Carl Caton is the founder and president of the San Antonio Marriage Initiative, a ministry focused on bringing help and hope to the city of San Antonio. Carl and his team, in partnership with volunteers around Texas, seek to network, equip, and mobilize the local church community to strengthen marriages in the city.

One of the organization's key strategies is to "identify best practices and resources" and to "collaborate with like-minded individuals who will deploy that knowledge throughout the local faith community." This, amazingly, includes the family law community. 

Listen in as Carl describes a vision for the family that includes reliance on the expertise of lawyers, judges, and others invested in the family law system. Carl also sees the need to minister to and encourage those attorneys and judges in the system, who see, day after day, the toll taken divorce and custody battles. His compassion for the legal professionals runs deep in his own history, and listeners will be inspired by his wisdom for those seeking to do redemptive work in this field. Carl Caton's message is a message of hope and redemption in a troubled world and profession. 

For more information on the San Antonio Marriage Initiative, visit their website. 

Mike Schutt is host of Cross & Gavel and is Clinical Associate Professor at Trinity Law School and director of Law Student Ministries for Christian Legal Society. 

Join host Mike Schutt as he welcomes local preacher Drew Nelson to the podcast to talk about the classic "On the Incarnation," by Saint Athanasius, 4th Century Bishop of Alexandria. 

As a young man, Athanasius attended the Council of Nicea and spent the rest of his life standing firm against the Arian heresy that remained popular, despite its condemnation by Nicea. 

On the Incarnation is a wide-ranging apologetic regarding the eternal Son of God taking on flesh to reveal the Father and save humanity. 

Drew and Mike read the book with their Wednesday morning men's group, and they report on their impressions. 

Drew Nelson in preacher at Southside Church of Christ in Mount Pleasant, TX, and Mike Schutt is host of the Cross & Gavel podcast, director of Christian Legal Society's Law Student Ministries, and Clinical Associate Professor at Trinity Law School.

Cross & Gavel is a project of Trinity Law and CLS.  

The CLS Law School Fellows program is designed to build a community of scholars around the topics of professional formation, vocational stewardship, and Christian jurisprudence. Each year, CLS gathers a group of students in Washington, DC for an intense week of lectures, mentoring, discussion, and fellowship. CLS pays the expenses of accepted candidates. 

In this episode of Cross & Gavel, Fellows Founding Director Mike Schutt discusses the program with CLS CEO David Nammo, Trinity Law School Dean and Fellows faculty member Myron Steeves, and two 2018 Fellows, Ronia Dubbaneh and Paulina Belovarski, who are both attorneys. 

For more information on the Fellows program, visit the website. Rising 1Ls and 2Ls should apply before midnight on March 1!

Cross & Gavel Audio is a cooperative project of Christian Legal Society and Trinity Law School. 

The Department of Education has proposed new regulations that are open for comment by the general public. Two sections of the new regulations are designed to protect religious student groups from being singled out and denied benefits because of their religious identity. 

Kim Colby, Director of the Center for Law and Religious Freedom at Christian Legal Society, summarizes the proposed regs and why they are needed. She also suggests that those who are in support of these regs should take action to comment in support of their final adoption.

Here are the regulations Kim addresses on the podcast:

Proposed regulation 34 CFR § 75.500(d) (§ 76.500(d) is essentially verbatim):

“A public institution shall not deny to a religious student organization at the public institution any right, benefit, or privilege that is otherwise afforded to other student organizations at the public institution (including full access to the facilities of the public institution and official recognition of the organization by the public institution) because of the beliefs, practices, policies, speech, membership standards, or leadership standards of the religious student organization.” 

The Center for Law and Religious Freedom has a guide to the regs and tips on how to comment at CLSReligiousFreedom.org/CampusComments. Here are the basic steps on how to submit a comment on or before February 18:

1. Go to https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=ED-2019-OPE-0080-0001  (You are at the right place if the title is “Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, Direct Grant Programs, State-Administered Formula Grant   Programs, Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program, and Strengthening Institutions Program” and the ID No. is ED-2019-OPE-0080-0001.)
2. In the upper right hand of the page, press “Comment Now.”
3. Write your comment in the large blank space in the middle of the page (up to 5000 characters).
4. At the top of your comment, type ID: ED-2019-OPE-0080-0001.
5. If your comment is a document longer than 5000 characters or you want to include an attachment, type in the blank space, “I support the Department’s proposed regulations 34 CFR § 75.500(d) and § 76.500(d) for the reasons given in the attached comment” and upload the longer document or other attachment below the large blank space.
6. Fill in your first and last name (or initial). Note that your name will appear on the public website.
7. Hit “continue” to go to the next page.
8. Check the small box indicating that you “have read and understand the statement.
9. Hit “submit comment.”

