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Trump Signs Executive Order Creating Religious Liberty Commission
President Donald Trump has appointed evangelical allies and a pair of high-profile Catholic clergy to join other faith leaders on a National Commission on Religious Liberty.
The Fake History of a Failed Bible
This issue of A Public Witness opens up the Aitken’s Bible to consider the tale of a flop and how Christian Nationalists misleadingly repackage it as ‘a Bible approved by Congress.’
SBC Membership Drops to Its Lowest Number in 50 Years. But Baptisms Are on the Rise.
The Southern Baptist Convention lost 259,090 members in 2024 — the 18th consecutive year of membership decline — according to the denomination’s Annual Church Profile report, released Wednesday.
Church
Report Details 17 Cases of Abuse by IHOPKC Founder Mike Bickle
The report was conducted by the investigative firm Firefly but overseen by Tikkun Global, a Messianic Jewish network that had previous ties to the International House of Prayer, based in Kansas City, Missouri.
ICE’s Cold Shoulder to Churches
This issue of A Public Witness seeks sanctuary to understand the history of how ICE interacts with houses of worship and the pushback against Trump’s changes from various Christian groups.
Anglican Priest Calvin Robinson Defrocked Over Nazi-Like Salute
Robinson has defended the gesture, with which he concluded his speech at the National Pro-Life Summit last week, as an ‘attempt at dry wit.’
Nation
Thou Shalt Not Covet State-Sponsored Religion
This issue of A Public Witness takes you inside a contentious hearing in the Missouri Senate, offers context for Ten Commandments mandates spreading across the country, and highlights the strong Christian opposition to an attempted Christian Nationalist power grab.
Abortion Fight Won, Conservative Christians Mimic Dobbs Tactics To Go After Same-Sex Marriage
A multistate effort is spitting out legislation and lawsuits aimed at testing the Supreme Court justices’ commitment to Obergefell v. Hodges.
Notre Dame Conference Addresses ‘Pressing Crisis’ of Christian Nationalism
This issue of A Public Witness takes you inside a recent academic gathering to hear from some of the nation’s leading scholars as they offer ways to push back against a dangerous ideology.
World
Church-Linked Groups Are Helping South Sudanese Refugees Live Like Locals in Uganda
Responding to crisis, a coalition of church organizations is providing education, skills trainings, and farming equipment to help refugees become self-reliant.
Their Churches No Longer Feel Safe. Now Nicaraguans Are Taking Their Worship Home
Several evangelical pastors, Catholic priests, and human rights organizations have denounced the surveillance, harassment, and the imprisonment of Nicaraguan faith leaders in recent years.
African Faith Leaders and Environmentalists Push for Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty
An event advocating for the treaty was organized as part of the Season of Creation, an event observed annually by Christian denominations and Christian climate activists from Sept. 1 to Oct. 4.
Editorials
It’s Ever Given for Greed to Crash
Editor Brian Kaylor reflects on the Ever Given container ship that got stuck in the Suez Canal. And he connects this modern parable to biblical stories about Egyptian pharaohs and other rulers seeking more wealth and power.
Which Cloud of Witnesses?
Editor Brian Kaylor reflects on the painting behind Georgia Governor Brian Kemp during the signing ceremony for a new law making it harder for people to exercise their right to vote.
We Can’t Massage Away the Scandal of the Gospel
Editor Brian Kaylor reflects on the quick move by a Baptist church in Georgia to kick out the man who killed eight people at three massage parlors. And Kaylor wonders where Jesus would have instead shown up in Atlanta on Sunday.
Word&Way Voices
Donald Trump, Bible Salesman
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy explores the various meanings behind Trump’s recent endorsement of Lee Greenwood’s ‘God Bless the USA Bible.’
A Century Ago, One State Tried to Close Religious Schools − A Far Cry From Today
On April 2, Oklahoma’s Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that could allow a Catholic charter school to open — which critics say would demolish the line between church and state in education.
Let’s Not Destroy What We Helped Build
Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell explores what our role is as Christians when it comes to public schools.
E-Newsletter
Review & Giveaway: Money, Lies, and God
Katherine Stewart has created a collection of dispatches from the front lines of the current assault on American democracy.
Sermons About That Sermon
This issue of A Public Witness looks at numerous sermons by Episcopal and other mainline preachers across the country as they reflected on Luke 4, Bishop Budde, and showing mercy.
