Mattone Center for Law and Religion Hosts Fall 2026 Reading Group on C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity

Can law establish the standards necessary for a good society without being able to make people good? 
Can forgiveness coexist with punishment and accountability? 
When does professional ambition become pride?

These were just a few of the questions about faith, morality, law, and the human experience St. John’s Law students and alumni considered as they discussed C.S. Lewis’s book, Mere Christianity, at a reading group hosted by the Denise ’90 and Michael ’91 Mattone Center for Law and Religion.

Organized by the Center’s director, Professor Mark Movsesian, the four-part series was led by Mark Lanier, an attorney, scholar, and founder of the Lanier Theological Library in Houston, at his firm’s Manhattan offices. The discussions began with Lewis’s argument that people recognize a moral law they didn’t create yet repeatedly fail to live up to it. From there, participants considered Lewis’s Christian explanation for the gap between moral knowledge and human behavior, including the roles of human freedom, evil, and Christ’s atonement. 

The sessions then turned to the demands of Christian conduct, exploring forgiveness, pride, humility, and the limits of law in shaping individual character and a just society. In the final session, the group considered Lewis’s reflections on the Trinity, individualism and community, the purposes of church and state, and his central claim that Christianity seeks not merely outwardly respectable behavior, but the transformation of the whole person.

For law students, the reading group offered an opportunity to step beyond the rules, doctrines, and analytical frameworks that ordinarily shape legal education and reflect on the moral questions underlying the practice of law. “Grappling with Lewis’s work in a diverse group of students and practitioners who share my commitment to faith and the law was a truly invaluable experience,” says Vincent D’Avanzo ’27. “I’m always looking for opportunities to push the bounds of my own worldview, and the discussions I had with my fellow students, Professor Movsesian, and Mark Lanier helped me do just that.”

Connecting a classic work of Christian thought with questions about legal responsibility, public life, and personal character created space for the students to engage with difficult ideas, test assumptions, and consider not only what lawyers do but the kind of people they aspire to be. “Participating in the reading group with Mark Lanier was one of the highlights of my experience at St. John’s,” Stacey Kaliabakos ’27 shares. “His wide knowledge of topics outside of the scope of his law practice is inspiring, and his dedication to our group meant so much to all of us. He is a lawyer I hope to emulate in my own career.”

About the Mattone Center for Law and Religion
Established in 2010, the Mattone Center for Law and Religion at St. John’s Law provides a forum for studying law and religion from domestic, international, and comparative perspectives by:

• Examining the role of law in the relationship between religion and the state
• Exploring the concept of law in different religious traditions
• Promoting St. John’s Vincentian mission by encouraging an open dialogue on law and religion in the local, national, and international communities

In addition to hosting academic programs locally and around the world, the Center coordinates the Law School’s law and religion curriculum. It also produces the Law and Religion Forum blog, the Legal Spirits podcast, and the Landmark Cases in Religious Freedom animated video series.