Sign up to receive full essays in your inbox!
Featured
Religious Democrats Prepare to Turn Election Victories Into Legislative Action
Newly elected lawmakers are setting their priorities as progressive faith groups press Congress to act on voting rights, healthcare, and economic inequality.
A Jordan River Baptism Dream Come True
A Special Envoy to the Middle East and North Africa for the World Evangelical Alliance, who had long dreamed of being baptized in the Jordan River, recently saw that dream fulfilled through a remarkable sequence of encounters.
Bystanders Defend Seattle Diwali Celebration Targeted by Far-Right Agitators
Far-right agitators disrupted a Seattle Diwali celebration. Bystanders of all backgrounds banded together to push them out.
Church
UMC Bishop Removes Ministers From Dallas’ Highland Park; Church Says They Will Stay
In yet another escalation, the bishop said he was removing the Rev. Matt Tuggle, senior minister, and the Rev. Paul Rasmussen, former senior minister, ‘from all positions’ at the church.
When Churches Bear False Witness in a Political Campaign
Numerous churches across Missouri have decorated their lawns for the political season this year. Yet the signs proudly posted by many are quite deceptive when it comes to abortion and transgender people.
One of the Largest UMC Churches in the Country Just Voted to Leave the Denomination
Highland Park United Methodist Church is locked in a bitter battle with the denomination’s regional body over issues of governance, not theological differences.
Nation
Clergy Candidates’ Message of ‘Love Your Neighbor’ Powers Democrats’ Midterm Election Gains
It was a striking midterm victory that demonstrated the strength of the religious left as a counter to the stalwart evangelical support for President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans.
A Blue Mainline Protestant Wave Challenges Hegseth’s Violent Christian Nationalism
One early victim of this 'Blue Wave,' which was fueled in part by mainline Protestant clergy running for office, may have been the monthly Christian worship service at the Pentagon.
Adam Hamilton Takes a Pastoral Approach in His Final Days on Campaign Trail
Considered a long shot when he first jumped into the U.S. Senate race in Kansas, the Rev. Adam Hamilton, a United Methodist megachurch pastor, narrowly led in the polls as Election Day approached.
World
120 Christian Leaders Urge Trump Administration Not to Withhold $1B in Global Health Funds
The group, which included a religious adviser to Trump, sent a letter to Trump officials — an unusual instance of evangelical leaders urging the administration to change course.
As Violence Escalates in Nigeria, Christian and Muslim Leaders Unite
Amid surging kidnappings and attacks on communities and places of worship, faith leaders are forming partnerships aimed at countering religious division and building peace.
In Germany, Right-Wing ‘Christfluencers’ Hope to Follow the US Religious Right
Radicalized by COVID-19 and anger over immigration, right-wing pastors like Tobias Riemenschneider in Germany hope to gain followers by promoting conservative Christian views and politics. They have looked to religious right leaders and conservative influencers in the US for inspiration.
Editorials
Pete Hegseth’s War Prayer
Editor-in-Chie Brian Kaylor reflects on a recent violent prayer by Pete Hegseth during a Christian worship service at the Pentagon and Mark Twain’s satirical work “The War Prayer.”
Doug Wilson’s Wrong on Why I’m ‘Whizzed Up’ About His Pentagon Sermon
Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor responds to Doug Wilson’s defense of Pete Hegseth holding Christian worship services in the Pentagon, including the one Wilson preached at earlier this month.
Michael W. Smith Worshipwashes Trump’s Profanity and Lies
After President Donald Trump rambled, lied, and cursed for 77 minutes at the National Prayer Breakfast, a prominent Christian musician went to the piano to bless it.
Word&Way Voices
What’s in Ten Thousand Names? 250 Years of the Faithful Fight Against Religious Establishment
The executive director of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society commemorates the 1776 Dissenters’ Petition of Ten Thousand Names and connects it to our religious freedom struggles today.
Finding the Love in God’s Apocalyptic Plan
Can we bypass the end times by becoming worthy of God’s love and presence — and does the Bible show that all prophecy is set in stone? Maybe we should ask Jonah.
Why Christians Need the NFL
As Christians, we are called to be citizens of heaven — currently residing on earth — so we should learn to talk like it.
E-Newsletter
When Churches Bear False Witness in a Political Campaign
Numerous churches across Missouri have decorated their lawns for the political season this year. Yet the signs proudly posted by many are quite deceptive when it comes to abortion and transgender people.
Sunday Night Rally at Church in Doug Wilson’s Denomination Targets Adam Hamilton’s Faith
Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall is a longtime mainline Protestant. But on Sunday, he joined numerous rightwing evangelical pastors in attacking the United Methodist Church.
Hegseth’s Pastor Tells Pentagon Leaders ‘God Has Providentially Placed You’ There ‘For Such a Time As This’
With the midterm elections less than two weeks away, Pete Hegseth’s job security is increasingly uncertain — meaning this could be the final Pentagon worship service.
-
Faith & the 2026 Midterm Results
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 about the results of the 2026 midterms and the role religion played in various campaigns. You can watch a video version of the conversation… -
Claiming God's Name in Politics, War, & Sports
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 a botched execution in Tennessee, religious issues in political campaigns, and Pete Hegseth's misuse of the Bible. And Beau shows off his White Sox… -
Backslide with Robert P. Jones
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor and Robert P. Jones, author of the forthcoming book Backslide: Reclaiming a Faith and a Nation After the Christian Turn Against Democracy. Jones is also the founder and president of PRRI. He previously appeared on Dangerous Dogma in 2023. You can watch a… -
DHS Spies on Churches & White Sox Honor Pope 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 revelations that the Department of Homeland Security has been spying in churches, a controversial golf ad, and a White Sox night celebrating Pope Leo.… -
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…
Books
Book Recommendation: My Disability is Divine
As a scholar and disability rights advocate, Amy Kenny illuminates aspects of our own lives, our congregations, and our society that continue to harm our neighbors living with disabilities and hold all of us back from enjoying true community.
Review: Devils of Democracy
From the founding fathers to the rise of Christian Nationalism, this new book from Michael E. Heyes reveals how America's centuries-long obsession with evil has shaped — and endangered — the United States.
Review: Too Sick to Pray
C. M. Howell shows that the religious dimension of Outlaw Country is best understood as musicians involved in a mode of theological play.
Review: Live Each Season As It Passes
Daniel Cooperrider reminds readers that God continues to speak in the context of nature and the ebbs and flows of the seasons. It’s a witness we need to heed, considering the climate challenges we face as human beings.