Initiative on Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life

About the Initiative

Wake Forest University School of Divinity’s Initiative on Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life is a scholarly hub for critically examining how religion influences American public life and democracy. The initiative builds on the school’s ecumenical and interfaith commitments and, most recently, on the 2023 Elizabeth and Robert Strickland Symposium, “Religion, Pluralism, and the Fate of Democracy.” Through lectures, seminars, and public discussions by Wake Forest faculty and other leading scholars, the initiative aims to create unique intellectual spaces to engage some of the most challenging issues facing society and humanity.

Sacred, Secular, Solidarity: New Visions of the Common Good

More about the 2026-2027 Theme

“This initiative will provide the University and the broader public with essential resources to deepen civil discourse and civic engagement in a time when both are critical to our future. I applaud the School of Divinity for boldly engaging in this important work.”

Susan R. Wente, 14th President of Wake Forest University

View the Announcement

At the installation service of Corey D. B. Walker as Dean of the Wake Forest University School of Divinity, the Wake Forest University’s 14th President Susan R. Wente announced she has committed funding to support the initiative on “Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life” that will be based at the School of Divinity.

Read the Media Release

Program for 2026-2027

The Initiative on Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life will continue its 2026–2027 exploration of the theme “Sacred, Secular, Solidarity: New Visions of the Common Good.” Building upon the conversations and insights generated during the previous year, the Initiative will deepen its examination of how religious and secular traditions can contribute to the cultivation of democratic life, civic responsibility, and shared flourishing in a pluralistic society.

As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of its founding, the Initiative will use this historic moment as an opportunity for critical reflection on the nation’s democratic experiment, its enduring aspirations, and its unfinished work. The semiquincentennial invites renewed consideration of the role that religion, moral reasoning, and civic institutions have played—and continue to play—in shaping American public life.

The 2026–2027 program will place particular emphasis on the relationship between America’s constitutional ideals and the realities of pluralism in the twenty-first century. By bringing together voices from across disciplines and sectors, the Initiative seeks to illuminate how sacred and secular commitments can serve as sources of civic imagination, public responsibility, and collective action.

Program for 2025-2026

The Initiative on Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life program for 2025–2026 will explore the theme “Sacred, Secular, Solidarity: New Visions of the Common Good.” Throughout the year, the Initiative will convene leading scholars, policy officials, and public thinkers to examine the pressing challenge of cultivating sustainable forms of civic engagement and solidarity that advance a broad and inclusive vision of the common good. Through a series of lectures, symposia, research projects, and public dialogues, this year’s program will address the critical issues confronting American democracy in a time of deep social division and moral uncertainty. In doing so, the Initiative seeks to affirm a pluralistic and hopeful vision capable of renewing the moral and civic foundations of American public life.

Program for 2024-2025

The Initiative on Religion, Pluralism, and American Public Life inaugural program for 2024-2025 will focus on the theme “Across the Borders of Tradition: Conversations in Jewish and Christian Thought and Theology.” Over the course of the year, the initiative will feature some of the nation’s leading theologians and scholars of religion examining the intersections of Christian and Jewish thought and theology, new directions in Jewish and African American religious thought and theology, and religion, pluralism, and democratic futures.

“In a moment when our nation is embroiled in an intense struggle over the very substance of democracy in America, an understanding of how religion fuels our highest aspirations and animates our deepest fears is needed now more than ever.”

Corey D. B. Walker, Dean and Wake Forest Professor of the Humanities