Happenings

While 84% of the world’s population still affiliates with a faith of some sort, there are clear indicators that people in the United States and elsewhere are abandoning religion. This shift toward secularization may have significant social and psychological consequences, because religion is often linked to better mental health, stronger social ties, and increased rates of marriage and childbearing. This report examines who and how many are leaving religion, which faiths are most affected by disaffiliation, individual and social consequences of a decline in religiosity, and factors increasing the likelihood of returning to faith.

Wheatley Institute and the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies welcomed Jeff Rosen to BYU campus on Nov 13, 2025 as he spoke on his recent book, "The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America," a New York Times bestseller and an enriching examination of what “the pursuit of happiness” meant to our nation’s Founders and how that famous phrase defined their lives and became the foundation of our democracy.

Wheatley Institute Director Paul Edwards gave a devotional at Ensign College about becoming Disciple-Citizens. He emphasized the importance of active civic participation for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the ways that responsible citizens can support American democracy.

Wheatley Institute and the BYU College of Life Sciences welcomed Yale Professor Dr. Samuel Wilkinson to BYU campus on Oct 17, 2024 as he shared an insightful lecture on the purpose of our existence.

The 2024 Truman G. Madsen Lecture on Eternal Man was given by Reverend Andrew Teal, a chaplain specializing in Christian church history and a full member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at Oxford University.

Wheatley Institute and the BYU Economics department were pleased to hear from Dr. Devin Pope, an Associate Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. Dr. Pope used cellphone data to explore the frequency, regularity, and correlates with religious worship in America across geographies and religious traditions.

Wheatley Institute helped to host David French, author and columnist for the New York Times, as a speaker at Brigham Young University's campus forum, where he addressed increased political division and hatred in the United States.

Distinguished Wheatley fellow of religion, Shima Baughman, gave a devotional at Brigham Young University comparing the power of faith in Jesus Christ to the power of our own biological hearts, especially emphasizing the importance of temple covenants.

We were pleased to hear from Rabbi Meir Soloveichik as he discussed Jewish influences on the American founding. When the United States was founded, there were very few Jews in America; nevertheless, George Washington had a remarkable series of written interactions with them. A careful study of this story reveals the way in which Washington himself saw America, what Jewish hopes were for this new nation, and what this tale can teach us about the future of faith in America.

Watch Dr. Paul Carrese's full remarks from his September 19, 2024 lecture.