In this episode of the For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael and Phebe present a conversation about child hunger and child poverty and highlights organizations that are doing the essential work on the ground. Jason DeParle, a reporter for The New York Times and author of A Good Provider is One Who Leaves and American Dream, moderates the conversation with Rev. Pamela Irvin, Founder, President and CEO of Feeding Southwest Virginia; Rev. Eugene Cho, President and CEO of Bread for the World; and Anne Filipic, CEO at Share Our Strength. Child poverty fell to a record low in 2021 due to the expansion of government aid during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that rate along with child hunger have now returned to pre-pandemic levels. One in five children in the U.S. are food insecure. These panelists discuss the pathways to addressing and ending child hunger in America.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“Where does that leave us? I guess an optimist could say that having been through the experience of cutting child poverty in half, we’ve seen the potency and potential of government action. Progressives often say that poverty is a policy choice, not a fate. And if the government could cut it in half, they could do so again. Of course, I’m a journalist, not an optimist. A pessimist might point to the political backlash against that aid and especially the current determination among conservative Republicans who control the House of Representatives to make deep cuts to government spending.” -Jason [07:42]

“The way that I think about the work, Yes, I am deeply passionate about making sure that all our children have full bellies, but I think about it more broadly. I think about it as ensuring that all our children have the opportunity to reach their full potential.” -Anne [09:40]

“And I’ll tell you the truth. I’ve seen some of the oldest people that I’ve worked with now for 42 years, and I believe it’s the fountain of youth. When you pour yourself out into someone else, it keeps you young. It keeps you spirited, and it gives you a sense of accomplishment in a way that you couldn’t do it any other way.” -Rev. Irvin [18:35]

“When people ask me the question, ‘How do you think or why do you think people of faith and Christian should be involved in this work?’ I often and respectfully push back and say, how can we not?” -Rev. Cho [19:40]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[02:30] This week’s guests

[06:04] Context on child poverty

[08:27] Disrupting the status quo

[14:38] The power of influence

[19:19] Theology of flourishing

[25:04] Speaking across political divides

[31:01] Government aid vs private aid

[35:00] Outro

REFERENCES

• Rev. Pamela Irvin, Founder, President and CEO of Feeding Southwest Virginia
• Rev. Eugene Cho, President and CEO of Bread for the World
• Anne Filipic, CEO at Share Our Strength
• Jason DeParle, reporter at the New York Times

In this episode of For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael and Phebe present a conversation with Christine Emba, staff writer at the Atlantic and author of Rethinking Sex: A Provocation, and Chine McDonald, director of Theos, a research think tank based in London. Christine argues that when it comes to sexual ethics today, “Consent is the floor. It was never meant to be the ceiling.” In this vital conversation, Christine and Chine help us face the reality of our culture today, and discuss what it might look like to build a healthier culture around sexuality and romantic relationships.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“It also feels like from your work and your conversation with younger people, that there is almost a realization that consent isn’t enough, that there is a dissatisfaction somewhere in their sexual relationships.” -Chine [10:34]

“As a number of people have told me, the vibes are bad. They’re very bad in the romantic culture. And that’s actually true.” -Christine [11:58]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[02:29] What we highlighted this conversation

[04:47] About this week’s guests

[06:11] The problem with the focus on consent

[10:35] It’s ok to want intimacy

[15:44] Men and toxic masculinity

[23:12] The role of the Church

[28:07] Outro

REFERENCES

• Christine Emba’s articles at The Atlantic
• Rethinking Sex: A Provocation by Christine Emba
• Chine McDonald
• For the Good of the Public, Episode 9: Faith and Belonging
• Men are lost. Here’s a map out of the wilderness. By Christine Emba
• Theos
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• Let’s rethink sex by Christine Emba
• Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community

CONNECT WITH US:

Website: www.ccpubliclife.org

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Facebook: Center for Christianity & Public Life

Instagram: @ccpubliclife

In this episode of For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael and Phebe present an agenda-setting speech by U.S. Senator Chris Murphy delivered at CCPL’s inaugural summit about the “spiritual crisis” in America in which “millions of Americans feel like they have lost their sense of purpose, their identity, their conception of meaning.” Senator Murphy argues that “if we want to restore the spiritual health of this nation, then we have got to have a more purposeful and more powerful policy of supporting strong healthy religious institutions and a loud, vibrant labor movement.”

