A married gay clergyman from California was among 13 new bishops elected by United Methodist delegates to five regional U.S. conferences Nov. 2-5. And that was only one of several first-ever results of this year’s elections. The election of Cedrick…
PRRI’s new national survey shows chasm between Americans growing wider
Few would be surprised to learn that the latest American Values Survey shows Americans moving increasingly apart on issues such as race, sexuality, politics, immigration, democracy and the overall state and direction of the nation. Even so, Robert P. Jones,…
Only one-fourth of Republican parents say children should be taught the legacy of slavery still affects Black people today — and other findings from a new Pew survey
Parent eruptions at local school board meetings over the past couple of years are based in real and dramatic differences of opinion about what should be taught in America’s public schools, according to new data from Pew Research. For example,…
33 House Republicans introduce bill to ban talking about sex and gender with children under age 10
The conservative evangelical agenda to define any discussion with children of sexual orientation or gender identity as sexually perverse could become federal law if a group of Republican Congressmen get their way. Rep. Mike Johnson, a Southern Baptist from Louisiana,…
How men have controlled women using the Bible
Christianity has utilized a biased reading of the sacred biblical texts to privilege men as leaders in church, home and in most vocations. From the Old Testament to the 21st century, men authored, translated and edited most of Scripture and…
How the church becomes a grooming place for domestic violence
Churches and Christian groups often instill in young women character traits that, unfortunately, open the gateway to dating violence and domestic abuse. By gendering character traits, the church has increased the power of men and the marginalization of women. Patriarchal…
How Miss Marple and British crime fiction help us explore mysteries of the soul
“Jane Marple. Look at her well. I tell you, that woman knows more about the different kinds of human wickedness than anyone I’ve ever known,” says a character in an Agatha Christie story. In another story, Miss Marple explains, “Human…
Kansas school district gives $95,000 to teacher who violated its own policies on student names and gender
A Kansas middle school teacher who refused to call transgender or nonbinary students by their preferred names and pronouns has been financially rewarded for her defiance of school district policy — by the school district. Teacher Pamela Ricard will get…
When forced to choose between their ministry and their transgender child, this family chose love
Chris and Lindsay Kinman landed their dream job in Christian ministry and thought they had no greater heights to scale. And then they gave it all up for the love of their son. This is a story about the power…