Here’s the weekly roundup from A Public Witness. In addition to a report on a recent conference that is free for anyone to read, paid subscribers to A Public Witness received a look at the use of religious rhetoric at the Republican midterm convention.
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Top 5 at wordandway.org
Read It Yourself. Kristel Clayville reflected on AI, technological advances, and truth.
Michael Youssef’s ‘Christ Our Hope’ Campaign Starts in Amman, Jordan. Daoud Kuttab reported from a Christian gathering in Jordan.
Review: A Brief Guide to Ministry With LGBTQIA Youth. Robert D. Cornwall reviewed A Brief Guide to Ministry With LGBTQIA Youth: Updated Edition by Cody J. Sanders.
Seven Vermont Clergy Arrested While Protesting ICE Targeting Center. Jack Jenkins reported on the latest case of mainline Protestant clergy protesting outside an ICE facility.
What the AfD’s Victory Means for German Churches’ Influence. Liam Adams reported from Germany about the impact of a win by a far-right party that Protestant and Catholic leaders opposed.
by Brian Kaylor, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief
Twenty-five years. A generationally defining moment, 9/11 seems both so long ago and yet something we’re still living through.
We’re fighting another misguided and destabilizing war in the Middle East. The federal agency created in the aftermath to protect the nation — the Department of Homeland Security — is roaming our streets and spying in our churches. Politicians are still demonizing Muslims and seeking to create unconstitutional restrictions on religious liberty.
A quarter century. And yet, we seem to be stuck. I can still feel the horror and lament I felt watching the scenes that day from my college campus. And I feel the horror and lament for many of the things we as a nation did in response.
May God continue to comfort those in mourning. And may God help us to find a better way forward.
Other News of Note
A Catholic theologian has joined the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s public affairs office to help promote the administration’s immigration policies.
A federal judge is still considering whether to hold DHS in contempt for spying at a Baptist church covered by an junction. But the judge did order DHS to report if they have conducted actions at or near any other church covered by the injunction.
Brian Kaylor appeared on the Faithful Politics podcast this week to talk about the incidents of DHS spying at churches:
Tom Homan, the White House’s border czar, claimed this week that they have not arrested anyone at a church. But reporter Jack Jenkins noted that is false and even DHS has admitted to doing so.
The Pentagon continues to conscript Isaiah 6:8 to make the verse about a military fighting for a nation instead of a prophet serving God. A Public Witness was the first to document this new PR effort.
“The Government has neither the authority nor the constitutionally established competence to make the reform of the Church part of its program or, at its own discretion, impose any ‘proposals’ or demands upon the clergy.” —The Armenian Church’s Supreme Spiritual Council in response to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan seeking to replace the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Kristen Thomason wrote for Baptist News Global about how the Trump administration has set back global vaccination efforts.
Angelina Ispir wrote for Religion Unplugged about St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, which was destroyed when the World Trade Center’s south tower collapsed on 9/11. Reopened in 2022, the church tries to minister to those coming to the area to remember 9/11.
Photo of the Week
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