Speaker Mike Johnson’s Biblical Interpretation Problem
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy argues that the new Speaker of the House has missed some important lessons in hermeneutics — the Bible is not self-interpreting.
A Call for ‘Biblical’ Genocide
This issue of A Public Witness considers Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reference to Amalek from Deuteronomy and unpacks what it means when politicians invoke such passages during war.
Review: God’s Monsters
In "God's Monsters: Vengeful Spirits, Deadly Angels, Hybrid Creatures, and Divine Hitmen of the Bible," Esther J. Hamori offers an entertaining deep dive into the creaturely strangeness of scripture.
When the Bible Becomes a Prop
In the wake of Greg Locke destroying a Barbie Dreamhouse playset with a “biblebat,” today’s issue of A Public Witness opens up the book on examples in faith, business, and politics of profaning the Bible by treating it like a prop.
Dishonest Preacher ‘Whac-A-Mole’
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy argues that Rev. Mark Burns abused the Bible for secular political purposes during a recent ReAwaken America Tour event in order to foment violence and promote insurrection.
New AI App Lets Users ‘Text With’ Jesus and Other Biblical Figures
The app replicates an instant messaging platform, allowing users to chat with ChatGPT impersonations of biblical figures, including the apostles, the prophets, Ruth, Job, Lot, and more.
Review: If God Still Breathes, Why Can’t I?
In "If God Still Breathes, Why Can't I?: Black Lives Matter and Biblical Authority," scholar Angela N. Parker compellingly makes the case that doctrines of biblical inerrancy and infallibility, which are prominent within evangelicalism and fundamentalism, serve as tools of White supremacy.
Utah District’s Bible Ban Spurs Protest by Parents, Republicans
Republican lawmakers rallied with more than 100 Bible-toting parents and children at Utah’s Capitol on Wednesday to protest a school district’s decision to remove the Bible from middle and elementary school libraries in the wake of a GOP-backed “sensitive materials” law passed two years ago.
False Claims of a ‘Biblical View’
Evangelicals place great stress on the authority of the Bible and have often labeled their interpretation “the biblical view.” Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy outlines the problems with this framing and offers some helpful tips for combating it.
The Bible According to Cavity Sam
Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell believes we are teaching our young people a version of reading the Bible that resembles the game Operation. They often have little concept of “connective tissue” and can only pluck out quotations like the stylized versions of body parts in the