Celebrity preachers, entrepreneurial theologians, parachurch leaders and conservative pundits have sold millions of Americans a false gospel that legitimizes discriminatory social arrangements, argues Scott Coley in his provocative book, Ministers of Propaganda: Truth, Power, and the Ideology of the Religious…
Upholding the Great Commission amid sociopolitical turmoil
In today’s increasingly polarized world, Christians often find themselves grappling with the challenge of maintaining a healthy balance between their commitment to the Great Commission and their engagement in politics. While it is essential for believers to be actively involved…
Politics, faith and mission: A conversation with Sarah McCammon
Sarah McCammon is a national political correspondent for NPR (covering Donald Trump in the 2016 election), co-host of the NPR Politics Podcast, and the recipient of a 2023 Edward R. Murrow Award for her coverage of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision….
ERLC’s guide to political engagement will be too nice for conservatives and too mean for progressives
What should Christians do about political engagement? It’s a question Andrew T. Walker takes seriously in his extended pamphlet, “The Nations Belong to God: A Christian Guide to Political Engagement,” published by the Southern Baptist Convention Ethics and Religious Liberty…
On the collapse of Christianity into politics
A friend sent me this piece in Salon, posted under the provocative title, “How Evangelicals Abandoned Christianity and Became ‘Conservatives’ Instead.” I was not familiar with the author, Nathaniel Manderson, who identifies himself as an evangelical pastor trained at a…
Global study finds when religion seeks political dominance, the faith suffers
Christians intent on preserving the faith in the United States should abandon efforts to achieve political dominance and instead embrace pluralism to halt the church’s numerical and reputational freefall, said the co-author of a study published recently in the journal…
I’m a pastor who refuses to offer ‘thoughts and prayers’ for these people
I’m praying that God will comfort suffering victims and afflict their political and religious victimizers. That’s not a “God bless the USA” prayer. It’s a “Thy will be done” prayer.
WWJDD: What Would James Dunn Do? America on July 4, 2019
Had James Dunn lived to witness this year’s Fourth of July event – hijacked by President Trump – he would have let his freedom of dissent ring loud and clear. At this moment in the history of American Christianity and American government, Dunn’s distinctive gospel dissent needs to be heard and heeded.
To resist is not enough; as Christians we are called to do more
Korean minjung theologians speak of han, the deep and abiding suffering that persists as a result of unresolved injustice. Right now, I believe our faith communities are overwhelmed by han. In this in-between space of conflict and despair, let’s remember that doing right is its own reward.