Presuming to Hate What God Hates
Contributing writer Rodney Kennedy challenges the presumptions of anyone claiming they hate what God hates. Such a statement, he argues, is a product of bad religion.
When Prayer Isn’t the Answer
This issue of A Public Witness looks at the reinvigorated crusade by politicians across the country to push official, government prayer in schools. And then this class session ends with an explanation of why a common remark about gun violence in schools is dead wrong.
Faith Leaders Urge Biden To Sign Executive Order for Reparations Study by Juneteenth
More than 200 interfaith leaders have requested that President Joe Biden establish a commission to study reparations for African Americans by signing an executive order by the newly recognized federal holiday Juneteenth.
30 Years Later, Waco Siege Still Resonates – Especially Among Anti-Government Extremists
Part of the siege’s legacy in popular culture is tied to sensational coverage that has presented the Branch Davidians as a cult. But the tragedy is also a powerful moment in political extremist groups’ ideologies.
Review & Giveaway: What Do We Do When Nobody is Listening?
Christian ethicist Robin Lovin’s "What Do We Do When Nobody is Listening: Leading the Church in a Polarized Society" joins a growing number of important books warning of the threat tribalism poses to democratic society.
Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod President Calls for Excommunicating White Nationalists
The president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has called for the excommunication of unrepentant white supremacists in the church’s ranks, rebuking an extremist effort to exert influence within the conservative Lutheran denomination.
A Leader, For a Change
With the announcement on Saturday that the 98-year-old Jimmy Carter would enter hospice care at home, this issue of A Public Witness reflects on the moral exemplar he offered not only after his presidency but also during his underappreciated time in the Oval Office.
Review: Abraham Lincoln – Redeemer President
Robert D. Cornwall reviews "Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President" by Allen C. Guelzo. This new book, an updated version of the 1999 first edition, offers one of the best portrayals of Lincoln the thinker, politician, and war-time leader.
Putting ‘God’ in Schools
This issue of A Public Witness offers a quick class on the history of our national motto “In God We Trust” and recent Christian Nationalistic efforts to display it in public schools before considering the elementary flaw with such legislation.
Religious Leaders Fight Bill to Reinstate Iowa Death Penalty
Religious leaders with the Iowa Catholic Conference, Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, and United Church of Christ of Iowa, argued the death penalty is immoral in all circumstances and underlined that we can deter and prevent horrific crimes without ending a person’s