Lectures

Azza Karam, of the UN Population Fund, comes to the Wheatley Institute's annual Student Conference of Religion in the Public Sphere. She describes the fine line between supporting and patronizing religious actors across the world.

Dr. Shaun Casey, director of the Berkley Center and former U.S. special representative for religion and global affairs/director of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Religion and Global Affairs, details why religion should be a part of statecraft. He dives into his work establishing the Religion and Global Affairs office in the State Department and the work his office did in establishing religious harmony in the Israel-Palestine conflict, the refugee crisis, and the normalization of US-Cuba relations.

David Campbell from the University of Notre Dame presents the Keynote Address for the 2017 Wheatley Religion in the Public Square Conference. His talk discusses the surprising role that religion has played in partisan politics.

Roger Scruton, eminent scholar of aesthetics, raises important questions about the individual's relationship with morality and the arts.

Dr. David I. Smith, a Calvin College Professor and Director of the Kuyers Institute for Christian Teaching and Learning, has spent his life developing ways to incorporate the Christian values he holds dear into the secular language subjects he loves to teach. In this speech given on March 1 at Brigham Young University, he gives his advice on how to bridge the gap between the two, thus creating an improved learning experience for both teachers and students. He challenges academic norms that have crept into every subject and that cause students to see subjects in a selfish and 2 dimensional way. His discussion is a battle cry to teachers of faith everywhere to teach better, more engaging, and unusual lessons; and not be afraid to use their values to enrich every facet of their teaching.

John D. Caputo discusses the complexities of post-modern religious sentiments.

Robert P. George, McCormick Chair of Jurisprudence, Princeton University, sat down with Richard N. Williams, Director of the Wheatley Institute. Robert P. George discusses the roles of public intellectuals, the virtue of dispassion, and dedicating our lives to the pursuit of truth. George talks about how he came to be involved in the academic field. They delve into the question of why do we argue, and understanding marriage and the importance of conjugal marriage. Religious liberty as a foundational liberty.

Lisa Miller, Professor & Director of Clinical Psychology at Columbia University, discusses spiritual development as it pertains to children and adolescents.

Robert P. George is the McCormick Chair in Jurisprudence at Princeton University. In this lecture he discusses just and unjust laws, and political morality. George talks of humanity's ability to flourish or fail to flourish, what religion is, and faith's incapability to be coerced. He goes through and analyzes a quotation from Nostra Aetate, the Declaration of the Church to Non-Christian Religions.

James Smith, professor at Calvin College, makes a case against rising secularism, emphasizing the continued presence of spirituality, and he asserts that a secularist explanation of humanity cannot account for spiritually motivated behaviors.

William Damon, professor at Stanford University, explains why education ought to focus more on history and civic education to develop successful citizens.

David Matthews, CEO of the Charles F. Kettering Foundation, discusses the Kettering Foundation's research and origin, and examines how people become citizens and make difficult decisions.

Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, explains that happiness lies not in material gains, but in finding purpose in what you do.

Matthew Holland, President of Utah Valley University, presents an argument that Christian charity has played a vital role in shaping America's civil society.

Daniel Robinson, fellow at Oxford University, examines methods for successfully educating citizens, and how educational institutions can shape character in ways that render one of value to others. This lecture was read by Dr. Richard Williams during the Civic Virtue, Civic Life conference that was cosponsored by the McKay School of Education and The Wheatley Institute.

Terrance Olson, professor at Brigham Young University, discusses how education can foster correct moral principles, and asserts that moral sensibility is central to humanity.

Roger Porter, professor at Harvard University, shares the qualities of great American political leaders, claiming that the greatest leaders have a goal-oriented management style.

Michael Wilkins, professor at Biola University, discusses the conflict between the Utah Legislature and the State Board of Education regarding executive authority for public school policy.

Gary Fenstermacher, professor at the University of Michigan, presents a plan for education with a limited federal government role and the purpose of advancing and ennobling humankind. oct 31 2008