Join the Conversation on Faith, Justice, and Democracy

Faith and Freedom: Exploring Religious Liberty and Civil Rights

How do religious liberty and civil rights shape freedom for everyone? BJC and Wake Forest University will explore that question during the 2026 Walter B. and Kay W. Shurden Lectures, October 21–22, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Grand Canyon Synod members can participate from home through the October 21 livestream; recordings of both events will be available afterward.

This year’s theme, “Faith and Freedom at 250: Religious Liberty, Justice, and the Unfinished Work of Democracy,”invites participants to examine connections among race, religion, constitutional history, and equal participation in public life.

For Lutherans, these questions connect with our baptismal calling to serve all people and strive for justice and peace. Loving our neighbors includes respecting their freedom of conscience and supporting their full participation in community life, including neighbors whose beliefs differ from our own.

October 21: Lecture by Maya Wiley

Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, will speak at 5 p.m. Easternat Wake Forest University’s Porter Byrum Welcome Center. The lecture will be livestreamed and recorded.

For viewers in our synod, the livestream begins at 2 p.m. in most of Arizona and Nevada, and 3 p.m. in the Navajo Nation and St. George, Utah.

October 22: A Conversation on Religious Liberty and Justice

Wiley will join Audra Savage and Amanda Tyler for a conversation moderated by Corey D. B. Walker at 11 a.m. Easternat the Worrell Professional Center, Wake Forest University School of Law. This conversation will be recorded and shared after the event.

Together, the events will examine how church-state law and civil-rights law have often been treated separately—and how bringing those histories into conversation can deepen our understanding of freedom and belonging.

Register and learn more on BJC’s Shurden Lectures page. Invite a colleague, friend, or congregational group to watch the lecture and discuss what religious freedom for everyone means in your community.