer to parent if their circumstances were different. We partnered with Human Coalition to discuss pro-birth and pro-life solutions that can help make abortion unnecessary and unthinkable.
Support the show
Many have missed the deep religious significance of Russia’s recent wars, from the “holy war” against ISIS in Syria to recovery of sacred spaces in the Crimea. Dr. Eric Patterson of the Religious Freedom Institutewill identify key features of Russia’s religious diplomacy across the Orthodox world and key religious aspects of Russia’s geo-politics, from Purim’s necklace to Ukrainian denominationalism.
Support the show
For much of American history, our country had no formally established church but it did have a soft religious establishment -- Protestant at first and then Judeo-Christian -- that shaped and grounded our national debates. In the 1960s and 1970s, the collapse of the Protestant Mainline dissolved that center, and our culture wars should be understood as the attempts by different forces to fill that void: Evangelicals and Catholics in the George W. Bush era, "awokened" progressivism today. Even in a supposedly secularized society, our conflicts remain religious, reflecting a quest for a moral and metaphysical consensus that, for now, eludes our grasp.
We were joined by Ross Douthat, New York Times opinion columnist.
Support the show
Religious liberty is having another significant year at the Supreme Court.
Luke Goodrich is VP & senior counsel at Becket, where he represents religious organizations and individuals in religious liberty disputes in courts across the country, including in the Supreme Court. Mr Goodrich broke down the religious liberty cases at SCOTUS this term--from school choice (Carson v. Makin), to public prayer (Kennedy v. Bremerton School District) to religious symbols on government property (Shurtleff v. Boston), to free speech and LGBTQ rights (303 Creative v. Elenis). He also discussed religious liberty cases from the Court’s rocket docket and emergency docket, such as chaplain prayer in the execution chamber (Ramirez v. Collier) and religious exemptions to COVID vaccine mandates.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In celebration of Second Chance Month, we partnered with Prison Fellowship to gather a panel of experts, law enforcement leaders, and directly impacted voices for a discussion around improving outcomes among the one in three American adults with a criminal record. We are excited for this opportunity to dive into ways to advance second chances, thoughtful alternatives to incarceration, and success in reentry.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The central question of this cultural moment, the one behind the most difficult issues we face as a society, is what does it mean to be human. Who are we? What is our value? What is our responsibility to one another? The vision of humanity at the heart of the Christian story is true and good, the most compelling account of who we are, and the best opportunity for Christians to offer life and hope to individuals, communities, and cultures.
John Stonestreet serves as president of the Colson Center. He’s a sought-after author and speaker on areas of faith and culture, theology, worldview, education and apologetics. John is the daily voice of BreakPoint,the nationally syndicated commentary on the culture founded by the late Chuck Colson. He is also the voice of The Point, a daily one-minute feature on worldview, apologetics, and cultural issues. Before coming to the Colson Center in 2010, John served in various leadership capacities with Summit Ministries and was on the biblical studies faculty at Bryan College (TN). John has co-authored five books: A Practical Guide to Culture, A Student’s Guide to Culture, Restoring All Things, Same-Sex Marriage, and Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview. John holds degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (IL) and Bryan College (TN). He and his wife, Sarah, have four children and live in Colorado Springs, CO. Connect with John at BreakPoint.org, or follow him on Twitter (@jbstonestreet).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In 1973 in Roe v Wade, the Supreme Court found an implied right to abortion in the Constitution. By the end of this term in June, it will rule on a case - Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Women's Health Organization - that challenges the continuing validity of that holding.
Professors Helen Alvaré of George Mason Scalia School of Law and William Saunders of The Catholic University of America will discuss the prospects for overturning Roe.
Below are three readings that will provide background to the discussion.
- "Roberts's roadmap to reversing Roe v. Wade", Helen Alvaré, The Hill, March 4, 2022.
- Amicus Brief of 141 International Legal Scholars
- Brief of 240 Women Scholars et al In Support of Petitioners Dobbs
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Abandoning the view of human nature that guided the country’s Founders, Americans for two centuries have justified democracy on false and romantic grounds. We think too highly of ourselves, and this comforting misperception magnifies our partisan polarization, intensifies our frustration with democratic institutions, and heightens our susceptibility to authoritarianism. A necessary first step to a healthier democracy will be to redefine ourselves as “We the Fallen People.”
During this Friday Forum, Dr. McKenzie argued that we must take an unflinching look at the very nature of democracy—its strengths and weaknesses, what it can promise, and where it overreaches.
For further reading, feel free to read Thomas J. Wilson's review of Dr McKenzie's book, "Reappraising American Goodness: A Review of McKenzie’s We the Fallen People" January 26, 2022 in Providence Magazine.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Faith & Law hosted a panel of senior Capitol Hill Veterans, moderated by John Palafoutas, founder of Faith & Law, to explore the "Trials and Tribulations of Living an Ethical Life on Capitol Hill."
Panelists included:
- Arne Christenson, former Chief of Staff to then Speaker Newt Gingrich.
- Nicole Gustafson, former senior policy advisor and chief counsel to former Majority Leader/Minority Whip Eric Cantor.
- Luke Murry, former National Security Advisor for Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Federal law protects the civil rights of medical conscience and religious freedom in health care. These defend the rights of medical professionals, clinics, hospitals, and other health care entities who refuse to participate in specific medical procedures or health care activities, based on moral objections or religious beliefs. In recent years, advocates and politicians have been trying to pressure health-care providers to compromise their convictions and compel them to perform procedures or activities they believe are immoral or unethical.
In this talk, Louis Brown demonstrates that medical conscience and religious freedom, defended by a culture of life, is necessary for just healthcare, particularly for those who have been historically marginalized – the unborn, racial minorities, and the disabled.
Introduction and discussion with William Saunders, Director of the Program in Human Rights at the Institute of Human Ecology.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
How should Christians arrive at political positions? How does Biblical political judgement differ from secular judgement? Is there a place to exercise Biblical judgment at all in our modern politics?
Dr. Micah J. Watson of Calvin University and Dr. David Corey of Baylor University discuss Scripture, faith, and reasoning by natural law.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The United States is facing a moral crisis prompted by rapid increases in cross-border migration and global displacement. For too long, the debate around immigration policy has been framed with false choices that have resulted in political stalemates at a great human cost. Crisis after crisis, Americans are asked to choose between security and unbridled compassion. Is there a better way to safeguard our immigration system while welcoming the stranger?
Daniel Garza is the president of the LIBRE Initiative. Born in the Central Valley of California, he would migrate with his family annually from their ancestral hometown of Garza Gonzalez in Nuevo Leon, Mexico- throughout California, Nebraska and Washington State following the crop season as farm workers until he was 19 years of age.
Mr. Garza began his in public service career as congressional staff assistant for U.S. congressman Richard "Doc" Hastings and was later elected as councilman for the city of Toppenish, Washington in 1996. In 2001, he was tapped by the George W. Bush Administration to serve as Deputy Director of External and Intergovernmental Affairs in the Office of the Secretary at The Department of Interior, and was appointed in 2004 to Associate Director of the Office of Public Liaison in the White House. In 2007, Daniel joined Univision to host and co-produce "Agenda Washington", a weekly Spanish-language news talk show covering the issues impacting the U.S. Hispanic community. Mr. Garza was appointed to serve on the Board of The Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy in 2016, was designated as one of Washington, D.C.’s “Influentials” by Congressional Quarterly Magazine in 2018, and in 2019, Daniel was named 1 of the 50 most influential voices in Washington DC by The National Journal.
Elizabeth Neumann served during the George W. Bush administration managing President Bush’s Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, which involved working with the Departments of Education and Housing Development. From 2003 to 2005, Neumann worked at the White House as part of the inaugural staff of the Homeland Security Council post 9/11. The job included working with the different government security agencies to counter terrorism. Neumann served as an executive assistant to Homeland Security Advisor, John A Gordon, shifting eventually to serve as a Homeland Security policy advisor for a year and as Associate Director of the Domestic Counterterrorism Directorate. As a director, she advised the presidential appointee on Homeland Security policy initiatives. Neumann left the Bush Administration and worked with the Senior Advisor to the Program Manager for the Information Sharing Environment, Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Neumann joined DHS Secretary John Kelly as his Deputy Chief of Staff in 2017; and she served in the same capacity under Acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke. In 2018, Neumann transitioned into her role as DHS Assistant Secretary for Threat Prevention and Security Policy, where she served until her resignation in April 2020.
John Cusey is the Vice President of Communications at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He has a long record of government service including working for multiple presidential administrations and members of Congress. In 2019, John served in the Office of Refugee Resettlement at the Department of Health and Human Services. In his time on Capitol Hill, he served as the Executive Director of the Bipartisan Congressional Pro-life Caucus for five years with Congressman Chris Smith and as the Legislative Director and Press Secretary for Congressman Gary Miller for two years. Prior to working in DC, John worked for three different Members of the California State Legislature where he focused on budget issues.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
On the eve of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month, it is appropriate to reflect on how public policy, current healthcare protocols, and our own lack of understanding can compound the trauma of the loss of a child and contribute to prolonged grief reactions. In addition to gaining a better understanding of the unique obstacles facing bereaved parents and their families, we will discuss evidence-based reproductive grief care best practices that can be employed individually and corporately to bring comfort and hope to these grieving individuals.
Jamie Dangers, the Legislative Director of Susan B Anthony List will be providing an introduction as well as an update on the Texas Senate Bill 8.
A recording of this talk will be made available online.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
America’s national and international crises have thrown a stark spotlight on leadership, and shown up once again the strong differences between secular views and Christian views. But what are the defining features of a biblical view of leadership? How do we ensure that servant leadership is more than a cliché? How do we make our distinctive dimensions of leadership real in these turbulent times?
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, The Global Public Square, and Last Call for Liberty: How America’s Genius for Freedom Has Become Its Greatest Threat. His latest book,The Magna Carta of Humanity - Sinai’s revolutionary faith and the future of freedom, was published in May 2021.
Pete Peterson is the Braun Family Dean of Pepperdine’s School of Public Policy. Prior to this he was the executive director of the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement at the School where he remains a senior fellow. Through the Institute, Peterson’s work focuses on improving public policy processes at the local level and the use of technology to make municipalities more transparent and responsive. His training seminar, "Public Engagement: The Vital Leadership Skill” has been attended by over 4,000 municipal officials around the country.
In 2017, Peterson helped launch the “American Project” at Pepperdine, which convenes activists, academics, and policymakers to discuss and write about the American conservative movement. Citing loneliness and alienation as significant cultural maladies, the “Project” argues for a communitarian politics reimagined for the 21st century.
Peterson writes widely on public engagement and the conservative movement for various newspapers and blogs. He contributed the chapter, "Place As Pragmatic Policy" to the edited volume, Why Place Matters: Geography, Identity, and Civic Life in Modern America (New Atlantis Books, 2014), and "Do-It Ourselves Citizenship" for Localism in the Mass Age (Wipf & Stock, 2018).
Peterson was the Republican nominee for California Secretary of State in 2014.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Many young professionals have sought answers to the important question: “How exactly do I discern God’s will, and determine what life and career path to take in the days ahead?”
While countless responses to this question have been suggested and published, the biblical answer is profoundly simple and truly liberating. Join Congressman Mike Johnson as he presents the answer that may change your life and perspective in dramatic ways.
Congressman Mike Johnson is a Republican member of Congress proudly serving Louisiana’s Fourth District. He represents the nearly 760,000 residents of 15 parishes in the northwest and western regions of the state. Mike was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives on December 10, 2016, by the largest margin of victory in his region in more than 50 years and is currently serving his third term in Congress.
In January 2021, Mike was elected by his colleagues to serve as Vice Chairman of the House Republican Conference, one of the seven elected leadership positions for Republicans in the House of Representatives. In this leadership role, Mike helps guide his Republican colleagues to fight for core conservative principles and policies. Mike also serves as an Assistant Whip for the 117th Congress, to help implement the Republican agenda. He was previously honored to serve as chairman of the Republican Study Committee, the largest caucus of conservatives in Congress, known as "the intellectual arsenal of conservatism in the House."
With two decades of previous experience in Constitutional law, Mike serves on the House Judiciary Committee, and is the top-ranked Republican for its Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. He also serves on the House Armed Services Committee and is honored to represent Barksdale Air Force Base, headquarters of the Air Force Global Strike Command, and Fort Polk and the Army's Joint Readiness Training Center, as well as the Louisiana National Guard's Camp Minden Training Site and other military assets.
Mike is a dedicated husband and father of four and an attorney who has devoted his life and career to fighting for the fundamental freedoms and traditional values that have always been a priority to the people of Louisiana. Mike spent nearly 20 years successfully litigating high profile constitutional law cases in district and appellate courts nationwide and is widely recognized as a leading defender of the right to life, religious liberty, free speech, the Second Amendment and free market principles. In his law practice, he drafted landmark legislation for many states and municipalities and provided legal counsel to members of Congress, governors, state legislatures, city councils, school boards, law enforcement agencies, ministries and non-profit organizations around the country.
Mike solidified his reputation as a principled, full-spectrum conservative when he served in the Louisiana Legislature from February 2015 to January 2017. He was elected to the state legislature twice without opposition, and he was honored to be appointed Vice Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and to the Select Committee on Leadership. As a legislator, both in the state capital and now in the nation's capital, he has received top awards from business and industry, limited government, and pro-life and pro-family groups.
Mike earned his Juris Doctorate from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University in 1998. He earned his undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Louisiana State University in 1995.
Mike and his wife Kelly, a former school teacher from Webster Parish and now a Licensed Pastoral Counselor, have been married since 1999 and have four children, Hannah, Abigail, Jack and Will. Today, they reside in Bossier Parish.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
This past year we have seen so much grief, pain and horror: bodies floating down the Ganges as Covid rages in India, medical personnel exhausted and dying in their efforts to care for those who have gotten sick, fracture in our social and political culture that threatens to destroy our country, alongside the world's usual quota of war, illness, accident, and danger. Where is God? Why doesn't He DO something?? I have no Pollyanna answer, but I do have evidence that the merciful God of the Bible is neither absent or silent.
Kathy Keller currently works on the staff of Redeemer City to City, an organization that assists global church planters to start gospel movements in their countries. She is also the Assistant Director of Communication and Media for Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, a church she co-founded with her husband, Tim Keller, in 1989. Kathy graduated from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 1975 with her MA in Theological Studies.
She is the author of "Jesus, Justice, and Gender Roles: A Case for Gender Roles in Ministry" and co-author with her husband, Tim, of "The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God" as well as the newly published “A Couples Devotional” and "The How to Find God series: Birth, Marriage, Death." She and Tim also collaborated on "The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms" and “God's Wisdom for Navigating Life: A Year of Daily Devotions in the book of Proverbs.” Kathy and Tim have three grown sons in finance, ministry, and city planning, as well as seven brilliant and loving grandchildren and three exceptional daughters-in-law in business and medicine.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
With a balance of wisdom, candor, and scholarly rigor the beloved archbishop emeritus of Philadelphia, Charles Chaput takes on life’s central questions: why are we here, and how can we live and die meaningfully?
