The Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture was established in 2011 to assist Christian individuals and organizations to deeply understand, intelligently communicate, and effectively implement reliable and psychologically realistic pathways of becoming more like Jesus for the sake of the world. As part of that quest, we hope to honor the legacy of Dallas Willard while placing his work in the context of other thought and praxis leaders who have developed methods for authentic Christian formation that have stood the test of time.
Our Goals
1.
We aim to help establish Christian spiritual formation as a domain of publicly available knowledge that is open to research and pedagogy of the highest order.
Through a variety of initiatives, we foster multidisciplinary scholarship on the need and nature of Christian spiritual formation and disseminate the deliverances of that research to Christian thought leaders for the good of the church.
2.
We aim to support a new generation of thought leaders in the area of Christian spiritual formation.
Through a variety of initiatives, we come alongside students, pastors, scholars, parachurch leaders, and other publicly engaged individuals in their desire to be formed in Christ and advance knowledge of Christian spiritual formation.
About the Martin Institute
The Spirit of Disciples
"Christianity needs to clarify and exemplify realistic methods of human transformation. It must show how the ordinary individuals who make up the human race today can become, through the grace of Christ, a love-filled, effective, and powerful community."
Staff
Steve L. Porter, Ph.D. is Senior Research Fellow and Executive Director of the Martin Institute.
Gary W. Moon, M.Div. Ph.D. serves as a Senior Fellow of the Martin Institute and Director of Conversatio Divina
Mark Nelson, Ph.D. directs the Dallas Willard Research Center and is the Monroe professor of philosophy and facilitates research on Christian spiritual formation of The Dallas Willard Research Center.
Michael V. Di Fuccia, Ph.D. is the Director of Academic Research and Communications and Research Fellow for the Centre of Theology and Philosophy, UK.
Mariah is the Associate Director for the Martin Institute and Director of the Incarnatio Center.
Initiatives
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Conversatio Divina
A Center for Spiritual Renewal: Creates and offers resources for both “pilgrims” and “guides.”
Cultura Fellowship
The Cultura Fellowship empowers emerging Christian leaders who desire to integrate Christian spiritual formation into their life and work.
Next Frontiers
A part of Frontiers, established through the generous support of Lilly Endowment, Inc., Next Frontiers is a two-year program designed to help mid-career pastors thrive in congregational leadership during times of transition in ministry.
Dallas Willard Research Center
The Dallas Willard Research Center supports and advances Christian spiritual formation by preserving Dallas Willard’s writings, providing access to his library, and fostering scholarship through research programs, fellowships, awards, and faculty retreats.
Dallas Willard Library
The Voskuyl Library's Special Collections preserve and provide scholarly access to Dallas Willard’s personal books and papers, carefully cataloged by Westmont staff to support ongoing research, teaching, and engagement with his intellectual and spiritual legacy.
Annual Book & Research Award
The Annual Book & Research Awards recognize outstanding scholarship that advances Dallas Willard’s vision of Christian spiritual formation, honoring influential books and research that contribute to both academic inquiry and the life of the church.
Academic Workshops
The Academic Workshop at the Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture brings together leading scholars and ministry practitioners for collaborative, multidisciplinary conversations that deepen understanding of Christian formation and translate research into real-world spiritual impact.
Student Focused Programs
Incarnatio encourages our community on a path of whole-person development including authentic spiritual and character formation and renewal.
Capax Dei
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be in a small group? Capax Dei (loosely translated, "Space for God"), is the name for the community of small groups that meets during the school year, sponsored by the Westmont Campus Pastor's Office and the Westmont Center for Spiritual Formation.
Resident Chaplins
Resident Chaplains (RC's) work alongside various student leader positions and serve students by “cultivating a transformative community of Christ-centered apprenticeship” by: modeling personal and spiritual development; supporting and promoting campus spiritual formation activities; and providing opportunities for spiritual growth in residence halls.
Spiritual Direction
Spiritual direction is a practice of listening, with a companion, for the voice and movement of God in your life. The Martin Institute's Incarnatio Center provides a limited number of spiritual direction grants for faculty, staff and students who are interested.
May 27-29, 2026, the Martin Institute will host over 90 interdisciplinary scholars and ministry practitioners at Westmont College for the 3rd annual Christian Formation Workshop. The theme of this year’s workshop is “Practice Unto Virtue: The Role of Christian Practices in Virtue Formation.”
Dr. Tyler J. VanderWeele, Director of the Harvard Human Flourishing Program, will visit Westmont on June 5th for the 12th Annual Lead Where You Stand Conference. While on campus, he will receive the 2025 Dallas Willard Research Center Book Award for his, A Theology of Health: Wholeness and Human Flourishing (University of Notre Dame Press, 2024).
The Martin Institute has partnered with the Campus Pastor’s office to host several chapels this year. You can see chapels from Megan Fate Marshman, Carolyn Arends, Steve Porter, Nijay Gupta, and Jon Guerra. The Martin Institute also partnered with Westmont's Music Department and held a concert on campus by Jon Guerra.
In September, we welcomed a new class of Cultura Fellows. In June, the fellows will gather for their summer retreat led by Mimi Dixon at Glen Eyrie Castle in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Workers have begun constructing a new building on Westmont’s campus north of the Global Leadership Center to house the Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture.