No political victory should be worth sacrificing moral integrity

The Sunday before Scott Pruitt’s confirmation hearing to run the Environmental Protection Agency, Pruitt stood on the stage of his hometown church, bowed his head, and prayed.

Chaplains historically act as priests and consolers but never act (successfully) as prophets. The encyclopedias tell us that in the old days, royal chaplains might be involved in secular policy matters, but any such involvement occurred strictly on the side of the monarch.

I was traveling when the news of Dr. James Cone’s death was reported on Saturday. The first thought that came to mind was what seems to be a providential concurrence: His passing came two days after the opening of the National Peace and Justice Memorial.

The country’s leading religious news wire hired a new publisher in 2016. Then it all fell apart.

Cone’s theology contrasted sharply with traditional theological approaches in that he articulated God’s identification with U.S. blacks. In portraying Christ’s blackness, he upended the assumptions of a field dominated by white theologians and helped spawn other theories of liberation.