He’s being called “Pastor Pornhub” and “the living embodiment of Satan on earth” by Christians on the religious and political right. So who is this terrifying figure? Is he a Dallas megachurch pastor who had to step aside for a…
Two pastors advance in Texas primaries
Religion played a key role in midterm primaries in Texas March 3. A Presbyterian seminarian secured the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate and will face either the incumbent, John Cornyn, a member of the Churches of Christ, or Ken Paxton,…
Jasmine Crockett addresses question of ‘electability’
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett is sharpening her case for the U.S. Senate as the Democratic primary tightens, framing her candidacy as a challenge to long-held assumptions about who can win statewide in Texas. In a recent interview at the U.S….
Talarico: ‘If you are neutral, you are taking the side of the powerful’
Progressive people of faith must demonstrate how religion can inspire opposition to Christian nationalism and the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine democracy, James Talarico said during a webinar hosted by Vote Common Good. The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate from Texas…
White faith leaders to challenge GOP in midterms
It has been decades since white Christian clergy were elected to the U.S. Congress as Democrats, but a dozen candidates are hoping to change that in this November’s midterm elections. “Democratic Party is seeing a rise of white clergy candidates,”…
Texas Senate primary pits white Social Gospel against Black Church tradition
The stage is set for a Democratic Senate primary in Texas with one candidate who is trying to convince fellow Texans to love all their neighbors and one who refuses to turn the other cheek. James Talarico is easygoing and…
Texas midterms take a twist as another pastor enters the race
A single day of cascading campaign announcements threw a prominent Baptist pastor into a race for the U.S. House of Representatives Dec. 8. Frederick Haynes III, pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas, filed to run for Texas’ 30th Congressional…
The children are starving; God is screaming
James Talarico, a Democratic state representative in Texas, recently was interviewed on MSNBC and asked by hosts what his views are on the war in Gaza. He responded, “There’s a theologian who said, ‘I screamed at God for the starving…
Johnson gives ‘glory to God’ for Trump’s big bill but others say God is mocked
While Speaker of the House Mike Johnson gave glory to God for final passage of the “big beautiful bill,” other religious leaders decried the legislation as un-Christian, un-American, evil and dangerous. On July 3, after the House passed the bill…
The Ten Commandments and the tyranny of minority rule
George Orwell, in his classic novel 1984, highlights an important aspect of full-blown authoritarianism: the presentation of lies as truth. In the first few pages of Orwell’s book, readers are introduced to the ironically named “Ministry of Truth” which features…
Politics, faith and mission: A conversation with Rep. James Talarico
James Talarico was Texas’ youngest statewide elected official when he entered the Texas House in 2019. His mixture of bona fides — Democrat, devout Christian, former school teacher, Presbyterian seminarian — quickly attracted national attention, and many of his speeches…