Cross & Gavel Audio is a cooperative ministry of Christian Legal Society and Trinity Law School. Mike Schutt is director of CLS Law Student Ministries and the Institute for Christian Legal Studies. He is a Clinical Associate Professor at Trinity Law. 

Law professor Jeff Brauch argues that our beliefs about human nature will drive our politics, our policy, and our culture. In his recent book, Flawed Perfection: What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters for Culture, Politics, and Law (2017), he lays out a compelling case for the importance of an accurate understanding of human nature.

He begins with the idea that our fundamental presuppositions about the nature of human beings will drive how we approach almost anything in the public sphere. From there, he provides examples from the fields of human rights, criminal justice, and bioethics, to name a few. 

Join Professor Brauch, Executive Director of Regent Law School's Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law, as he and host Mike Schutt discuss this important topic. 

Professor Brauch joined the Regent Law faculty in 1994 and served as dean from 1999-2015. He has taught Christian Foundations of Law, International Human Rights, Civil Liberties and National Security, Torts, Negotiations, International Criminal Law and other courses.

Prior to teaching, Brauch served as a law clerk for Justice William Callow of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and then worked five years as an associate with Milwaukee law firm Quarles & Brady, where he specialized in commercial litigation.

Cross and Gavel is a project of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, a cooperative ministry of Regent University School or Law and Christian Legal Society, founded eighteen years ago through the collaboration of Dean Brauch and CLS in the work of Cross & Gavel host Mike Schutt. 

Pick up a copy of Flawed Perfection from our friends Byron and Beth Borger at Hearts & Minds Bookstore. 

On the 80th episode of Cross & Gavel, August Huckabee, economics professor at Worldview at the Abbey in Colorado, returns ("Feel the Bern," Ep. 52) to discuss cultural trends and countermeasures in these strange times.

August teaches students at the Abbey, directs TeenPact programs around the country, and lectures at Worldview Academy. Host Mike Schutt asks him about trends he is seeing in this generation and what educators and parents might do to cultivate both courage and grace in the face of the challenges facing people of faith as they both engage and create culture.

Join the conversation and pass it on to friends! You'll be encouraged and edified by the conversation. 

If you'd like to learn more about Worldview Academy or Worldview at the Abbey, follow the links. 

Here are some of the books Huck and Mike discuss on this episode. Visit our friends at Hearts & Minds Books to order:

• F.A. Hayek, The Road to Serfdom
• Burton W. Folsom, The Myth of the Robber Barons
• Milton Friedman, Capitalism and Freedom

Cross & Gavel is a project of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society. 

This week, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, holding that the Commission's "clear and impermissible hostility toward" religious beliefs violated the First Amendment of the US Constitution. Already, commentators dispute the breadth and lasting import of the Court's 7-2 holding on narrow legal grounds. 

In this episode, Mike Schutt talks with Kim Colby about these questions. Kim is Director of Christian Legal Society's Center for Law & Religious Freedom, an expert in First Amendment law and a long-time friend of religious freedom. 

Listen in as the discuss what the case held, why, and what the holding may mean for future cases. Also learn what Constitutional lawyers mean by GVR. 

Kim Colby is the director of Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom , where she has worked since graduating from Harvard Law School in 1981. She has represented religious groups in several appellate cases, including two cases heard by the United
States Supreme Court. She has filed numerous amicus briefs in federal and state courts. Ms. Colby has prepared several CLS publications addressing issues about religious expression in public schools, including released time programs, implementation of the Equal Access 

Act, and teachers’ religious expression.

Visit the Center's website for resources on its first amendment work. 

Cross & Gavel is a production of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society. 

Episode 78 is Part 2 of our conversation about three Academy Award-nominated films, and it focuses on Call Me By Your Name, a romanticization of predatory sexual relationship. It's visual beauty hides the reality behind the relationship at the heart of the story and the deadly message that sexual experience is the defining element of our lives. 

Dr. Trotter and Mike Schutt discuss this film and its themes, and they wander into topics of movie-going, thoughtful criticism, and Christian worldview on the way. While the conversation is rated PG-16, you'll be edified by their approach to this movie and films in general. 

