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Review & Giveaway: Chosen Land
Matthew Sutton’s expansive new book is the perfect resource for understanding what the United States has been over the past 250 years, not what some people wish it would be.
In His First Encyclical, Pope Leo XIV Says AI Must Serve Humanity, Not the Powerful Few
In ‘Magnifica Humanitas,’ Leo's 83-page manifesto on AI, the pope tackles the social, economic, and political challenges associated with artificial intelligence.
After a Minnesota Church Protest, States Are Toughening Penalties for Disrupting Services
Bills have been signed into law in Republican-dominated Idaho, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. In Kansas, a bill is becoming law without the signature of Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
Church
Singing Protests Gain Momentum As Non-Violent but Emotionally Stirring Rebukes to ICE
'We're going to sing and sing and try to touch the hearts of the ICE agents,' said the Rev. Jacqueline Lewis, senior pastor at Middle Church in New York.
Hundreds of United Methodists Rally to Dismantle ICE Outside Capitol
The day of action, titled “Faithful Resistance,” was planned months ago, and organizers settled on their schedule before the date for this week’s State of the Union was announced.
Minnesota Faith Groups Sue DHS Over Access to Immigrant Detainees
It's at least the second lawsuit challenging the federal government's policy of barring faith leaders from accessing some Department of Homeland Security facilities.
Nation
Advocates for Church-State Separation Find Humor, Joy Amid Challenging Work
This week’s Summit for Religious Freedom, organized by Americans United for Separation of Church and State, struck a tone of joyful resistance.
The Christian DNA of Suspected White House Correspondents’ Dinner Shooter
President Donald Trump described the would-be assassin as anti-Christian. The evidence hints at a complex faith background.
Hey, Fifth Circuit: Keep John Leland’s Name Out of Your Mouth!
A court of appeals ruling just overturned Supreme Court precedent on posting the Ten Commandments in public schools — and the majority opinion conscripted a legendary colonial Baptist figure who fought for church-state separation to justify their actions.
World
Samaritan’s Purse to Play a Larger Role in Gaza Aid Distribution
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is being phased out, said Samaritan's Purse CEO Franklin Graham. Johnnie Moore, the evangelical PR guru who has served as GHF chairman, recently stepped down.
A US Senator Claims ‘Christian Mass Murder’ Is Occurring in Nigeria. The Data Disagrees
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz has been trying to rally fellow evangelical Christians and urge Congress to designate Nigeria as a violator of religious freedom with unfounded claims.
This Is Why the Story of Abraham Is Coming Up in the Push for Middle East Peace
Anyone trying to build a bridge between faiths is liable to invoke Abraham — revered as a founding figure in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism — as someone they hold in common.
Editorials
What is Truth?
This piece was originally published as the cover story of Word&Way magazine in October 2020, but which has never been published online. Read the piece online in our e-newsletter A Public Witness.
DeSantis Preaches Dangerous Armor of God
Word&Way Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor reflects on dangers of rhetoric by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the Republican politician misquotes Ephesians 6 to demonize his opponents.
Good Samaritan with a Handgun?
On Sunday evening, a man opened fire in a shopping mall in Greenwood, Indiana, killing three people and wounding two others before also being shot dead. What city officials said in response sparked some odd headlines.
Word&Way Voices
Unsettling Advent 2025, Day 2
As wannabe tyrants arise and the authoritarian logic of empire finds purchase among Christian Nationalists, sincere followers of Jesus should listen afresh to Mary this Christmastime.
Would Jesus Belong to MAGA?
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy makes the case that the best approach to this question is investigating how Jesus interacted with the Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, and Zealots throughout the Gospels.
Two Tales of One City
Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell reflects on the tragic juxtaposition of running in the beautiful Charlotte Marathon while ICE agents racially profiled and terrorized neighbors over the weekend.
E-Newsletter
The Room Where a Bad Bill Happens
The head of the Missouri Senate Education Committee thinks we should force public schools to teach that the Constitutional Convention prayed after Benjamin Franklin said they should — even though it very much never happened.
Doug Wilson Preaches at Pentagon, Compares Services to Day of Pentecost
The controversial ‘paleo-Confederate’ Christian Nationalist pastor stood at a podium on Tuesday as the guest preacher for the latest monthly Christian worship service held for leaders of the U.S. military.
Judge Freezes ICE Raids at Some Baptist, Lutheran, & MCC Churches
For the second time in a year, a federal judge has issued an injunction to block the Department of Homeland Security from conducting warrantless immigration enforcement actions at some houses of worship.
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The State of the Senate, from SC to ME to TX to KS
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 death of Sen. Lindsey Graham as well as issues of faith and morality in Senate races in Maine, Texas, and Kansas. You can… -
Southern Baptists, the Pentagon, & UFC
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 Southern Baptist Convention's push against women in ministry, the Pentagon changing how it codes the faith of military members, and the latest in… -
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…
Books
Review: Staying at the Table
This book from Rev. Terri Hord Owens, general minister and president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), serves as something of an encyclical for mainline Protestants.
Review: How Did They Read the Prophets?
Old Testament scholar Michael B. Shepherd explores the world of ancient exegesis, focusing on how early Jewish and Christian readers understood the Hebrew Bible’s prophetic literature.
Review: Torah Wrestling
This book is ideal for Jews, Christians, and Muslims who wrestle with the moral dilemmas of our time while drawing wisdom from the most challenging and inspiring stories in the Bible’s first five books.
Review: Some of the Words Are Theirs
Longtime pastor Austin Carty makes the case that the power of a sermon is found not in novelty, but in the mandate it gives preachers to collect their thoughts every week and put them down in a succinct, coherent fashion.