After Viral Sermon, GOP Threatens Religious Liberty
Amid the vitriol against Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde from Trump and other Republicans this week, a few proposals stick out since they attempt to empower the federal government to decide which religious beliefs should be allowed or not.
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183. Shannon Fleck of Faithful America
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Shannon Fleck, the new executive director of Faithful America. She discusses Christian Nationalism in Oklahoma and nationally. You can watch a video version of his conversation on YouTube. Fleck's predecessor, Rev. Nathan Empsall, previously appeared on episode 61 of Dangerous Dogma. He also wrote several columns… -
182. Ruth Braunstein on When the Wolves Came
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with sociologist Ruth Braunstein about her documentary podcast When the Wolves Came. You can also find her writings at her Substack newsletter Democracy Is Hard. Mentioned in the episode is Caleb Campbell, who previously appeared on episode 150 of Dangerous Dogma. Note: Don't forget to subscribe to… -
181. Angela Denker on Disciples of White Jesus
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with journalist and Lutheran minister Angela Denker about her forthcoming book Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood. You can watch a video version of this conversation here. You can also hear an earlier conversation with Denker in episode 68, and a conversation with Caleb Campbell… -
180. David Swartz on Rebel on Main
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with historian David Swartz about his new narrative podcast project Rebel on Main, which offers a historical and contemporary exploration of a Kentucky county and its unusual Confederate statue. You can watch a video version of this conversation here. (You can also hear an earlier episode with… -
179. Munther Isaac on Christ in the Rubble
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Rev. Munther Isaac, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, about his forthcoming book Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza. He also talks about Donald Trump's plan to "take over" Gaza, the importance of using the terms "genocide"… -
178. State Senator Shows How NOT to Read Proverbs
On Tuesday (Feb. 25), a session of the Oklahoma Senate transformed into a spontaneous Bible study. Or perhaps more of a Bible study cosplay demonstrating how not to read the Bible, specifically how not to read the Book of Proverbs. In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor unpacks the errors in how Proverbs was cited… -
177. Countering Sean Feucht with Karrie Gaspard-Hogewood
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Karrie Gaspard-Hogewood, a sociology doctoral fellow at Tulane University, about a protest march she organized to counter an event by Christian Nationalistic musician Sean Feucht in New Orleans on Feb. 8, 2025. You can learn more about Feucht at A Public Witness, including reports on his… -
176. Paul Raushenbush & Trump's Targeting of Christians
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with Rev. Paul Raushenbush, president and CEO of Interfaith Alliance, about various ways the Trump administration has targeted Christian groups, including Episcopalians, Catholics, and Lutherans. You can read more about the recent attacks on Lutheran charity work in a report at A Public Witness and in a memo from… -
175. Mariann Budde, John Danforth, & Prophetic Preaching
In this episode, Word&Way President Brian Kaylor talks with John Danforth, a former U.S. Senator and Episcopal priest, about the controversy over Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde's sermon during an inauguration prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral. You can read more about the issue at A Public Witness, including a report on the sermon, a look… -
174. Joe Blosser on To Love Our Neighbors
Joe Blosser talks with Word&Way President Brian Kaylor about her new book To Love Our Neighbors: Radical Practices in Solidarity, Sufficiency, and Sustainability. He also discusses understandings of how a neighbor is, church food pantries, and economic neoliberalism. Note: Don't forget to subscribe to our award-winning e-newsletter A Public Witness that helps you make sense…
Books
Review: Jingjiao
In "Jingjiao: The Earliest Christian Church in China," Glen L. Thompson introduces readers to the surprising history of the early Eastern church — referred to as Jingjiao, or the Luminous Teaching.
Review: God Gave Rock and Roll to You
In "God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music," Leah Payne traces the history and trajectory of CCM and how it has shaped evangelicals.
Review & Giveaway: Jesus’ Vision for Your One Wild and Precious Life
This issue of A Public Witness unpacks the unique angle explored in the latest Mike Graves book “Jesus’ Vision for Your One Wild and Precious Life: (on Things Like Poverty, Hunger, Polarization, Inclusion, and More).”
Review: Reckoning With Power
In "Reckoning With Power: Why the Church Fails When It's on the Wrong Side of Power," David E. Fitch argues that the church should cooperate with God's power through presence among the least powerful.