Weekly Roundup: May 15
Here’s the weekly roundup from A Public Witness. In addition to an update on government worship services that is free for anyone to read, paid subscribers to A Public Witness received a preview of this weekend’s Christian Nationalist “worship” rally on the National Mall.
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Top 5 at wordandway.org
This Mother’s Day, the Church Cannot Be Silent About Black Maternal Deaths. Nicolle Fletcher and Phillip D. Fletcher reflected on a new “Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies America” initiative.
Between Christendom and Faith. Michael Mellette wrote about the problems of the commercialized American church.
Review: Emotion in Early Christianity. Robert D. Cornwall reviewed Emotion in Early Christianity by Andrew Crislip.
Thomas Paine Helped Start America. In the Trump Era, He’s Under Fire. Jack Jenkins wrote about the contemporary debate over Paine’s legacy and what it means.
The Cherokee Bible, One of the Language’s First Books, Is a Window Between Worldviews. Margaret Bender and Tom Belt wrote about the continuing impact of 19th-century efforts to translate the Bible into a Native American language.
Dangerous Dogma
This week’s episode features a conversation between Brian Kaylor and Warren Throckmorton about his new book, The Christian Past that Wasn’t: Debunking the Christian Nationalist Myths that Hijack History. Listen to the audio version here (or wherever you listen to podcasts) or watch the video version here.
by Brian Kaylor, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief
On Wednesday (May 13), Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty Executive Director Amanda Tyler testified in a U.S. House committee to oppose so-called “anti-Sharia law” legislation. She explained that “targeting individuals and groups based on religion violates our country’s constitutional commitment to religious freedom for all.” Denouncing such legislation being pushed in D.C. and in states across the country, she argued this hurts all Americans because “when any person’s religious freedom is threatened or diminished, it weakens everyone’s religious freedom.”
“When the government itself targets religious groups with broad generalizations and baseless accusations, it only adds to the culture of discrimination that already harms Muslim families and children. It models bullying rather than respect,” she added. “Particularly at a time of rising political violence, targeting groups based on perceived differences threatens to exacerbate tensions and contribute to a culture of fear, discrimination, and violence. … Rather than fearmongering and distorting religion for perceived political gain, our country’s leaders should be actively working to make the constitutional promise of full belonging without regard to religion a reality for all.”
Tyler’s right and I’m glad she was in the U.S. Capitol to make that case. And, as she noted, it’s unfortunately something we must push back against across the country. I testified against four such “anti-Sharia law” bills in Missouri this year. Sadly, lawmakers passed one (despite my excellent arguments) and sent it to the governor’s desk this week. We won’t always stop bigoted bills. But we must not sit by quietly.
Survey Says…
Other News of Note
Peter Smith of The Associated Press previewed the upcoming Rededicate 250 “worship” rally (with comments from Brian Kaylor).
Sean Scott of The Maine Monitor wrote about Christian Nationalist efforts in the Pine Tree State (with quotes from Brian Kaylor).
MAGA pastor Mark Burns led the dedication of a golden statue of Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. Burns insists it isn’t “a golden calf,” which is obvious since this graven image is a golden statue of
NebuchadnezzarTrump.During a Canadian Christian conference, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith argued that a new pipeline project follows the teachings of Jesus.
“What is happening in Ukraine, Gaza and the Palestinian territories, Lebanon, and Iran illustrates the inhuman evolution of the relationship between war and new technologies in a spiral of annihilation.” —Pope Leo XIV, in a speech warning about the use of AI by militaries.
Jill Nelson of Christianity Today reported on how Ukrainian Christians continue to worship even as Russian military strikes hit their communities and churches.
Three Baptist pastors were shot dead in an act of terrorism in Northeast India while traveling home from a denominational meeting.
Russell Contreras of Axios wrote about how “America’s pastor pipeline is collapsing” as fewer people are preparing to become pastors (especially impacting rural and Black communities).
NPR reported that while church attendance in the United States is down, “cowboy churches” are on the rise.
Numerous presidents of Christian colleges are warning that a new Trump administration regulation regarding financial aid poses an “existential threat” to their schools.
Photo of the Week
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