In his latest book Things Worth Dying For, Chaput delves richly into our yearning for God, love, honor, beauty, truth, and immortality. He reflects on our modern appetite for consumption and individualism and offers a penetrating analysis of how we got here, and how we can look to our roots and our faith to find purpose each day amid the noise of competing desires.
Chaput examines the chronic questions of the human heart; the idols and false flags we create; and the nature of a life of authentic faith. He points to our longing to live and die with meaning as the key to our search for God, our loyalty to nation and kin, our conduct in war, and our service to others.
Ultimately, with compelling grace, he shows us that the things worth dying for reveal most powerfully the things worth living for.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Brad Wilcox argues that while a massive expansion of center-based childcare sounds like a win for social justice, in fact, it would negatively impact many American children and prioritizes elite work-family preferences over those of ordinary Americans. While this plan isn't the answer, American families do need help. What public policy solutions will work?
W. Bradford Wilcox is Director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, Professor of Sociology at the University of Virginia, Visiting Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, and a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Family Studies.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Senator Tim Scott is the first Black American elected to the U.S. Senate from a Southern state since Reconstruction and the only black Republican in the U.S. Senate.
Growing up in a poor, single parent household in North Charleston, South Carolina, Scott had to beat many odds to end up as a lawmaker on Capitol Hill. The work ethic, resilience, and faith he learned from his mother and mentor helped Scott to graduate from university, build his own successful small business, and eventually led him to public service. Scott has broken many barriers in his years as a public servant; serving on the Charleston County Council (1995-2009), the South Carolina House of Representatives (2009-2011), the United States House of Representatives (2011-2013), and the United States Senate (2013 - present).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, which struck down the pro-life statutes of every state in the Union, was described by John Hart Ely as “not constitutional law,” that is, he wrote, “this super- protected right is not inferable from the language of the Constitution.” Sweeping as Roe v. Wade was –and the precedent has been used to strike down literally hundreds of pro-life laws since 1973 - today’s advocates for unlimited abortion work daily to expand its boundaries to further deny protection to children on the threshold of and even after birth, to compel taxpayer support of all abortions, to deny informed consent and parental notice, and to distribute abortion pills for “do-it-yourself” use, a practice that will make homes and dormitories the 21 st century analog of back alleys.
A panel of distinguished scholars and researchers will discuss these themes and describe how the new radicalism on abortion transcends anything America has seen before. A half century after Roe, U.S. abortion policy continues to speed on a collision course with itself. On the one hand, human life can be and is being saved at ever younger gestational ages through the wonders of perinatal medicine, and dozens of states are acting anew to recognize these life-affirming practices and precepts. On the other hand, the campaigns to nullify the legal status of the innocent and vulnerable unborn grow increasingly raw and brutal across a number of states and now the Biden-Harris Administration.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Our country is living through a social crisis, to which many Americans have responded with populist anger at our institutions, and metaphors of destruction to describe the path forward: cleaning house, draining swamps. But now is not a time to tear down. It is a time to build and rebuild by committing ourselves to the institutions around us. From the personal and local to the national and political, these institutions provide the forms and structures we need to be free. By taking concrete steps to help them be more trustworthy, we can renew the ties that bind Americans to one another.
Introduction by former Congressman Zach Wamp (R-TN) and Ambassador Tim Roemer (D-IN).
Dr. Yuval Levin is the director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He also holds the Beth and Ravenel Curry Chair in Public Policy. The founding and current editor of National Affairs, he is also a senior editor of The New Atlantis and a contributing editor to National Review.
Dr. Levin and scholars in the Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies research division study the foundations of self-government and the future of law, regulation, and constitutionalism. They also explore the state of American social, political, and civic life, while focusing on the preconditions necessary for family, community, and country to flourish.
Dr. Levin served as a member of the White House domestic policy staff under President George W. Bush. He was also executive director of the President’s Council on Bioethics and a congressional staffer at the member, committee, and leadership levels.
In addition to being interviewed frequently on radio and television, Dr. Levin has published essays and articles in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and Commentary. He is the author of several books on political theory and public policy, most recently “A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream” (Basic Books).
He holds an MA and PhD from the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
We are created to flourish: to experience the wholeness (shalom) God desires and to be agents of bringing that flourishing to others. The Bible’s big story of “ought-is-can-will” provides the navigational grid that can animate an engagement with the world that’s marked by faithfulness, creativity, and hope.
Dr. Amy L. Sherman is a Senior Fellow at the Sagamore Institute for Policy Research, where she directs the Center on Faith in Communities. Named by Christianity Today in 2012 as one of the 50 most influential Evangelical women in America, Sherman is the author of seven books and nearly 100 articles in a variety of periodicals including First Things, The Public Interest, Policy Review, The Christian Century, Christianity Today, and Books & Culture, as well as various online platforms.
Sherman works closely with Made to Flourish, a pastors network for the common good focused on issues of faith and work. Her 2012 book, Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good, was awarded “Book of the Year” status in the Christian living category by CT. Her articles appear regularly in MTF’s Resource Library and on The Green Room, a blog sponsored by the Theology of Work Project. Her forthcoming book with Intervarsity Press examines how the Church can live into God’s call to seek the shalom of the city.
Sherman is the founder and former executive director of a Charlottesville Abundant Life Ministries, an urban ministry in Charlottesville, VA. She served for several years as a volunteer Senior Fellow with the International Justice Mission. She is a long-time member of Trinity Presbyterian Church. She earned her B.A. in political science at Messiah College and her M.A. and Ph.D. in international economic development from the University of Virginia. Her life verse is Micah 6:8 “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Notre Dame Law Professor Dr. John Finnis will lead a discussion of his much-discussed First Things article, "Abortion is Unconstitutional".
Known for his work in moral, political and legal theory, as well as in constitutional law, John Finnis joined the Notre Dame Law School faculty in 1995. He earned his LL.B. in 1961 from Adelaide University (Australia) and his doctorate in 1965 from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar at University College Oxford. He was lecturer, then reader and then a chaired professor in law in the University of Oxford for over four decades until 2010, while also a tutorial fellow of University College Oxford. He was associate in law at the University of California at Berkeley (1965-66), the professor of law at the University of Malawi (Africa) (1976-78), and Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law at Boston College Law School (1993-94). A barrister of Gray’s Inn, he practiced from 1979 to 1995 and was appointed Queen's Counsel [QC] (honoris causa) in 2017.
He is a Fellow of the British Academy (Law and Philosophy sections), was a member of the Philosophy sub-faculty at Oxford, and was an adjunct professor in the Notre Dame Department of Philosophy. He was a member of the International Theological Commission of the Holy See 1986-91, the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace (1990-95), and the Pontifical Academy Pro Vita (2001-2016).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In Partnership with the Institute for Human Ecology
A broad consensus has formed for improved instruction in American history and civics. Multiple studies and assessments indicate that Americans have an appallingly deficient understanding of their history and their governing process. And, of course, the events of political violence over the last year exacerbate those concerns. But what should such an effort look like? Should it be based within the states? Should Congress adopt a national strategy? If so, should that be overseen by the federal bureaucracy and implemented by the states?
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Never have U.S. atrocity determinations, which are uncommon to begin with, happened against a country as wealthy and powerful as China, lead by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party). This bold justice initiative is galvanizing those around the world to rally against the atrocities taking place in Xinjiang Province.
Background reading on this topic:
- Organ Procurement and Extrajudicial Execution in China: A Review of Evidence. (By Matthew Robertson, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, 3/10/2020)
- 2020 Judgment – Independent Tribunal into Forced Organ Harvesting from Prisoners of Conscience in China (China Tribunal, 3/1/2020)
- Sterilizations, IUDs, and Mandatory Birth Control: The CCP’s Campaign to Suppress Uyghur Birthrates in Xinjiang (By Adrian Zenz, The Jamestown Foundation 3/17/2021)
- Who are the Uighurs and why is the US accusing China of genocide? (BBC, 2/9/21)
- Their goal is to destroy everyone': Uighur camp detainees allege systematic rape" (BBC, 2/2/21)
- A cultural genocide before our eyes (World Magazine, 2/2/20)
- Biden's Choice in China (First Things, 2/9/21)
- Keeping China accountable for Xinjiang (World Magazine, 1/29/21)
- There is now more evidence than ever that China is imprisoning Uighurs (The Guardian, 9/24/20)
- State Department Lawyers Concluded Insufficient Evidence to Prove Genocide in China (Foreign Policy, 2/19/21)
Ambassador Morse Tan served as the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice, the top position in the federal government regarding mass atrocity crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. As such, he led the efforts for the crimes against humanity legal determination and the genocide policy determination against the Chinese Communist Party, called "the single most important U.S. human rights measure of the past four years" (in First Things). Previously, he served as the youngest full professor of law at his institution, having published extensively, including the critically acclaimed book: "North Korea, International Law and the Dual Crises" (Routledge).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In the best of times, Capitol Hill is an open marketplace where visions for governing our diverse and multi-ethnic republic are sorted out and employed for the common good. But these are not the best of times. In this conversation, we’ll learn some of the principles and practices of peacemaking that allow Christians to live as ambassadors of reconciliation and collaborate across lines of difference, even in an age of toxic polarization.
Todd Deatherage spent sixteen years in senior positions in the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government before co-founding the Telos Group. From 2005 to 2009, he was Chief of Staff in the Secretary of State’s Office of Policy Planning at the U.S. State Department. He also spent two years as Senior Advisor in the Department’s Office of International Religious Freedom, where he specialized in religious freedom in the Middle East. Todd worked for a decade in the U.S. Congress, including six years as Chief of Staff to Senator Tim Hutchinson. He is a native Arkansan and a graduate of the University of Arkansas. He began his career as an educator. He and his family live in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
From racial injustice protests to divisive electoral politics to a Confederate flag in the Capitol on January 6th and impeachment hearings, our country’s divisions have been on full display. This has challenged many Americans - and those around the world - to relook at democracy and its principles. This discussion will explore what democracy means in a divided country and whether unity is possible in a democratic republic.
Prof. Nicole Bibbins Sedaca serves as the Deputy Director of Georgetown University’s Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) program. She also serves as the Co-Chair for the Global Politics and Security Concentration and is a Professor in the Practice of International Affairs in MSFS.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Because of the Covid pandemic, many jurisdictions have placed limits on religious worship. Protests that such limits infringe the religious liberty guarantees of the First Amendment have reached the Supreme Court. What are the permissible limits on religious worship? How can we expect the Supreme Court to rule before its terms ends in June?
Mark Rienzi is Professor at The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, and President of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. Mark teaches constitutional law, religious liberty, torts, and evidence. He has been voted Teacher of the Year three years in a row, and he is widely published, including in the Harvard Law Review. He is Director of the Center for Religious Liberty at the Columbus School of Law.
Mark has broad experience litigating First Amendment cases. He represented the winning parties in a variety of Supreme Court First Amendment cases including Hobby Lobby, Wheaton College, and Holt. In January 2014, Mark successfully argued before the Supreme Court in McCullen v. Coakley, a First Amendment challenge to a Massachusetts speech restriction outside of abortion clinics, winning the case 9-0. Mark and his colleagues at Becket won several important religious liberty cases at the Supreme Court in the past year, including Our Lady of Guadalupe, Little Sisters of the Poor, and Agudath v. Cuomo.
William Saunders is a graduate of the Harvard Law School, who has been involved in issues of public policy, law and ethics for thirty years. A regular columnist for the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, Mr. Saunders has written and spoken widely on these topics. He is the Director of the Program in Human Rights for the Institute for Human Ecology at The Catholic University of America. (For information about his innovative Master of Arts in Human Rights, go to mahumanrights.com) Saunders works closely with Chinese dissident and CUA Distinguished Fellow, Chen Guangcheng, on human rights issues, and he is co-director of the Center for Religious Liberty at the Columbus School of Law.
Mr. Saunders’ new book, Unborn Human Life and Fundamental Rights: Leading Constitutional Cases Under Scrutiny, was published in 2019.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Genesis 1:26 reveals that God made humanity in His image, and reflecting His nature, for an awesome task and responsibility: to rule responsibly over all He has made. Being good stewards of God’s creation is both a biblical mandate and the historical legacy of the Christian church.
In this lecture, Dr. Jessica Moerman of the Evangelical Environmental Network presented on how environmental stewardship is at its heart a discipleship issue and part of our Christian witness, as well as a matter of defending the lives and health of the most vulnerable -- including our children, both born and unborn. She will also separate fact from fiction on the science of climate change and the role of human activity on today’s global warming. Lecture will be followed by discussion with Dr. Moerman, John Hart and David Bond of C3 Solutions.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Succeeding on Capitol Hill isn't quite a mathematical equation, but there are some important guideposts that will make that success much more likely. In this session, long-time Hill veteran Bill Wichterman will offer very practical guidance about how to become an excellent staffer who is more likely to advance.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
James 1:19 teaches that we should be "quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." As Christian policy advocates strive to honor God's heart for all of his creation, it is important to listen to the experiences of our Black brothers and sisters in Christ. After a year of racial unrest, we should lead by listening and learning. This forum will feature a conversation with African-American Christian leaders about how we can better reflect God's heart for ethnic diversity and foster racial unity among Christians, and make a positive impact on our nation.
For additional resources on this topic:
- Read "Black Lives Matter? Embracing the Proclamation or the Organization" by Kelvin Cochran.
- Visit the American Bible Society's website for Bible-based resources on justice.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Have rancor and hyper-partisanship in our politics gone so far that recovery is impossible? Is America now a fading, failing democracy? Or can we come together as one nation to revitalize our experiment in ordered liberty in the 2020s? David Blankenhorn will address these questions and discuss them with us. David is president and co-founder of Braver Angels, a national citizens' initiative working to bridge the political divide in politics and society.
David Blankenhorn is president of Braver Angels, a citizens’ organization working for less rancor and more goodwill in politics and society. Before co-founding Braver Angels, David led the Institute for American Values, a think tank on civil society he founded in 1988. He also founded the Mississippi Community Service Corps and the Virginia Community Service Corps and co-founded the National Fatherhood Initiative. The author of four books, David grew up in Jackson, Mississippi; graduated from Harvard College in 1977; received an M.A. in history from the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, in 1979; and lives today in New York City.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
We are in the midst of a very controversial election period in which there have been reams of commentary about the role played by evangelicals.
How can the church engage in political issues without having a politicized faith? What should we be thinking about the role of Evangelicals in the riot at the Capitol? How does the American evangelical church come back together and heal as one body even with divergent political views?
Join us as Dr. Timothy Dalrymple, President and CEO of Christianity Today and Walter Kim, President of the National Association of Evangelicals, tackle these difficult questions.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Michelle Altman, Chief of Staff to Senator James Lankford shares her story "Excellence in Work and Following Christ on the Hill.”
