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Leading Qur'anic scholar Gabriel Said Reynolds presents a revisionary account of how Islam emerged in dialogue with Christian traditions, challenging the dominant narrative that it came out of a predominantly pagan context.

After decades of fierce controversies over sexuality and theology, some leaders of a conservative coalition say it's time to make a final break from what has long been one of the world's largest Protestant church families.

The Center on Faith & Justice at Georgetown University recently launched a campaign encouraging people to pledge not to shop on Amazon during this Advent season — and A Public Witness is one of the official partners.

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Videos

Church

In recent decades, many mainline Protestants have moved away from the Calvinist theory of penal substitutionary atonement, which summons up the idea of an angry God who needs to be appeased.

In the sessions, Black faith leaders are schooled on the differences between Sunni, Shia, and Nation of Islam sects and discuss the privileges Black Christians can enjoy compared to Black Muslims.

Campbell, who also was the director of religion at the Chautauqua Institution, was described as 'an extraordinary ecumenist and activist' by Bishop Vashti McKenzie, the current NCC general secretary.

Nation

This issue of A Public Witness takes you to the heart of Texas to consider the promise of public education and church-state separation.

‘Him,’ the Jordan Peele-produced horror film reaching theaters Friday, is the latest testament to the fact that, in cinema at least, the devil’s offer never goes out of style.

As immigrants increasingly fear detention at ICE check-ins, many faith groups have doubled down on accompaniment strategies to support them at those appointments.

World

Christians in Jordan compose about 2% of the population and many are committed to the boycott, driven by ethical principles and a desire to show empathy and a shared sense of humanity with suffering Palestinians.

Responding to crisis, a coalition of church organizations is providing education, skills trainings, and farming equipment to help refugees become self-reliant.

Several evangelical pastors, Catholic priests, and human rights organizations have denounced the surveillance, harassment, and the imprisonment of Nicaraguan faith leaders in recent years.

Editorials

Editor Brian Kaylor considers a common thread between two recent controversies at Baptist schools, and what this can teach us about how we read and interpret the Bible today.

Editor Brian Kaylor argues that too often we miss the political implications of worship because we’ve privatized our religious practices and compartmentalized our faith. But worship is inherently a protest.

In about two months, U.S. voters will head to the polls (if they don’t first drop their ballot in the mail). So, we are entering the final, busy dash of the campaign. But we are also entering a dangerous time in the campaign.

Word&Way Voices

Christians often hear, share, and remember lies — but the light that exposes these lies doesn’t make their newsfeed. And this can make it difficult to be part of a faith community.

A Jordanian worship band has made it their mission to perform and record hymns composed around the middle of the 20th century that might have otherwise been lost to time.

Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy explores how the pilgrimages made by various politicians to Trump’s Manhattan trial are all about religion.

E-Newsletter

This issue of A Public Witness takes you inside the Summit for Religious Freedom to hear from leading advocates about what is needed in this moment and how Christians can help.

This issue of A Public Witness goes inside the ‘Sensitive Locations, Sacred Spaces Prayer Vigil’ to look at the faithful effort to block ICE raids in houses of worship.

Modern churches still gather on the traditions and teachings of the generations who went before us. This is important to remember in a time when some ‘prophets’ invent new theologies and ways of interpreting the Bible.

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Recent Episodes

Books

This issue of A Public Witness cues up the soundtrack of American evangelical Christianity as covered in Leah Payne’s “God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music.”

In "Wounded Pastors: Navigating Burnout, Finding Healing, and Discerning the Future of Your Ministry," Carol Howard Merritt and James Fenimore offer guidance for pastors who have been hurt by the church.

In "Hunting Magic Eels: Recovering an Enchanted Faith in a Skeptical Age," Richard Beck argues that modern malaise has profoundly dulled our religious imaginations — but it doesn't have to be this way.

In "Gratitude: Why Giving Thanks Is the Key to Our Well-Being," Cornelius Plantinga makes the case that being grateful is the key to understanding our relationships with one another, the world around us, and God.