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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.

James Ellis III reflects on how being a preacher these days feels different. It’s unsettling how many people are thoroughly consumed by rage — and we as Christians should know better.

Brian Kaylor didn’t expect World magazine to like his new book, "The Bible According to Christian Nationalists." But he did anticipate that if the influential conservative Christian publication reviewed it, they would at least do so honestly. Apparently, that was expecting too much.

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Videos

Church

Mara Richards Bim, the new Justice and Advocacy Fellow at Royal Lane Baptist Church in Dallas, spoke about how to bridge what we talk about in church and political action.

Amid a collapse of loyalty to religious institutions, many churchgoers say they are attending multiple congregations on Sunday morning.

The American Baptist Home Mission Societies held a virtual session in their Justice Dialogues series titled “Being Church in the Face of Genocide,” focused on how to respond to the ongoing mass suffering in Gaza and the West Bank.

Nation

The superintendent of public instruction, who recently pledged to put a Turning Point USA chapter in every high school to honor Charlie Kirk, will now ‘destroy the teachers unions’ from the private sector.

Many Black pastors in the largest African American Christian denominations linked the veneration of Kirk — who used his platform to denigrate Black people, immigrants, women, Muslims, and LGBTQ+ people — to the history of weaponizing faith to justify colonialism, enslavement, and bigotry.

Before the memorial service started, two hours of songs from the biggest worship artists today served to frame everything that followed as part of a church service — sending the message that Kirk’s politics were from God.

World

Catholic and Protestant leaders in Germany are challenging a connection among far-right politicians in Germany and the U.S. that is built on a common rejection of immigrants.

‘This is not just about Kenya,’ said climate researcher Godfrey Khamala. ‘This is about how climate change is eroding not only coastlines and crops, but culture, heritage and spiritual life. These churches are the canaries in the coal mine.’

This issue of A Public Witness unpacks President Donald Trump’s invoking of God during his speech announcing the U.S. had dropped massive bombs on Iran, thus joining Israel recent war against Iran.

Editorials

Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor reflects on Russian pro-war propaganda dressed up like a Christmas decoration, which he calls a sacrilegious assault on celebrations of the birth of the Prince of Peace.

Brian Kaylor writes that ten years ago today an armed man walked into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and opened fire. This massacre at Christmastime evokes memories of part of the biblical story we tend to leave out of our nativities and pageants.

As Brian Kaylor thinks about modern-day refugees fleeing a genocidal foreign dictator, he also wonders where Joseph, Mary, and Jesus spent the night on their journey from Bethlehem to Egypt. Where was their safe place to sleep and to enjoy a nice meal from strangers? And how were those people

Word&Way Voices

Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell makes the case that the culture of flopping has spread beyond sports. Who are the biggest floppers right now? Christian Nationalists.

Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy addresses climate denial among a subset of Christians and how this demonstrates a surrender of truth.

A delegation of young Palestinian Christian leaders are traveling through the American South to explore the deep parallels between racial injustice in the U.S. and the oppression Palestinians face in their homeland.

E-Newsletter

This issue of A Public Witness heads to Florida with the zeal of Moses descending from the mountain to scrutinize the Christian Nationalist attempt to desacralize the Decalogue.

Greg Carey, a scholar of the New Testament and apocalyptic literature, shows how the Book of Revelation can serve as a guide to resisting imperial culture.

This issue of A Public Witness looks at the need for those who oppose Christian Nationalism to fight not just with lawsuits but also in the court of public opinion, so we can effectively protect religious liberty.

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Recent Episodes

Books

In “The Eucharistic Spirit: A Renewal Theology of the Lord’s Supper,” Pentecostal theologian Florian M. P. Simatupang makes the case for an open table and universal salvation.

In “Pilgrim: A Theological Memoir,” readers are offered a glimpse into the late Tony Campolo’s unique faith journey that shaped him into an influential and prophetic religious leader.

Renowned New Testament scholar Michael J. Gorman designed this commentary for pastors, students, scholars, and lay people who want to consider Paul’s spiritual implications for today.

In “Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope,” New Testament scholar Esau McCaulley demonstrates an ongoing conversation between the collective Black experience and the Bible.