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Americans have long cared about preserving a tradition of liberal arts education, seeing it as key to a free society of citizens with both the knowledge and virtue to sustain self-governance and to advance social order and prosperity. In this webinar, Professor Mooney will analyze the major philosophical debates about educational policy, such as between pragmatist, Marxist, classical liberal and Christian views of education. She will explain key principles that could shape the goals and practices of American educational policies, curricula, and institutions. Based on the conviction that humans are created in the image of God, a good, practical and just education should focus on learning as an end in and of itself that forms intellectual and moral virtue and allows students to pursue a diversity of vocations, regardless of one’s social origins.
Introduction by Representative Virginia Foxx (R-NC)
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
A discussion of the short-term and long-range challenges facing Great Tradition Christians in an America increasingly unmoored from its moral and cultural foundations.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Is “social justice” the same as “biblical justice,” or do these concepts sometimes diverge? On the one hand, social justice seems deeply indebted to Christian thought and practice. On the other hand, some of its most active proponents today are secularists, sometimes even Marxist atheists. In light of such complications, how ought Christians interact with the “social justice movement” in the United States today?
Recommended reading:
- Social Justice Rites: Sacrificial Politics and Sacred Victims by Molly Brigid McGrath
- Justice in the Bible by Timothy Keller
- Bible Project Justice Video
Justin Giboney is an attorney and political strategist in Atlanta, GA. He is also the Co-Founder and President of the AND Campaign, which is a coalition of urban Christians who are determined to address the sociopolitical arena with the compassion and conviction of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Mr. Giboney has managed successful campaigns for elected officials in the state and referendums relating to the city’s transportation and water infrastructure. In 2012 and 2016, Georgia’s 5th congressional district elected him as a delegate for the Democratic National Convention and he served as the co-chair of Obama for America’s Gen44-Atlanta initiative. A former Vanderbilt University football player and law student, Justin served on the Urban League of Greater Atlanta Board of Directors. He’s written op-eds for publications such as Christianity Today and The Hill.
R. J. Snell is the Director of Academic Programs at the Witherspoon Institute in Princeton, NJ, and is senior fellow at the Agora Institute for Civic Virtue and the Common Good. Prior to those appointments he was Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Philosophy Program at Eastern University and the Templeton Honors College. He earned his MA in philosophy at Boston College, and his PhD in philosophy at Marquette University. Research interests include the liberal arts, ethics, natural law theory, Thomas Aquinas, the Catholic intellectual tradition, and the work of Bernard Lonergan, SJ. He is the author of Through a Glass Darkly: Bernard Lonergan and Richard Rorty on Knowing without a God’s-eye View(Marquette, 2006), Authentic Cosmopolitanism (with Steve Cone, Pickwick, 2013), The Perspective of Love: Natural Law in a New Mode (Pickwick, 2014), Acedia and Its Discontents (Angelico, 2015), and co-editor of Subjectivity: Ancient and Modern and Nature: Ancient and Modern, as well as articles, chapters, and essays in a variety of scholarly and popular venues. He and his family reside in the Princeton area.
David Corey is a professor of Political Science focusing on political philosophy in the Honors Program at Baylor University. He is also an affiliated member of the departments of Philosophy and Political Science. He was an undergraduate at Oberlin, where he earned a BA in Classics from the College and a BMus in music from the Conservatory. He studied law and jurisprudence at Old College, Edinburgh before taking up graduate work in political philosophy at Louisiana State University. He is the author of two books, The Just War Tradition (with J. Daryl Charles) (2012) and The Sophists in Plato’s Dialogues (2015). He has written more than two dozen articles and book chapters in such venues as the Review of Politics,
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Christians are invited by God to help those in poverty, and many are eager to answer that call. But how? Peter Greer, Jena Nardella, and Oye Waddell offer a biblical and economic understanding of how to address poverty and foster sustainable economic development and human flourishing.
Click to read the panelists' slides:
- Jena Nardella
- Peter Greer
- Oye Waddell
Recommended reading:
- Created to Flourish by Peter Greer and Phil Smith
- The Redemptive Nonprofit by Praxis
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Our nation is being torn apart. But what if there’s one big thing at the center of it all. In Divided Hearts of America, Super Bowl champion and executive producer Benjamin Watson goes on a journey to discover the truth about abortion—a subject that has been at the center of heated debates since the passage of Roe v. Wade in 1973. Along the way, Watson sits down with over 30 experts in various fields and from both sides of the ideological and political spectrums and asks the question: Can the most divisive issue of our time actually bring us back together again?
Listen to an exclusive QA session with Executive Producer Benjamin Watson, his wife activist and speaker Kirsten Watson, and Faith and Law board member DJ Jordan.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The Department of State's Commission on Unalienable Rights, chaired by Harvard professor Mary Ann Glendon, issued its report on human rights in U.S. foreign policy in July, examining human rights from the perspective of both America's foundational principles and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Professors Robert George of Princeton and William Saunders of Catholic University discuss the report and examine its relevance for a deep and clear understanding of human rights and responsibilities.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
"The only way to truly have wisdom about politics is to daily fight to prevent making politics and power an idol, and to stay grounded in an identity in Christ that is separate from accomplishments." - Ammon Simon
Ammon Simon, Chief Counsel to Senator Toomey, shares Christ centered wisdom on battling temptations that come from working on Capitol Hill including: pride, tribalism and workaholism.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Medical abortion is increasing as a percentage of all abortions for reasons that benefit abortion providers but there are distinct disadvantages for women. Medical abortion is far more likely to fail than surgical abortion, resulting in frequent complications and requiring surgical completion in one out of twenty women. Abortion advocates are aggressively working to remove FDA and legislative restrictions so that medical abortion can be provided without evidence based oversight. These trends must be recognized and countered for the protection of American women.
Click here to download Dr. Skop's presentation.
Recommended reading on the topic of medical abortions:
- “The Next Abortion Battleground: Chemical Abortion” by Patrina Mosley, published by the Family Research Council in December 2019.
- "Immediate Complications After Medical Compared With Surgical Termination of Pregnancy" Niinimäki, Maarit MD; Pouta, Anneli MD, PhD; Bloigu, Aini BSc; Gissler, Mika MSocSc, PhD; Hemminki, Elina MD, PhD; Suhonen, Satu MD, PhD; Heikinheimo, Oskari MD, PhD. By The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists October 2009.
- "The “No-Test Medication Abortion” Protocol: Experimenting with Women’s Health" by Dr. Ingrid Skop, published by the Charlotte Lozier Institute in July 2020.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The "American Project" at Pepperdine's School of Public Policy is a unique "pracademic" initiative that is exploring a variety of cultural factors impacting our politics and policymaking. One of the issues they're focused on is the growing crisis of loneliness. Long before the pandemic, economists, social psychologists and healthcare experts were raising serious concerns about the increasing levels of disconnection and alienation across almost all demographic categories. As human beings created for community, how should policy makers and leaders of faith respond to these challenges? Hear from one of the nation's leading researchers in this field and the dean of Pepperdine's School of Public Policy in this timely conversation.
Recommendations from Dean Pete Peterson for further reading on the topic:
- "Death by Loneliness" by Dr. Broghammer - RealClear Policy (American Project series)
- "We are suffering from a social recession, too." by Michael Hendrix (Manhattan Institute) - RealClear Policy (American Project series)
- "All the Lonely Americans?" Report by Joint Economic Committee (Sen. Mike Lee's Office)
Francie Broghammer, MD, is the Chief Psychiatry Resident at the University of California, Irvine. Her academic interests lie in medical ethics, education, spirituality, and human flourishing. She is a Leonine Fellow, an American Psychiatric Association Leadership Fellow, and is a board member for Pepperdine University’s American Project. Additionally, she holds the distinction of sitting on the UC Irvine Medical Ethics Committee. Dr. Broghammer played Division I Women’s Lacrosse at the University of Notre Dame, and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Science Pre-Professional Studies and Portuguese Language & Brazilian Studies. She attended the University of California, Irvine for medical school and was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Medical Honor Society. Dr. Broghammer has published several peer reviewed articles and is currently researching suicide and social isolation. She resides in Long Beach, California with her husband and their two children.
Pete Peterson was the first executive director of the bi-partisan organization Common Sense California (CSC). In 2010, CSC became the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership at Pepperdine University. Currently, Peterson serves as dean of Pepperdine's School of Public Policy. Along with teaching a class on the subject at Pepperdine, Peterson co-developed the Davenport Institute's training seminars which have been offered to more than 1,000 public sector leaders. He's also consulted on many participatory governance projects throughout California on issues ranging from budgets to water policy. Pete serves on the advisory boards of California's Institute for Local Government, and the Public Policy Institute of California, as well as the DaVinci Charter Schools in Hawthorne, CA. Pete earned his BA in History from George Washington University, and his Masters in Public Policy from Pepperdine's School of Public Policy. He was the 2014 Republican nominee for California Secretary of State.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Lisa Schultz, Chief of Staff to U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black, and Kerry Knott, Chief of Staff to Representative Robert Aderholt join us for a virtual panel discussion about serving Members and staff during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Although no one has the definitive perspective on how we will operate in this new era, Lisa and Kerry will help us in a preliminary look at how we will approach our work.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
At a time of dramatic turmoil and change on all fronts in society -- from the status of the nation state to identity politics to educations to the nature of morality -- the question arises: Is there any unifying narrative that allows us to make some sense of the chaos? The answer is yes, that the underlying notion of human identity, what it means to be a 'self' has been transformed over the last three hundred years. Only as we grasp the dynamics of this transformation can we both come to understand what is happening in our world and begin to frame a helpful response.
Dr. Trueman’s book can be pre-ordered online.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
While much progress has been made toward poverty alleviation, many well-intentioned efforts have led Christians to actions that are not only ineffective, but leave the most vulnerable in a worse situation than before. Is there a better answer? Combining biblical exegesis with proven economic principles, For the Least of These: A Biblical Answer to Poverty equips Christians with both a solid biblical and economic understanding of how best to care for the poor and foster sustainable economic development. With contributions from fourteen leading Christian economists, theologians, historians, and practitioners, For the Least of These presents the case for why markets and trade are the world’s best hope for alleviating poverty.
Rev. Dr. Art Lindsley is the Vice President of Theological Initiatives at The Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, where he oversees the development of a theology that integrates faith, work, and economics.
Dr. Anne Rathbone Bradley is the George and Sally Mayer Fellow for Economic Education and the academic director at The Fund for American Studies. She also serves as the Vice President of Economic Initiatives at The Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, where she develops and commissions research toward a systematic biblical theology of economic freedom.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The world is more digital than it's ever been before; it’s more diverse than it’s ever been before, and it's more divided than it's ever been before. Christians have been given the ministry of reconciliation. In this lecture, David Bailey will be sharing five pillars of becoming a reconciling community so that Christian leaders and their communities can become the foretaste of the Kingdom of God that is to come.
David M. Bailey is a public theologian and culture maker who believes the church should lead by example in effective cross-cultural engagement and practices in reconciliation. He’s the founder and executive director of Arrabon; an organization that builds reconciling communities in the midst of a digital, diverse, and divided world. David is an active speaker, consultant and strategist for many national organizations about cultural intelligence and culture-making. He is the co-author of the Race, Class, and the Kingdom of God Study Series. David is the executive producer of documentary 11am: Hope for America’s Most Segregated Hour and the Urban Doxology Project. He's rooted at East End Fellowship in Richmond VA, and serves on the preaching team. David's greatest honor in life is to be married to his wonderful and beautiful wife, Joy.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
As another term of the Supreme Court comes to a close, the justice’s rulings give Christians a lot to consider as we think about our engagement in the public square. The consequential decisions came on issues ranging from religious liberty to abortion jurisprudence to civil rights law. Russell Moore and the ERLC filed amicus briefs in a number of these cases as advocates before the high court. Join us for a round up of the Supreme Court’s 2019-2020 term as Moore reflects on what the rulings mean for the future of these critical issues.
Russell Moore is president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. The ERLC is the moral and public policy entity of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.
The Wall Street Journal has called Moore “vigorous, cheerful, and fiercely articulate.” He was named in 2017 to Politico Magazine’s list of top fifty influence-makers in Washington, and has been profiled by such publications as the Washington Post and the New Yorker.
His latest book, The Storm-Tossed Family: How the Cross Reshapes the Home, was named Christianity Today’s 2019 Book of the Year. This prestigious award was also conferred upon Moore’s previous book, Onward: Engaging the Culture Without Losing the Gospel, by Christianity Today in 2016. In addition to these titles, he has also written Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches and Tempted and Tried: Temptation and the Triumph of Christ.
Prior to his election in 2013, Moore served as provost and dean of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, where he also taught theology and ethics. He currently serves as visiting professor of ethics at Southern, Southeastern, and New Orleans Baptist seminaries.
A native Mississippian, Moore and his wife Maria are the parents of five sons.
Jeff Pickering serves as Policy Communications Director in the ERLC's Washington, D.C., office. In this role, he hosts the weekly Capitol Conversations podcast, develops communications strategy, and connects journalists with the organization’s policy work. He also serves as the mentor and director of the ERLC's internship program. Jeff previously served in both local church ministry and government affairs in his home state of Texas, where he graduated from Texas A&M University. He and his wife, Chelsea, have a one year old son and enjoy living on Capitol Hill.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
As an ordinary high school student in the 1960s, Tom Tarrants became deeply unsettled by the social upheaval of the era. In response, he turned for answers to extremist ideology and was soon utterly radicalized. Before long, he became involved in the reign of terror spread by Mississippi's dreaded White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, described by the FBI as the most violent right-wing terrorist organization in America.
In 1969, while attempting to bomb the home of a Jewish leader in Meridian, Mississippi, Tom was ambushed by law enforcement and shot multiple times during a high-speed chase. Nearly dead from his wounds, he was arrested and sentenced to thirty years in the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman Farm. Unrepentant, Tom and two other inmates made a daring escape from Parchman yet were tracked down by an FBI SWAT team and apprehended in hail of bullets that killed one of the convicts. Tom spent the next three years alone in a six-foot-by-nine-foot cell. There he began a search for truth that led him to the Bible and a reading of the gospels, resulting in his conversion to Jesus Christ and liberation from the grip of racial hatred and violence.
Astounded by the change in Tom, many of the very people who worked to put him behind bars began advocating for his release. After serving eight years of a 35-year sentence, Tom left prison. He attended college, moved to Washington, DC, and became copastor of a racially mixed church. He went on to earn a doctorate and became the president of the C. S. Lewis Institute, where he devoted himself to helping others become wholehearted followers of Jesus.
A dramatic story of radical transformation, Consumed by Hate, Redeemed by Love demonstrates that hope is not lost even in the most tumultuous of times, even those similar to our own.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Can it ever get better? This is the question Benjamin Watson is asking. In a country aflame with the fallout from the racial divide, is there hope for honest and healing conversation? For finally coming to understand each other on issues that are ultimately about so much more than black and white?
