Seven men. One woman. And allegations so horrifying there is a temptation to look away. Don’t. Look closely, not only at the men accused, but at what this case reveals about the rest of us. A former Cornell University student…
What hath justice to do with righteousness?
There are Christians in America who can tell you exactly what righteousness looks like in somebody else’s bedroom but cannot recognize injustice in their own neighborhood. They know which sins keep a person out of the pulpit. They know which…
One year later, Charlie Kirk still isn’t a martyr
One year after Charlie Kirk’s death, I am increasingly concerned that parts of the American church have forgotten the difference between mourning and canonization. We have a word for remembering those who have died: Mourning. We have a word for…
James Talarico and the Black Church
Last week, BNG reported that James Talarico will speak at Baylor University. On Sept. 16, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate will hold a campaign event at the Baptist university. The event will be limited to Baylor students, faculty…
In conversation with Kendall Mariah
I’m wearing Jordan sneakers. Kendall Mariah is wearing Lilly Pulitzer. That probably tells you almost everything you think you need to know about us. It also tells you almost nothing. I met Kendall while interviewing to become her pastor. She…
Here’s the secret I’ve been afraid to share
I am divorced. There, I said it. It has taken me five years to write those three words publicly. Five years of learning how to tell my story without telling “that” part of my story. Five years of talking about…
Another Black man was found hanging Friday
Another Black man was found hanging Friday. His name was Demetrius Fleming. He was 38 years old. Fleming was found Aug. 21 in Roanoke Rapids, N.C., connected to a ligature. His death remains under investigation. Police Chief Lawrence Wiggins has…
Could Jesus preach in our churches today?
“Will our congregations even allow us to preach sermons that change people?” It was a passing comment in the middle of a conversation with a friend over coffee. He didn’t ask whether pastors were capable. He didn’t ask whether seminaries…
In conversation with George Mason
Retirement is one of the strangest words in the Christian vocabulary. We know how CEOs retire, athletes retire and politicians retire. They shake a few hands, kiss a few babies, give a farewell speech, collect a plaque engraved with their…
’Round midnight
It is midnight. Not the kind of midnight measured by clocks. The kind that settles into your bones. The kind that lingers long after the sun has risen. We all know this midnight. It is the midnight of the marriage…
In conversation with Art Wright
Drive into Williamsburg, Va., from the west and you will see it before you see the church. A rainbow-striped banner. Designed by a pastor who cannot fully explain why he made it, only that it needed to say something true…
This Fourth of July, will you get your hands in the dirt?
This Fourth of July, somewhere in America, a church will drag the American flag over to the altar and call it worship. A preacher will stand in a pulpit built for the gospel and preach nationalism instead, and no one…