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This issue of A Public Witness strikes at the heresy in Trump’s Fourth of July remarks and thunders some disapproval for similar rhetoric recently offered by Speaker Mike Johnson.

On the anniversary of a Supreme Court ruling reinstating the US death penalty, faith leaders, those affected by murder, and activists organize to call for an end to the death penalty.

The first moment of the Quentin Tarantino film highlighted by the vice president during a recent interview occurs just seconds after the Samuel L. Jackson monologue used by Pete Hegseth as a prayer during a worship service at the Pentagon in April.

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Church

With the Supreme Court set to rule on whether Haitians will lose Temporary Protected Status, fear is emptying church pews. At St. Elizabeth's Episcopal Church in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the Haitian immigrants who brought life to the congregation are gone.

This issue of A Public Witness treks to Jacksonville to hear from an impressive lineup of speakers at the recent Cooperative Baptist Fellowship general assembly.

The Reformed Church in America is the latest group to speak out against the ideology, with regional United Methodist bodies and two Presbyterian denominations among those also addressing the issue this summer.

Nation

'He told me that Matthew 25 was about individuals, and not nations,' Sen. Raphael Warnock said, referring to Speaker Mike Johnson. 'The text actually says nations.' Warnock added: “It's a very narrow individualistic faith, and I think it has consequences for the kind of policy you end up with.”

The first moment of the Quentin Tarantino film highlighted by the vice president during a recent interview occurs just seconds after the Samuel L. Jackson monologue used by Pete Hegseth as a prayer during a worship service at the Pentagon in April.

The Religious Liberty Commission is filled almost entirely by conservative Christians, and its new 224-page document urges stronger support for this particular strand of Christianity in the government.

World

The encounter between Christianity’s two most famous religious figures would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, given the divisions between their two churches over women’s ordination.

In addition to heading the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, including the Episcopal Church in the U.S.

This issue of A Public Witness considers some dangerous voices against climate action and then the Christians working to love their neighbors and the Creator by addressing our pressing environmental crisis.

Editorials

Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor reflects on the Christmas narrative in the Gospel of Matthew and an upcoming Christmas program at the Kennedy Center in the aftermath of Donald Trump taking it over.

The remarkable part of the Christmas story is that God decided to come as one of us. The incarnation means Jesus cried out at birth, announcing the breath of life in the one who breathes life into us.

For the first entry in our series this year, Word&Way president and editor-in-chief Brian Kaylor reflects on this week’s theme: Advent in a time of religious nationalism.

Word&Way Voices

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.

Across this country, Black women are dying from pregnancy-related causes at nearly three times the rate of White women. These cases are about much more than just numbers.

The CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute makes the case that there is simply no evidence to suggest Americans are becoming more religious, either in their affiliation with a particular faith tradition or in terms of attending religious services more regularly.

E-Newsletter

The Reformed Church in America is the latest group to speak out against the ideology, with regional United Methodist bodies and two Presbyterian denominations among those also addressing the issue this summer.

After complaints by Mormon politicians, a revised list of recognized religions now excludes denominations like the Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ — whose churches boast membership among the founding fathers.

This issue of A Public Witness considers the theological problems with the defense secretary regularly quoting Isaiah 6:8 and how his use of Scripture aligns with Bible quotes in violent movies.

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Recent Episodes

Books

In this groundbreaking book, Andrew Crislip illuminates how emotion shaped Christian identity, community practices, and theological understanding.

Writing with an experienced teacher's gift for making history meaningful, J. Warren Smith explains the development of Christianity in terms of diverse efforts to make sense of intellectual and spiritual complexities within Scripture.

Amar Peterman’s new book makes the case that how we interact with our neighbors forms who we are as Christians. It contains wisdom for scholars, pastors, and lay Christians working to remain steadfast to the hope they profess.

Through sharing her personal story of deep loss, Hannah Miller King reflects on how the ancient Christian practice of communion can reframe our grief by embedding it in a larger picture of gospel hope.