A former NFL tight end for the New Orleans Saints and a widely read and followed commentator on social media, Watson has taken the Internet by storm with his remarkable insights about some of the most sensitive and charged topics of our day. Now, in Under Our Skin, Watson draws from his own life, his family legacy, and his role as a husband and father to sensitively and honestly examine both sides of the race debate and appeal to the power and possibility of faith as a step toward healing.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
What we have experienced during and in the aftermath of the tragic death of George Floyd has challenged us to think anew about racial reconciliation. This includes the workplace of Capitol Hill to which we have been called.
While this moment in our history has created pain and suffering, it also has the potential of being a catalyst for healing and reconciliation.
Capitol Hill, like other workplaces, is fertile ground for loving others and aiding reconciliation. This requires intentionality as we reach out to bridge racial divides.
How does the Hill fare in this area and what is our role in personal ministry?
What does ministry on the Hill look like when it’s effective in bringing staff and members together from different races and backgrounds? And what are the personal experiences we’ve witnessed and can share?
These and other questions will explored by our special guest, D.J. Jordan, and among ourselves as well.
These are challenging and difficult issues which require us to collaboratively seek the Lord’s wisdom and guidance.
D.J. Jordan is a Vice President at Pinkston, a public relations company.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Does prayer seem like the only thing you can do after all the handwashing? What if we not only followed the best medical advice but also looked to Almighty God? What if we set aside partisan differences and think theologically in this time of anxiety and fear.
Dr. Chad Pecknold, Professor of Historical & Systematic Theology in the School of Theology at The Catholic University of America, Very Rev. Thomas Petri, O.P., Vice President and Academic Dean of the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception and Dr. Joseph E. Capizzi, Ordinary Professor of Moral Theology at the Catholic University of America discuss this timely topic.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Before his service in Congress, Senator James Lankford served students and families for more than 20 years in ministry, including 15 years as the Director of Student Ministry for the Baptist Convention of Oklahoma and Director of the Falls Creek Youth Camp, the largest youth camp in the United States, with more than 51,000 individuals attending each summer.
James and his staff enjoy serving people from all backgrounds across Oklahoma. As chairman of the Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management Subcommittee, which covers federal spending, regulatory reform, and the federal workforce, he demands we have a more fiscally responsible and transparent federal government, and our nation remains the world leader. He believes that the federal government has an important role in our nation, but empowered families, individual people, and private businesses grow our economy and pass down our values.
James was recognized as the Senate’s top-ranked “Taxpayers Friend” by the National Taxpayers Union for his strong record in support of lower taxes, limited government, and economic freedom. His annual Federal Fumbles report is a must-read in Washington, DC, because of its commonsense solutions to the problems our federal government faces. He has also been recognized by many other organizations for his work toward increased personal freedom, economic growth, and religious liberty.
James lives in Oklahoma City with his wife Cindy. They have been married more than 27 years and have two daughters, Hannah and Jordan. He enjoys spending time with his family, working in his yard, and reading.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Just three weeks after having their first baby, Rachel was diagnosed with a rare spinal cord tumor that threatened her life. The tumor and surgery to remove it left her as a quadriplegic. She and her husband, Taylor, survived months in hospitals, near death, and their return home accompanied by work to regain their family life and movement in Rachel’s body. They will share truths about how to view our suffering in light of the Gospel.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Charmaine Yoest is a Vice President of the Heritage Foundation, where she leads the Institute for Family, Community and Opportunity. This includes work on domestic policy issues including health care and welfare reform, education policy, family formation, women’s issues and religious liberty.
Dr. Yoest previously served in the Trump Administration in the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services. She served as Associate Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) where she directed the component’s intergovernmental, public affairs, and public liaison programs. Charmaine also served as the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services where she provided leadership for the $1.3 trillion Department’s public affairs programs, and coordination of strategic messaging across the 11 HHS Operating Divisions. Her work involved a focus on the opioid crisis, natural disaster response, and health care reform.
Dr. Yoest has a track record serving in many facets of political life - in the White House, on a presidential campaign, and leading a national nonprofit. She has appeared as a spokesperson on every major television network and cable outlet, and has been published in the leading national publications. She has provided testimony in front of the United States Congress on multiple occasions. She is also the author of M other in the Middle (HarperCollins), an examination of child care policy.
Dr. Yoest began her career working in the White House for President Ronald Reagan in Presidential Personnel and later served as a Senior Advisor to Governor Huckabee’s 2008 Presidential Campaign. She was a surrogate for the Trump-Pence 2016 campaign. She also served as President and CEO of Americans United for Life. During her tenure, the public interest law firm grew significantly, more than tripling its budget and donors.
Numerous publications have profiled Charmaine and her work. In a feature piece, The New York Times said that “her personal appeal gives her outsize visibility.”The Christian Science Monitor describes her as “a pragmatic force.”The New Republic describes her as “compelling.” Even Mother Jones described her as “charismatic.” She was featured inTime magazine’s 2013 Thanksgiving series along with Michelle Obama and Rick Warren.
Dr. Yoest received her B.A. in Political Science from Wheaton College. Later, she earned an M.A. and Ph.D. from the Department of Politics at the University of Virginia, where she received Mellon, Olin, Bradley and Kohler fellowships and wrote a dissertation on parental leave policy, after directing a national study on parental leave funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
Charmaine and her husband are the parents of five children. Their oldest three children have been Division One athletes and include an NCAA champion, four-time ACC champion and a CAA champion. Their son is an Army Officer and Blackhawk Pilot.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
A body of moral principles derived from God’s natural creation, the “natural law” sheds light on right and wrong in human conduct. What does the natural law teach us about virtue? To what extent does virtue require, by its very nature, such supports as faith and community? Listen as natural law expert, Robert P. George, for an investigation into these timely questions.
Dr. Robert P. George is McCormick Professorship of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University.
He has several times been a Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. He has served as Chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and the President’s Council on Bioethics. He has also served as the U.S. member of UNESCO’s World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology. He was a Judicial Fellow at the Supreme Court of the United States, where he received the Justice Tom C. Clark Award.
A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Swarthmore, he holds the degrees of J.D. and M.T.S. from Harvard University and the degrees of D.Phil., B.C.L., D.C.L., and D.Litt. from Oxford University, in addition to twenty-one honorary doctorates. He is a recipient of the U.S. Presidential Citizens Medal, the Honorific Medal for the Defense of Human Rights of the Republic of Poland, the Canterbury Medal of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the Bradley Prize, the Irving Kristol Award of the American Enterprise Institute, and Princeton University’s President’s Award for Distinguished Teaching.
His books include Making Men Moral: Civil Liberties and Public Morality and In Defense of Natural Law (both published by Oxford University Press).
Dr. David Corey is the Director of Baylor in Washington and a professor of Political Science focusing on political philosophy in the Honors Program at Baylor University. He is also an affiliated member of the departments of Philosophy and Political Science. He was an undergraduate at Oberlin, where he earned a BA in Classics from the College and a BMus in music from the Conservatory. He studied law and jurisprudence at Old College, Edinburgh before taking up graduate work in political philosophy at Louisiana State University. He is the author of two books, The Just War Tradition (with J. Daryl Charles) (2012) and The Sophists in Plato’s Dialogues (2015). He has written more than two dozen articles and book chapters in such venues as the Review of Politics, History of Political Thought, Modern Age, Interpretation: A Journal of Political Philosophy, and the Cambridge Dictionary of Political Thought. His current projects, Rethinking American Politics, and Liberalism & The Modern Quest for Freedom, examine the loss of healthy political association in the United States and offer strategies for reform.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
What are the most important lessons to learn from the pandemic? Listen as Chen Guangcheng and William Saunders discuss this question in light of the latest information from sources in China.
Click here to view a transcript of Mr. Chen's talk.
Chen Guangcheng is a Chinese civil rights lawyer and activist who has been a persistent voice for freedom, human dignity, and the rule of law in his native country. Working in rural communities in China, where he was known as the “barefoot lawyer,” Chen advocated for the rights of disabled people, and organized class-action litigation against the government’s violent enforcement of its one-child policy.
Blind since his childhood, Chen is self-taught in the law. His human rights activism resulted in his imprisonment by the Chinese government for four years, beginning in 2006; after his release he remained under house arrest, until his escape from confinement in 2012, whereupon he came to the United States, where he was a scholar at New York University in 2012-13. Mr. Chen is a Distinguished Fellow at the Catholic University of America.
William Saunders is a graduate of the Harvard Law School, who has been involved in issues of public policy, law and ethics for thirty years. A regular columnist for the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, Mr. Saunders has written widely on these topics, as well as on Catholic social teaching. He has given lectures in law schools and colleges throughout the United States and the world. He is the Director of the Program in Human Rights for the Institute for Human Ecology.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
On Friday, April 24th The Trinity Forum and Faith and Law hosted Senior Fellow and history professor Dr. Joseph Loconte to discuss the friendship and legacy of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.
Loconte highlights how their refusal to become disillusioned and disenchanted in the aftermath of World War I allowed for some of the greatest works of literature in modern history. Their example of resilience and imagination is especially inspiring for us in the midst of this pandemic. We were reminded of the surprising return of hope for those who look up—as Samwise Gamgee says “…in the end the shadow was only a small and passing thing. There was light and high beauty forever beyond it’s reach.”
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
During this talk, Ms. Anderson will examine how the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) specifically relate to paid family leave. She will discuss how this legislation is supporting families in the current COVID-19 crisis and building a foundation for a healthy post-pandemic society.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Os Guinness makes observations based on history and scriptures to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing Christians around the world in our current time of crisis.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
During the presentation, the panelists will discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the Criminal Justice System.
In preparation for Second Chance Month (April), Prison Fellowship’s Heather Rice-Minus will present 2019 Barna polling regarding Christian perceptions about crime, incarceration and second chances. A panel including will respond with theological and policy implications and action steps.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Listen as Dr. Catherine Ruth Pakaluk shares on the economic implications of the current crisis.
Dr. Catherine Ruth Pakaluk is an assistant professor of economics at the Catholic University Busch School of Business and Economics. Her primary areas of research include economics of education and religion, family studies and demography, Catholic Social Thought and political economy. Dr. Pakaluk is the 2015 recipient of the Acton Institute’s Novak Award, a prize given for “ significant contributions to the study of the relationship between religion and economic liberty.”
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
What does Christian witness look like in an age of such stark division? How do we wield the influence of the Church in the political space without becoming captive to it?
Dr Timothy Dalrymple is the President and CEO of Christianity Today, which recently published and responded to a provocative editorial regarding evangelicals and politics. He will offer lessons learned from the experience and thoughts on how Christians can help the country through a divisive election year.
Dr. Timothy Dalrymple was raised in nondenominational evangelical churches in California. A national champion gymnast, he went to Stanford University where he suffered a broken neck his sophomore year. Then followed many years in academia, at Stanford, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, where he made suffering a key theme of his research and teaching in modern western religious thought. Dalrymple helped to launch Patheos.com, an online marketplace of religious ideas, and pioneered many of the techniques that led Patheos to become the world’s largest platform for multi-religious conversation.
In 2013, Dalrymple founded Polymath, a creative agency that serves businesses and nonprofits serving the world. In May 2019 he became President and CEO of Christianity Today, the flagship evangelical media ministry founded in 1956 by Billy Graham.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Many Americans feel like their religious freedoms are under attack and their beliefs will soon be punished as a form of bigotry. Others say these fears are overblown and Christians should stop complaining about imaginary persecution.
In Free to Believe, leading religious freedom attorney Luke Goodrich challenges both sides of this debate, offering surprising insights on the most controversial religious freedom conflicts today—including gay rights, abortion rights, Islam, and the public square. Goodrich shows that threats to religious freedom are real—but they might not be what you think.
As a lawyer at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, Goodrich has won several historic Supreme Court victories for clients like the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby. Combining frontline experience with faithful attention to Scripture, Goodrich offers a groundbreaking book—full of clear insight, practical wisdom, and refreshing hope for all people of faith.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Many people say that America is as deeply divided as at any time since just before the civil war. But why? Is it the President? Is it is the social media? Is it the ‘coastals’ clashing with the ‘heartlanders’ or the ‘populists’ fighting the ‘globalists’? Guinness will argue that the real division is far deeper, and a crisis that goes to the heart of American freedom and to the heart of the relevance of the Jewish and Christian faiths.
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, The Global Public Square, and Last Call for Liberty: How America’s Genius for Freedom Has Become Its Greatest Threat. His latest book, Carpe Diem Redeemed: Seizing the Day, Discerning the Times, was published in September 2019.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
During the lecture, R.R. Reno will outline the changing cultural and political landscape. Concerns about oppression, discrimination, and over-consolidation are giving way to anxieties about deconsolidation, vulnerability, and disintegration. This foretells as the opening of a new chapter in American political life.
Reno is the editor of First Things magazine. He was formerly a professor of theology and ethics at Creighton University. He is the author of several books including Fighting the Noonday Devil, a theological commentary on the Book of Genesis in the Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible series. His work ranges widely in systematic and moral theology, as well as in controverted questions of biblical interpretation.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
James Forsyth, senior pastor of McLean Presbyterian Church, will examine John 6:26, where Jesus exposed the political motivation of the crowd who followed him. He'll ask key questions, such as, "How did the crowd's political vision for Jesus keep them from truly seeing him? In what ways can our politics distort our view of Jesus? What does it look like to pursue Jesus because he is an end in himself, not a means to other things?" We hope you can join us for what I believe will be an important discussion in the lives of those who work in politics and policy.
James is the Senior Pastor of McLean Presbyterian Church, located just outside of Washington, D.C. He grew up in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he graduated from the University of Edinburgh, before moving to the U.S. to study at Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS), Jackson. He is now a Guest Professor of Practical Theology at RTS Washington, D.C.James is married to his high school sweetheart, Rosie, and is dad to Mia, Caleb, Seamus, and Isla. Formative experiences have included growing up in a strong, yet tender, family, being a college athlete, becoming a father at the age of 19, wrestling through a dark season of anxiety, and being shaped by a handful of key mentors. Throughout, God’s grace has been the theme – a theme that now animates his life and ministry.
In his free time, you might find James CrossFitting, supporting Man Utd., laughing too loudly with friends, grilling, playing guitar, or – at his happiest – enjoying his young family.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Jeremy Everett is a noted advocate for the hungry and poor. He calls Christians to work intentionally across ideological divides to build trust with one another and impoverished communities and effectively end America's hunger crisis. Everett, appointed by US Congress to the National Commission on Hunger, founded and directs the Texas Hunger Initiative, a successful ministry that is helping to eradicate hunger in Texas and around the globe. Everett details the organization's history and tells stories of its work with communities from West Texas to Washington, DC, helping Christians of all political persuasions understand how they can work together to truly make a difference.
