Weekly Roundup: March 27
Here’s the weekly roundup from A Public Witness. This week we revealed the controversial symbolism stamped on Pete Hegseth’s Bible, reported on new litigation against the Trump administration, and broke the news about a violent prayer Hegseth offered at a Pentagon worship service.
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Top 5 at wordandway.org
Jerusalem’s Palm Sunday Procession Canceled Due to Iran War. Michele Chabin reported on the impact of the latest conflict on Christian celebrations in Israel.
Survey: Support for Trump’s Immigration Agenda Craters With All Faith Groups, Especially Mainline Protestants. Jack Jenkins reported on new findings from PRRI.
Progressive Faith Leaders Found New Power in Protesting ICE. Can Their Movement Survive Success? The past year has particularly seen mainline Protestant clergy at the front lines of protests.
Cancer Nurse Turned Archbishop Celebrates Election As First Woman to Lead Church of England. Sarah Mullally this week was officially installed as the archbishop of Canterbury.
Review: Beyond Deconstruction. Robert D. Cornwall reviewed Beyond Deconstruction: Building a More Expansive Faith by James F. McGrath.
by Brian Kaylor, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief
With Easter quickly approaching, President Donald Trump proposed a way for members of Congress to honor Jesus. Pass the SAVE Act. The bill would impose new documentation standards for voting that could block millions of Americans — especially married women — from voting.
“You don’t have to take a fast vote. Don’t worry about Easter, going home,” Trump said as he pushed for the legislation. “In fact, make this one for Jesus, okay? Make this one for Jesus. That’s what I tell them. It would be a d*mn good thing.”
That’s what it looks like to use the Lord’s name in vain. That biblical command isn’t really about cursing. It’s about taking God’s name to justify profane things.
Trump doesn’t really care about honoring Easter or Jesus. He hasn’t even been to a Sunday worship service (Easter or otherwise) in over four years. But he invoked the holiest day for Christians and the name of our Messiah for his political power grab.
Even those who support the bill should reject such rhetoric. But I not only hope Congress will reject the SAVE Act, but also this misuse of Jesus’s name.
Survey Says…
Other News of Note
Lawmakers in Idaho rejected a bill that would have allowed churches to spend money on some political campaigns while also keeping donors a secret.
After Texas blocked Islamic schools from participating in the state’s new private school voucher program, a judge ordered Texas allow the Islamic schools to participate and receive state funding.
Texas Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick, who leads Donald Trump’s national “Religious Liberty Commission,” created his own state version to supposedly help promote “religious liberty.”
Sandi Villarreal of Texas Monthly unpacked the comments by Pete Hegseth’s pastor about wanting Democratic politician James Talarico “crucified.”
“There are some things that a billionaire can’t buy. An understanding of theology without rigorous study is one of them.” —Anthea Butler, in an MS Now critique of Peter Thiel’s ideas about the “antichrist.”
Catherine Porter of The New York Times reported on the Catholic billionaire funding France’s far-right Christian Nationalists.
A report last year that claimed to show a surge in church attendance in the United Kingdom has been withdrawn after the pollster admitted to a flawed data sample.
Christians in southern Lebanon are increasingly worried about another Israeli occupation as the war in the Middle East expands.
Photo of the Week
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