A new Justice Department report accusing President Joe Biden of discriminating against Christians is “absurd” on multiple levels, said Melissa Rogers, who led faith-based initiatives under the former administration. The April 30 study, “Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias within the Federal Government,”…
What a database can’t do
It is a dark irony that people who claim to stand for truth can so effectively bury the truth about abuse. Although it never should have been her story, Jennifer Lyell was one of many who bravely reported abuse at…
Due process for all Americans now threatened, Melissa Rogers warns
The wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia poses a looming threat to the right to due process in the U.S., said Melissa Rogers, a former executive director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Garcia is the…
Take heart and speak out, Raskin urges democracy advocates
Americans opposed to the Trump administration’s attacks against religious institutions and its attempts to radically reshape the federal government must take heart and speak out now, said U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md. Catholic and Lutheran relief groups have been denied…
Melissa Rogers: America’s faith traditions can unify and heal wounds
While religious ideologies are increasingly cited as toxic and divisive forces in American culture and politics, faith also can heal those wounds when Americans unite around common causes such as hunger, poverty and disaster relief, according to Melissa Rogers. The…
Biden reestablishes Faith-based Partnerships Office and names Melissa Rogers to lead it
A familiar face to Baptist religious liberty advocates has been named to lead the newly reconstituted White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Melissa Rogers will lead the office, an appointment announced by President Joe Biden on Sunday morning,…
Interfaith group calls on Biden administration to ‘restore’ religious freedom protections
A group of nearly 100 interreligious leaders has offered four suggestions to the incoming Biden-Harris administration on urgent work necessary to restore religious freedom protections. “The Trump administration has taken many actions that undermine religious freedom,” the group’s letter says….
Barrett nomination renews debate over Constitution’s ‘no religious test’ rule
For decades, political moderates and liberals have accused the Religious Right of advocating for a de facto religious test for office. With the upcoming confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, the shoe may be…
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.
Religion Notes: Melissa Rogers returns to WF Divinity; BWA protests arrest of Baptist leader
The Wake Forest University School of Divinity has welcomed former Obama Administration official Melissa Rogers back to its faculty. Her hiring was announced Jan. 30 on the Divinity School web site. Rogers rejoins the institution as a visiting professor and…
White House staffer named to Holocaust museum board
Melissa Rogers, special assistant to President Obama and executive director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships and one-time general counsel of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, will be nominated by the outgoing president as…
White House panel report says system, not personal decisions, drive poverty
A White House advisory panel report released Oct. 27 said that in order to fight poverty, the United States must acknowledge and address disparities and unequal treatment — economically, socially and politically — that face communities of color. The White House Advisory…