The 2004 elections brought about a resurgence in religious advocacy for social and economic justice. Yet the religious right continued to dominate public discourse on issues of faith – primarily targeting issues of abortion and homosexuality – and virtually ignoring issues of justice and the common good. In December 2004, national religious leaders – including Jim Wallis, Rabbi David Saperstein, Rev. Jim Forbes, Rev. Bob Edgar, Sr. Catherine Pinkerton, Rev. C. Welton Gaddy, and Rev. Timothy McDonald – gathered in Washington, D.C. to confront the challenges facing the burgeoning social justice faith movement. They recognized the critical need for increased and effective collaboration and communication on the national, state and local level.

With support from The Sister Fund, Faith in Public Life strengthened the faith and feminism component in their online map of faith in public life. FPL has identified gaps between generations, academy and activists, race and class, secular and religious women, message and priority, and in funding. With these challenges in mind, FPL reached out to these respective communities and researched how these gaps are being addressed.