Drew Trotter is the Executive Director of the Consortium of ChristianStudy Centers. He was for twenty-two years the Executive Director and President of the Center for Christian Study in Charlottesville, VA. Drew has written on film and popular culture for over thirty years in such publications as Books & Culture, Christianity Today and Critique, and in the field of Biblical studies. For over twenty years, he has presented a seminar entitled Show and Tell: How to View a Movie Responsibly, helping laypeople and students in churches, Christian college and secular university environments understand this powerful medium and how to think about its influence both on the individual and the society. He has taught seminars on popular culture, university education in America today, a Biblical model of discipleship and how to interpret the Scriptures. Drew has three sons, two daughters-in-law and six grandchildren and lives with his wife of forty-four years, Marie, in Charlottesville, VA. 

Mike Schutt is host of the Cross & Gavel Podcast. He is Associate Professor at Regent University School of Law, Director of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, and director of Law Student Ministries at Christian Legal Society. He is the editor in chief of the Journal of Christian Legal Thought and director of the CLS Law School Fellows program. 

Dr. Drew Trotter, executive director of the Consortium of Christian Study Centers, is a film critic who understands the role that movies play in shaping us as a society. His lecture, The Movies and America: What the Nominees for Best Picture Tell Us About Ourselves, is an annual favorite around the country. 

In this episode, Dr. Trotter sits down with host Mike Schutt to discuss three of the nominees, including the winner for best picture. In Part one, they discuss Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water and Greta Gerwig's Ladybird. 

Drew Trotter is the Executive Director of the Consortium of ChristianStudy Centers. He was for twenty-two years the Executive Director and President of the Center for Christian Study in Charlottesville, VA. Drew has written on film and popular culture for over thirty years in such publications as Books & Culture, Christianity Today and Critique, and in the field of Biblical studies. For over twenty years, he has presented a seminar entitled Show and Tell: How to View a Movie Responsibly, helping laypeople and students in churches, Christian college and secular university environments understand this powerful medium and how to think about its influence both on the individual and the society. He has taught seminars on popular culture, university education in America today, a Biblical model of discipleship and how to interpret the Scriptures. Drew has three sons, two daughters-in-law and six grandchildren and lives with his wife of forty-four years, Marie, in Charlottesville, VA. 

Mike Schutt is host of the Cross & Gavel Podcast. He is Associate Professor at Regent University School of Law, Director of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, and director of Law Student Ministries at Christian Legal Society. He is the editor in chief of the Journal of Christian Legal Thought and director of the CLS Law School Fellows program. 

In August 2016, the American Bar Association, seeking to impose a "cultural shift" on the legal profession and change how lawyers think about gender and marriage, amended Model Rule of Professional Responsibility 8.4. The rule has no legal force-- it simply suggests a "model" from the ABA for states to follow in their ethics codes-- until a particular state adopts it. Yet the Model Rules are influential, followed by many states as a matter of course. 

The current rule-- the rule that ABA Model Rule 8.4(g) would amend-- combats invidious discrimination and disciplines lawyers who corrupt the legal process through bias and prejudice in the course of representing a client.

The proposed rule would expand the conduct for which lawyers could be disciplined to any "conduct related to the practice of law," which is defined to include "interacting with witnesses, coworkers, court personnel, lawyers and others while engaged in the practice of law; operating or managing a law firm or practice; and participating in bar association, business or social activities in connection with the practice of law." 

In addition to this expansive reach into employment law and social activities, the rule does away with the requirement that the words or conduct that could be censured are "prejudicial to the administration of justice." Under the proposed rule, a mere "offense" given by words or conduct could subject a lawyer to a grievance, even though it has nothing to do with protecting clients, the court, or justice. 

It's a bad idea. And it is a threat to religious liberty and lawyers' autonomy. 

Host Mike Schutt, who taught Professional Responsibility as a Regent Law professor is joined by Kim Colby to discuss the rule and its implications. 

Kim Colby is the director of Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom , where she has worked since graduating from Harvard Law School in 1981. She has represented religious groups in several appellate cases, including two cases heard by the United States Supreme Court. She has filed numerous amicus briefs in federal and state courts. Ms. Colby has prepared several CLS publications addressing issues about religious expression in public schools, including released time programs, implementation of the Equal Access Act, and teachers’ religious expression.

For more resources on this rule-- including videos explaining the issues and critical scholarship-- visit the Christian Legal Society 8.4 Resources page. 

Cross & Gavel is a production of Regent University School of Law and the Christian Legal Society. 

In our first episode of 2018, Trinity Law School Professor Myron Steeves draws on the work of Charles Taylor (A Secular Age) and Rod Dreher (The Benedict Option) to inform our understanding of the
cultural moment confronting the Church. Lately, it seems, the Church has found herself in a fully confrontational mode with the surrounding society, having moved from a period of general domination (after the Emperor Constantine) and then cultural accommodation. Professor Steeves contrasts these eras, suggesting that Christians of every age have faced challenges to faithful culture making and cultural renewal. 

