We cannot ignore the current state of our politics and the toll it has taken on the American public. As we approach another election season we wanted to provide you with encouragement and guidance on how we connect our spirituality and our politics. Guest Michael Wear joins Ruth to discuss why he believes the state of our politics is indicative to the state of our souls. Ruth and Michael also discuss how important it is to bring our own formation to our politics, how politics can be an essential form in which to love our neighbors and why we need to avoid the false bifurcation of our spiritual lives and our political lives.

Michael Wear is founder, president, and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life, a nonpartisan, nonprofit institution based in the nation's capital with the mission to contend for the credibility of Christian resources in public life, for the public good. He has served as a trusted resource and advisor for a range of civic leaders on matters of faith and public life for the last fifteen years, including as a White House and presidential campaign staffer. Wear previously led Public Square Strategies, a consulting firm he founded that helps religious organizations, political organizations, businesses and others effectively navigate the rapidly changing American religious and political landscape. He is the author of "The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life," which argues that the kind of people we are has much to do with the kind of politics and public life we will have.

Mentioned in this episode:

The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life by Michael Wear

Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned in the Obama White House by Michael Wear

The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard

The Case for Self Forgetfulness by Tim Keller

Unoffendable by Brant Hansen

Invitation to a Journey by Robert Mulholland

Life Together by Dedrich Bonehoffer

Music Credit:

Kingdom Come by Aaron Niequist

No Matter What from Music in Solitude

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