Franklin Graham, one of the foremost allies of Israel among American evangelicals, will broadcast a special Easter message from Jerusalem March 31. He will be joined by Christian music artist Michael W. Smith. As Israeli Defense Forces have killed 31,000…
New history sees CCM as a ‘soundtrack’ for white evangelicalism
“What can one learn about the development of evangelicalism by looking at CCM, one of the largest, most profitable forms of mass media produced in the 20th century?” asks Leah Payne in her new book, God Gave Rock and Roll…
Appealing to religious freedom is the way to counter Christian supremacism in America today
Christian supremacism has gotten completely out of hand in the United States. We’ve seen it in the insurrection warfare of the New Apostolic Reformation, the battle against librarians by the likes of Kirk Cameron, the desire to punish homosexuality by Al Mohler, Dan…
Amy Grant will host a same-sex wedding, Franklin Graham objects, and where does that leave Michael W. Smith?
Amy Grant is hosting her niece’s same-sex wedding on her farm, and Franklin Graham wants everyone to know he disapproves. Of course, this should come as no surprise to Graham. In a 2013 interview with the LGBTQ news outlet PrideSource, Grant said…
How Michael W. Smith, George W. Bush and one popular worship song expose the problem of Calvinist theology and politics
There is a reason why one of the most influential worship songs of the past quarter century expresses a truth that could turn evangelicalism upside down and yet has been repeatedly rejected and banned by conservative evangelical complementarian Calvinists. Growing…
Rediscovering the songs of lament would wake us up
On a recent day in Washington, D.C., thousands of evangelicals, almost all of them white, gathered to a rally and to sing praise and worship music. One image that sticks in my head is a group surrounding Michael W. Smith,…
Worship event on National Mall illustrates merger of evangelical music and politics
It was billed as a worship rally, but it could have been a political rally. Last Saturday, Sept. 26, nearly 100,000 evangelicals gathered at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., for the stated purpose of worshiping God. They were led by Vice President Mike…