News

First Baptist Church is so crucial to the history of the Colombian island of San Andres that detailed record of births and deaths are kept here in crumbling books that date back nearly two centuries. 

Members of Apache Stronghold, a nonprofit working to protect the Apache sacred site in Arizona known as Oak Flat, are requesting a rehearing in their case against the United States as they seek to stop a private venture from turning the land into an underground copper mine. The Apache people hold a number of important ceremonies at Oak Flat that can take place only on the site, which would be destroyed by mining.

Robert D. Cornwall reviews "Reading Theology Wisely: A Practical Introduction" by Kent Eilers with art by Chris Koelle. This book, written for the student or layperson, makes the case that theology is more than dry intellectualism because how we see God has a lot to do with how we live out our faith. Reading theology also helps us navigate the complexities of Christianity, taking us beyond a simplistic faith.

The Republican candidate for governor in Wisconsin endorsed by Trump is calling for people to take up “pitchforks and torches” in reaction to a story that detailed his giving to anti-abortion groups and churches — rhetoric that many say amounts to threatening violence. Since the story’s publication, he has gone after not just his opponent and Democrats, but also the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and, more broadly, all reporters.

As the COVID-19 pandemic stretched from that first spring into summer, researcher Eileen Campbell-Reed said, she realized its impact on ministry wasn’t going to be short-lived.

In this issue of A Public Witness, we take you to church to hear from Democratic gubernatorial nominees Charlie Crist in Florida, J.B. Pritzker in Illinois, and Stacey Abrams in Georgia. And then we consider the problems emerging from this campaign tactic. 

China’s discriminatory detention of Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic groups in the western region of Xinjiang may constitute crimes against humanity, the U.N. human rights office said in a long-awaited report Wednesday, which cited “serious” rights violations and patterns of torture in recent years. The report seeks “urgent attention” from the U.N. and the world community to rights violations.

Parents of children enrolled in Maine religious schools fought all the way to the Supreme Court for the state to treat tuition reimbursements the same as other private schools. But only one of the religious high schools has signed up to participate this fall, after Maine’s attorney general warned that the schools would have to abide by state antidiscrimination laws, including those that protect LGBTQ students and faculty.

In this issue of A Public Witness, we introduce you to the man behind the microphone of the Todd Starnes Show before listening to his sermon Sunday. Then we offer a warning about risking the Church’s witness by elevating partisan voices like Starnes in pulpits.

Robert D. Cornwall reviews "Bonhoeffer’s Religionless Christianity in Its Christological Context" by Peter Hooton. This book centers on the writings that appeared near the end of Bonhoeffer’s life that sought to envision what a non-institutionalized Christianity might look like. This exploration helps us understand how Bonhoeffer can be helpful to our current conversations in a world that is increasingly polarized.