I read Pope Leo’s papal encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person In the Time of Artificial Intelligence.” Imagine my surprise in finding an “evangelical” Catholic diametrically opposite American MAGA evangelicals. What captured my attention was the first third…
When outrage prophets roamed the land
There’s a gathering of young white, male preachers filled with anger at church and state. I have dubbed them the “outrage prophets,” similar to the false prophets of the Old Testament. One of their members, Joel Webbon, drew my attention…
Harry Fosdick wants a word with Seven Mountains Dominionists
On May 21, 1922, Harry Emerson Fosdick broke the spell of Christian fundamentalism in a single sermon, “Shall the Fundamentalists Win?” After more than 100 years, his words still sting those of a fundamentalism inclination. In fact, Fosdick’s critique fits…
What Putin’s Altar Boy offers American Christians
Juha Meriläinen, church historian at the University of Helsinki, has written a forthcoming book titled Putin’s Altar Boy. In it, he sounds a warning about the dangers of a church under the influence of the state. Patriarch Kiril, the head…
Trump’s ’60 Minutes’ interview shows why we need a free press
The recent 60 Minutes interview with President Donald Trump hosted by Norah O’Donnell was not great television, but it revealed a glaring and well-known flaw in our president. He attacks and denigrates everyone he deems critical of him. He always…
Why Orban’s defeat portends bad news for Trump
The defeat of Viktor Orban in Hungary holds promise for America. In one way, Orban’s demise is a lesson in Political Science 101: Political leaders, even in a quasi-democracy, can’t beat a bad economy. Peter Magyar’s landslide victory in Hungary…
Yes, we need another Trump book
There’s yet another new Trump book available. Paul A. Pomerville has written Why Didn’t Evangelicals “See Him Coming”? with the subtitle Donald J. Trump’s Deception and Dismantling of American Democracy. Why bother with another Trump book? Books and articles about…
Image of Trump as Jesus healing a man is too much even for evangelicals
One of the most common T-shirts, caps and banners displayed during the Jan. 6 insurrection says, “Jesus is My Savior, Trump is my President.” But Donald Trump erased the line between savior and president last Sunday evening by posting an…
Pete Hegseth and the revival of racism
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is blocking the promotion of four Army officers to be one-star generals. Two of the officers targeted by Hegseth are Black and two are women on a promotion list that consists of about three dozen officers,…
Imprecatory prayers: A theological-political caution
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Pastor Brooks Potteiger and other MAGA evangelicals are using imprecatory prayers asking God to kill their enemies. Should we be alarmed? A few examples of imprecatory prayers here and there don’t portend an outbreak in…
Donald Trump has been wrong about most everything
One of Donald Trump’s marketing slogans declares, “Trump was right about everything.” But in reality, as anyone with eyes can clearly see, Trump has been wrong about most everything. His “business leader” instincts have proved ill-advised and catastrophic time and…
Who will tell Trump’s he’s not God’s anointed?
When Thomas Dewey went to sleep on election night in 1948, he was the president-elect. The Chicago Tribune already had sealed the deal with the headline, “Dewey Defeats Truman.” But early in the morning as the election results were tabulated,…