Max Finberg is President of Growing Hope Globally. Founded as Foods Resource Bank in 1999, Growing Hope Globally has raised more than $51 million in its quest to end world hunger. Across the U.S., 164 Growing Projects, representing more than 2,000 volunteers based in rural farming communities, have helped raise 70 percent of that total. While many Growing Projects are rooted in agriculture – profits from crops raised are donated – others center around events such as dinners, auctions, bike rides, and 5k races. To learn more, visit GrowingHopeGlobally.org.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Hadley Arkes has been a member of the Amherst College faculty since 1966, and since 1987 he has been the Edward Ney Professor of Jurisprudence. Since 2016, he has assumed emeritus status. He has written five books with Princeton University Press: Bureaucracy, the Marshall Plan and the National Interest (1972), The Philosopher in the City (1981), First Things (1986), Beyond the Constitution (1990), and The Return of George Sutherland (1994). But his most recent books have been with Cambridge University Press, including Natural Rights and the Right to Choose (2002), and Constitutional Illusions and Anchoring Truths: The Touchstone of the Natural Law (2010). His articles have appeared in professional journals, but apart from his writing in more scholarly formats, he has become known to a wider audience through his writings in the Wall Street Journal, the Weekly Standard, and National Review. He has been a contributor also to First Things, a journal that took its name from his book of that title. For eight years he wrote a column for Crisis magazine under the title of "Lifewatch" and he has carried over that concern as one of the band of friends who formed the new web journal The Catholic Thing.
He was the main advocate, and architect, of the bill that became known as the Born-Alive Infants’ Protection Act. The account of his experience, in moving the bill through Congress, is contained as an epilogue or memoir in his book, Natural Rights & the Right to Choose. Arkes first prepared his proposal as part of the debating kit assembled for the first George Bush in 1988. The purpose of that proposal was to offer the “most modest first step” of all in legislating on abortion, and opening a conversation even with people who called themselves “pro-choice.” Professor Arkes proposed to begin simply by preserving the life of a child who survived an abortion–contrary to the holding of one federal judge, that such a child was not protected by the laws. Professor Arkes led the testimony on the bill before the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House in July 2000, then again in July 2001. The legislative calendar was upended in the aftermath of September 11th, but in March 2002, the bill was brought to the floor of the House, where it passed unanimously. To the surprise of Professor Arkes, the bill was brought to the floor of the Senate on July 18 by the Deputy Majority Leader, Harry Reid, and passed in the same way. On August 5, President Bush signed the bill into law with Professor Arkes in attendance.
Professor Arkes has been the founder, at Amherst, of the Committee for the American Founding, a group of alumni and students seeking to preserve, at Amherst, the doctrines of “natural rights” taught by the American Founders and Lincoln. That interest has been carried over now to the founding of a new center for the jurisprudence of natural law, in Washington, D.C.: the James Wilson Institute on Natural Rights and the American Founding, named for one of the premier minds among the American Founders.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
On June 27, 2003, Rear Admiral Barry C. Black (Ret.) was elected the 62nd Chaplain of the United States Senate. He began working in the Senate on July 7, 2003. Prior to coming to Capitol Hill, Chaplain Black served in the U.S. Navy for over twenty-seven years, ending his distinguished career as the Chief of Navy Chaplains. The Senate elected its first chaplain in 1789.
Commissioned as a Navy Chaplain in 1976, Chaplain Black’s first duty station was the Fleet Religious Support Activity in Norfolk, Virginia. Subsequent assignments include Naval Support Activity, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland; First Marine Aircraft Wing, Okinawa, Japan; Naval Training Center, San Diego, California; USS BELLEAU WOOD (LHA 3) Long Beach, California; Naval Chaplains School Advanced Course, Newport, Rhode Island; Marine Aircraft Group THIRTY-ONE, Beaufort, South Carolina; Assistant Staff Chaplain, Chief of Naval Education and Training, Pensacola, Florida; and Fleet Chaplain, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, Norfolk, Virginia.
As Rear Admiral, his personal decorations included the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal (two medals), Meritorious Service Medals (two awards), Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals (two awards), and numerous unit awards, campaign, and service medals.
Chaplain Black is a native of Baltimore, Maryland and an alumnus of Oakwood College, Andrews University, North Carolina Central University, Eastern Baptist Seminary, Salve Regina University, and United States International University. In addition to earning Master of Arts degrees in Divinity, Counseling, and Management, he has received a Doctorate degree in Ministry and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Psychology.
Chaplain Black has been selected for many outstanding achievements. Of particular note, he was chosen from 127 nominees for the 1995 NAACP Renowned Service Award for his contribution to equal opportunity and civil rights. He also received the 2002 Benjamin Elijah Mays Distinguished Leadership Award from The Morehouse School of Religion. In 2004, the Old Dominion University chapter of the NAACP conferred on him the Image Award, "Reaffirming the Dream -- Realizing the Vision" for military excellence.
Chaplain Barry C. Black is married to the former Brenda Pearsall of St. Petersburg, Florida. They have three sons: Barry II, Brendan, and Bradford.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Academic and popular authors regularly assert that America’s founders were deists who created a godless Constitution and desired the strict separation of church and state. Professor Hall explains why these claims are false, and shows how the founders were influenced by Christian ideas in important ways. He concludes by arguing that America's founders shared a commitment to protecting religious liberty, but that there is virtually no evidence that they desired to build a wall of separation between church and state.
Mark David Hall is the Herbert Hoover Distinguished Professor of Politics and Faculty Fellow in the William Penn Honors Program at George Fox University. He is also associated faculty at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University and senior fellow at Baylor University's Institute for Studies of Religion. He has written, edited, or co-edited a dozen books on religion and politics in America and is a nationally recognized expert on the religious freedom. His book, Did America Have a Christian Founding?: Separating Modern Myth from Historical Fact, will be available from Thomas Nelson in October of 2019.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Mark Lutz grew up in South Africa, the son of missionary parents. Living for twenty years under apartheid shaped him to become an advocate for justice. Visits to fifty countries have sharpened his vision for a world free from extreme poverty.
Mark is Senior Vice President of Global Philanthropy at Opportunity Inter- national, a non-profit microfinance organization. They loan out two billion dollars per year to poor families so they can start and expand small businesses, feed their families and send their children to school.
In his book, UnPoverty: Rich Lessons from the Working Poor, the author tells the tales of remarkable people he met while visiting some 50 countries, concluding that they are poor simply because of where they were born. He contrasts their riches with his own poverty, sharing their lessons and calling us to envision a world without extreme poverty.
Mark earned a Masters degree in cross-cultural communications from Wheaton College. He and his wife, Lise, live in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, where they raised their three children.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Aaron Rhodes’ book, The Debasement of Human Rights: How Politics Sabotage the Ideal of Freedom, identifies a dangerous trend in the international human rights movement. Increasingly, the natural rights of individuals, like religious freedom and freedom of speech and conscience, are being conflated with manufactured rights that are the social and economic policy priorities of particular groups and governments. Natural rights protect the fairness of the political process by ensuring that individuals are free to think, speak, and act according to their convictions. However, when governments and social groups can transform their economic and social policy goals into “human rights,” this undercuts the moral legitimacy and persuasive power of natural rights.
Join us for a discussion on the future of the human rights movement and suggestions as to how the U.S. can best shape human rights policy and strategy. Our panelists will discuss how robust protection of natural rights, such as religious freedom, can ultimately lead to economic and social prosperity and why natural rights are best protected when they are protected for all, not for members of particular identity groups.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
At this Friday Forum, the Clapham Group will premier a short film on The Role of the Faith Community and the Fight to End AIDS through PEPFAR and the Global Fund. A panel of experts will respond including:
Mark P. Lagon is a practitioner and thinker on global health, human rights, and human trafficking, and global institutions. He is Chief Policy Officer at Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria—where he coordinates the non-profit’s Administration and congressional outreach, policy advocacy and coalition management, and research content. He is also Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum, and Adjunct Professor in the Masters of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) at Georgetown University’s School.
In the NGO world, he served as President of Freedom House. Previously, he was Executive Director and CEO of the leading anti-human trafficking nonprofit, Polaris.
In academia and the think tank world, he was Global Politics and Security Chair for Georgetown’s MSFS Program. He was also the same time Adjunct Senior Fellow for Human Rights at the Council on Foreign Relations.
In the Executive Branch, he served in three successive roles at the Department of State: member of the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff; Deputy Assistant Secretary of International Organization Affairs; and finally Ambassador-at-Large directing the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.
Earlier on Capitol Hill, he was senior staffer at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee responsible for international organizations and human rights; and served as deputy director at the House Republican Policy Committee.
He is co-editor with Anthony Clark Arend of the 2014 book, Human Dignity and the Future of Global Institutions and author of the book, The Reagan Doctrine: Sources of American Conduct in the Cold War's Last Chapter.
He received his Ph.D. in Government from Georgetown University, and A.B. from Harvard University.
Jenny Yang provides oversight for all advocacy initiatives and policy positions at World Relief. She has worked in the Resettlement section of World Relief as the senior case manager and East Asia program officer, where she focused on advocacy for refugees in the East Asia region and managed the entire refugee caseload for World Relief. Prior to joining World Relief, she worked at one of the largest political fundraising firms in Maryland, managing fundraising and campaigning for local politicians. She is co-author of Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate, serves as Chair of the Refugee Council USA (RCUSA) Africa Work Group, and was named one of the 50 Women to Watch by Christianity Today.
Tom Hart
Tom Hart is the US Executive Director of ONE, and is responsible for ONE’s advocacy, communications and campaign activities in the United States. Previously, Tom was the Senior Director of Government Relations at ONE. In this role, Tom devised and executed ONE’s government relations strategy for the US and Canada. Tom and his team led the way on unprecedented increases in development assistance by the United States, including historic increases in funding for HIV/AIDS, malaria, and TB through PEPFAR and the Global Fund, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and more. Before joining ONE, Tom was the Director of Government Relations for the Episcopal Church, USA, and an aide to Senators Alan Cranston and Jay Rockefeller.
Michael Gerson
Michael Gerson is a nationally syndicated columnist who appears twice weekly in the Washington Post and in more than 100 other newspapers. He is the author of Heroic Conservatism (HarperOne, 2007) and coauthor of City of Man: Religion and Politics in a New Era (Moody, 2010). He appea
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
At this Friday Forum, author and social critic Os Guinness will discuss his latest book, Carpe Diem Redeemed: Seizing the Day, Discerning the Times. Guinness argues that you only live once―if then. Life is short, and it can be as easily wasted as lived to the full. In the midst of our harried modern world, how do we make the most of life and the time we have? In these fast and superficial times, Os Guinness calls us to consequential living. In strong contrast to both Eastern and secularist views of time, he reorients our very notion of history, not as cyclical nor as meaningless, but as linear and purposeful. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, time and history are meaningful, and human beings have agency to live with freedom and consequence in partnership with God. Thus we can seek to serve God's purpose for our generation, read the times, and discern our call for this moment in history. Our time on earth has significance. Live rightly, discern the times, and redeem the day.
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, The Global Public Square, and Last Call for Liberty: How America’s Genius for Freedom Has Become Its Greatest Threat. His latest book, Carpe Diem Redeemed: Seizing the Day, Discerning the Times, was published in September 2019
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Mary Eberstadt is an American author of several influential works of non-fiction, including How the West Really Lost God: A New Theory of Secularization; Adam and Eve after the Pill: Paradoxes of the Sexual Revolution; and It's Dangerous to Believe: Religious Freedom and Its Enemies.
Her 2010 novel The Loser Letters: A Comic Tale of Life, Death, and Atheism was adapted for stage and premiered at the Catholic University of America's Hartke Theater in fall 2016. She is also editor of the anthology Why I Turned Right: Leading Baby Boom Conservatives Chronicle Their Political Journeys.
A frequent contributor to magazines and journals including TIME, the Wall Street Journal, National Review, and First Things, Mrs. Eberstadt (nee Tedeschi) has also served as an editor at The Public Interest, The National Interest, and Policy Review. She has been associated with various think tanks, and in 2016 became a senior research fellow at the Faith and Reason Institute. In 2011, she founded a literary organization called the Kirkpatrick Society that has mentored hundreds of writers. In 2014, she delivered the Commencement address at Seton Hall University, which awarded her an honorary doctorate in humane letters.
During the Reagan administration, Mrs. Eberstadt spent two years as a speechwriter to Secretary of State George Shultz. She graduated magna cum laude from Cornell University with a double major in philosophy and government. In summer 1981, she became the first female voting member of the student body at formerly all-male Deep Springs College.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Culture is upstream from politics. In other words, government is like a giant mirror reflecting the soul of the nation. While the clarity of that reflection will shift from administration to administration, we generally get the government we deserve. As Plato argued, the state is the soul writ large. What we love and what we hate are shaped less by laws than by our habits of the heart. And those habits are shaped far more powerfully by the songs we sing, the movies we watch, and the books we read. It’s been wisely written, “Give me the songs of a nation, and it matters not who writes its laws.” This reality has important implications for how we pursue cultural change.
Bill Wichterman was Special Assistant to President George W. Bush in the White House, Policy Advisor to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, and Chief of Staff to Congressman Joe Pitts and Congressman Bill Baker. He has been a senior advisor on several Presidential campaigns. Bill is the author of the book, Dying to Live: Finding Joy In Giving Yourself to God (Oakton Foundation Press, 2014), and he authored an influential essay entitled, “The Culture: Upstream from Politics,” which appeared in the 2001 Eerdmans book, Building a Healthy Culture (ed. Don Eberly). He co-authored an essay entitled, “Making Goodness Fashionable” in the Stroud & Hall book Creating the Better Hour: Lessons from William Wilberforce (Ed. Chuck Stetson, 2007). He is co-founder of Wedgwood Circle, channeling investments into mainstream arts and entertainment that tells the truth about the world. Bill is President of the Board of Faith & Law. He holds an M.A. in Political Theory from the Catholic University of America, and a B.A. from Houghton College.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Katherine Haley is the senior director of K-12 education programs for The Philanthropy Roundtable.
Prior to joining the Roundtable, Katherine spent 13 years working for members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. Most recently, she served for seven years as the chief policy adviser for education, workforce, antipoverty, global health, and other social issues for former Speaker of the House John Boehner. Motivated by the belief that all students deserve access to a great education, Katherine was instrumental in the successful reauthorization of the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. She previously served as a policy adviser and legislative assistant for Representative Pete Hoekstra, and a legislative aide for Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.
A native of Arizona, Katherine received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Duke University and her master’s degree in government from Johns Hopkins University. She serves on several boards in the Washington, D.C. area, and is actively involved with Opportunity International.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Heather Rice-Minus serves as Vice President of Government Affairs & Church Mobilization at Prison Fellowship, the nation's largest Christian nonprofit serving prisoners, former prisoners, and their families. She is a powerful, knowledgeable voice articulating the case for restorative criminal justice solutions.