During this fascination conversation, host Mike Schutt and Professor Steeves discuss the importance of faithfulness, the difficulties of cultural confrontation in light of the temptation to be seen as "normal," and our call to courage and love.

Listen in on this interesting conversation!

Myron Steeves is Professor of Law at Trinity Law School, where he has served since 1992. A graduate of Georgetown University Law Center, Professor Steeves has practiced law in the nonprofit area, particularly advising churches. Professor Steeves frequently speaks on issues including the integration of faith and law, legal careers as tools for Christian ministry, law and public policy, and law and theology.

Mike Schutt is host of Cross & Gavel and is Associate Professor at Regent University School of Law and director of Law Student Ministries for the Christian Legal Society. He is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law. 

One of the biggest free speech and religious liberty cases in decades, Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission was argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on December 5. On December 6, Cross & Gavel host Mike Schutt recorded this conversation with religious liberty attorney Kim Colby, who sat in on the argument. Kim gives a short background of the case, shares her observations, and discusses the important issues raised by the attorneys and justices. 

Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Denver, did not deny service to homosexuals, as is sometimes reported. Jack served anyone who came into his shop to buy his ready-made cakes and cookies. Yet when he was asked to use his artistic talents to design a custom cake for a same-sex wedding ceremony, he politely declined. Jack declines to bake custom cakes for Halloween celebrations or divorce parties as well. He simply does not provide his artistic voice in support of things with which he fundamentally disagrees. 

Is this unlawful discrimination, or is this his right as a shop owner with religious convictions? 

Listen to Kim and Mike discuss the issues and the interesting questions asked by the justices during oral argument. 

Read the transcript of the argument here. 

Read the CLS Brief in support of Jack Phillips here. 

Kim Colby is the director of Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom , where she has worked since graduating from Harvard Law School in 1981. She has represented religious groups in several appellate cases, including two cases heard by the United States Supreme Court. She has filed numerous amicus briefs in federal and state courts. In 1984, she assisted in congressional passage of the Equal Access Act, 20 U.S.C. § 4071, et seq., which protects the right of secondary school students to meet for prayer and Bible study on campus. Ms. Colby has prepared several CLS publications addressing issues about religious expression in public schools, including released time programs, implementation of the Equal Access Act, and teachers’ religious expression.

Kim graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois with a major in American History and a particular interest in slavery in colonial North America.

Cross and Gavel is a project of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society. We value your comments. And if you enjoy the show, please rate us on iTunes.  

It may be commonplace to say that God has instituted various governments and has delegated His authority to them in various ways, but speaking, for example, about the "government" of a family seems strange today. And even a bit scary.

Mark Bertrand says that we in the Church are pretty good at targeting failures of government when it comes to the state, but we need to do a much better job of thinking about governing well in the church and the family. What might that look like? How to think well about it? And who says, anyway? At one point, Mark suggests that listeners might be shouting "Hey, these guys are advocating theocracy! Or a bunch of little theocracies within a theocracy!" Are they? 

Listen in and find out. Join Mark and C&G host Mike Schutt as they talk at length about the authority and roles of various governments in today's world and the resources available to help them govern well. Would the state be changed if other institutions-- family, church, state, corporations, universities-- were governed well? Are these governments dependent on one another?

Walk through the discussion with them as they suggest that what the Bible envisions is "a community of governments with overlapping authority . . . all backstopped by divine revelation."

We think you'll find this an encouraging and informative discussion. 

J. Mark Bertrand is a novelist and pastor living in South Dakota. His crime noir works are Back on Murder, Pattern of Wounds, and Nothing to Hide. His book [Re]Thinking Worldview:Learning to Think, Live, and Speak in this World (Crossway 2007) is a great primer on Christian thought and action, and he serves on the faculty of Worldview Academy. He blogs at the world-renowned Bible Design Blog, sharing thoughts and photos on a multitude of design issues. His initial claim to fame was that he was interviewed by Ken Myers on Mars Hill Audio Journal, volume 90, which also features Mike Schutt talking about Redeeming Law. 

Mark was also a guest on Episode 46 of Cross & Gavel, the most downloaded episode in the podcast's history. More recently, he joined Mike to discuss the "New Moralism" in Episode 70. 

Cross and Gavel is a project of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society. We value your comments. And if you enjoy the show, please rate us on iTunes.  

