Opinion

Using prayer to cover up our own misdeeds or guilty inaction isn’t just upsetting but can also be dangerous. Consider the latest move to fight coronavirus undertaken by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt. Instead of issuing a life-saving statewide mask mandate, he called for an official day of prayer.

Columnist Greg Mamula has noticed a trend in Baptist churches toward at least acknowledging classic Christian seasons like Advent more often. He writes that the good thing about seasons is that they come back around every year, allowing us to gain deeper understanding of each season.

Our consumer society’s dependence on instant gratification has infected our religious practice. Advent comes with a countervailing message: Expect God to show up in unexpected places, like a subway car, a Zoom call, or a stable.

Robert Ingold writes a letter to the editor to offer a public apology concerning concerning allegations he made during the Missouri Baptist Convention annual meeting in October.

Editor Brian Kaylor reflects on the ministry and impact of Word&Way this year, and he expresses thanks to our readers and donors who helped make it all happen.

With November being the month of Thanksgiving, there always seems to be a gratitude or thankfulness challenge that pops up on social media. Columnist Heather Feeler writes about trying a “thank you project.”

Liberty University has long bragged about being one of America’s largest Christian colleges, but this year, even after suffering its first loss by one point on Saturday, it can also boast about its nationally ranked football team. But to get there, the school was willing to make a couple of compromises.

Trump did more than capture White evangelical Christians’ votes: He in many ways became the face of White evangelicalism. But when White Christians fail to stand in solidarity with Black people and immigrants, there is really nothing Christlike about our Christianity.

Columnist Wade Paris explores the idea of gratitude by imagining a conversation between a curious angel and God as they peek in on several people on Thanksgiving Day.

In the smallpox outbreaks in the 18th and 19th centuries, clergy such as Cotton Mather were crucial in convincing dubious Americans in Boston and New York to submit to variolation and vaccination. Faith leaders can have a similar role to play in bringing an end to the COVID-19 pandemic.