As if the American church isn’t divided enough, it appears we’re about to roll back the clock 50 years on abortion rights and throw more jet fuel on the culture war bonfires consuming our congregations. For some churches and pastors,…
Alito and public opinion reveal the link between Roe and a broader white Christian nationalist agenda
Like many of you, I’m still taking in the bombshell news — broken by Politico Monday night — that the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that affirmed a constitutional right…
A leak: The truth of a sick nation
The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land. Confusion all around. That’s a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough, can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period…
To reduce abortion humanely and justly, people of faith should back the ERA
Fifty years ago, Congress passed a constitutional reform to ensure “equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged … on account of sex.” On March 22, 1972, a bipartisan supermajority sent the Equal Rights Amendment to…
Most Americans are dissatisfied with current abortion laws, and the percentage who think they are too strict is growing
As the Supreme Court weighs one of the most significant abortion cases in a generation, new polling finds Americans are largely dissatisfied with the nation’s abortion laws — but not in the way you might expect. Americans’ satisfaction with U.S….
Let’s begin again: The birds, the bees and abortions
As a preacher, teacher and spiritual leader, I start to get the nervous armpit sweats at the mere thought of speaking on the topic of abortion among church folk. The dialogue always feels more like a Medieval witch trial that…
It’s time for male clergy to speak up for reproductive rights
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s hearing of Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban, people around the country are waking up to the fact that Roe v. Wade is in peril. Among those sounding the alarm have been a group of…
On abortion and guns: How is that American Christians can come to such different understandings of our faith?
On Dec. 10, the United States Supreme Court upheld Senate Bill 8, the Texas ban on abortions — not officially overturning Roe v. Wade, the court case legalizing abortion, but certainty sinking its future. On Dec. 1, I traveled with…
High court says New York doesn’t have to offer a religious exemption to vaccine mandate
After nearly two years of largely favoring the free-exercise-of-religion claims brought by conservative Christians during the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Supreme Court drew a firm line against such claims Dec. 13. Presented with a request for an emergency injunction…
It’s complicated: The backstory to Norma McCorvey and Roe v. Wade you probably don’t know
Joshua Prager has written what critics are calling the definitive book on Norma McCorvey, her family and the landmark Supreme Court decision she sparked that’s once again at the center of public attention, Roe v. Wade. The Family Roe: An…
Infertility and Roe v. Wade
Editor’s note: In exceptionally rare circumstances, BNG publishes opinion pieces without identifying the author. This is one of those rare cases where, due to the intensely personal nature of the story told and the likelihood of jeopardizing a ministerial career,…
Southern Seminary and Asbury Seminary work with noted anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQ legal group to claim federal vaccine mandate intrudes on ‘personal health decisions’
A Southern Baptist Convention seminary and a Wesleyan seminary in Kentucky are jointly challenging the Biden administration’s federal mandate on COVID-19 vaccination by claiming a religious liberty violation. Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky, which is the largest of…