There is a higher law than human law, one from which the authority and justice of man’s law flows into bountiful life. Accordingly, we often see Christian legal theories in terms of knowledge about law, so that what we know of the higher law informs what we should affirm or deny about human law. But Dean Eric Enlow says that another important kind of Christian knowledge about law is how to praise God in relation to it. This praise stirs up and responds to the joy which Christians experience in law, just as praise does when it recognizes and replies to God’s presence in other parts of creation.

Dean Enlow gave two addresses on this topic at the 2017 Christian Legal Society national conference in Newport Beach, encouraging those in attendance to learn to praise God in law. 

His first presentation was Joyful Jurisprudence: God's Presence in Law and Man's Praise of God, the keynote for the annual Christian Legal Scholars' Symposium, sponsored by CLS friend and partner Trinity Law School. It was an inspiring presentation and discussion, and the conversation spilled over into the conference bookstore afterwards. 

This episode of Cross & Gavel allows listeners to sit in on that conversation, with host Mike Schutt, Dean Eric Enlow, and our friend Byron Borger, owner of Hearts and Minds Bookstore. 

Enjoy the conversation!

Dean Enlow graduated from Yale University and Washington University School of Law. During law school, Professor Enlow served on the editorial boards of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy and the Washington University Law Quarterly.

He has clerked in the United States Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and he was in private practice in intellectual-property, international, and appellate law. In addition to being dean of the Handong International Law School, Enlow teaches Christianity and Law, International Intellectual Property, Patents, Private International Law, and Torts. 

Byron Borger has been talking books almost his whole life, and doing it well and for the good of Christ's kingdom. Since the early 80's, he and his wife Beth have, through Hearts and Minds Books in Dallastown, PA, lived out a mission to see the body of Christ encouraged and the world around them flourish. They believe that ideas matter and that books are an important part of Christian discipleship-- "a disciple is learner, after all," says Byron. Whether you're in his store, on the phone with him, or at one of the many conferences at which he and Beth serve, it is always a treat to talk books with Byron. Subscribe to his amazing Booknotes here. (He mentions this podcast in the latest edition). 

Cross & Gavel Audio is a project of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, a cooperative ministry of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society.

Mike Schutt is associate professor at Regent and director of ICLS and Law Student Ministries for CLS. 

Mark Bertrand says that the world he "had been led to fear growing up in the Church is not actually the world we live in." It turns out that the moral relativism that we feared would turn the world to anarchy and chaos never materialized. Much of what we feared actually came to pass, just not in the way we thought it would.

The new world has turned out to be a world that loves "the social gospel, but without the gospel," to paraphrase Joseph Bottum. 

Mark talks with host Mike Schutt about this strange turn of events. We now live in the midst of "an irreligious culture" that still "behaves in fundamentally religious ways." As Mark says, "The moralist of today is the irreligious offspring of the mainline Protestants who dominated the society of yesteryear."

How did we get here, and what are thoughtful Christians to make of this state of affairs? It seems the best way to respond to the New Moralism is likely not to return to the Old Moralism. But what role does the Church have to play in all of this?  

J. Mark Bertrand is a novelist and pastor living in South Dakota. His crime noir works are Back on Murder, Pattern of Wounds, and Nothing to Hide. His book [Re]Thinking Worldview:Learning to Think, Live, and Speak in this World (Crossway 2007) is a great primer on Christian thought and action, and he serves on the faculty of Worldview Academy. He blogs at the world-renowned Bible Design Blog, sharing thoughts and photos on a multitude of design issues. His initial claim to fame was that he was interviewed by Ken Myers on Mars Hill Audio Journal, volume 90, which also features Mike Schutt talking about Redeeming Law. 

Mark was also a guest on Episode 46 of Cross & Gavel, the most downloaded episode in the podcast's history. 

Cross and Gavel is a project of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society. We value your comments. And if you enjoy the show, please rate us on iTunes. 

In our first fall episode of Cross & Gavel, Worldview at the Abbey Provost Jeff Baldwin discusses the duty of the Church and Christian families with respect to education.

The conversation ranges from the role of the family to the religious nature of education itself, and then on to some of the problems inherent in state-sponsored education. Jeff tells host Mike Schutt that he thinks this may be "the most inflammatory episode of C&G to date," and he then sets the tone by suggesting that Christian parents should not think of their children as "salt and light" in the public schools until they are at least sixteen.

Listen in as Mike and Jeff discuss education, worldview, and the Christian family. 

Jeff Baldwin is the author of The Deadliest Monster, founding faculty at Worldview Academy, and provost of the Worldview Academy bridge year program, Worldview at the Abbey in Canon City, CO. 

