Reflecting on Israel-Gaza at One Year: Perspectives from the three Abrahamic Faiths. RSVP

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2024 Leadership Conference Speakers

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Dr. Mark David Hall is a Professor in Regent University’s Robertson School of Government, Director of Religious Liberty in the States, and a Senior Fellow at the Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy. He is also Distinguished Scholar of Christianity & Public Life at George Fox University and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University. He has written, edited, or co-edited fifteen books, the most recent of which is Who’s Afraid of Christian Nationalism?: Why Christian Nationalism is Not an Existential Threat to America or the Church. Dr. Hall received his PhD in government from the University of Virginia.

William B. Hurlbut, M.D., has “a longstanding interest in the relationship between biotechnology, human purpose and character formation.”

He is a physician and Consulting Professor at the Neuroscience Institute. After receiving his undergraduate and medical training at Stanford University, he completed postdoctoral studies in theology and medical ethics, studying with Robert Hamerton-Kelly, the Dean of the Chapel at Stanford, and subsequently with the Rev. Louis Bouyer of the Institut Catholique de Paris. His primary areas of interest involve the ethical issues associated with advancing biomedical technology, the biological basis of moral awareness, and studies in the integration of theology and philosophy of biology.

He is the author of numerous publications on science and ethics including the co-edited volume Altruism and Altruistic Love: Science, Philosophy, and Religion in Dialogue (2002, Oxford University Press), and “Science, Religion and Human Spirit” in the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Science and Religion. He is also co-chair of two interdisciplinary faculty projects at Stanford University, “Becoming Human: The Evolutionary Origins of Spiritual, Religious, and Moral Awareness,” and “Brain, Mind and Emergence.”

In addition to teaching at Stanford, he has worked with NASA on projects in Astrobiology and is a member of the Chemical and Biological Warfare working group at the Center for International Security and Cooperation. Since 2002 he has served on the President’s Council on Bioethics. He is the author of Altered Nuclear Transfer, a proposed technological solution to the moral controversy over embryonic stem cell research.

AT Johnston currently serves as The Director of the Congressional Excellence Program Office for the United States House of Representatives. In this role she leads a group of scholar practitioners who work directly with Members of Congress and their chiefs to provide a senior level leadership and management development program. The program was started as a pilot in 2022 and established as an office under AT’s leadership.

Prior to this role, AT served at the US Department of Defense as Assistant Secretary (acting) of Defense for Legislative Affairs, as well as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Affairs OSDLA.

For two years, AT headed the Office of Military Community and Family policy. AT served in the Bush Administration in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs as a Special Assistant to the President. At the US Department of Energy, she served as a Deputy Assistant Secretary.

During her tenure on Capitol Hill, AT served in several personal offices as well as staff to the House Armed Services Committee, House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress.

AT has been married to Murray Johnston for over 29 years. They helped plant Christ the King Anglican in Alexandria and have both served in multiple ministries there. Their son and daughter-in-law serve as officers in the US Army currently stationed at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, Alaska along with their daughter Thea. Their daughter is pursuing Theological studies at Christ Church, Waco as a Brazos Fellow.

Yuval Levin is the director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute and the editor of National Affairs, he is also a senior editor at The New Atlantis, a contributing editor at National Review, and a contributing opinion writer at the New York Times. He served as a member of the White House domestic policy staff under President George W. Bush, and was a congressional staffer at the member, committee, and leadership levels. He holds a PhD from the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago.

At AEI, Dr. Levin and scholars in the Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies research division study the foundations of self-government and the future of law, regulation, and constitutionalism. They also explore the state of American social, political, and civic life, focusing on the preconditions necessary for family, community, and country to flourish.

In addition to being interviewed frequently on radio and television, Dr. Levin has published essays and articles in numerous publications, including Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Commentary. He is the author of several books on political theory and public policy, most recently American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation – and Could Again (Basic Books, 2024).

Elaine Griffith Petty has a broad background of professional experience in the areas of medicine, education, legislation and theology that uniquely intersect at the crossroads of morals and ethics. Her experience ranges from working as a pediatric oncology nurse at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC to training groups, coaching individuals and teaching bioethics among university students, business and government leaders in the U.S. and internationally.

As a faculty member of the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University, Elaine teaches bioethics to medical students, helping them learn how to develop coherent moral reasoning as they deal with challenging ethical cases while preparing to become medical doctors. Elaine was an Associate Director for the International School Project, a joint venture with the Russian Ministry of Education training Russian teachers to use a curriculum teaching biblical morals and ethics. She also served as a Congressional Fellow in the office of U.S. Senator Connie Mack, where she addressed human rights issues concerning international religious freedom.

Elaine has a B.S. in Nursing and received her Master’s Degree in Bioethics from Georgetown University. Her article on Moral Implications of Embryonic Stem Cell Research was published by Georgetown University and her master’s thesis entitled Women for Sale and Eggs Needed: Is the Market for Egg Donation Developing Without Oversight That Protects Organ Donors? addresses ethical concerns surrounding the growing market for human egg donors.

John Shelton is the policy director for Advancing American Freedom (founded by Vice President Mike Pence). A former congressional staffer and graduate of Duke Divinity School and the University of Virginia, John has written for various outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, National Affairs, First Things, and The Gospel Coalition. He started attending Faith and Law in 2017 and now leads its Senate Reading Group.

Dr. Luke Winslow is an associate professor of rhetorical studies in the Department of Communication at Baylor University. He joined the faculty at Baylor in 2020 after teaching for six years in the School of Communication at San Diego State University. His teaching and research interests include political communication, contemporary rhetorical criticism, and the rhetoric of religion. He is the author of more than 30 scholarly articles and book chapters and five books, including most recently, Oligarchy in America: Power, Justice, and the Rule of the Few. He lives in Waco, Texas, with his wife, Addie, and their three children.

Dr. Charmaine Yoest is the Executive Director of the House Values Action Team of the United States Congress, which is a caucus of Congressmen focused on domestic policy issues, which is chaired by Congressman Robert Aderholt. She is also an Adjunct Professor at Pepperdine University in their School of Public Policy. Charmaine has served in many facets of political life - in the White House, on a presidential campaign, and leading a national nonprofit. She has appeared as a spokesperson on every major television network and cable outlet, and has been published in the leading national publications. She has provided testimony in front of the United States Congress on multiple occasions. She is also the author of Mother in the Middle (HarperCollins), an examination of the issues, concerns and public policy questions related to women and work. Previously, Charmaine served as the Executive Director of The 30 Day Fund, a private 501c3 foundation that provided funds to assist small businesses during the global pandemic. She also served as a Vice President of the Heritage Foundation, leading the domestic policy work during the time the organization was voted #1 for Policy Impact three years running. Those issues included health care and welfare reform, education policy, family formation, women’s issues and religious liberty. Charmaine served in the White House as Associate Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and also as the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services where she provided leadership for the $1.3 trillion Department’s public affairs programs, and coordination of strategic messaging across the 11 HHS Operating Divisions.