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“Civic leaders are asking these questions. There’s an invitation on the table for Christians to engage in a substantive way, and it’s worth considering. What do you have to offer? What do you have to say?” -Michael [03:12]

“What I believe is that supporting institutions that help build the common good and help grow social connection, it just has to be at the center, not at the periphery, of our public work.” -Senator Murphy [18:07]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[03:35] About this week’s guest

[04:02] A spiritual crisis

[07:06] What makes a good life?

[12:18] The need for strong institutions

[18:18] Restoring America’s soul

[22:05] Outro

REFERENCES

• U.S. Senator Chris Murphy
• Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community
• Murphy, Casey Introduce Bill to Fight Social Isolation and Loneliness Among Older Americans
• National Strategy for Social Connection Act
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
• Civilian unemployment rate
• Harvard Study of Adult Development
• The State of American Friendship: Change, Challenges, and Loss: Findings from the May 2021 American Perspectives Survey by Daniel A. Cox
• Unions increase job satisfaction in the United States by Benjamin Artz, David G. Blanchflower and Alex Bryson
• Shawn Fain, President of United Automobile Workers (UAW)
• The Spirit of Our Politics by Michael Wear

In this episode of the For the Good of the Public podcast, we present two sessions on the topic of moral knowledge. In the first session, Dr. Steve L. Porter, senior research fellow and executive director of Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture at Westmont College, moderates a theoretical conversation about moral knowledge, in context of higher education, with Brandon Paradise, Associate Professor of Law and Professor Dallas Willard Scholar at Rutgers Law School; Dr. Cheryl Sanders, professor of Christian Ethics at the Howard University School and the senior pastor at Third Street Church of God in Washington D.C.; and Matthew Scogin, president of Hope College. This panel reveals the differences in approaches about moral knowledge as they discuss ways to combat the abandonment of moral formation and if moral knowledge can be taught. In the second conversation, Anne Snyder, editor-of-chief of Comment Magazine and founder of Breaking Ground, interviews President Scogin about Hope Forward, a pilot program that is reimagining a way of how students pay for college. Matthew shares the five specific areas the school is studying in this gift-based system and the impact and transformation they have seen in the students as a result of this gift.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“You don’t have to go to school to learn how to be good.” -Cheryl [16:26]

“We want to be able to produce good people, so when Michael, in his opening remarks, talked about the state of our politics and its quality, partly tied to the quality of the people who make it up and the quality of the soul, that’s directly relevant to us today.” -Steve [21:47]

“I’m perfectly content with young people being taught very early on that you treat people equally with high respect and regard, independent of what we now call in the legal world–suspect classifications.” -Brandon [26:09]

“I think we live in a society that often likes to say, ‘You need to put skin the game to really get invested’–and I’m sure you get that critique from time to time–but what I just watched was students from all over the world from all kinds of backgrounds suddenly having an aha moment of ‘I am so humbled by this. I am clearly part of some broader fabric out there of goodwill and trust and belief, and I am now going to pursue medicine in that same spirit.’” -Anne [49:33]

“There’s 4,000 colleges and universities in the United States. If we had all 4,000 presidents in the room, every single one of them–with the exception of the very elite institutions who have ginormous endowments–every single one of the presidents knows the business model is broken. And yet, no one is doing anything about it. And what we decided is how about instead of waiting for somebody else to solve our problem, let’s just do it.” -Matthew [55:23]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[00:13] Two sessions as a coherent whole

[02:10] Difference of approaches

[03:33] Meet the panelists

[05:05] The disappearance of moral knowledge

[15:24] Can moral knowledge be taught?

