Happenings

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.

Winners from the Constitution Day Essay contest were announced and had the opportunity to read their submissions with commentary by Wheatley constitutional fellow Bradley Rebeiro. The essay contest and the event are also co-sponsored by the BYU Law School and College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences.

Understanding the Role of Faith in Professional Contexts and Beyond

Lecture from Dr. Catherine Pakaluk

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, Vice Chair of the National Governor’s Association, emphasized the importance of civil discourse in political discussion in his remarks at the Disagree Better Summit. This summit, born from Oklahoma’s Better Conversations initiative and Utah Governor Spencer Cox’s Disagree Better initiative, gathered leaders from across the nation to discuss avoiding hateful rhetoric when it comes to hot-button issues. At the summit, Wheatley Institute non-resident fellow Thomas Griffith moderated the event and applied the Will Rogers quote– “never miss a chance to shut up”– to modern political conversations. Watch Governor Stitt discuss the art of respectful disagreement with Tim Shriver, Chairman of the Special Olympics: