As someone who struggles with anxiety, I understand the crippling power fear can exercise in our lives. As a pastor and disciple of Jesus, however, I live in a story where faith overcomes fear, and where Christ’s “perfect love drives out all fear” — including in our political engagement. What can the “Got Milk?” ad campaign teach us? Skye Jethani explains in this video. … More Fear Not, Christian!
Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a hero of mine, on my Mt. Rushmore of Christian influences. His legacy is being hijacked and twisted for political purposes. The Bonhoeffer family has recently spoken up and sent a letter signed by 86 family members to Eric Metaxas saying: “We are horrified to see how the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer is…being distorted and misused…” … More Bonhoeffer’s Family Confronts Eric Metaxas
The MainStreet Covenant community just completed a six-week series called The After Party aimed at fostering hope and humility in political discourse. Participants explored four profiles: Combatant, Cynic, Exhausted, and Disciple, emphasizing the need for forgiveness and reconciliation through Jesus’ teachings, leading to unity and peace. Here’s a final follow-up word from the creator of the course. … More The True After Party
Pastor Mike Glenn emphasizes the challenges of navigating political discourse within churches during an intense election year. He urges believers to prioritize their relationship with Jesus above politics, reminding them they represent Christ as ambassadors. Ultimately, Glenn argues that the Kingdom of God transcends earthly elections and calls for faithful Christian engagement in societal leadership. … More Pastors and Politics
On this somber anniversary, Rabbi David Wolpe emphasizes the importance of memory in Judaism, particularly in light of historical tragedies. Jewish memory serves as both honor and prophecy. It urges remembrance not only of pain but also of survival and divine presence. A piece published at Dispatch Faith. … More October 7 and the Perils of Memory
I want to commend to you the “Evangelical Confession 2024” as a helpful guide for Christians this election season. It emphasizes allegiance to Jesus over political ideologies while encouraging love, truth, unity, and recognition of every individual’s worth. It outlines Biblical principles that reject fear, division, and manipulation in political discourse, aiming to position the Church as a prophetic witness of God’s reconciliation and love in a divisive world. … More Evangelical Confession 2024
Today I’m sharing an editorial piece on the so-called cat-eaters of Springfield and a song by Jon Guerra that will pierce your heart and leave you in tears. The closing line is “Power has several prizes,
Handcuffs can come in all sizes,
Love has a million disguises,
But winning is simply not one.” … More Exotic Cat-Eaters and Christian Citizenship
A family I know and love was rattled recently to get a note from someone they considered a longtime friend suggesting that the family was going to hell. The cause for the impending brimstone was not that the family denied the faith, embraced some heresy, or adopted some unrepentant life of immorality. At issue was that the family did not support a presidential candidate.
… More To Hell With the Election (by Russell Moore)
Christians have lost their way when it comes to the intersection of faith & politics. It’s time to reframe our political identity as we take the lead in healing what’s broken. Jesus’ call is clear: We are to be salt and light in this world. Come be equipped and encouraged in this 6-week series as we prepare for the true party to come. We’ve saved a seat for you! … More Join us for The After Party!
A quote attributed to Cornel West sums up my feelings in this current political season, “I cannot be an optimist but I am a prisoner of hope.” I skipped watching the national debate, knowing that my social media feeds would be flooded with “highlights.” It turns out I didn’t miss much, and I spent the next several days afterward lamenting, with many others, that these two men were our only choices. … More A Prisoner of Hope
In this 4th of July episode of Theology in the Raw podcast (which was recorded on May 1st), Preston Sprinkle talks with Shane Claiborne about the conflict in Israel-Palestine, student protests on U.S. university campuses, and various things related to patriotism, nationalism, and the gospel. Good food for thought for Christians trying to keep their allegiances straight. … More Should Christians be Patriotic?