[20:22] Moral knowledge tied to virtue

[28:04] Power and accountability

[34:16] Where they see hope

[38:45] A conversation with Anne and Matthew

[41:51] About Hope Forward

[44:54] Five observations of Hope Forward

[51:09] The challenges, pushback and skepticism

[53:16] Sometimes you just have to focus on the practice

[56:18] Outro

REFERENCES

• Matthew Scogin, president of Hope College

In this episode of the For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael and Phebe share a powerful conversation about the role and resource of prayer in our public life and politics. James Catford, founding chair of The Center for Christianity and Public Life, moderates the discussion with Reverend Cece Jones-Davis and U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black about the significance prayer has been in their outreach and work. Rev. Jones-Davis shares her story about how she relies on prayer in her work as an activist. Chaplain Black draws from his experiences in public leadership as the chaplain of the U.S. Senate and a trusted advisor and confidant of civic leaders across the political spectrum.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“I know this conversation moved many to tears and moved many into, I think, a deeper place of conviction that we don’t need to live bifurcated lives. That we can bring the whole of who we are to our civic life and make a difference there.” -Michael [02:56]

“It was a powerful testimony to the fact that prayer not only transforms in our lives, but it also really does have the power to transform our external environment as well.” -Phebe [03:27]

“I have a minute and a half worth of decent prayer material before I start repeating myself without an open bible. But with an open bible, I can pray for hours, and with an open bible, I give God the courtesy of starting the conversation.” -Chaplain Black [18:07]

“God is found when we reach the end of our capabilities. He shows up there.” -James [22:38]

“Prayer will always be essential, but it will not be prayer alone. We have to be willing to do the work.” -Rev. Jones-Davis [29:19]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[03:42] About this week’s guests

[04:30] Prayer: A communication with God

[09:18] Prayer as the most significant thing in their stories

[19:26] The Prayer of Tears

[22:48] What Chaplain Black thinks about when he prays

[26:34] Advice from Rev. Jones-Davis and Chaplain Black

[35:30] Outro

REFERENCES

• James Catford, founding board chair for The Center for Christianity and Public Life
• Reverend Cece Jones-Davis
• 2023 Public Life Fellows
• U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black
• Justice for Julius
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• Great Is Thy Faithfulness by Thomas Chisholm
• The love of God is greater far by Frederick Martin Lehman

CONNECT WITH US:

Website: www.ccpubliclife.org

X: @CCPublicLife

Facebook: Center for Christianity &...

In this episode of For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael speaks with Elizabeth Bruenig, a journalist at The Atlantic. Elizabeth’s series on the death penalty in Alabama tells stories in such a raw and humanizing way that it was named a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing. This candid and deep conversation reflects on the issue as a moral and policy matter as well as reveal Elizabeth’s approach to her coverage and why these stories are important. She shares how keeping an open heart allows her to sustain in this difficult reporting while also informing her passion and motivation to continue to tell these stories.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“Inmates, they’re the forgotten ones of our society, and she tells these stories in a really raw and humanizing way.” -Phebe [02:02]

“What I see in the forgiveness that I’ve witnessed just doing this work is that forgiveness is a gift you give to other people.” -Elizabeth [18:47]

“In the end, I’m convinced that the state of our politics is a reflection of the state of our souls.” -Michael [28:08]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[00:46] The importance of this conversation

[03:39] What led Elizabeth to Alabama

[07:02] Elizabeth’s approach to her reporting

[11:00] The influence of her work

[17:18] The virtue of forgiveness

[23:55] Keep an open heart

[27:43] There’s good and evil inside all of us

[30:56] Outro

REFERENCES

• Elizabeth Bruenig
• Pulitzer Prize Finalist: Elizabeth Bruenig of The Atlantic
• Elizabeth Bruenig on Alabama’s Botched Executions
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• Execution of Joe Nathan James Jr.
• Alan Eugene Miller
• Execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith
• The Innocence Project
• Burl Cain, commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections
• Criminal menopause
• Alabama Executes James Barber
• John Sage, Founder and CEO of Bridges To Life
• Sister Norma Pimentel
• A Conversation on Justice and Character with Gary...

