Features
Why the world needs Sarah Coakley
Coakley's kind of theology requires more than claims. It needs prayer.
From Nigeria to America and back
"There was a time in my life when I devoured Christian literature," says novelist Chigozie Obioma.
A freelance wedding that didn't fit my script
The gig seemed fairly routine. Then I saw the parrots.
The Methodists aren't united. Can they still be a church?
A global denomination, a clash of principles, and the coming reckoning
Encounters with a saint
I was skeptical about sainthood. Then I met three people whose lives were changed by Mother Teresa.
Books
Black critiques matter
Criticism of the slave trade from 200 years ago speaks to us today—and not just about race.
Millay the poet, Millay the woman
Readers won't easily trace Edna St. Vincent Millay's personal life in this collection.
Faith, family, and politics in Nigeria
Two debut novels portray everyday life in Nigerian cities. They also teach Americans about our own culture.
Many parts, one pastor
Ministry today requires multiple strategies and layered identities.
A Jesus who embodies his own characters
Two refreshing new books place the storyteller within the story he tells.
Departments
Fore Shadowing, by Kaori Homma
Kaori Homma calls her fire etchings (Aburidashi) “a silent lament . . ....
God among the gangs of Central America
Churches in a place where they are the only signs of hope
I and thou and ze?
Self-realization is possible only in relation to a reality beyond the self.
News
Barney Zeitz, stained-glass artist, helps German church honor sanctuary's Jewish history
Barney Zeitz, 65, an artist on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, doesn’t know where in Europe his ancestors lived. But it could have been a town like Flieden, Germany, where there was a Jewish community from 1562 until 1938....
Archaeologists discover ancient Jewish artifacts, part of Jerusalem walls
Israeli archaeologists have made two recent discoveries expanding knowledge of Jewish history as far back as the time of the First Temple in the seventh century BC....
Researchers open tomb believed to be the one where Jesus was buried
(The Christian Science Monitor) Future pilgrims to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre will be able to glimpse what is, according to tradition, the tomb of Jesus....
Faith-based groups, others put pressure on UN for its role in Haiti cholera deaths
Every family in Joseph Dade Guiwil’s community has been harmed by the cholera epidemic in Haiti, the worst outbreak in recent history....
Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows to be first black woman to lead an Episcopal diocese
Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, 50, will be the first black woman to lead a diocese in the Episcopal Church....
Samuel Kabue, head of ecumenical network, advocates for people with disabilities
Samuel Kabue believes in giving people chances. He was born during the “very, very hard” colonial days in Kenya and saw his hopes for life after national independence changed when he became blind at age 16....
Rachel Azaria works for balance in Israel's religious conflicts
Rachel Azaria’s office is sparsely but intentionally decorated with a Hebrew translation of Martin Luther King Jr.’s biography and a framed photo of her role model, Hillary Clinton. ...
Displaced Iraqi Christians await return to Mosul
Two years ago, when fighters from the self-described Islamic State began their assault on Karemlash, a town 18 miles southeast of Mosul, Martin Banni, a Chaldean Catholic priest, grabbed communion elements, the church’s official documen...
Exhibit at Smithsonian captures art of the Qur’an
Islam prohibits the depiction of God or prophets, and some Muslims believe drawing any animate being is also forbidden. Certainly no such images appear in the Qur’an, its central holy book....
Facing discrimination, Indian Dalits convert to Buddhism
Kanti Sarvaiya left his Hindu heritage behind and became a Buddhist.
“Hinduism has done nothing for us,” said Sarvaiya, 20, who lives in the western Indian state of Gujarat. “So our family elders have decided to convert.”...
Lectionary
December 18, Fourth Sunday of Advent: Matthew 1:18–25
Matthew's geneaology underscores that God has always worked through messy and broken families.
December 11, Third Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 35:1–10; Matthew 11:2–11
Jesus' ministry is not what John the Baptist expected it to be.