The rise of social media and hate-based politics has helped transform the United States into a nation of bullies where acts of rage and intimidation have become normative and even celebrated, character educator Elaine Parke warns. “What’s unique about social…
Some evangelical leaders see FBI visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago as evidence of the religious persecution coming to them
The Biden administration and the FBI are responsible for “politicizing” American citizens, persecuting a former U.S. president and causing Americans to be confused about real truth, a leading conservative evangelical spokesman said Aug. 9 in response to an FBI visit…
Dealing with the truth: An interview with Sarah Churchwell on Gone with the Wind, the Lost Cause and Donald Trump
Those of you who read this column are aware that I study culture, religion and political life to explore the myths by which Americans shape their lives, and that I’m particularly focused on questions of race and injustice. Knowing that,…
Roger Williams, John Cotton and the future of the American experiment
In the fourth chapter of Luke, the devil led Jesus to a high place and “showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.” Next came the pitch: “To you I will give all this authority and their glory,…
We know the truth, and it is not setting us free
At the annual gathering of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship last week, I heard at least one speaker repeat the words of John 8:32: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” In fact, as I recall,…
At Faith and Freedom conference, evangelical Christian voters once again abandon their concern for marital fidelity
Providing further evidence that evangelical Christian voters no longer care about some moral failures as disqualifying, those attending the Faith and Freedom Coalition gathering in Nashville June 18 applauded Herschel Walker, despite recent revelations that he fathered three children not…
A warning to the January 6 Committee: Donald Trump is inside that Trojan horse
Television could become the January 6 Committee’s Trojan horse. Hidden inside the Trojan horse of television is the persona of Donald Trump. Rhetorical scholar Paul Achter says, “Trump is a central character in everyday news discourse in an era in…
Social media and right-wing politicians are fueling threat to democracy, panelists warn
The prevalence of social media and support from right-wing politicians have enabled white supremacist, anti-government and other domestic extremist groups to become much greater threats to American security than foreign terrorist movements ever have been, according to a panel of…
Is ‘fascism’ the right name for the Trumpist hard right in America?
Long after it seemed dead and buried with Mussolini and Hitler, the term “fascism” has been making a comeback — not as the self-description of authoritarian politicians and parties, but as an epithet applied by their enemies, or as an…