As leader of Prison Fellowship's policy staff, Rice-Minus directs lobbying, research, and legislative campaigns on pivotal criminal justice issues at the state and federal levels. She also spearheads its efforts to build coalitions with advocacy groups, think tanks, faith-based organizations, and other key stakeholders in Washington, D.C.
Rice-Minus has contributed to stories about criminal justice reform in outlets including Slate, CBN News, PBS' Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, and WORLD magazine. She is the co-author of Prison Fellowship's Bible study curriculum, "Outrageous Justice." A valued shaper of the criminal justice reform debate because of her wide-ranging policy expertise, Rice-Minus is also personally vested in justice reform as someone who has both been a victim of crime and walked alongside a family member during his incarceration.
A native of Virginia, Rice-Minus resides in Washington, D.C., with her husband and daughter. Prior to her tenure at Prison Fellowship, she managed advocacy efforts on behalf of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture. She is a graduate of George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School and Colorado State University. She is a member of the Virginia State Bar.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
At the 2019 Faith & Law Annual Dinner, Os and Jenny Guinness and Senator Ben Sasse and Melissa Sasse were honored with the Charles Colson Award for Public Service. Following the presentation of the awards, Senator Sasse and Os spoke about Divided Politics and Lonely Americans, moderated by Cherie Harder, President of the Trinity Forum and member of the Faith & Law board.
About the Charles Colson Award for Public Service
Chuck Colson spoke many times during the first three decades of Faith & Law and was a significant supporter of our effort. Faith & Law Founder John Palafoutas says, “I'll never forget the time he spoke to Faith and Law in the Senate Caucus Room, the same room in which the Watergate Hearings were conducted. His testimony eventually led to his criminal conviction and prison sentence, and by the Grace of God, his conversion to Jesus Christ.”
In 2016, Faith & Law awarded its first Charles Colson Award for Public Service. This award is given to those who exemplify what it means to be a Christian working in the public square, integrating a biblical worldview with service to our nation.
Past Colson Awardees:
2016Former Congressman Joe Pitts, represented PA-16 from 1997-2017
2017Former Congressman Frank Wolf, represented VA-10 from 1981-2015
2018Sam Brownback, Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and Michael Cromartie, Vice President of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, awarded posthumously for his impact on religion and journalism in the public square
2019 Colson Awardees:
Dr. Os Guinness
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford. Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, and The Global Public Square. His latest book, Last Call for Liberty: How America’s genius for freedom has become its greatest threat, was published in 2018. Since moving to the United States in 1984, Os has been a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies, a Guest Scholar and Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum and the EastWest Institute in New York. He lives with his wife Jenny in the Washington DC area.
Jenny Guinnness
Jenny Guinness was born in California and studied at the University of Southern California. She became a photographic fashion model with Eileen Ford, and as a Vogue cover girl had the privilege of working with such legendary photographers as Richard Avedon and Irving Penn. During that time she began a spiritual search and journey toward faith that led to studies at L’Abri in Switzerland where she met and married her husband Os. Their son, Christopher, was born in Oxford, England where Os was engaged in doctoral studies and Jenny worked with a London television production company. Jenny has recently written the story of her search for meaning in the midst of the “vanity fair” of the New York fashion world. The Guinnesses live in Mclean, Virginia.
Senator Ben Sasse
Ben is a U.S. Senator representing the great state of Nebraska. A fifth-generation Nebraskan, Ben grew up walking beans and detasseling corn, experiences that taught him the value of hard work. He came to the Senate having spent the previous five years as a college president. When he was recruited to take over the failing Midland University, Ben was just 37 years old, making him one of the youngest college presidents in the nation. The 130-year-old Lutheran
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Canon Gideon Byamugisha of Uganda will share his personal story of living with HIV and about his work and leadership against stigma, shame, denial and discrimination, inaction and mis-action. Further, he will discuss his ministry and theology to uphold the human dignity and rights of people living with and most vulnerable to HIV and AIDS. Then, Dr. Jenny Dyer will will reflect on the critical role of faith leaders to shape policy and funding for Global AIDS since the beginning of the Bush Administration. She will look at the sustained support over the past three Administrations and the success of legislation, in part, thanks to their advocacy.
In 1992, Gideon Byamugisha of Uganda became the first religious leader in Africa to publicly announce that he was HIV positive. Before long, others came forward and Byamugisha founded the African Network of Religious Leaders Living with and Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS (ANERELA+), now an international organization with 10,000 members in 48 countries.
Byamugisha holds a B.A in Education (Honors) from Makerere University, Kampala, a Bachelor of Divinity (First Class) from ATIEA Nairobi, and a Masters in Contextual & Applied Theology (University of Birmingham, United Kingdom). For his pioneering leadership, St Paul's Cathedral, Namirembe Diocese (Kampala, Uganda 2001), and Holy Cross Cathedral, (Lusaka Diocese, Zambia, 2003) conferred upon him the ecclesiastical title of Canon in the Anglican Church.
Canon Gideon, born in 1959, is the eldest of 14 children. In 1991, he lost his wife, Kellen to AIDS. Their daughter, Patience, is now 29. In 1995, Canon Gideon married Pamela (herself HIV positive and widowed by HIV/AIDS at a very young age). Thanks to advances in the prevention on Mother-to-Child Transmission, Pamela and Gideon have two HIV-negative children, Love, 15, and Hope, 13.
Jenny Dyer is the Founder of The 2030 Collaborative. As such, she directs the Faith-Based Coalition for Global Nutrition with support from the Eleanor Crook Foundation.
Dyer teaches Global Health Politics and Policy as a Lecturer in the Department of Health Policy at Vanderbilt School of Medicine, and she has taught Religion and Global Health as a Lecturer at Vanderbilt School of Divinity.
Dyer formerly served as the Executive Director for Senator Bill Frist, MD’s Hope Through Healing Hands from 2008-2018, and prior to that, she was the National Faith Outreach Director for the DATA Foundation and The ONE Campaign, Bono’s organization, from 2003-2008. In these roles, she has worked with religious leaders, authors, artists, and other faith-based leaders to promote awareness and advocacy for global health and development issues.
Dyer has written several academic articles and opinion pieces on the intersection of religion and global health. She has been published in TIME, Forbes.com, Huffington Post, Roll Call, Christianity Today’s Her.meneutics, Patheos, Relevant Magazine, Christian Post, Dallas Morning News, Washington Post, and The Tennessean, to name a few.
She is a contributor of Why Save Africa: Answers from around the World (2011) and a co-compiler of The Mother & Child Project: Raising Our Voices for Health and Hope (2015) and The aWAKE Project: Uniting Against the African AIDS Crisis (2002). Her forthcoming book as a co-editor, The End of Hunger: Renewed Hope for Feeding the World, will release in October 2019 with InterVarsity Press.
Dyer holds a B.A. in Religion from Samford University (1999), a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt Divinity School (2001), and a Ph.D. in History and Critical Theories of Religion from Vanderbilt University (2007).
She lives in Franklin, Tennessee with her hu
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Paul Marshall is a research professor in the Department of Political Science as well as the Jerry and Susie Wilson Chair in Religious Freedom at the Institute for Studies of Religion (ISR).
Marshall was formerly a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom in Washington, D.C. He is the author and editor of more than 20 books on religion and politics, particularly religious freedom, including Persecuted: The Global Assault on Christians (2013, with Lela Gilbert and Nina Shea), Silenced: How Apostasy and Blasphemy Codes Are Choking Freedom Worldwide (2011, with Nina Shea), Blind Spot: When Journalists Don’t Get Religion (2009), Religious Freedom in the World (2007), Radical Islam’s Rules: The Worldwide Spread of Extreme Sharia Law (2005), The Rise of Hindu Extremism (2003), Islam at the Crossroads (2002), God and the Constitution (2002), The Talibanization of Nigeria (2002), Massacre at the Millennium (2001), Religious Freedom in the World (2000), Egypt’s Endangered Christians (1999), Just Politics (1998), Heaven Is Not My Home (1998), A Kind of Life Imposed on Man (1996) and the best-selling, award-winning survey of religious persecution worldwide Their Blood Cries Out (1997).
Marshall’s current research is focused primarily on understanding how Muslims and Christians are able to live and work together peacefully in Indonesia – the world’s most populous Muslim country.
Marshall is in frequent demand for lectures and media appearances and has been featured on ABC Nightly News; CNN; PBS; FOX; the British, Australian, Canadian, South African and Japanese Broadcasting Corporations; and Al Jazeera. His work has been published in, or is the subject of, articles in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Times, The Boston Globe, The Dallas Morning News, The Christian Science Monitor, First Things, New Republic, The Weekly Standard, Reader’s Digest and many other newspapers and magazines.
Marshall also is a Senior Fellow at the Leimena Institute, a Christian public policy think tank in Jakarta, Indonesia, and was previously a Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Sharif Hidayatullah Islamic University (UIN), also in Jakarta.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
This Faith & Law Friday Forum will focus on tribalism and identity politics with Georgetown University Professor Paul Miller. Dr. Miller asserts that civilization is fixated on stories about the journey to discover our identity, and how the discovery of our identity is the key to unleashing our inner power and mastering our world. In this lecture, he will address this myth by sharing where it comes from, historically and spiritually. Next, he will tease out its political implications and show how it gives rise to both identity politics and to the current wave of nationalism sweeping much of the world. While demands for identity recognition are understandable, they raise serious social, political, and cultural problems without any corresponding solutions. Then, Dr. Miller will propose answers to the questions of identity, calling for a renewal of classical liberalism, federalism, and devolution as answers to identity politics, nationalism, and the centrifugal forces of tribalism that threaten to tear our polities apart. Finally, he will conclude with a note on the spiritual roots of this problem, suggesting where our need for identity and recognition come from, and what the answer might ultimately be.
Dr. Paul D. Miller is a Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He serves as co-chair of the Global Politics and Security concentration in the MSFS program. He is also a non-resident Senior Fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security.
As a practitioner, Dr. Miller served as Director for Afghanistan and Pakistan on the National Security Council staff; worked as an intelligence analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency; and served as a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army.
His most recent book, American Power and Liberal Order: A Conservative Internationalist Grand Strategy, was published by Georgetown University Press in 2016. In his first book, Armed State Building (Cornell University Press, 2013), Miller examined the history and strategy of stability operations. Miller taught at The University of Texas at Austin and the National Defense University and worked at the RAND Corporation prior to his arrival at Georgetown.
Miller blogs on foreign affairs at Elephants in the Room. His writing has also appeared in Foreign Affairs, Survival, Presidential Studies Quarterly, The Journal of Strategic Studies, Orbis, The American Interest, The National Interest, The World Affairs Journal, Small Wars and Insurgencies, and elsewhere. Miller holds a PhD in international relations and a BA in government from Georgetown University, and a master in public policy from Harvard University.
He is a contributing editor of the Texas National Security Review, a contributing editor of Providence: A Journal of Christianity and American Foreign Policy, a co-editor of the Naval Institute Press’s Series on the Future of Global Security, a research fellow at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, a member of the advisory board for the Philos Project, and a member of the Texas Lyceum.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Former Congressman and US Ambassador Tony Hall was nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize. He is one of the leading advocates for hunger relief programs and improving international human rights conditions in the world. He served the Third District of Ohio for more than 20 years and was sworn in as United States Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture in September 2002, "putting into action America's commitment to alleviate hunger and build hope in the world."
Ambassador Hall was a founding member of the Select Committee on Hunger and served as its chairman from 1989 until it was abolished in 1993. In response to the abolishment of the Hunger Committee, in April 1993, Mr. Hall fasted for 22 days in order to draw attention to the needs of hungry people in the United States and around the world. Ambassador Tony Hall is also founder and was chairman of the Congressional Hunger Center, a non-governmental organization dedicated to fighting hunger by developing leaders.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Fred W. Beuttler is the associate dean for Liberal Arts Programs at the University of Chicago’s Graham School. He received his PhD in history from the University of Chicago in 1995. Prior to coming to Graham in June 2015, he was director of general education and taught history at Carroll University in Wisconsin. From 2005 to 2010, he was the deputy historian of the US House of Representatives, in Washington, DC, and from 1998 to 2005, he was the associate university historian of the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The hour is critical. The American republic is suffering its gravest crisis since the Civil War.
Conflicts, hostility, and incivility now threaten to tear the country apart. Competing visions have led to a dangerous moment of cultural self-destruction. This is no longer politics as usual, but an era of political warfare where our enemies are not foreign adversaries, but our fellow citizens. Yet the roots of the crisis are deeper than many realize. Os Guinness argues that we face a fundamental crisis of freedom, as America's genius for freedom has become her Achilles' heel. Our society's conflicts are rooted in two rival views of freedom, one embodied in "1776" and the ideals of the American Revolution, and the other in "1789" and the ideals of the French Revolution. Once again America has become a house divided, and Americans must make up their minds as to which freedom to follow. Will the constitutional republic be restored or replaced? This grand treatment of history, civics, and ethics in the Jewish and Christian traditions represents Guinness's definitive exploration of the prospects for human freedom today. He calls for a national conversation on the nature of freedom, and poses key questions for concerned citizens to consider as we face a critical chapter in the American story. In the tradition of Alexis de Tocqueville, Guinness provides a visitor's careful observation of the American experiment.
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, and The Global Public Square. His latest book, Last Call for Liberty: How America’s Genius for Freedom Has Become Its Greatest Threat, was published in 2018.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
When Kimberly Kuo graduated summa cum laude from Stanford University and studied at the London School of Economics, she never imagined that she would be speaking about assisted suicide and euthanasia. She married the love of her life, David Kuo, who became special assistant to George W. Bush and deputy director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. After David was diagnosed with a large brain tumor, the Kuos began a 10-year battle with cancer. As result of this journey, Kim began advocating for life, both speaking and writing against assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Kimberly Kuo has more than 24 years of Communications and Marketing experience in politics, government, corporations and technology start-ups. Ms. Kuo was a top Press Aide for Senate Majority Leader and then presidential candidate Bob Dole, and vice presidential candidate Jack Kemp. She was primary spokesperson for Internet giant AOL, and then expanded this role to oversee Investor Relations and Marketing at technology start-ups. After acting as primary Spokesperson and Communications lead for a Washington, DC trade association, she launched its advocacy initiative. In less than four years, the organization grew to the third largest advocacy group in the country. As Chief Marketing Officer of the world’s largest book and entertainment distributor, Ms. Kuo transformed her Marketing organization into a profit center, introduced extensive e-Marketing programs, and modernized the company’s brand and market position.
Ms. Kuo is passionate about empowering people, developing talent, building effective teams, and strengthening corporate culture.
She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University, with a B.A. in Communications with Honors. After working briefly in Normandy, France, she studied Comparative Government & Economics at the London School of Economics.
