Transforming Politics Through Faith: A Public Talk and Q&A with Author Michael Wear

Author and former White House faith adviser Michael Wear will visit Wilton Congregational Church on Saturday, Nov. 14, for a public talk and Q&A titled “Transforming Politics Through Faith,” exploring how Christian faith can serve as a starting point for civic engagement, made urgent amid deep political division.

Wear, founder of the Center for Christianity and Public Life and author of The Spirit of Our Politics, will address questions including: what obligations, if any, Christians have to engage public issues; how people of faith can participate constructively in civic life; and what role the church should play in confronting justice, inequality and human flourishing.

The event, free and open to the public, runs from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Wilton Congregational Church. Registration information is available online.

“At Wilton Congregational, we reflect on what it means to be a Christian outside of Sunday morning. Many of us care deeply about public issues, but struggle to find spaces for healthy dialogue or respectful disagreement. I hope these events make room for difficult but pressing conversations that can help us all make more meaning of our collective life together,” Wilton Congregational Church Associate Minister Rev. Dave Stuart said.

The Wear event will come partway into a year-long speaker series, “Faith and Our Public Life: An Approach to Contemporary Issues Through Christianity.” These events will take place most Sundays from 11 a.m. to noon, October 2026 through May 2027. The series brings scholars, nonprofit leaders and faith leaders to the church to discuss pressing issues — including artificial intelligence, bioethics, economic systems, food insecurity and the housing crisis — through a Christian lens. The kickoff event will take place on Oct. 4, featuring Brian Stiltner, professor of theology and religious studies at Sacred Heart University, and co-director of the Hersher Institute for Applied Ethics.

Other speakers include Justin Hawkins (Columbia University), Michele Conderino (CEO, Open Doors), Nancy Coughlin (CEO, Person to Person), Mark Silk (Trinity College) and Jennifer Herdt (Yale Divinity School). All events are free and open to the public.

“Our faith brings us such a rich understanding of the world and our place in it. We want to apply that understanding to the issues pressing on our society and culture, engaging various perspectives, whether faith-based or not,” Rev. Stuart said.

For more information on the Michael Wear event or the full speaker series schedule, visit Wilton Congregational Church online or email Rev. Stuart.

Wilton Congregational Church is a community that seeks to live out the Gospel in relevant, contemporary ways. While we may be at different places in our lives, we share a common belief: Connecting with God and one another through Christ. We cherish all — giving hope, healing and help so that lives and communities may be transformed.

Wear is the founder and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life, an organization dedicated to forming Christian leaders, fostering dialogue and pursuing the common good in the public square. He previously served in the White House faith-based initiatives office and is the author of The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life.