James Talarico recently held a rally at the Waco Hippodrome. My wife and I are grateful we attended. We joined a long line of diverse Wacoans, talking excitedly as we waited to clear security and enter the theater. When Talarico…
National Prayer Breakfast or Christian Nationalism Breakfast?
On Feb. 5, the 74th annual National Prayer Breakfast was held in a ballroom at the Washington Hilton Hotel, with President Donald Trump as the keynote speaker. On Feb. 4, 2016, the 64th National Prayer Breakfast was held at the…
Will Zohran Mamdani institute Sharia law in New York?
Zohran Mamdani is the mayor-elect of New York City, the largest city in the United States, and will take office on New Year’s Day 2026. Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, and became a naturalized American citizen in 2018. He…
The kingdom of God is not about gold
I had not heard of “MAGA pastor” and Trump supporter Shane Vaughn until reading Rick Pidcock’s BNG opinion piece, “This Is Not an Idol. This Is A Sculpture.” Referring to the “12-foot-tall golden Trump statue holding out a Bitcoin” which…
A certain kind of envy, both good and holy
The Ten Commandments are considered “the background and foundation of Israelite law,” according to Walter Harrelson, distinguished professor of Hebrew Bible at Vanderbilt Divinity School. The tenth injunction is against coveting that which is not your own, but your neighbor’s:…
God is not … a Christian
Brent Laytham, a former professor of theology at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago and currently running the ecumenical division of America’s first Catholic seminary, has edited a fascinating book titled God Is Not … . The book — written…
The art of patriotic dealmaking
It is incomprehensible that opponents of President-elect Donald Trump criticize his efforts to commemorate historical events and memorable occasions from our recent national story by offering personal souvenirs to his fellow Americans. After all, he is simply following the footsteps…
The Cross as moral example
During the holiest of seasons for Christians around the world, thoughts turn to the Cross on which Jesus died on Friday before his tomb was empty on Sunday. At candlelit Maundy Thursday evening observances of the Lord’s Supper or solemn…
Looking beyond ‘fact or fable’ alternatives in the Christmas stories of Matthew and Luke
One of the learning activities I sometimes used when discussing the nature of Jesus in my New Testament undergraduate classes was a “forced choice” exercise. We moved the chairs to the sides of the room and all the students stood…
Walking a Christian pluralist path
Brian Kaylor begins his Aug. 17 Word&Way article, “The World’s Religions Converge in Chicago,” with this personal question of mine: “How did someone rooted and grounded in a Baptist version of Christianity become a religious pluralist?” In that recent speech at the Parliament of…
Blind trust can be dangerous
Stanley Hauerwas is “considered by many to be one of the world’s most influential living theologians” and was named “America’s Best Theologian” by Time magazine in 2001. He shares a humorous memory in his autobiography, Hannah’s Child: A Theologian’s Memoir: The…
To the mother who complained about Amanda Gorman’s poem
Dear Concerned Mother, You were astute to signal the potential problems the published poem, “The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman, might cause for your own two children and other elementary school readers at Bob Graham Education Center in Miami…