She enjoys music, theater, creative writing and public speaking. She is actively involved in Forest Hill Church and Charlotte Christian School, and her greatest joy is adventuring with her two children.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Anne Snyder is the Director of The Character Initiative at The Philanthropy Roundtable, a pilot program that seeks to help foundations and business leaders strengthen “the middle ring” of morally formative institutions in the U.S. She is also a Fellow at the Center for Opportunity Urbanism, a Houston-based think tank that explores how cities can drive opportunity for the bulk of their citizens. From 2014 to 2017 Anne worked for Laity Lodge and the H.E. Butt Family Foundation in Texas, and before that she worked at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, World Affairs Journal and The New York Times. She holds a Master’s degree in journalism from Georgetown University and a B.A. in philosophy and international relations from Wheaton College (IL). Anne is a Contributing Editor to Comment Magazine, an advisor toSea Dog Theaterandserves as a trustee for the Center for Public Justice as well as the Hyde Park Institute at the University of Chicago. She has published in The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, National Journal, City Journal, Philanthropy Magazine, Orange County Register, Houston Business Journal, The Institute for Family Studies, FaithStreet, Comment Magazine, Verily, Humane Pursuits and FareForward, and is currently working on a book about the most effective character forming institutions alive today.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Donald Larson is the CEO/Founder of Sunshine Nut Company in Mozambique. In 2011, he gave up a successful career in the corporate food industry and moved his family to Mozambique to start Sunshine Nut Co.
The road to Mozambique began in 2007 when Don turned down a major career move and left his corporate life for a spiritual journey to discover God’s true purpose for his life. It was in this season of listening and waiting that God spoke to him with clarity that was almost audible – saying, “Go and build food factories in developing nations to bring lasting economic transformation.” Through prayer and solitude, he developed the Sunshine Approach business model, focusing on transforming lives at every level of the business. Not long after, he was led to Mozambique and its abundance of amazing cashews to start this grand adventure. Faced with a calling he had little desire to fulfill, he chose to be obedient. He and his family sold everything they owned and moved to Mozambique.
This move transformed their lives. In the past six years, they have built a world-class food factory hiring primarily adult orphans. They developed relationships with orphanages and other community organizations throughout Mozambique where they support and develop projects with 90% of their profits. In 2014, their cashews landed on US shelves and today, they have an all-African staff of 30 producing the best tasting cashews under the sun!
As CEO of Sunshine Nut Company, he presses forward relentlessly growing their operations in the US and Mozambique, while sharing their story all over the world. Don's wife, Terri, oversees all our philanthropic work as the Director of Social Impact and spends her days spreading love to the most needy in their community.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In this lecture, Os Guinness discussed the questions, "What does it say of us as human beings that we see ourselves as 'post-Auschwitz,' 'post-Hiroshima' and now 'pre-Singularity'? What does the Bible have to say to humanity on the verge of transhumanism, and those who claim that through science and technology we are now 'the gods of planet earth'?"
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, and The Global Public Square. His latest book, Last Call for Liberty: How America’s genius for freedom has become its greatest threat was published in 2018.
Since moving to the United States in 1984, Os has been a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies, a Guest Scholar and Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum and the EastWest Institute in New York. He was the lead drafter of the Williamsburg Charter in 1988, a bicentennial celebration of the bicentennial of the US Constitution, and later of “The Global Charter of Conscience,” which was published at the European Union Parliament in 2012. Os has spoken at many of the world’s major universities, and spoken widely to political and business conferences across the world. He lives with his wife Jenny in the Washington DC area.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Trillia Newbell is the author of Enjoy: Finding the Freedom to Delight Daily in God’s Good Gifts (2016), Fear and Faith: Finding the Peace Your Heart Craves (2015) and United: Captured by God’s Vision for Diversity (2014). Her writings on issues of faith, family, and diversity have been published in the Knoxville News-Sentinel, Desiring God, True Woman, Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, and more. She has spoken at numerous conferences, churches, women’s retreats, colleges and seminaries, including True Woman, The Gospel Coalition Women’s conference, Southeastern Theological Seminary, and more. She currently is the Director of Community Outreach for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission for the Southern Baptist Convention.
Her greatest love besides God is her family. She is married to her best friend and love, Thern. They reside with their two children near Nashville, TN.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The story of humanity (thus far) is a complex narrative that cycles through riveting victories while also plagued with the vicious wounds of sin. From the days of the Old Testament into the New Testament and beyond, humanity has challenged itself with racism and ethnic division. This talk will challenge the audience to explore the history and theology of race with an eye towards the historical, theological, cultural, sociological and spiritual necessity for reconciliation.
Emmett G. Price III is Professor of Worship, Church and Culture; Dean of the Chapel; and founding Executive Director of the Institute for the Study of the Black Christian Experience (ISBCE) at the Hamilton Campus of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He also serves as founding pastor of Community of Love Christian Fellowship in the Allston neighborhood of Boston, MA.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Vision, leadership, patience, strategic thinking - each is key to maximizing long-term success in our work and in our daily lives. But what is the best way to think about these often nebulous concepts, and how are they best practiced? Further, how do we persevere in the face of inevitable obstacles? Alan Sears, founder of Alliance Defending Freedom, presented the life of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in World War II and the 34th President of the United States, and how Eisenhower's faithfulness and perseverance is a model for us all to follow if we want to be used by God to make a difference in the world.
"[Ike's] story has many important lessons that we can apply to our lives today as we seek to shape our futures to please God and to be all that we can be. And few things provide context better than understanding our collective past, learning from those that persevered and kept the faith often through circumstances that made no sense at all to enable us to live in freedom." - Alan Sears
As the first president, CEO, and general counsel of ADF, Alan Sears led all strategic initiatives from 1993-2017, strengthening alliances, forging new relationships, and developing the resources needed to ensure the ministry's capacity to respond to opportunities. Realizing the need for conservative lawyers, Sears created the world-class Blackstone Legal Fellowship leadership-training program which has since graduated more than 1,960 outstanding law students. At the same time, ADF has trained more than 2,000 lawyers to defend religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage and the family. Under Sears' leadership, ADF attorneys won more than three out of four cases and ADF has played various important roles in 52 victories at the United States Supreme Court.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Holly J. Burkhalter serves as Senior Advisor for Global Partnerships at IJM. She stewards IJM’s relationships in the global policy, human rights and development communities and speaks and publishes regularly on IJM’s behalf.
Before joining IJM, Holly spent nine years serving as the U.S. Policy Director for Physicians for Human Rights and fourteen years as the Advocacy Director and Director of the Washington office for Human Rights Watch. Holly also staffed the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Human Rights and International Organizations from 1981 to 1983. From 1977 to 1981, she worked for Representative (later Senator) Tom Harkin, D-IA.
She is the author of Good God, Lousy World & Me, the Improbable Journey of a Human Rights Activist from Unbelief to Faith.
Holly graduated from Iowa State University (Phi Beta Kappa).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
At a time when there are more forcibly displaced persons than at any other time since World War II, the international community has struggled with how to tangibly and practically respond to the refugees arriving at their borders. The U.S. has traditionally welcomed more refugees than any other country in the world while also leading the world in providing humanitarian assistance to refugees overseas. How should the international community and the United States continue to respond to the global refugee crisis? Also, how can the church think Biblically and respond holistically to refugees and displaced persons, overseas or right in their own back yards?
Jenny Yang provides oversight for all advocacy initiatives and policy positions at World Relief. She has worked in the Resettlement section of World Relief as the Senior Case Manager and East Asia Program Officer, where she focused on advocacy for refugees in the East Asia region and managed the entire refugee caseload for World Relief. Prior to World Relief, she worked at one of the largest political fundraising firms in Maryland managing fundraising and campaigning for local politicians. She is co-author of Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate, serves as Chair of the Refugee Council USA (RCUSA) Africa Work Group, and was named one of the “50 Women to Watch” by Christianity Today.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Eric Patterson will discuss just war thinking within the context of a Christian worldview and our current political climate.
Dr. Eric Patterson is dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University. His research and teaching focus on religion and politics, ethics and international affairs, and just-war theory in the context of contemporary conflict. Prior to his arrival at Regent, Patterson served as associate director of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs and visiting assistant professor in the Department of Government at Georgetown University. As part of the Berkley Center's Government Outreach program he has spoken and led seminars at the U.S. Military Academy (West Point), the U.S. Naval Academy (Annapolis), the Armed Forces Chaplains Center, National Defense University, the Pentagon, the Naval Postgraduate School, the Foreign Service Institute, and other government venues.
Patterson has considerable U.S. government experience. He served as a White House Fellow and special assistant to the director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and has spent two stints in the State Department's Bureau of Political and Military Affairs. He continues to serve as an officer and commander in the Air National Guard.
Patterson is the author or editor of 10 books, including most recently: Ending Wars Well: Just War Thinking and Post-Conflict (Yale University Press, 2012) and Ethics Beyond War's End (Georgetown University Press, 2012.) He has also edited two volumes on Christian realism and has been published in numerous journals including Survival, International Studies Perspectives, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, International Politics, Journal of Diplomacy and International Affairs, and Journal of Political Science, among others.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
A 1990s Republican Revolution in helping the poor came close to critical mass but then fizzled: The result was tragic for poor people, for idealistic reformers, for the GOP, and for America generally. We’ll look at how and why that happened, and whether Christians can help to revive the spirit of those years at a time when callous conservatism seems to reign.
Marvin Olasky is editor in chief of WORLD News Group and the author of more than 20 books, including The Tragedy of American Compassion. His latest book is World View: Seeking Grace and Truth in Our Common Life.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Pastor Brett Fuller is the Senior Pastor of Grace Covenant Church. He currently serves as the North American Leadership Team Director for Every Nation Churches, and as Chaplain of the Washington Redskins. From 2005 to 2014 he served as Chaplain for the National Association of Basketball Coaches. In 2000, he initiated a bill in Congress to build a memorial honoring the African American Slaves who helped build America. Though the bill was never passed, he still hopes to complete the mission. Also, from 2007-2009 he served on President George Bush's Advisory Board for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He has written two devotional books: Live Well and Relate Well.
He and his lovely wife of 30 years, Cynthia, frequently conduct marriage and family seminars. Brett also coordinates relational and professional development seminars helping leaders in every walk of life to become better leaders. He and his bride reside in Chantilly, VA and have parented 7 children.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Os Guinness is an author and social critic. Great-great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford.
Os has written or edited more than thirty books, including The Call, Time for Truth, Long Journey Home, Unspeakable, A Free People’s Suicide, The Global Public Square, and Renaissance. His latest book is Fool’s Talk – The Recovery of Christian Persuasion, which was published by InterVarsity Press in June, 2015.
Before moving to the United States in 1984, Os was a freelance reporter with the BBC. Since then he has been a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies, a Guest Scholar and Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum and the EastWest Institute in New York. From 1986 to 1989, Os served as Executive Director of the Williamsburg Charter Foundation, a bicentennial celebration of the First Amendment. In this position he helped to draft “The Williamsburg Charter” and later “The Global Charter of Conscience,” which was published at the European Union Parliament in 2012. Os has spoken at dozens of the world’s major universities, and spoken widely to political and business conferences on many issues, including religious freedom, across the world. He is currently a senior fellow at the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics in Oxford, though he still lives with his wife Jenny in the Washington, DC, area.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
As vice president of The Heritage Foundation, Jennifer A. Marshall runs the think tank’s Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity. In that capacity, she oversees research into a variety of issues that determine the strength and character of American society. Issues explored by Institute researchers range from marriage, life, and religious liberty to health, education, and welfare to the application of America’s founding principles to today’s challenges.
Marshall collaborates with Heritage colleagues to explore how moral values and civil society relate to issues such as limited government, a strong national economy and foreign policy. She also edits Heritage’s annual Index of Culture and Opportunity, which tracks key social and economic trends to determine whether important indicators of opportunity in America are on the right track.
In 2010, National Journal named Marshall one of Washington’s 20 “power players” in recognition of her work on school choice and other education reforms.
Before joining Heritage in 2003, Marshall worked on cultural policy issues at Empower America, a free-market think tank. Before that, she was senior director of family studies at the Family Research Council and taught at an American school in Lyon, France.
She has spoken at national and international forums, testified before Congress and appeared on numerous radio and television shows, including C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” and PBS’ “To the Contrary.”
She is the author of “Now and Not Yet: Making Sense of Single Life in the Twenty-First Century” (Multnomah Publishers, 2007). The book evaluates the cultural, practical and spiritual issues that marriage-minded young women confront as the age of first marriage continues to rise in America.
Marshall holds a master of arts in religion from Reformed Theological Seminary, a master’s degree in statecraft and world politics from the Washington-based Institute of World Politics, and a bachelor’s degree in French from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill., where she also earned teacher’s certification. She currently resides in Arlington, Va.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Civility Is Needed Most When It's Most Difficult
Cherie Harder serves as President of the Trinity Forum. Prior to joining the Trinity Forum in 2008, Ms. Harder served in the White House as Special Assistant to the President and Director of Policy and Projects for First Lady Laura Bush.
Earlier in her career she served as Policy Advisor to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, advising the Leader on domestic social issues and serving as liaison and outreach director to outside groups. From 2001 to 2005, she was Senior Counselor to the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, where she helped the Chairman design and launch the We the People initiative to enhance the teaching, study, and understanding of American history. Prior to that Ms. Harder was the Policy Director for Senator Sam Brownback and also served as Deputy Policy Director at Empower America.
Ms. Harder has contributed articles to publications including Policy Review, Human Events, the Harvard Political Review, and various newspapers, as well as a chapter on fashion to the volume Building a Healthy Culture (Eerdmans 2001). Her ghost-written speeches and articles have appeared in Vital Speeches of the Day, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, USA Today, and others.
She holds an Honors B.A. (magna cum laude) in government from Harvard University and a post-graduate diploma in literature from the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, where she was a Rotary Scholar. She serves on the board of Gordon College, the Convergence Center for Policy Resolution, and Faith and Law; and on the advisory boards of the National Civic Art Society and the National Museum of American Religion.
Ms. Harder was raised in New Mexico and currently lives in Northern Virginia.
Mark Strand became President of the Congressional Institute in 2007. Founded in 1987, the Congressional Institute is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to helping Members of Congress better serve their constituents and helping their constituents better understand the operations of the national legislature.
Strand is also an adjunct professor of legislative affairs at George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management, and the coauthor of the book Surviving Inside Congress. He also writes a blog, The Sausage Factory, that provides an inside look at legislative strategies and procedures (http://conginst.org/news-feed/).
Strand spent nearly 24 years on Capitol Hill in both the House and the Senate, most recently serving as Chief of Staff to Senator James Talent (R-MO). He served as the Staff Director of the House Committee on Small Business when Talent was Chairman. He was also chief of staff for Reps. Bill Lowery (R-CA) and Stan Parris (R-VA). He has also served as a Legislative Director and a Press Secretary.
During a brief interlude from the Hill from 2001-2002, Strand was Vice-President of Government Affairs for the American Water Works Company – the largest publicly held water utility in the United States.
Strand obtained a master’s in Legislative Affairs from GWU’s Graduate School of Political Management, an M.B.A. in Marketing from the University of Phoenix, and was an undergraduate double major in Political Science and History at Excelsior College of the University of New York.
