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Featured
Hundreds of United Methodists Rally to Dismantle ICE Outside Capitol
The day of action, titled “Faithful Resistance,” was planned months ago, and organizers settled on their schedule before the date for this week’s State of the Union was announced.
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.
The Extraordinary Ordinariness of Black Female Laity
Rev. Dr. James Ellis III reflects on the often contentious issue of ordination in the Black Church — particularly the rift that can exist between women who feel called to vocational ministry and women who do not.
Church
Don’t Shut Down the ERLC, Say Former SBC Presidents in Open Letter
A group of prominent SBC leaders say the denomination's public policy arm still matters.
Fire at Historic Black Church in Memphis Was Intentionally Set, Investigators Say
The fire severely damaged Clayborn Temple, which served as the headquarters for the 1968 sanitation workers’ strike that brought the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to the city.
Resettling Afrikaners Is a ‘Faustian Bargain,’ Says Episcopal Church’s Sean Rowe
‘Afrikaners don’t fit any definition of refugee,’ said the Most Rev. Sean Rowe, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church.
Nation
Department of Labor Holds First Prayer Service
This issue of A Public Witness takes you inside a very Catholic governmental Christmas celebration that also featured a Trumpian rabbi commemorating Hanukkah.
Priest Says Sisters Slated for Deportation Are Christians Who Could Face Persecution by Iran
Mahan and Mozhan Motahari are members of an Episcopal church in Virginia. An alarming CBP social media post publicly shared images of the women, potentially heightening the risks they face back in Iran.
Decline of Religion Remains Stalled, Says New Pew Report. But There’s No Revival Yet.
Religion in America might be best described in the words of rap artist LL Cool J: Don’t call it a comeback. At least not yet.
World
Hundreds March in Brazil to Support Religious Freedom As Cases of Intolerance Rise
Experts say that while most neo-Pentecostal proselytizing is peaceful, the spread of the faith has been accompanied by a surge of intolerance for traditional African-influenced religions.
Takeaways From AP’s Report Updating the Cult Massacre That Claimed Hundreds of Lives in Kenya
The evangelical leader of Good News, Paul Mackenzie, is accused of instructing his followers to starve to death for the opportunity to meet Jesus.
Sudanese Anglican Cathedral Is Now a Graveyard for Civil War Victims, Archbishop Says
The Sudanese civil war is the world’s largest displacement crisis today.
Editorials
How Not to Lead During a Census & Epidemic
In a time of a national census and a deadly epidemic, a ruler who cares more about himself than the people can be dangerous. At least that’s the lesson in the biblical texts from the end of King David’s rule.
Compromising With Evil
Two hundred years ago this month, the Missouri Compromise of 1820 — and the related Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 — shaped the nation in ways that continue to haunt our politics, justice system, and even churches. And it offers critical lessons for us today.
Paving Paradise
Bob Dylan famously declared, “The times they are a-changin’.” In the world of journalism that sure feels spot on. Nearly every week another story hits about some publication going out of print or even out of business. And nearly every week it seems there’s also another attack on press freedom
Word&Way Voices
A Kansas City Lament
Kansas City pastor Darron Edwards shares his thoughts on the mass shooting at the Super Bowl victory rally and suggests possible paths forward.
Extending the Big Lie to Our Children
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy argues that the acceptance of Trump's consistent lies as a legitimate political strategy has become an addictive drug for our culture and is starting to impact our children.
Theology Confronts Wrongdoing in Eagle Pass
Lutheran theologian Duane Larson writes that with bad faith, an incorrect interpretation of history, and just plain wrong theo-logic, MAGA-sympathetic theologians are arguing to undo the U.S. Constitution.
E-Newsletter
Four More Years … For This Newsletter
After lighting four birthday candles, this issue of A Public Witness reflects on our newsletter highlights from the past year as we look forward to four more years (and beyond).
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.’
The Supreme Court Case That Could Dismantle Church-State Separation
This issue of A Public Witness looks at the dustup over St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma and the religious freedom arguments before eight black-robed justices.
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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: Speak with the Earth and It Will Teach You
In "Speak with the Earth and It Will Teach You: A Field Guide to the Bible," Daniel Cooperrider analyzes the Bible's treatment of the environment and intersperses his own reflections on experiences in nature.
Review & Giveaway: 24/7 Politics
This issue of A Public Witness delves into Kathryn Cramer Brownell’s new book “24/7 Politics: Cable Television & the Fragmenting of America from Watergate to Fox News” exploring why our current media landscape looks the way it does.
Review: Church Conflicts
In "Church Conflicts: The Cross, Apocalyptic, and Political Resistance," noted New Testament scholar Ernst Käsemann explores the significance of Christian apocalyptic for the church in times of crisis.
Review: Community
Henri Nouwen's "Community" provides a complete picture community and why it is such a necessary and integral part of the spiritual life.