In this episode of For the Good of the Public podcast, Michael and Phebe share a conversation with Ryan Burge, an associate professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, Tara Isabella Burton, a writer and a 2023 Public Life Fellow, and Chine McDonald, director of Theos, a religious society think tank based in UK. There has been a rise in religious disaffiliation or people who desire to distance themselves from the institutional church, especially among Gen Z and millennials. The panelists bring their perspective as they provide a deep dive on the current religious trends and demographics, and what the “Rise of the Nones” means for American politics, culture and communities.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“I think this is one of the most significant demographic and cultural shifts that’s taken place in American life over the last couple of decades, and so that’s an important reason for us to be hosting a conversation.” -Phebe [01:15]

“It’s a trend that’s impacting every aspect of American society. There’s no demographic group that you can name that has not been more secularized today than 10 or 15 years ago, whether it be race or age or gender or politics or region. Everyone–basically every demographic group in America today—is less religious than they were 10 or 15 years ago. -Ryan [06:30]

“One of the positives that one of my previous bosses used to say when looking at this from a religious disaffiliation in the UK was actually what you were left with was the real Christians, right? Because it was no longer socially advantageous to go to church or to occupy a pew on a Sunday morning.” -Chine [20:09]

“I wonder–and I don’t have the wisdom to have the answer–how one preserves both the openness and the communal importance of religious life without ceding ground that church is just another thing you can choose to do with your Sunday.” -Tara [24:49]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[01:05] Why did we host this conversation?

[01:56] About this week’s speakers

[03:36] More introductions

[05:31] People leaving the church

[08:57] Community and belonging

[15:16] American non-religion

[20:06] What cause the disaffiliation

[25:57] What they see in the future

[30:28] Outro

REFERENCES

• 2023 Public Life Fellows
• Theos
• Ryan Burge’s Substack
• Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World by Tara Isabella Burton
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going by Ryan Burge
• The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? by Michael Graham, Ryan Burge and Jim Davis
• Self-Made: Creating Our Identities from Da Vinci to...

In this episode of For the Good of the Public, Michael and Phebe share a conversation with Dr. Rosalind Picard and Michael Sacasas about artificial intelligence (AI). Dr. Picard is a scientist, inventor, engineer, a member of the faculty of MIT's Media Lab, founder and director of the Affective Computing research group at the MIT Media Lab and co-founder of Affectiva (now part of Smart Eye) and Empatica. Michael is the executive director of the Christian Study Center of Gainesville, Florida and author of The Convivial Society newsletter about technology, culture and the moral life. In this conversation, Sacasas and Dr. Picard discuss the implications of advanced Artificial Intelligence, and how Christian resources might contribute to how civic leaders and the general public navigate these technological developments and the attending challenges and opportunities.

Watch the video recording of this talk on YouTube!

“What I think is exciting about this moment, and this conversation around artificial intelligence, is that I think that people are engaging with these developments in a way that says, We don’t just have to passively receive these technological developments. We can be discerning. We can even shape how these technologies develop.” -Michael [01:24]

“I think at its very core, the advancements around AI are causing us to ask some of the most essential questions that Christianity has provided answers for around what does it mean to be human? Who are we? What were we created for?” -Phebe [03:08]

“Because there has been a long history of various cycles of development in AI and AI winters and hype cycles that come with it as well, right now we’re in a moment that feels as if things are changing very quickly, evolving very quickly.” -Michael Sacasas [07:17]

“If we can inspire more people working on technology to serve the folks that are being left out, the world would be a much better place.” -Dr. Picard [14:43]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro

[03:38] About Dr. Rosalind Picard

[04:07] About Michael Sacasas

[04:37] The term “artificial intelligence”

[07:18] AI in this moment

[12:57] Dr. Picard’s faith has impacted her work

[17:05] Wisdom to share

[20:53] Pitching Affective Computing

[22:33] How to live faithfully in the moment

[24:47] Outro

REFERENCES

• MIT Media Lab
• MIT’s Affective Computing
• Empatica
• Affectiva
• Christian Study Center of Gainesville
• The Convivial Society
• For the Good of the Public Summit
• President Biden’s Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence
• ChatGPT