Strand regularly speaks to organizations about how Congress works (or doesn’t). Besides speaking and lecturing on legislative politics, Strand teaches courses on “Surviving Inside Congress” to new Hill staff, government affairs employees and Washington-based diplomats. In addition, he regularly works with Congressional offices on manageme
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
"There is only one prediction that is safe about the upcoming term, and that is it will be momentous." Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Dr. Joseph Hartman discussed key Supreme Court cases being considered in the 2017-18 term, especially focusing on those that could have an impact on the Church.
Dr. Hartman teaches constitutional law in the Georgetown University Department of Government, where he earned his Ph.D. in political theory in 2015. He also holds a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School and spent a decade in the private practice of law in Washington, D.C.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In recognition of the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation, Dr. Joseph Loconte addressed Faith & Law on "How Martin Luther's Reformation Transformed the World." As the lecture title suggests, Loconte gently pushed back against Rod Dreher's "Benedict Option." One of the first things Luther did as he secured his position in Germany was to abolish all of the monastic orders. Loconte will explain why Luther chose this course of action.
Joseph Loconte, PhD, is an Associate Professor of History at The King’s College in New York City, where he teaches courses on Western Civilization, American Foreign Policy, and International Human Rights. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War: How J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis Rediscovered Faith, Friendship, and Heroism in the Cataclysm of 1914-1918(Harper Collins, 2015) and winner of the 2017 Best Article award from the Tolkien Society for his article How J.R.R. Tolkien Found Mordor on the Western Front.
Dr. Loconte previously served as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the School of Public Policy at Pepperdine University, where he taught on religion and public policy. He was a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., and from 1999-2006 he held the first chair in religion and civil society as the William E. Simon Fellow at the Heritage Foundation.
Dr. Loconte’s other books include: God, Locke, and Liberty: The Struggle for Religious Freedom in the West(Lexington Books, 2014); The Searchers: A Quest for Faith in the Valley of Doubt (Thomas Nelson, 2012); The End of Illusions: Religious Leaders Confront Hitler’s Gathering Storm (Rowman & Littlefield, 2004); and Seducing the Samaritan: How Government Contracts Are Reshaping Social Services (The Pioneer Institute, 1997).
Dr. Loconte’s commentary on religion and public life appears in the nation’s leading media outlets, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the National Interest, the Weekly Standard, and National Review. He is also a regular contributor to the London-based Standpoint and the Huffington Post. For 10 years he served as a commentator for National Public Radio’s All Things Considered.
Dr. Loconte has testified before Congress on international human rights and served as a human rights expert on the 2005 Congressional Task Force on the United Nations, contributing to its final report, “American Interests and U.N. Reform.” From 2001-2003, he was an informal advisor to the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. More recently, he was a speechwriter for British MP Andrew Mitchell, Shadow Secretary of State for International Development. He now serves as a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum and as an affiliated scholar at the John Jay Institute.
A native of Brooklyn, NY, Dr. Loconte divides his time between New York City and Washington, D.C.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
In this lecture, Dr. Jay W. Richards gave highlights from his upcoming book on human uniqueness and the claim that machines will replace us. He will show how the Christian understanding of the human person helps provide guidance in the debate about artificial intelligence and automation, and how to respond to it.
A thousand futurists predict that in the next few decades, machines will take over even more of our work, leaving mass joblessness in its wake. How should we respond to these claims? It’s true that machines will do many tasks we imagined could only be done by people. But many of these claims are based on a materialistic view of the human person that contradicts both faith and reason.
Dr. Richards argued that we do need to prepare for massive job disruption. And we'll need to adapt by focusing on key virtues that separate man from machine. But machines will never replace us.
Jay W. Richards, Ph.D., is the Executive Editor of The Stream. He is an Assistant Research Professor in the School of Business and Economics at The Catholic University of America and a Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute. He is author of many books including the New York Times bestsellers Infiltrated (2013), and Indivisible (2012), co-authored with James Robison. He is also the author of Money, Greed, and God, winner of a 2010 Templeton Enterprise Award; and co-author of The Privileged Planetwith astronomer Guillermo Gonzalez. His most recent book, co-authored with Jonathan Witt, is The Hobbit Party: The Vision of Freedom that J.R.R. Tolkien Got and the West Forgot. He has a Ph.D., with honors, in philosophy and theology from Princeton Theological Seminary.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
The Rev. Bill Haley is Executive Director of Coracle and the Associate Rector at The Falls Church Anglican. A graduate of Bethel College (1991) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (magna cum laude, 1994), he is an Anglican priest and spiritual director, having completed his training with the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation (2007). His life has been profoundly shaped by many international experiences, particularly in places of deep brokenness in the world, and he has devoted many years to ministering in urban contexts, especially in inner-city Washington DC. With his wife Tara and four kids, Bill lives at Corhaven in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
Since 1996 he has ministered with The Falls Church in a number of different capacities. Bill was the founding Rector of St. Brendan’s in the City in Washington DC. He recently served as the Director of Formation for The Washington Institute and previously served as president of The Regeneration Forum and publisher of re:generation quarterly, a magazine devoted to “community transforming culture”. He has also served on staff at the Servant Leadership School of Church of the Savior, was a founding board member and then President of the Southeast DC Partners, and is currently a US Trustee of the Anglican Relief and Development Fund and on the Advisory Council for The Telos Group. Because of such diverse experiences in life and around the world, and so many questions to ask, and so many things that matter, Bill’s life has been fired by the phrase “in Christ all things hold together.” He wants to be able to live and say with the same passion of St. Paul, “It is no longer I who live, it is Christ who lives in me.”
Bill's publications include articles in The Washington Post, re:generation quarterly, Prism and Sojourners magazines, Inward/Outward of The Servant Leadership School, The Cry of Word Made Flesh, and with The Washington Institute. He has compiled several original editions of poetry and prayers. His interests include outdoor sports, especially fly-fishing, the visual arts and music, reading, writing, and long conversations over a good cup of coffee (or wine).
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Congressman Joe Pitts served in the United States House of Representatives for 20 years and before that served for 24 years in the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives. He retired in 2017 as a respected statesman known for his strong Christian faith and his commitment to advancing Judeo-Christian values in government and society.
Joe Pitts now offers his wisdom and experience to the next generation through Asbury University's Joe Pitts Center for Public Affairs. The Pitts Center is designed to educate, motivate, and launch young, conservative Christians into the field of public service. It will emphasize three core causes, which are the longstanding passions of Congressman Pitts: humanitarian relief, human trafficking and religious liberties.
Having served on the frontline of the culture and legislative wars of the last 40 years, Joe has a unique insight into the proper role of Christians in public life and government and how to effectively advocate for our religious freedoms and values. His views on biblical Christian citizenship and how we, as believers, should engage with our government to protect our rights are desperately needed in this current cultural and political climate.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
With massive displacements of Christians in Iraq and Syria, and recent violence against the Copts in Egypt, will Christianity survive in the Middle East? Kent Hill will provide a brief survey of Christianity in the Middle East. Then, with a special focus on what it will take to undermine violent Islamic extremism, he will address how Christians in the west can help. A particular area he will consider is whether the core problem is extremism or Islam itself. Without addressing this issue, Dr. Hill believes a way forward will not be found.
Kent Hill joined the Religious Freedom Insitute after six years as Senior Vice President at World Vision, one of the largest faith-based relief and development organizations in the world. He also served for eight years as Assistant Administrator for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), responsible for U.S. foreign assistance to Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, and, subsequently, all USAID health programs worldwide. Earlier in his career, Dr. Hill was President of Eastern Nazarene College, and President of D.C.'s Institute on Religion and Democracy. In 2010, as a Vice President at the John Templeton Foundation, Hill, along with Tom Farr, conceived Georgetown's Religious Freedom Project and secured funding to launch the project. Dr. Hill has published a book on Christianity and the Soviet Union. His Ph.D. is from the University of Washington.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Congressman Frank Wolf is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative. He was elected to Congress in 1981 and served Virginia’s 10th District for 17 terms. Wolf authored the International Religious Freedom Act and legislation to create a U.S. State Department special envoy to advocate for religious minorities in the Near East and South Central Asia. The founder and co-chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Wolf’s honors include the 2015 Wilson Chair in Religious Freedom at Baylor University, the Presidential Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Human Rights, and the Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview’s William Wilberforce Award.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Caring for Creation, Caring for the Poor: A Biblical, Scientific, and Economic Perspective on Climate and Energy Policy.
E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D., is spokesman for the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation and an author and speaker on the application of the biblical world view, theology, and ethics to economics, government, and environmental policy. He has testified as an expert witness on the ethics and economics of climate and energy policy before congressional committees, delivered a paper on the subject for the Pontifical Institute for Justice and Peace, and lectured on it for five of the International Conferences on Climate Change. He has published over ten books and hundreds of articles, contributed to or edited dozens of others, and been a guest on television and radio programs. A former seminary and Christian college professor and church planter, he has spoken to churches, universities, conferences, and other groups around the country for nearly thirty years.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
As the editor of World magazine and writer for the publication since 1986, Mindy has covered war in the Balkans, Sudan, Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan and has given on-the-ground news coverage from Nigeria, Egypt, Turkey, and elsewhere. Her reporting has been published in the United States and overseas and been featured in publications such as The Weekly Standard. Mindy has appeared on national television and radio talk shows and speaks frequently about persecution and survival in the Middle East. Belz and her husband have four children and live in Asheville, NC.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
What Should Politicians Say When Asked About Evolution? (Evolution News & Views)
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Mr. Cromartie highlighted four propositions and virtues we ought to consider as we engage our culture and public life in our various vocations.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Mr. Neville will tell the cautionary tale of South Carolina's Henry Laurens, an American Revolutionary leader who shared the convictions but not the determination of William Wilberforce. In his effort to end the slave trade, Wilberforce became a shining example of how Christians should engage in the public square. Laurens, sadly, gave up the fight-with tragic results.
Mr. Neville has worked for Congressman Pitts as chief of staff, communications director, district aide, and campaign manager. He previously worked as an aide to Pennsylvania State Representative Raymond Bunt (R, Montgomery County) and as editor of The Zephyr, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
He leads the House Faith and Law reading group and attends Fairfax Community Church. He is a graduate of Franklin and Marshall College.
He has written, often on historical topics, for the Philadelphia Inquirer, National Review Online, the New York Times, and the Journal of the Lancaster County Historical Society. He is currently writing a history of the 8th Virginia Regiment, which was recruited and led by Peter Muhlenberg during the Revolutionary War.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Cherie Harder will respond to the proposition that Christians may be becoming a moral minority: Is that true and if so, what is our response? Are we a prophetic voice that can still lead?
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Dr. Meyer will be presenting on intelligent design and the origins of the universe. A deep and thorough understanding of science is a doorway into the mind of a Creator who has encoded an information system into all living things.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
What are our Biblical responsibilities to our brothers and sisters, especially those who are not like us? From Cain to Christ, God is clear that we have a responsibility to help the "other." President Obama understood this principle when he recently launched an initiative for young men of color of the same name. Come join a discussion about what it means to be our brother's and sister's keeper in the current context.
Max Finberg has dedicated his career to serving others, especially hungry people. He has a wide range of experience in the government, non-profit, and political arenas. He currently serves as Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture and coordinates two Secretarial initiatives: StrikeForce, USDA's initiative for rural growth and opportunity, and Cultural Transformation, focused on creating a 21st Century workforce that is diverse and inclusive. USDA administers programs that benefit one in five Americans with nutrition assistance, contribute to rural development, promote environmental stewardship and feed hungry people around the world.
He recently finished assignments at the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, as a Senior Policy Advisor within President Obama's Domestic Policy Council, as well as Acting Director of USDA's Office of Tribal Relations, working with American Indians. In May 2009, he was appointed by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to direct USDA's Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. The Center builds partnerships between USDA and faith-based and secular organizations to better serve individuals, families and communities.
Previously, he was the first director of the Alliance to End Hunger, a non-profit organization that engages diverse institutions in building the public will to end hunger, both in the United States and worldwide. The Alliance connects U.S. businesses, religious bodies, charities, and foundations to change the politics of hunger.
Prior to joining the Alliance, Mr. Finberg served Ambassador and former Representative Tony Hall (D-OH) for 12 years in a variety of capacities. He was special assistant to the ambassador at the U.S. Mission to the UN Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome, Italy. Mr. Finberg was also a senior legislative assistant covering domestic hunger and poverty issues for Representative Hall. He worked on the successful passage of The Hunger Relief Act and the Community Solutions Act with a variety of anti-poverty and faith-based organizations.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
From the earliest years after the death and resurrection of Christ, the affirmation "Jesus is Lord," that is, Jesus is King, has been the fundamental Christian confession of faith. But is he King? And if he is, what difference does it make in the corridors of power and in everyday living?
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
A comprehensive report just out from the non-partisan Pew Research Center confirms findings from its previous reports: Almost three-quarters of the world's population live in countries where religious freedom is severely restricted. These consistent findings raise significant moral, humanitarian, and national security issues for the United States. For more than 15 years, the US has had a statutory requirement to advance religious freedom in its foreign policy. Unfortunately, America's IRF policy has accomplished precious little under three administrations. Farr will discuss the high stakes in religious persecution, the reasons for US failures, and how we might succeed should we choose to do so.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Christians and all people of good will should be concerned about poverty at home and abroad, and want to do something about it. Unfortunately, there is strong disagreement about how to do so. One way to resolve the disagreement is to consider the top ten conditions that allow countries to prosper, the lack of which correlates with poverty. Since there is one known pathway to widespread prosperity, the prudent strategy is to help others find their way up the path, rather than seeking to forge a new and untested one.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
Conservatives are known for their love of liberty, but what about justice? Do conservatives love justice, too, and if so why don't they talk more about it? Henry Olsen will discuss these questions in the context of conservatism's continued electoral challenges.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)
While expressions of faith remain common in political discourse today, the actual policy decisions of political leaders seem less connected to that faith. Today, too, our culture - while still seeming to expect a president to have a faith - rejects faith as an explanation for those decisions. Ronald Reagan's faith, however, was a driver of some of his most profound moments as President--including the breaking up of the Communist Bloc.
Rev. John Boyles is a former pastor of National Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC, the church of President Ronald Reagan during his Adminstration. Rev. Boyles served under President Reagan as Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Ethical Values. As the President's minister he made a pastoral visit to the persecuted Russian Pentacostals taking refuge in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. During the Reagan Administration, Rev. Boyles set up the first VOA international broadcast of an English language Christmas Eve service in 1982 into the Soviet bloc, broadcast from President Reagan's church. A graduate of Yale Divinity School, Boyles became Presbyterian Chaplain at Yale and associate pastor of the Church of Christ in Yale and as Director of Dwight Hall, the university's community service and religious activities organization.
Support the show (http://www.faithandlaw.org/donate)