Congregations Building Bridges: Renewing Civic Engagement as Our Common Purpose

Join the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis for a panel discussion organized with the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and Union Theological Seminary.

Americans today are deeply divided. As the Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship recently noted, “When Americans are asked what unites us across our differences, the increasingly common answer is nothing.” Nowhere has this seemed more true than when it comes to religion. Religion has played a crucial role in promoting conflict and polarization, yet religious communities are an essential part of bridging current social and political divides. This panel of religious leaders and experts intends to foster thinking about ways that religious communities might become spaces that bridge divides, rather than make them deeper—bridge building that is located in a larger sense of civic engagement and community. The panel is inspired by the recent report published by the Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship convened by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, “Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century.”

Prof. Marie Griffith, Director of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics, will moderate the discussion with panelists to include:

• The Rev. Traci Blackmon, Executive Minister of Justice & Witness Ministries, United Church of Christ
• Prof. David Campbell, Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy at the University of Notre Dame
• Sr. Simone Campbell, Former Executive Director NETWORK Lobby for Social Catholic Justice
• The Rev. Dr. Serene Jones, President of Union Theological Seminary
• Rabbi Rolando Matalon, Senior Rabbi at B’nai Jeshurun
• Iman Eldin Susa, St. Louis Islamic Center NUR

Register in advance for this webinar here.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.