After the International Criminal Court recently issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for their crimes against humanity, it is becoming clearer that the war between Israel and Hamas since the Oct. 7 attacks has reached…
Politics, faith and mission: A conversation with Kaitlyn Schiess
One of the most significant questions in this election year revolves around how American Christians reconcile their faith and their politics, and sadly, we often do it badly, trying to shape our faith and the Scriptures to support the political…
What is ‘religion’? From football to faith to faithfulness
In my home state, folks make regular pilgrimages to a revered shrine where they engage in rituals, sing songs, pray, engage in charismatic hand lifting, and often speak in mysterious tongues indiscernible to outsiders. Sometimes adherents express the ecstasy of…
Not all Black Americans are highly religious, BJC podcast explains
The assumption that Black Americans are highly religious, and almost universally Christian, overlooks the theological and ideological complexity of the African American community, Anthony Pinn said on the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty’s “Respecting Religion” podcast. But a clearer…
Yes, Trump has a ‘radical agenda’ if elected again, but where’s the religious talk?
For months, national media have been reporting on Donald Trump’s proposed “radical agenda” if elected to a second term in the White House. What’s conspicuously absent from the volumes of promises Trump has made is much reference to “religion” or…
George Harrison, the ‘quiet’ Beatle, comes alive in new bio
The mild 2023 version of Beatlemania hardly compares to the wild 1964 version, but it has brought new musical products. “Now and Then,” the “last” song from the band, was released Nov. 2 to promote the Nov. 10 release of…
Are Americans ‘spiritual’ or ‘religious’ or both or neither?
Only 2% of Americans describe themselves as both “religious” and “spiritual,” while most others claim to be one or the other, according to a new study that examines how U.S. adults envision their faith identities. “Nearly half of Americans (47%)…
The real religious crisis in America
In a recent NPR interview, Russell Moore, author of Losing Our Religion, told a story about a pastor who preached a message from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. During his message, the pastor quoted Jesus saying things like “Turn the…
Growth of Christianity in China may have stalled but no one knows for sure
The growth of Christianity in China has remained flat for more than a decade, according to polls conducted in the Communist nation and analyzed by Pew Research Center. “Christianity flourished after China entered an era of economic reforms and ‘opening…