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Featured
Thomas Paine Helped Start America. In the Trump Era, He’s Under Fire.
In some ways, the debate over Paine's legacy today is a proxy for a much larger debate over whose vision gets to govern.
Federal Employees Sue USDA Secretary Over Christian Messaging
Asked to comment on the suit, a USDA spokesperson said: ‘While we do not comment on pending litigation, we will keep the plaintiffs in our prayers during this process.’
Review: Emotion in Early Christianity
In this groundbreaking book, Andrew Crislip illuminates how emotion shaped Christian identity, community practices, and theological understanding.
Church
2 Ohio Pastors Emerge As Faithful Allies for Haitian Migrants During Trump’s Crackdown
Carl Ruby, pastor of Central Christian Church, takes pride in the fact that Springfield’s resistance to Trump’s immigration crackdown is faith-based.
Over 100 Latino Christian Leaders Say Trump Adviser Samuel Rodriguez’s Reach Is Misrepresented
The letter’s signers say they were prompted to speak out because of the damage the Trump administration’s immigration policies have done to Latino communities.
‘A Lie From the Pit of Hell’: Episcopal Leaders Push Back on Rumors of Fatal Decline
More than 850 Episcopal Church leaders gathered in Charlotte to talk about the future of the church and what the denomination still has to offer.
Nation
Trump and Other Top Republicans Will Read Passages in a Marathon Bible Event
‘If they wanted this to be a unifying American project, there would have been a whole lot more attention to getting political diversity and ideological diversity,’ added Brian Kaylor of Word&Way.
That Viral ‘Pulp Fiction’ Prayer Story
The story about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reading a prayer based on a scene in a Quentin Tarantino film really did go viral in the U.S. and elsewhere. And it all started with our newsletter A Public Witness.
Supreme Court Will Hear From Religious Preschools Challenging Exclusion From Taxpayer-Funded Program
The state of Colorado said that faith-based schools are welcome to participate, but they must comply with nondiscrimination laws.
World
Can Evangelical Faith in Israel Survive MAGA and the Gaza War? Israel Is Betting Millions on It
Conservatives have long seen supporting Israel as an act of faith. Now, critics such as Tucker Carlson say Christian Zionism is a heresy, while more progressive Christian voices denounce Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.
Gaza’s Tiny Christian Community Tries to Capture the Holiday Spirit During the Ceasefire
Israeli strikes have decreased since the ceasefire agreement took effect in October, but deadly attacks have not entirely ended.
Jim Caviezel of ‘The Passion of the Christ’ to Play Jair Bolsonaro in 2026 Biopic
Bolsonaro, who rose to power with the support of Brazilian evangelicals, is currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup against current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Editorials
Unsettling Advent 2023, Day 1
Brian Kaylor reflects on state executions during Christmastime and the modern parallels with a biblical character we often leave out of our nativity sets and pageants.
Reading Genesis Literally … in Texas
Lawmakers are arguing that if the federal government can restrict structures in the Rio Grande, then they could use the same Act everywhere because of Noah’s flood. Putting aside the legal silliness of the appeal to Genesis, this issue of A Public Witness joins the 22 Republican representatives in their
Some Baptists Debate About Women Preaching, Others Listen to Women Preach
Focusing almost entirely on the SBC not only minimizes the theological (and political and racial) diversity of Baptists, but it also privileges a patriarchal body over others.
Word&Way Voices
Unsettling Advent 2025, Day 13
When we have created — and allowed — a world where the fearmongering of scarcity is rewarded far and above the possibility of abundance, we are indeed facing Advent in a time of starvation.
Unsettling Advent 2025, Day 12
The good news of Advent is this: Christ entered the violence of human life, the very violence that says some folks are more valuable than others, and took on these abstractions.
Unsettling Advent 2025, Day 10
Advent teaches us that a shiny, gilded facade only serves to cover up the other side of the story. If we keep our focus on the child sleeping in an animal feeding trough, we might be unsettled — but the truth we see will compel us to live differently.
E-Newsletter
Christians Protest Alabama’s Plans for a Ramadan Execution
In a surprise move, Gov. Kay Ivey commuted the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton — sparing the life of a Muslim during his faith’s holiest time of the year.