Cross & Gavel is a project of Regent University School of Law and the Christian Legal Society. Host Mike Schutt is Associate Professor at Regent Law and director of Law Student Ministries for CLS. 

On this episode of Cross & Gavel, host Mike Schutt talks with Christian Legal Society's new director of Attorney Ministries, Connie Bourne. Connie comes to CLS from a private law practice, with experience in the corporate world, as a judicial clerk, and working with attorneys in a local bar association. She loves Jesus and she loves lawyers!

Listen in to get acquainted with Connie!

Connie Bourne received her undergraduate and legal training at Rutgers University, worked as Assistant County Counsel in Bergen County, New Jersey, and worked in the business, government, and public interest arenas before opening her own law firm. She joined the CLS staff on July 10, 2017. 

Cross & Gavel Audio is a project of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, a cooperative ministry of Regent University School of Law and Christian Legal Society.

Mike Schutt is associate professor at Regent and director of ICLS and Law Student Ministries for CLS. 

In early April, nearly 150 lawyers, judges, law students, and law professors from the eastern Congo gathered at the Fifth International Christian Lawyers Conference in Beni, North Kivu, DRC. It was an amazing time of fellowship, discussion, prayer, and planning.   

The lawyers gathered on the campus of Université Chrétienne Bilingue du Congo ("UCBC"), the only bilingual Christian University in the DRC. UCBC was founded by Congo Initiative under the guiding vision of Dr. David Kasali. This year, UCBC admitted its first class of law students to its new law school, founded in part on the inspiration and work of the lawyers gathered on campus. 

Ben Chappell, a practicing lawyer in San Antonio, has been involved with these gatherings from the beginning, when Dr. Kasali asked if he would be willing to come to the Congo to spend time with Christian lawyers in Beni. The conferences have grown, in large part, due to Ben's work in recruiting teams from the West to participate, funding the events, and organizing them until they could be passed on to a Congolese steering team. In April, 2017, Ben's team included Cross & Gavel host Mike Schutt, who travelled to the DRC as a representative of Regent Law School's Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, & the Rule of Law. 

Ben Chappell is Mike's guest on this episode of Cross & Gavel. Listen in as they talk about God's work in and through Congolese lawyers in this seemingly remote part of the world. You will be inspired by the vision of Dr. Kasali, the dedication of the Congo Initiative staff, and the faithfulness of Ben Chappell and his family. 

Dr. David Kasali

For more information on the amazing ministry of Congo Initiative, visit the CI website and read about their initiatives that are bringing change to the region. 

Ben Chappell is a board certified family practice lawyer in San Antonio, TX at Bray, Chappell, Patterson, & Olsen. He is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law and Southern Methodist University. He and his wife JoAnne have been married for 47 years, and they have three children and numerous grandchildren. They worship and serve at Covenant Baptist Church. He is on the board of Congo Initiative-USA and serves as coordinator for its Justice Initiatives. 

Mike Schutt is associate professor and global recruiter for Regent University School of Law. He travelled to the Congo on behalf of Regent's Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law. He also directs Attorney Ministries and Law Student Ministries for the Christian Legal Society. 

Cross & Gavel podcasts are a project of Regent University School of Law and CLS.

In Part 2 of our discussion with Dr. Christopher McMillion, host Mike Schutt asks him to elaborate on the joys of federalism. Dr. McMillion begins by explaining why now-- the age of Trump-- might be an opportunity for those on both the left and the right to recognize its benefits and jump on board. He explains the 10th amendment, offers a brief definition of what we mean by "federalism," and then outlines some specific examples in which federalism would operate in a way that is appealing to the goals of those on both ends of the political spectrum. 

Topics range from "the Imperial Presidency" to marijuana laws, and the discussion closes with some practical suggestions for recovering this lost ideal. 

Dr. Christopher McMillion is a graduate of Baylor University. He did his master's and doctoral work at the University of Notre Dame, earning an M.A. in Political Science and his PhD in the field of Constitutional Studies and Political Theory. In his scholarship, he focuses on constitutional law, federalism, and American political thought. He is particularly interested in the connections between political theory and the American constitutional and political experience. He also serves as a manuscript referee for American Political Thought. Chris and his wife Heather have three children. 

Cross & Gavel Audio is a project of the Christian Legal Society and Regent University School of Law. Mike Schutt is host of Cross & Gavel. He is Associate Professor of Law at Regent University, and he directs both Attorney Ministries and Law Student Ministries for the Christian Legal Society. Email him at mschutt@clsnet.org.

