One of the big challenges in higher education today is polarization in the classroom, which of course reflects the polarization of the country at large. Professors like Dr. Amy Uelmen are trying to figure out how to encourage their students to speak and listen to each other across divides on complex social issues where there are no easy answers.

Amy is a professor at the Georgetown Law Center, where she’s also a special assistant to the dean and the director of mission and ministry. Just in case that’s not enough to keep her busy, Amy is also a Senior Research Fellow at the Berkley Center on Religion, Peace and World Affairs. Host Mike Jordan Laskey asked her about her work at the intersections of faith, morality and law, and also to see if they could tease out some tips that those of us who aren’t in law school could use when trying to connect with people we disagree with on thorny issues.

Amy is also a member of the Focolare Movement, a lay ecclesial movement and international organization founded in Italy by Chiara Lubich in 1943. Focolare is centered on Christ’s prayer from the Gospel “that they all may be one,” so it’s clear to see how Amy’s faith life is leading directly to her research and work in the classroom.

Learn more about Amy: https://www.law.georgetown.edu/faculty/amelia-j-uelmen/

Essay on dialogue after the January 6 riot: https://canopyforum.org/2021/01/13/whither-dialogue-after-the-capitol-riot/

Learn more about Focolare: https://www.focolare.org/en/

AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States.

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