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Featured
Review & Giveaway: Furious Minds
Political theorist Laura Field provides an intellectual tour of the MAGA New Right, a movement that has twice carried Donald Trump into the White House.
Prayer App Hallow Faces Backlash Over Lenten Partnership With Tucker Carlson
Some Christian users said they planned to stop using Hallow because of its partnership with Carlson, while others praised the collaboration. Multiple users called for boycotts of the app and other sponsors.
Minnesota Faith Groups Sue DHS Over Access to Immigrant Detainees
It's at least the second lawsuit challenging the federal government's policy of barring faith leaders from accessing some Department of Homeland Security facilities.
Church
Religious Traditions Can Help With Holiday Blues, Mental Health Experts Say
'During the holidays, we are practicing relational spirituality and engaging in our awakened brain,' said one professor of psychology.
Black Denomination Upholds Stance Against Same-Sex Marriage. A Gay Pastor in Its Ranks Seeks Change
Rev. Jennifer S. Leath hopes to help her denomination avoid the schisms that ruptured many mainline Protestant denominations as they dismantled LBGTQ+ bans.
‘Advent Not Arms’ Prayer Vigil Presses for Peace in the Middle East
Leaders from a variety of denominations and organizations gathered on International Human Rights Day to call for Christians to stand for justice and dignity for Palestinians.
Nation
Nearly All State Funding for Missouri School Vouchers Used for Religious Schools
In the first month of direct state aid for Missouri’s K-12 scholarship program, 98% of funds went to Christian, Jewish, and Islamic institutions.
Missouri Blocks Spiritual Advisor Request for Prison Pastor’s Execution
With the execution of Lance Shockley approaching, this issue of A Public Witness unpacks the debate over his religious freedom rights for his final moments.
In Dallas, 6,700 Women Rally for Culture War Battles After Kirk’s Death
The ‘Share the Arrows’ conference founded by commentator Allie Beth Stuckey emboldened women to carry on Charlie Kirk’s conservative fight.
World
Armenian Christians Battle Developer To Keep Control of Their Corner of Jerusalem
A tiny Christian minority sitting on one of the Holy Land's most valuable pieces of real estate has rebelled against a real-estate deal that would sacrifice nearly 25% of its land in Jerusalem.
Lebanon’s Christians Feel the Heat of Climate Change in Its Sacred Forest and Valley
The lush Cedars of God Forest, some 2000 meters (6,560 feet) above sea level near the northern town of Bcharre, is part of a landscape cherished by Christians.
Amid War in Gaza, Churches Urged to Leave Peace Candle Unlit This Advent
Inspired by Palestinian Christians canceling Christmas lights and festivities in Bethlehem, British Christians urge Christians elsewhere to show solidarity by not lighting the “peace candle” that is traditionally lit on the second Sunday in Advent.
Editorials
We need Black History Month, but what if we didn’t?
February is Black History Month as designated by every American President since 1976. The need is obvious, but I long for the day when we really don’t need to observe it.
Relationships: Jesus’ methodology for peace
The beginning of 2016 is a good time to think about fresh starts, putting aside mistakes and disappointments of the immediate past and focusing on doing better during the new year.
Syrian and other refugees are our business
Every time I boot up my laptop computer, the face of a young Syrian refugee stares back at me.
Word&Way Voices
A Different Way To Honor MLK This Year
Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell makes the case that this MLK day, we should honor his great teacher Dr. Howard Thurman by walking in nature, sitting in reflective silence, looking at the ways creation works together, and then applying these lessons to our lives. We might even find ourselves talking to
Why I Prayed Outside the Capitol at Sunrise
Rev. Nathan Empsall of Faithful America reflects on why he sought to provide a Christian witness against the unholy and heretical political ideology of Christian Nationalism that helped inspire the deadly attack on the Capitol two years ago.
The Word of the Year in an Age of Unbelief
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy argues that “gaslighting,” Merriam-Webster's 2022 word of the year, pertains to the way that some non-believers, particularly New Atheists, have gaslit our entire culture. But the god they created in order to insist that he doesn’t exist is a god he doesn't believe in either.
E-Newsletter
The World’s Oldest Printing Presses
This issue of A Public Witness looks at the unexpected revolution of the printed word and how journalism has changed since Word&Way started over 128 years ago.
Landmines in Biden’s Legacy
This issue of A Public Witness uncovers the history of using and opposing landmines to consider how Biden’s new policy move destroys the moral high ground he often tried to claim during his presidency.
Canceling a Saint
This issue of A Public Witness considers the act of removing a saint and what it might teach us about other religious symbols that have also been co-opted.
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Claiming God's Name in Politics, War, & Sports
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 a botched execution in Tennessee, religious issues in political campaigns, and Pete Hegseth's misuse of the Bible. And Beau shows off his White Sox… -
Backslide with Robert P. Jones
This episode of Dangerous Dogma features a conversation between Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor and Robert P. Jones, author of the forthcoming book Backslide: Reclaiming a Faith and a Nation After the Christian Turn Against Democracy. Jones is also the founder and president of PRRI. He previously appeared on Dangerous Dogma in 2023. You can watch a… -
DHS Spies on Churches & White Sox Honor Pope 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 revelations that the Department of Homeland Security has been spying in churches, a controversial golf ad, and a White Sox night celebrating Pope Leo.… -
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…
Books
Review: Chasing After Wind
Robert D. Cornwall reviews Chasing after Wind: A Pastor's Life by Douglas J. Brouwer. This book serves as a post-retirement memoir from a longtime Presbyterian (PCUSA) pastor that contains insights for clergy and non-clergy alike.
Review: On the Spectrum
Robert D. Cornwall reviews On the Spectrum: Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity by Daniel Bowman, Jr. The book was recently chosen by the Academy of Parish Clergy as its 2022 Book of the Year.
Review: The Making of Biblical Womanhood
Robert D. Cornwall reviews the book The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth by Beth Allison Barr. Part memoir and part history, the book serves as a strong rebuttal to patriarchalism and complementarianism.
Review: Tradition and Apocalypse
Robert D. Cornwall reviews Tradition and Apocalypse: An Essay on the Future of Christian Belief by David Bentley Hart. He argues that the book challenges our certainties and pushes our buttons, but with the war in Ukraine raising the profile