The confirmation hearings begin Monday, March 20, for Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Trump's nominee to the US Supreme Court. On this episode of Cross & Gavel, Mike Schutt talks with Oklahoma Baptist University professor Christopher McMillion about the process and the politics of the hearings and the future of the Court with a Justice Gorsuch in the place of Justice Scalia, who passed away last year.

This is Part One of two episodes featuring Dr. McMillion, and Part Two, "The Joys of Federalism," will upload March 28.

Dr. Christopher McMillion is a graduate of Baylor University. He did his master's and doctoral work at the University of Notre Dame, earning an M.A. in Political Science and his PhD in the field of Constitutional Studies and Political Theory. In his scholarship, he focuses on constitutional law, federalism, and American political thought. He is particularly interested in the connections between political theory and the American constitutional and political experience. He also serves as a manuscript referee for American Political Thought. Chris and his wife Heather have three children. 

Mike Schutt is host of Cross & Gavel. He is Associate Professor of Law at Regent University, and he directs both Attorney Ministries and Law Student Ministries for the Christian Legal Society. Email him at mschutt@clsnet.org.

Okay, so it's not "live"-- BUT: Mike Schutt recorded this podcast with Byron Borger, Rockstar Bookman, live and in person at the famous Hearts & Minds Bookstore in Dallastown, PA. Anyone who has ever been to a Christian conference that is serious about readers knows Byron and Beth Borger, owners of Hearts & Minds. The Borgers are particular heroes of the Christian Legal Society and the Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO), because Hearts & Minds has been serving their conference participants for years-- and decades, respectively.  

Mike and Byron begin by discussing this year's Jubilee conference and what he saw as he discussed books with college students. From there, they range to their personal favorites, important new releases, and other great stuff. If you love books, you'll enjoy this conversation!

Jump in and listen!

The books they touch on (or ramble over, depending) include:

Tish Harrison Warren, Liturgy of the Ordinary
James K. A. Smith, You are What You Love
Andy Crouch, Culture Making and Strong and Weak
Bob Robinson, ReIntegrate
John Mark Comer, Garden City
Kinnaman and Lyon, Good Faith
Sarah Arthur and Erin Wasinger, The Year of Small Things
Michael Wear, Reclaiming Hope 

And BTW, Michael Wear will be live and in person at Hearts & Minds on March 10. 

Byron will be announcing a discount on any book mentioned in the podcast, if you order within ten days of this podcast!

To subscribe to Byron's Booknotes Blog, click here.

Mike Schutt is the host of Cross & Gavel, and he directs both Law Student Ministries and Attorney Ministries for the Christian Legal Society. He is an Associate Professor at Regent University School of Law.

As Charlie Clauss reminds us in this podcast, the Book of Common Prayer offers a beautiful invitation (voiced by the minister at the Ash Wednesday service) to enter into Lent:

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the
observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance;
by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and
meditating on God's holy Word. And, to make a right beginning 
of repentance, and as a mark of our mortal nature, let us now 
kneel before the Lord, our maker and redeemer.

In that spirit, Charlie and host Mike Schutt discuss the whats and whys of this important season of the church year. What is Lent? What practices are usually associated with Lent? Why might Christians considering this season, and what tips might we give to those entering into these practices for the first time? 

Join Charlie and Mike as they consider these questions and more. 

As you think about pushing into this season with new practices, remember to take Charlie's advice: this can't be about you-- it's not a legalistic obligation, nor is it a challenge to conquer for your "spiritual checklist." This is the road to guilt or to pride. Rather, Lent is a time to consider the love of God manifested on the Cross and displayed in the power of the resurrection!

Among other things, Lent is a season that helps us to celebrate Holy Week and Easter more fully. And don't forget, as Charlie reminds us: Easter is a fifty-day party! Please celebrate fully!

After you listen, consider some of the books suggested by our friend Byron Borger at Hearts & Minds Books in his Booknotes Blog: 2017 Books for Lent.

Charlie Clauss is married to Nancy and they live in Minneapolis, MN with their two daughters. He says he is a curmudgeon, but his friends and family know otherwise. Mostly.

Cross & Gavel is a project of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, a cooperative ministry of Regent University School of Law and the Christian Legal Society. Host Mike Schutt is Associate Professor of Law at Regent and directs Attorney Ministries and Law Student Ministries for CLS. 

Join host Mike Schutt as he talks with Natt Gantt, co-founder of the Center for Ethical Formation & Legal Education Reform (CEFLER) at Regent University School of Law, about producing law school graduates who have an understanding of the nature and purpose of the legal profession and who are committed to the ethical practice of law. Professor Gantt discusses the goals of legal education and how those goals shape students. Because the shaping influence of law school is never neutral, Professor Gantt suggests habits that counter some of the unwelcome consequences of that "shaping." 

