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Featured
Belarus Authoritarian Leader Welcomes US Evangelist Franklin Graham to Hold Massive Gathering
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko asked Graham to convey warm greetings to President Donald Trump and tell him that he has ‘reliable friends and supporters in Belarus.’
Labor Department Cancels Monthly Worship Service After Secretary’s Ouster
While the organizing and hosting of monthly government worship services has been paused at DoL, such services continue at the Pentagon — and this trend has now spread to the Small Business Administration.
Between Christendom and Faith
The commercialized American church has arrived at a form of religious life in which institutional maintenance and spiritual fidelity become indistinguishable, and where questioning the institution is easily recoded as questioning God.
Church
An American Baptist Church Ministers in Shadow of Pretti Killing
An American Baptist church is just one block from where nurse Alex Pretti was executed Saturday by federal agents in the street. The church held a joint worship service the next morning elsewhere, but opened up its own building to serve those coming or leaving the memorial to Pretti.
Black Church Leaders Aid Minneapolis, Seek Laws Curtailing Federal Agents’ Mask Usage
Minneapolis-area AME Church officials stated Renee Good’s death ‘never should have happened’ and listed more than a dozen ways they have tried to meet community needs there.
‘Just Like Selma’ Hymn Project Aims to Help Churches Recall King, Mark Black History Month
The new song’s composer thought it could be a way to again hear from Black churches, collectively, about civil rights.
Nation
States Eulogize Charlie Kirk With New Laws Promoting Religion and Free Speech
A new Kansas law will allow college students to sue their schools for free-speech violations. In Tennessee, a new law will encourage teachers and professors to include ‘the positive impacts of religion’ in American history courses.
Hegseth Borrows Violent Prayer From ‘Pulp Fiction’ to Bless Iran War at April Pentagon Worship Service
Pete Hegseth, who likes to call himself ‘secretary of war,’ read a prayer during the latest government worship service that echoes a scene written by Quentin Tarantino calling for ‘great vengeance and furious anger.’
Turning Point USA’s High School Push in GOP States Meets Free Speech and Religion Concerns
The Republican administrations of Nebraska, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Montana, Florida, Tennessee, and Indiana have each announced partnerships with Turning Point USA to promote school chapters in every high school.
World
Priceless Archaeological Artifacts in Gaza Saved in Frantic Rescue
‘It’s not just about Palestinian heritage or Christian heritage, it’s something important to the world heritage here, protected by UNESCO,’ explained Kevin Charbel, the emergency field coordinator for Première Urgence Internationale.
The Oldest Pipe Organ in the Christian World Sounds After 800 Years of Silence
Composed of original pipes from the 11th century, the instrument emitted a full, hearty sound as musician David Catalunya played a liturgical chant.
Pope Leo and Vatican Insist on 2-State Solution to End Gaza War During Meeting With Israel President
The audience marked the first by history’s first American pope with the Israeli head of state. Leo spoke by telephone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in July after an Israeli shell slammed into the only Catholic church in Gaza.
Editorials
For the Director of Music (at First Baptist in Dallas)
Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor offers some seasonal advice to the music director at First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, ahead of Sunday’s worship service that will include former President Donald Trump.
Unsettling Advent, Day 18
In day 18 of our Unsettling Advent devotional series, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor reflects on violent insurrections during the time of Jesus’s birth and what that can teach us today.
Unsettling Advent, Day 9
In day 9 of our Unsettling Advent devotional series, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor reflects on racial injustices in the U.S. and how this helps us understand the birth of Jesus.
Word&Way Voices
Jordan Shines as a Beacon of Tolerance for Baptists and All Believers
Within a single week, two historic milestones took place in Amman: the European Baptist Federation celebrated its 75th anniversary and the Baptist World Alliance appointed its first Ambassador to the Middle East.
Suggestions for God Month in Texas
In the latest effort to sidestep the separation of church and state, Republicans in the Texas legislature want an official month dedicated to God.
Correcting Common Misconceptions About Christian Nationalism
Although researchers have long discussed Christian Nationalism, it’s fairly new to public discourse. Let’s clarify some points that are often misunderstood so we can have an effective, organized response.
E-Newsletter
Hegseth Shares War Psalm He Prayed During Venezuela Attack
During the first Christian worship service at the Pentagon in 2026 — and the first since the operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro — the Secretary of War framed that U.S. military action as a godly mission.
Protesters Disrupt Southern Baptist Church of Pastor Who Leads ICE Office in Minnesota
‘Jesus — who they claim to worship — went into the so-called houses of God, he flipped over tables. … So that’s what we did today,’ said minister and organizer Nekima Levy Armstrong.
At Labor Prayer Service, Alveda King Tells Government Employees to Work (Without Complaining) or Don’t Eat
Amid an internal investigation into Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the Department of Labor held its second monthly worship service featuring the rightwing anti-abortion activist niece of MLK.
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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: Green Street in Black and White
In the novel “Green Street in Black and White: A Chicago Story,” Dave Larsen takes us back to a 1960s summer of social upheaval, when youthful mischief collided with the weight of adult fears.
Summer Reads 2025
We’ve once again asked several Word&Way writers to recommend books perfect for wherever you find your happy place this summer.
Review: In Accordance With the Scriptures
In “In Accordance With the Scriptures: The Shape of Christian Theology,” Orthodox theologian John Behr reveals how the scriptural arc from Adam to Christ is recapitulated in our own growth as humans.
One Year of Baptizing America
It really has been quite a year — and one that, unfortunately, showed how important it is for Christians to address Christian Nationalism in society and our churches.