Features
J. D. Vance, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and the parable of the Good Samaritan
The vice president’s mangling of the Christian ordo amoris is just a smokescreen for the largest deportation operation in American history.
America’s real sister act
“When we narrate the history of the church from the perspective of Black nuns,” says historian Shannen Dee Williams, “myths about the Catholic past fall quickly and they fall hard.”
Sanctuary in houses of worship has always been tenuous
It’s a practice marked by promise and difficulty—both in the Bible and today.
What is active citizenship in the era of rule by decree?
American political theology has tended to take democracy and the rule of law for granted. What now?
How the West Bank settlements have changed Israel
The settler movement has spent decades pushing its views to the mainstream and building its political power.
Kendrick Lamar is playing a different game
The “great American game” is played to win and to exclude. Lamar’s halftime show made the case for turning our attention to something better.
How and what to think
I’m only trying to teach my religion students one of these things. At least that’s what I tell them.
Does God want America to be great?
Six reflections on what God really wants for the world
Political demons
For theologian and civil rights activist William Stringfellow, understanding American politics means taking demons seriously.
A dustpan, a desert, and a search for moral order
My theological education began at Deep Springs College, a two-year work school in California.
Learning to see the planet as gift
At Holden Village, a Lutheran retreat center nestled deep in the Cascades, I asked my students to consider their vocation in light of the Anthropocene.
The academy needs better theologies of cooking
The first step is to give voice to those whose work in the kitchen is shaped by necessity, not choice.
The consolation of studying theology
Theological education is precarious, inconvenient, and uncomfortable. So why do students keep enrolling?
How shall we render?
Thankfully, the Christian tradition is filled with models of resistance to unjust leaders.
Sacred waters, melting ice
Baptismal rituals in glacial lands hold memories of the past—and wisdom for facing climate change.
From seminary classroom to encampment
Students protesting the war in Gaza are asking deep questions about colonialism, antisemitism, and Christian Zionism.
The hope-filled worldview of John B. Cobb Jr.
Cobb was a visionary who saw theology as a force for transformation—as much about action as thought.
Jimmy Carter, America’s best ex-president
After his 1980 defeat, Carter devoted himself to the causes of a progressive evangelicalism that has all but disappeared from public view.
How do we preach about a vigilante murder?
As preachers consider their response to the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a sermon from the Gilded Age might guide the way.
The Christmas of Baby Tommy
We raised our kids without a religious narrative. My young son stumbled upon one on his own.