The Michigan Department of Education’s most recent revision of the Health Education Standards represents not merely administrative fine-tuning, but a wholesale ideological shift in the purpose and scope of health instruction in Michigan schools. The Board voted to approve the updated health-education/sex-education standards on Thursday, November 13, 2025. The magnitude and nature of these changes raise profound constitutional concerns—particularly regarding parental rights, l

Dr. Rubina Feroze Bhatti, a renowned Pakistani human-rights and peace activist, is this month’s featured speaker at the Christian International Professors Forum, hosted jointly by the Instituto dos Juristas Cristãos do Brasil and the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center at Spring Arbor University. Known for her decades of work advancing communal harmony, gender equality, and the rights of religious minorities in Pakistan, Dr. Bhatti brings a deeply practical and hard-won perspective

November 1, 2025 Washington, D.C. / Abuja The United States Department of State announced that Nigeria has been designated a Country of Particular Concern (CPC)  under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, citing what it called “systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom.”  President Donald Trump, in a social-media post on October 31, asserted that “Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being kil

October 31, 2025 In this compelling episode, Hon. William Wagner (Ret) exposes the ongoing humanitarian and religious freedom crisis facing Christians in Nigeria. Over the past six years, more than a million Christian families have been displaced  and an estimated 29,000 believers have been killed  amid violent attacks amidst government inaction. Wagner examines why the U.S. State Department’s “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC)  designation matters—and how reapplying it to

The Hon. William Wagner, Distinguished Chair of the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center at Spring Arbor University, participated in the 2025 Education Freedom Legal Network (EFLN) Annual Summit held October 23, 2025, in Arlington, Virginia. The EFLN—an initiative that convenes attorneys, scholars, and policy advocates focused on protecting and advancing the freedom to educate—brought together leaders from across the country for a day of high-level strategy and collaboration.  Advan

For many years, people have been saying that Christianity is on the decline in America. Church attendance is dropping and data supporting evidence that people are identifying as “non religious” when asked about their faith. However, something different seems to be happening. According to the Barna Group, there has been “a 12-percentage-point increase since 2021, when commitment levels reached their lowest in more than three decades of Barna tracking.” This means that more peo

Lansing, MI — October 20, 2025 This past Sunday, the Honorable William Wagner , Distinguished Chair for Faith and Freedom at the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center , addressed the congregation of South Church in Lansing  with a message centered on courage, conviction, and compassion . Speaking to a packed room, Wagner challenged Christians to live out biblical truth boldly—yet with the humility and respect that reflect Christ’s character. Courage Rooted in Truth Drawing from Scri

Marshal Michigan, October 19, 2025 This past weekend, men from across Michigan gathered at the Historic Withee Farm  for the Annual Bonfire Event , a tradition that blends fellowship, faith, and the renewal of purpose. Set against the crisp autumn backdrop of rural Michigan, the two-day gathering offered both reflection and challenge for those committed to living out their faith in public and private life. Fellowship Around the Fire The event opened Friday evening with the li

Lansing, MI — October 11, 2025 This past weekend, the Freedom Embassy in Lansing hosted Go Local: School Board Training , a daylong event equipping current and aspiring school board members to lead their districts with truth, courage, and a firm grounding in constitutional governance. The training was sponsored by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy , the Leadership Institute , and SLG. The program offered practical, faith-informed instruction on issues central to good gove

As violence and persecution against Christians and other believers intensify across the globe, America’s moral clarity and courage are being tested once again. In Nigeria, religious freedom is under siege. Villages are burned, pastors kidnapped, families massacred, all while the Nigerian government looks away. It is time, indeed, it is past time, for the United States to act. The President must immediately redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern under the Inter

In a free and just society, the liberty of conscience, to believe, worship, and live out one’s faith, stands as a pillar of human dignity. Its suppression is among the gravest violations of human rights, for it denies the individual’s inherent worth and moral agency before the Creator. Today, that fundamental freedom faces renewed assault in the People’s Republic of China. The Case of Pastor Jin Mingri The world’s attention is once again drawn to China’s ongoing persecution o

Kaley Chiles is a devoted Christian woman, licensed by the State of Colorado as a counselor. Pet. App.212a-14a.  Her conversations and guidance aid, support, and comfort those with whom she speaks. Pet. App.215a.  As part of her identity as a Christian, and as a matter of religious conscience, Kaley believes that individuals thrive when living in alignment with their biological sex as designed by their Creator. Pet. App. 212a-14a . Kaley merely desires to communicate "in a m

Dr. Hélio Angotti Neto, this month’s featured speaker at the Christian International Professors Forum hosted by the Instituto dos Juristas Cristãos do Brasil and the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center , offered a profound reflection on first principles that unite faith, reason, and moral order.  Drawing from his background in medicine, philosophy, and theology, Dr. Neto emphasized that human life possesses inherent dignity derived from being created in the image of God—a truth tha

Lansing, MI — October 13, 2025  — The Honorable William R. Wagner, WFFC Distinguished Chair for Faith & Freedom, joined a distinguished group of speakers at a special training session for state school board members. Sponsored by the Mackinac Center, Salt & Light Global, and the Leadership Institute, the event brought together thought leaders and policy experts to equip board members with foundational knowledge and practical tools for effective governance. Professor Wagner del

Hon. William Wagner Speaks at Duke Law on Constitutional Virtue and Judicial Restraint Durham, N.C. — The Federalist Society at Duke University Law School recently hosted Hon. William Wagner (Ret.), the WFFC Distinguished Chair for Faith & Freedom at Spring Arbor University, for a keynote lecture titled “The Virtue of True Meaning and the Tyranny of the Few.” One of the nation’s top law schools, Duke provided a distinguished forum for Professor Wagner’s address on the relatio

The life of Voddie Baucham Jr. is a testimony to the enduring strength of a man who stood faithfully for biblical truth—yet always did so with compassion, humility, and respect. His legacy is not only remembered in the words he spoke or the convictions he held, but in the manner in which he bore witness to them: with kindness, integrity, and a heart firmly anchored in Christ. A Faithful Witness to Truth In every age, there arise men whose lives remind us that truth is not def

LANSING, Mich.  — The Hon. William Wagner (Ret.), former chair of the State Bar of Michigan’s Religious Liberty Law Section, called on the Michigan Supreme Court to uphold constitutional guarantees of Free Exercise of Religious Conscience and Due Process while opposing proposed amendments to Michigan’s Code of Judicial Conduct and Rules of Professional Conduct. The Michigan Supreme Court is considering ADM File No. 2023-35 , which would revise Canon 3 and Rule 6.5 to prohibi

The Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, Law and Public Policy Conference, recently met in Dallas, Texas. This premier gathering of Christian scholars, legal practitioners, university presidents and human resource leaders engaged pressing cultural and constitutional questions shaping public life today. William was privileged to provide the opening devotion. His Biblical exposition reflected on “Guarding That Which Has Been Entrusted to Us,” setting a tone of prayerf

Executive Summary   Some athletes claim legal protection for new classifications flowing from fluid gender identity formulations, rather than objective biological science showing sex as immutable. When this contemporary cultural clash challenged the advancement of fairness for women in sports, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) sought a just resolution.   An NAIA Task Force conducted a two-year study under the direction of the Council of Presidents.

Judicially active writing—what some call organic jurisprudence—erodes the Rule of Law by empowering judges to abandon their limited duty of applying the Constitution and laws, and instead to usurp the policymaking authority reserved to the elected Executive and Legislative branches. When lawyers encourage courts to create conclusions not textually grounded in statutory law or the Constitution, they bypass the democratic process and enable judges to substitute unprincipled jud