Rewriting the Ten Commandments
Check out the first episode of ‘A Trick of State,’ a special occasional series from Dangerous Dogma investigating underexplored issues at the intersection of church and state that expose the false promises of Christian Nationalism.
Attacks on Iran Draw Fire From Mainline, Catholic, and Middle Eastern Christian Leaders
While figures like Franklin Graham and Pete Hegseth bet on a holy war where God is on their side, many Christian leaders in the U.S. and around the world were quick to condemn the so-called ‘Operation Epic Fury.’
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Southern Baptists, Women in Ministry, & a Billboard
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Meredith Stone, executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry. The conversation includes discussion of efforts in the Southern Baptist Convention to further target women serving in churches and how BWIM is advocating for women (including with a billboard to greet SBC messengers next week in Orlando,… -
Divergent Visions for Rededicating the Nation
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor, Lutheran minister and journalist Angela Denker, and Disciples pastor and author Beau Underwood. The conversation includes discussion about Rededicate 250, gerrymandering, Adam Hamilton's Senate campaign in Kansas, and the MAHA movement. You can watch a video version of the conversation here. Here are a few pieces… -
The Christian Past That Wasn't
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Warren Throckmorton, a retired professor who has spent years debunking false claims by Christian Nationalist pseudo-historian David Barton. Throckmorton is the author of the new book, The Christian Past that Wasn't: Debunking the Christian Nationalist Myths that Hijack History. You can watch a video version of… -
Trump vs. Leo
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor, Lutheran minister and journalist Angela Denker, and Disciples pastor and author Beau Underwood. The conversation includes discussion about President Donald Trump's attacks on Pope Leo XIV, Leo's witness against the Iran war, Trump's AI image of himself as Jesus, and the electoral… -
Fight Like Jesus with Jason Porterfield (Reissue)
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Jason Porterfield about his book Fight Like Jesus: How Jesus Waged Peace. This episode originally aired in 2023, except for a new introduction noting a violent prayer by Pete Hegseth during a recent Pentagon worship service and Palm Sunday comments by Pope Leo XIV. Note: Don't forget… -
Pete Hegseth's Crusader Bible (A Trick of State)
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor considers Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's use of the English Standard Version of the Bible, patriarchy in the faith communities Hegseth has been a part of, and his Christian Nationalism. It also reveals that Hegseth's ESV Bible includes two Crusader symbols stamped onto the cover (and that match… -
An Unholy War
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor, Lutheran minister and journalist Angela Denker, and Disciples pastor and author Beau Underwood. The conversation includes discussion about the Iran war, Christian opposition to the war, and viral claims of military leaders claiming this will bring "Armageddon." It also includes consideration of… -
Rewriting the Ten Commandments (A Trick of State)
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor looks at legislation across the country that purports to want the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. But the version mandated by lawmakers cannot be found in any Bible. Kaylor unpacks where the edited language came from, why such legislation is an attack on religious liberty, and the… -
198. American Christianity Divided in Responses to ICE
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor, Lutheran minister and journalist Angela Denker, and Disciples pastor and author Beau Underwood. The conversation includes discussion about ICE actions in Minneapolis, how many clergy are leading protests against ICE while others are supporting ICE, and new research worried about the loss… -
197. Anna Piela and Michael Woolf on Confronting Islamophobia in the Church
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with American Baptist ministers Anna Piela and Michael Woolf on Islamophobia, immigration, and how Christians can better engage with interfaith efforts. Anna and Michael are coauthors of the new book, Confronting Islamophobia in the Church: Liturgical Tools for Justice. Watch a video version of this conversation here.…
Books
Review & Giveaway: The Seven Mountains Mandate
Beau Underwood reviews The Seven Mountains Mandate: Exposing the Dangerous Plan to Christianize America and Destroy Democracy, which Matthew Boedy wrote to alert those who were ignorant or complacent about what was going on and what was at stake.
Review: We Call Ourselves Disciples
Written by Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) pastors and scholars, this collection of essays explores the mainline Protestant denomination’s diverse history, theology, worship, and mission.
Review: Rooted in Faith and Justice
As the world’s attention is on the devastation of Gaza, this book offers a powerful and enlightening perspective through the eyes of Palestinian Christian leaders and thinkers.
Out in the World
With the weaponization of Scripture regularly making headline news, “The Bible According to Christian Nationalists” officially releases today to point to better ways of reading and applying sacred texts.