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'The Supreme Court, not too far from here, decided that it was OK for Black folks to not deserve representation in Congress,' said its social justice commission co-chair.

This issue of A Public Witness documents several outlandish events beyond those named in a recent church-state lawsuit by employees or a complaint from the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

'I am sick and tired of waking up every morning to see another loved one is dead,' said Charlene Walker, head of Faith in New Jersey.

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Videos

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

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.

'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.

World

The General Staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said in a statement Sunday that it had recorded 2,299 ceasefire violations by 7 a.m., including assaults, shelling, and small drone launches.

The increase in faith-fueled militaristic rhetoric is pitting the president against a growing list of faith leaders, ranging from local clergy to the pope.

Both Apollo 8 and Artemis II missions included public references to religion, but astronauts aboard the Artemis’ Orion spacecraft struck a broader, more global tone.

Editorials

When Jesus said to go pray in a closet, he didn’t mean you should then show it off to Fox News or The Associated Press.

A chaplain is not just a pastor or a Sunday School teacher or a street preacher shouting through a bullhorn. This is a unique role, often in a secular setting that requires assistance with a variety of religious traditions.

Editor-in-chief Brian Kaylor reflects on what is missing in coverage of the religious faith of the late Jimmy Carter as news reports consider the life and legacy of the former president, humanitarian, and Sunday School teacher.

Word&Way Voices

Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy argues that Trump's war against Iran, like his entire presidency, is an exercise in blowing things up. He has shown that he is a demolition expert, not a deal maker.

In significant sectors of American evangelical Christianity, Israel is a theological object beyond moral scrutiny. This is not political support for an ally. It is worship. And by Christianity’s own doctrinal standards, it is sin.

Stanley Hauerwas writes that ‘war is America’s central liturgical act necessary to renew our sense that we are a nation unlike any other nation.’ Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy connects this idea to our TV habits.

E-Newsletter

This issue of A Public Witness takes you inside a recent gathering to hear from leading scholars as they offer constructive ways to push back against a dangerous and heretical ideology.

For this issue of A Public Witness, we offer our fifth annual list of books recommended by Word&Way writers that will be perfect for wherever you find your happy place this summer.

This issue of A Public Witness considers how the Department of Homeland Security Secretary under Mullin continues to do violence to Scripture even after Kristi Noem was ousted.

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Recent Episodes

Books

Drawing on her vocational insights and personal experiences, Episcopal priest, historian, and spiritual director Rhonda Mawhood Lee offers a compassionate vision for understanding and responding faithfully to suicide.

L. Daniel Hawk exposes the belief systems and practices that settlers developed to justify the displacement, destruction, and cultural erasure of Indigenous peoples, beginning in the early American colonial period and extending to the present day.

Amar D. Peterman explores how the common good can be cultivated through the practice of neighbor love and encourages Christians to join their neighbors at what he calls ‘the shared table.’

If HGTV decided to cast a show about fixing up your old religion, few could compete with James McGrath to be the star who transforms outdated edifices into contemporary spiritual structures.