Across several denominations, pastors are leaving congregations at accelerated rates, citing burnout, conflict and misalignment between their sense of calling and the realities of congregational life. Much of that conversation has focused on workload, compensation and leadership fatigue — all…
I am Black, queer and Baptist Christian
Being Black and gay is living life on the margins. My Christian identity is centered on my love for my community. While having proximity to whiteness (interracial marriage with a loving husband) has informed my vocational mission, I know it…
‘Your children will ask you’
“Your children will ask you what side you were on.” That’s what Jacob Frey, mayor of Minneapolis, said at a news conference Jan. 24 after the shooting death of 37-year-old Alex Pretti at the hands of ICE “officers.” Pretti, a…
Another letter from Birmingham
Our nation’s current campaign of intimidation against our immigrant neighbors has called to mind Martin Luther King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, written in April 1963 by King from a prison cell not far from where I am writing this morning…
Olympics and the danger of performative patriotism
With the Winter Olympics just ended, we have been reminded of the dangers of performative patriotism that cannot tolerate contradiction. When we demand those who wear the flag speak only in praise, we are not preserving the apolitical nature of…
Protecting Epstein survivors should be a bipartisan priority
With news of Prince Andrew’s arrest, it is even clearer that the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse deserve justice and healing. During the recent testimony of the U.S. attorney general to the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., was…
In conversation with David Dault
David Dault teaches at Loyola University Chicago’s Institute of Pastoral Studies and is executive producer and host of “Things Not Seen: Conversations About Culture and Faith.” It was a joy to discuss his new book The Accessorized Bible and to…
When Christians welcome immigrant souls but not their bodies
Within the last two weeks, Franklin Graham has publicly celebrated what he describes as hundreds of people responding to the invitation to repent during evangelistic events in Argentina. Images of crowds and language of spiritual breakthrough have echoed a revivalist…
No justice, no peace
The NAACP Legal Defense Fund was founded in 1940 by Thurgood Marshall. It was America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice. “Justice” is a legal term as well as a moral term — legal as seen in the statues…
Jesse Louis Jackson Sr.: An American icon
This week, the nation pauses to honor the life and legacy of Jesse Jackson, an American icon whose voice shaped movements, elections, diplomacy and generations of hope. For more than six decades, Jackson stood at the intersection of faith and…
My ‘Emmaus’ encounter with Jesse Jackson
Jesse Jackson once said: “I am not a perfect servant. I am a public servant doing my best against the odds. As I develop and serve, be patient. God is not finished with me yet.” On Feb. 17, God called…
A broken Mary, the new pope and the mystery of the gospel
This past week, Pope Leo XIV bestowed a blessing on a chipped and half-broken statue of Mary, the mother of Jesus, which changed the life of the man who found it. Pope Leo bestowed upon it the title, “Our Lady…