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…
Practicing Samaritan Theology
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to preach on the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. I won’t revisit the sermon itself, but one observation continues to play over and over in my head. In Jesus’…
Her name is not ‘immigrant’
Fourteen years ago, I was getting ready to walk into a church where I was the guest speaker on a Wednesday night. I never had been there before and was not sure where to go. A man was walking through…
Receiving ashes is a call to action
“You are dust and to dust you shall return.” With the words of one of several familiar formulas for the imposition of ashes on Ash Wednesday, many Christians begin their annual Lenten journey. Growing up Roman Catholic, Lent was a…
When nonprofits fail their staff, they fail their governance
Nonprofit organizations exist to serve the public good. They depend on public trust, philanthropic investment and the labor of people who choose mission over profit. That trust, however, is not sustained by vision statements or moral rhetoric alone. It is…
Black History Month is about moral memory
Black History Month often is framed as a time of celebration — a time to honor leaders, milestones and achievements that reshaped the American story. But at its deepest level, Black History Month is about moral memory. It is about…
Our love for Black children must speak louder than headlines
When I saw the recent headlines of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos being reunited with his father after being held in a Texas detention facility for more than a week, I softened at the sight of the blue bunny hat. And…