Days after being released from a year of detention, Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a blind Rohingya refugee who had been released from Border Patrol custody and abandoned at a Tim Horton’s 5 miles away from his home in Buffalo, New York, was found dead. He had been in custody…
Why a theology focused only on the future is bad for the present
One of the key differences I’ve noticed between the United Methodist Church and the religion in which I was raised is the focus on now versus later — “later” being heaven, the afterlife, eternity. The theology of the UMC (or…
The Black Church teaches us not to rush past Good Friday
On Good Friday, many of the white churches move quickly. They acknowledge the Cross, they sometimes name the injustice, and — almost instinctively — begin inching toward Easter, toward hope, toward resurrection, toward resolution. They quickly leave Friday and rush…
The brain rot of CPAC 2026
I’m a week out from my first (and likely only) CPAC experience. It took me several days to recover — to exorcise the experience from my body and soul. I wrote a lengthy article about my takeaways from the event…
Imprecatory prayers: A theological-political caution
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Pastor Brooks Potteiger and other MAGA evangelicals are using imprecatory prayers asking God to kill their enemies. Should we be alarmed? A few examples of imprecatory prayers here and there don’t portend an outbreak in…
Apocalypse? Now?
In November 1095, Pope Urban II addressed a gathering of clergy and laity at the Council of Clermont in France. According to the chronicler Fulcher of Chartres, Urban began: “Most beloved brethren: Urged by necessity, I, Urban, by the permission…
12 ways to shepherd courage in divided communities
In early 2026, I was invited to participate and help facilitate a conversation with clergy from around the country as a part of a Zoom conversation hosted by Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. My breakout session was on how…
Christians don’t need louder voices but steadier ones
“Your audience probably won’t read anything I’ve written.” I hear that more often than you might expect from guests considering my podcast. It is usually said politely, almost in passing, but the assumption behind it is unmistakable. They expect hostility….
What we lose when churches stop naming themselves
I understand the appeal of the nondenominational church. In an age weary of faction, weary of institutional decline and weary of ecclesial infighting, the promise can sound fresh: No inherited baggage, no denominational machinery, no old quarrels: just Jesus, the…
What they’ve taught me
I was scrolling Facebook when I saw the post. Someone I had mentored. Someone who had reached out, who had sat in the specific loneliness of being queer and trans and faith-formed and told by that faith they were the…
Why the Turning Point Baylor rally Is un-Christian
By now, most of you know Baylor University is one of the first stops on the Turning Point USA college tour. The Baylor administration has justified the campus presence of Donald Trump Jr., Erika Kirk and “Border Czar” Tom Homan…
SBC’s roads no longer all lead back to Louisville
This week both the Southern Baptist Convention Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary announced their perspective nominees for new leaders. The ERLC is bringing forth Evan Lenow, currently serving at Mississippi College with recent connections as…