CEFLER was founded by Regent University School of Law in 2012 to coordinate the programs and resources that the law school has committed to developing professional identity in students.  

L.O. Natt Gantt, II, is a professor, the associate dean of instructional & curricular affairs and co-director of the Center for Ethical Formation and Legal Education Reform at Regent University school of law. Before joining Regent in 2000, he served as a law clerk to the late Honorable Donald S. Russell of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit; as an associate at Wiley, Rein & Fielding in Washington, D.C.; and as a Proxy Analyst at Fidelity Investments in Boston, Massachusetts. Professor Gantt teaches Professional Responsibility.

Professor Benjamin Madison —along with Natt Gantt—led the formation of the Center for Ethical Formation and Legal Education Reform.  Professor Madison teaches Civil Procedure and Pretrial Practice and Procedure. His pretrial practice casebook, Civil Procedure for All States: A Context and Practice Casebook (2012), has drawn praise as one of the first casebooks designed according to the recommendations of the Carnegie Institute in its groundbreaking work Educating Lawyers (2007). 

Mike Schutt is the host of Cross & Gavel Audio, a project of the Institute for Christian Legal Studies, which is a cooperative ministry of Regent Law and the Christian Legal Society. Schutt is associate professor at Regent University School of Law and Director of Law Student Ministries and Attorney Ministries for CLS.

The Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law was founded by Regent University School of Law in 2010 to equip Christian advocates to (1) promote the rule of law and seek justice for the oppressed and (2) serve and support those already engaged in such advocacy. 

In this episode, host Mike Schutt interviews CGJ directors Ernie Walton and Jeff Brauch to discuss how the CGJ fulfills its dual mission. Hear about the CGJ’s programs for Regent law students and its philosophy of how to effectively engage in human rights advocacy. The discussion ranges from practical ways this generation of law students are working for justice to the connection between the rule of law, human rights, and moral anthropology. It's great fun! Listen in. 

Ernie Walton serves as the Academic and Administrative director of Regent Law's Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law. He also serves as a lecturer on the Regent Law faculty.  Outside of his work at Regent, Ernie served as a law clerk to the Honorable D. Arthur Kelsey of the Virginia Supreme Court, practiced law in southern California, and served as an associate attorney for a non-profit law firm that specializes in protecting religious freedom.

Professor Jeffrey A. Brauch joined the Regent Law faculty in 1994. He served as the school's interim dean from 1999-2000 and as dean from 2000-2015. Professor Brauch has taught numerous courses, including International Human Rights; Foundations of Law; Torts; International Criminal Law; Negotiations; and Human Rights, Civil Liberties, & National Security. In 2010, he helped found the Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law, and he now serves as its Executive Director.

Host Mike Schutt is director of Attorney Ministries & Law Student Ministries for Christian Legal Society and Associate Professor & Global Recruiter at Regent University School of Law. 

The Christian Legal Society is an organization dedicated to helping lawyers think biblically and missionally about their work. Through its Law Student Ministries, Legal Aid Ministries, Attorney Ministries, and the Center for Law & Religious Freedom, CLS serves lawyers and law students as they seek to serve Christ in their law practice and study. As we think through these issues, we focus on how we steward our gifts in the law and how we love our neighbors through law practice and study.

Yet what about the shaping influences on lawyers themselves? How do our professional practices and particulars of legal training influence us as human beings Surely the law school experience, our training, billing time, and the adversary system work to influence us in specific ways.

Dave Nammo, CLS's Executive Director and CEO, has been working in law-focused ministry since 1999, and he spends much of his time on the road talking with Christian lawyers and law students. In this episode (#60), host Mike Schutt talks with Dave about the influences that shape us as lawyers and law students-- for good or ill-- and what countercultural practices might be called for in response.

Recent books, like Jamie Smith's You are What You Love and Tish Warren's Liturgy of the Ordinary, raise issues of the habits and practices necessary to "aim our loves," in the words of Smith. 

Listen in as Mike and Dave get the discussion started on how we can be more intentional in resisting the profession's shaping power, and how lawyers' habits can help "aim us" in the right direction as well. 

David Nammo is Executive Director and CEO of the Christian Legal Society in Springfield, VA. 

Host Mike Schutt is Director of CLS Law Student Ministries and Attorney Ministries. He is Associate Professor of Law at Regent University, CLS' ministry partner in the Institue for Christian Legal Studies.