Word&Way News: July 21
Discover more from A Public Witness
Here’s the weekly roundup from Word&Way. In addition to a look at a controversial preacher being courted by presidential candidates that is free for anyone to read, paid subscribers to A Public Witness received a report on a conflict about baptisms in Geneva.
Support our journalism ministry by upgrading to a paid e-newsletter subscription today!
Top 5 at wordandway.org
The Fragility of Motherhood. Angela Denker reflected on the unjust and tragic death of sprinter Tori Bowie, one of the fastest women in America.
Review: Dancing in My Dreams. Robert D. Cornwall reviewed Dancing in My Dreams: A Spiritual Biography of Tina Turner by Ralph H. Craig III.
Texas Baptists Affirm Women in ‘Ministerial’ Roles as SBC Debate Moves to States. Adelle M. Banks reported on the debate at the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
Mississippi, Under Judge’s Order, Starts Allowing Religious Exemptions for Childhood Vaccinations. Emily Wagster Pettus reported on the latest move in a growing fight against vaccines.
Flooded with Sightseers, Europe’s Iconic Churches Struggle to Accommodate Both Worship & Tourism. Giovanni Dell’Orto reported on how sacred sites are trying to balance people coming for different reasons.
Dangerous Dogma
This week: Shannen Williams on Subversive Habits
Other noteworthy shows this week:
Shane Claiborne of Red Letter Christians spoke with the pastor of the AME church that successfully sued the Proud Boys for vandalizing the church.
On The Bible for Normal People, Pete Enns made an episode where he “ruins” 2 Samuel.
by Brian Kaylor, Word&Way Editor-in-Chief
Reports emerged this week about Texas officials ordering state Department of Public Safety troopers to push migrants back into the Rio Grande and set up dangerous traps in the river. A trooper-medic shared concerns about the treatment after witnessing a 4-year-old girl who passed out in the heat but whose group was pushed back toward Mexico without water or aid, a man who suffered a significant leg injury rescuing his child from a razor wire trap in the river, a woman who suffered a miscarriage after getting trapped in the wire, and a woman and her two children who drowned after trying to cross in a more dangerous part of the river free from wire traps.
Such inhumane treatment of people fleeing violence at home and seeking greater opportunities here is a natural outgrowth of inhumane rhetoric about migrants by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and other politicians. Dehumanizing rhetoric often precedes dehumanizing actions.
But sadly, many Christians will support the politicians responsible for these deadly policies. This despite the fact that our holy book includes a story about a tyrant who desired to kill babies in a river. If we find ourselves on the side of the Pharaoh of Texas, it’s time to reevaluate our moral values.
Other News of Note
Several GOP presidential hopefuls trekked to Iowa to speak to a conservative Christian gathering — and were grilled on issues by recently-fired Fox News pundit Tucker Carlson.
David Gelles of the New York Times reported on a lawyer who is driven by her Christian faith as she sues oil companies for climate change damage in Puerto Rico.
Surinder Kaur reported for Christianity Today about the creation of a Christian political party in Northwest India and the debate among Christians there about if that is a helpful development.
Forum 18 reported that a Pentecostal Christian in Russia was sentenced to nearly three years in prison after refusing to fight in Ukraine because of his faith (which adds to the country’s record of persecuting Christian conscientious objectors).
“I hope one day, we will stop building these weapons, disarm our state and our world, and embark on a new future without the fear and terror of the nuclear threat.” —Catholic Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe, Arizona, as he prepares to co-lead a “Pilgrimage of Peace” to Japan to push for the global elimination of nuclear weapons.
A digital hymnal launched in 2008 by LifeWay to be the future of worship music is shutting down.
The King’s College, a struggling Christian school in New York City, announced it was canceling classes this fall — but the school’s leaders insist they aren’t shutting the college down.
A Florida pastor and his son were found guilty of charges related to their actions inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
As the World Cup started this week, Jenna Barnett wrote for Sojourners about patriotism and the U.S. women’s team.
Photo of the Week
Thanks for reading!