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This issue of A Public Witness goes inside the first meeting of the White House Religious Liberty Commission this week to warn about their effort to turn religious freedom upside down.

‘It is featured in over 40 different Christian hymnals and sung in churches all across America, not just during Black History Month or Juneteenth,’ said musician Theodore Thorpe III.

As survivors gathered Tuesday, they invited another congregation that knows the pain of murderous hatred to join them: members of the Tree of Life synagogue.

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Church

SBC leaders also set up a new department to deal with the issue of abuse, though the fate of a long-delayed database of abusers remains unknown.

The new denomination, with 4,715 congregations, will meet to adopt a constitution and iron out its governance structure.

Brittany Packnett-Cunningham’s rise to be one of her generation’s best-known racial justice activists reflects the promise and power of the ministry of her late father, who was senior pastor of St. Louis’ historic Central Baptist Church.

Nation

The judge’s ruling follows weeks of courtroom clashes between the government and three religious groups — HIAS, Church World Service, and Lutheran Community Services Northwest.

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.

The 17th-century letter is widely considered to have inspired the religious freedom clause in the First Amendment.

World

Judges across Europe are having a tough time deciding whether asylum-seekers claiming religious persecution are ‘genuine’ Christians.

Eastern Orthodox leadership, despite lacking a single doctrinal authority like a pope, has been united in opposing recognition of same-sex relationships both within its own rites and in the civil realm.

'Israel’s right to self-defense has been invoked to justify that this operation is proportional, but with 30,000 dead, it’s not,' said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state.

Editorials

(WW) — A recent CNN piece explored how contemporary Christian music largely ignores contemporary moral concerns. But one line in the piece particularly caught my eye — and not in a good way.

Imagine a world where Christians — both those running for office and those just planning to vote — actually applied the Golden Rule. With that goal in mind, Baptist and other denominational leaders are calling for Christians to act Christlike, even in political conversations.

There’s a fascinating, oft - overlooked parable in Judges 9. It might be one of the most profound teachings about political power and who we trust to rule found in the scriptures.

Word&Way Voices

Contributing writer Greg Mamula offers the final entry in a six-part series on the future of the church. In this article, he focuses on the importance of developing multiple revenue streams.

We often imagine maturing in faith means putting aside more "childish" ways of viewing God. But Kelly Fremon Craig’s film adaptation of Judy Blume’s "Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret" shows that what's often needed is a more childlike approach so we don't mistake a means to God for

Much like the evangelical megachurches that have since taken over many a suburban mall movie theater, shopping malls initially catered to middle-class America during the height of White flight and represent an interesting case study of social stratification and culture.

E-Newsletter

This issue of A Public Witness looks at the origins of the unbiblical phrase ‘Jezebel Spirit’ and the danger it poses in today’s politics.

This issue of A Public Witness unpacks the devotion to Saint Michael the Archangel, why Donald Trump recently posted about him, and what it means for our politics today.

This issue of A Public Witness explores alarming new moves to implement Christian Nationalistic ideas in Indiana and Oklahoma before considering a glimmer of hope in Texas.

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Recent Episodes

Books

Robert D. Cornwall reviews "Decolonizing Christianity: Becoming Badass Believers" by Miguel A. De La Torre. This book is a strongly worded prophetic statement calling for Christians of color to decolonize their minds, that is, set themselves free from the message

In his new book, David Hollinger argues that conservative evangelical churches flourished by providing a safe harbor for White Americans who wanted to be counted as Christian while avoiding a challenge that mainline leaders insisted must be faced: living a

Robert D. Cornwall reviews "The Arc of Truth: The Thinking of Martin Luther King Jr." by Lewis V. Baldwin with a foreword from Beverly J. Lanzetta. This book is a scholarly and focused look at King’s commitment to truth, underscoring

Robert D. Cornwall reviews "Becoming Human: The Holy Spirit and the Rhetoric of Race" by Luke A. Powery. This book draws upon theology, especially the theology of the Holy Spirit, to provide a theological foundation for responding to the racialization