The Witherspoon Institute

An independent research center in Princeton, New Jersey.

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Summer Seminars at the Witherspoon Institute

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Serious Study. Honest Conversation. Lifelong Friendship.

Each summer, the Witherspoon Institute welcomes exceptional high-school, undergraduate, and graduate students from around the world to Princeton, New Jersey, for a series of intensive residential seminars in philosophy, public affairs, and the foundations of a flourishing human life.

Grounded in classical and contemporary texts and led by distinguished scholars, the Summer Seminars offer students the opportunity to examine the most important moral, cultural, and political questions of our time through rigorous, Socratic discussion. Together, participants grapple with enduring questions about freedom and responsibility, natural law and human dignity, the impact of technology on the human person, and the meaning of community and friendship in a healthy society.

Applications for Summer 2026 are now open.

Learn more at winst.org/summer

R. J. Snell on the Return of Marcionism

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Witherspoon’s Academic Programs Director, R. J. Snell, recently joined the Tikvah Podcast for a conversation on modern expressions of the Marcionite heresy.

In his discussion with Jonathan Silver, Dr. Snell explores how ancient theological errors have reappeared in contemporary cultural and political life in efforts to separate the New Testament from the Old, or to sever Christian moral teaching from its Hebrew roots.

The episode offers a timely examination of the dangers of forgetting or rejecting Christianity’s Hebrew patrimony.

The full conversation is available on the Tikvah Podcast: Listen here.

New Publication: “The Death of Rabelais: A Play” by Jane Clark Scharl

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We are pleased to announce that Jane Clark Scharl, our Associate Director of Operations at the Witherspoon Institute, has released a new dramatic work entitled The Death of Rabelais: A Play. The book, published by Wiseblood Books, is now available in print.

In this richly imagined play, the creator draws inspiration from the life and legacy of the sixteenth-century French humanist and satirist François Rabelais. On a bitter January night, Rabelais, fleeing religious strife in Paris, throws off the jester’s cap and dons Death’s cloak to accept an invitation to a Twelfth-Night festival; before the night is done he faces not only games and riddles, but a confrontation with Death itself and the unsettling possibility that grief, rather than mere joy, lies at the heart of reality.

The play invites readers (and future performers) to reflect upon laughter, mortality, and the search for truth in a world at once comedic and tragic — a theme that resonates deeply with the character of our Institute.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Jane on this achievement. Order Now!

Finding Truth and Friendship in Divided Times

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In a lively episode of Unbridled, published by the Civitas Institute, our Herbert W. Vaughan Senior Fellow Robert P. George joins Cornel West for a candid conversation about truth, virtue, and friendship across deep disagreement.

Despite opposing worldviews, George and West describe how their friendship endures through a shared love of truth and a commitment to honest dialogue — an example of the intellectual charity and civic friendship at the heart of Witherspoon’s mission.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: Civitas Institute — Finding Truth and Friendship in Divided Times

R. J. Snell Reviews “Natural Law: 5 Views”

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Witherspoon’s Academic Programs Director, R. J. Snell, has contributed a review to the latest issue of Religion & Liberty, the journal of the Acton Institute.

Dr. Snell reviews Natural Law: 5 Views (Zondervan Academic, 2025), a volume edited by Ryan T. Anderson and Andrew T. Walker, that brings together a range of perspectives on the meaning, authority, and application of natural law in moral and political life. In his essay, Snell considers the strengths and limitations of the contributors’ arguments, while reflecting on the enduring role of natural law reasoning in contemporary debates.

The full review is available on Acton’s website: Read it here.

R. J. Snell Speaks at Thomistic Institute Intellectual Retreat

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On September 12–14, 2025, R. J. Snell, Academic Program Director, at the Witherspoon Institute, spoke at Hope | An Intellectual Retreat hosted by the Thomistic Institute at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C.

The weekend retreat brought together young professionals and students for talks, worship, and fellowship centered on the theme of hope. Dr. Snell joined Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. offering reflections that combined theological insight with practical wisdom for living with hope today.

Find more information here.

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