In his first presidential address as president of the United Methodist Church’s Council of Bishops, Bishop Thomas Bickerton called on conservative groups encouraging churches to leave the denomination to stop the negative rhetoric. He accused the Global Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Covenant Association of
Robert D. Cornwall reviews What Do We Do When Nobody Is Listening?: Leading the Church in a Polarized Society by Robin W. Lovin. This book, written by a United Methodist minister and Christian ethicist, tackles the question of how churches should navigate the polarization that
Siddiqui lives in Atlanta and attends St. John’s Lutheran Church, but he grew up in New Jersey and was raised Muslim — like a “Christmas and Easter Muslim,” he joked. By the time he graduated college, he considered himself an atheist. Siddiqui said he doesn’t
More than four decades after sexual abuse claims against a Catholic priest first made national headlines, spurring accusations, lawsuits, a series of newspaper investigations and billions in settlements, the DOJ is investigating a religious group’s handling of sexual crimes by clergy and church staff. This
In this issue of A Public Witness, we look at politicians citing Ephesians 6 in ways that don’t fit with the meaning of the passage. Then we consider how this rhetoric adds to a political environment already filled with violence.
Last year, the U.S. branch of the Jesuits pledged to raise $100 million for a reconciliation initiative in partnership with descendants of people once enslaved by the Catholic order. On Tuesday, a leader of those descendants expressed deep dissatisfaction with the order’s lack of progress
Robert D. Cornwall reviews Azusa Reimagined: A Radical Vision of Religious and Democratic Belonging by Keri Day. The book explores how the Azusa Street Revival that began in Los Angeles in 1906 served as the foundation of Pentecostalism and the charismatic movement. Revisiting this history
Contributing writer Greg Mamula offers the latest entry in a six-part series on the future of the church. In this fourth article, he focuses on recognizing, celebrating, and unleashing the gifts and talents of all people. In order to better understand how we might do
Frederick Buechner's theme “listen to your life” was constant across more than six decades in his career as an ordained evangelist in the Presbyterian Church (USA) who inspired Christians across conservative and progressive divides with his books and sermons. Buechner died peacefully in his sleep
Religion News Service reached out to more than 50 House and Senate Republicans seeking their response, questioning whether they support calls to make the RNC the party of Christian nationalism. The list ranged from hardline conservatives to more moderate Republicans who recently voted to codify