Truth Matters: Fruitful Disagreement in an Age of Division with Cornel West and Robert George

On May 23, 2025, Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program, and Cornel West, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Professor of Philosophy & Christian Practice at Union Theological Seminary, discussed their new book, Truth Matters: A Dialogue on Fruitful Disagreement in an Age of Division, for the Madison Program’s annual Princeton University Reunions event.

In Truth Matters, Cornel West and Robert P. George address a range of social issues on which Americans today are bitterly divided. Their book models robust intellectual engagement and civil discourse as they explore vital questions surrounding the idea of truth and its foundational role in our lives. Along the way, they reflect on social conditions—such as respect for freedom of speech—that must be established and maintained if truth is to be seriously pursued. They also explore the virtues—such as intellectual humility and courage—that must be acquired and practiced if we frail, fallible, fallen human beings are to be determined truth seekers and bold truth speakers.