When I graduated from high school someone gave me a copy of Dr. Seuss’ Oh the Places You’ll Go! The optimism of that coming-of-age moment was wrapped up in the promise near the end of that book: “And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.) KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!” This graduation season, I’ve been thinking and praying about a group of graduates for whom success seems a lot less certain than Dr. Seuss’ appraisal. … More Immigration, Dreamers & Moving Mountains
Somehow the church tends to pick up the idea that we’re supposed to win. That our place in the world is not one of suffering love, but victorious power. It’s so easy for the church to forget that Christ did not call us to rule but to serve. He called us, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it, to come and die. … More A Long Defeat … into Victory
Politics are dividing our churches like never before. Preston Sprinkle’s new book reminds us that the first-century church was not an apolitical gathering, where Christians left their Roman politics at the door. It also wasn’t a place where Christians mounted a Roman flag next to—or above—a Christian one. Church was a place where God’s plan for governing the world was revealed, where one could witness what it means to follow the Creator’s design for human flourishing. … More Exiles: The Book We’ve Needed
These are the ridiculous, tongue-in-cheek thoughts of a person foolish enough to bring the noise and rancor of human politics with him on his walk into the quiet and peaceful world of nature. The main lesson to glean from this is to not repeat my mistake and let nature be a temporary respite from the politics of the City of Man. … More Fallen Birds & Politics
Mainstream media fails to depict the true reality of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a Christian perspective. The “Theology in the Raw” podcast features diverse viewpoints, including a Gazan Christian theologian advocating for nonviolent resistance, an Orthodox Jewish Zionist working for reconciliation, and a scholar questioning blind support for Israel from a New Testament perspective. The media coverage’s failure to capture the complexity of the conflict is also highlighted. … More The Israel-Palestinian Conflict with Preston Sprinkle
Russell Moore’s article discusses antisemitic chants at elite campuses, highlighting the danger of mob mentality and the importance of individual accountability. He emphasizes the need to reject hate and embrace love and community, drawing on Christian values of personal responsibility and the vision of unity in diversity. … More What Antisemetic Chants Tell Us
A dark shadow is threatening to block out the light of Jesus’ ethic and Kingdom vision for many today. This eclipse has been slowly ongoing for years, and the shadow grows ever larger by the hour. Today, some find themselves in the path of totality, where this lunar / lunatic figure now seems to block out 100% of Jesus-shaped light and reason and truth. … More Beware the Eclipse of the Son
The Gospel reading for this week gets to the heart of everything. This is it. Choose the scandalous Way of the Cross and be a disciple of Jesus, or keep stamping Jesus’ name on the Ways of the World and be Satan’s sucker. There’s no neutral ground beneath the cross: you’re either mocking or marveling. … More Mocking or Marveling at the Cross?
This exposition of 1 Peter 3:18-22 emphasizes a spiritual battle between good and evil forces, urging Christians to be aware of this cosmic struggle. It highlights the role of Jesus in overcoming evil and calls for believers to resist being manipulated by worldly powers. The text also stresses the importance of having a clear conscience before God, rather than pursuing selfish desires or political victories. … More An Appeal for a Clear Conscience
“Isaak, grab a notepad and pen, and go watch Trump’s victory speech. Tally up how many mean things he says about someone else.” Isaak loves counting, and he’s very sensitive to bullying, so he relished the assignment. He caught only the last 10 minutes of the speech, but the photo here shows the result. … More 32 Put Downs in 10 Minutes
Christmas 2019 Christianity Today published a scorching editorial decrying Trump’s immoral character. The Christianity Today website “crashed” from all the traffic swarming to read it. I wondered why so many were caught up in Caesar’s politics the week our focus should be on the new politics born in Bethlehem’s manger. … More Trump, Evangelicalism, and the Kingdom
Whenever violence erupts in the Holy Land, I find myself huddled next to Jesus weeping again over a land that has yet to learn His Way of Peace. As we pray for peace in Israel, and watch events unfold there, let me share a piece by N. T. Wright on how Christian pilgrims might approach the complex history and relationships in the Holy Land. … More Weeping & War in the Holy Land
Let everyone around us fawn at the big-budget political mayhem swirling continuously around us. Let us keep our focus on the little pop-out window on the screen of history that bows humbly before the manger and stands in awe with lowly shepherds. Let worldly politics be a little side hobby (though I don’t recommend it!), and let King Jesus and his upside-down politics rule in our hearts and minds continuously. … More Split Screen Lives
Why was the creation of the universe described in 9 verses in Genesis, whereas the building of the tabernacle is detailed in hundreds of verses over many chapters Exodus? Moses was working with a fractious bunch divided into twelve tribes, and one of the best ways to unite a people is by joining them together in a common project. … More Shut Up & Build Up: Healing Our Divisions
Jeremy L. Berg 