Latest Articles
Jesus is Lord. No political leader is.
Maybe the kingdom of God isn’t like a king—maybe it’s like those who resist a king.
Faith groups resolve to protect migrants, refugees after Trump win
“We will not be intimidated into silence or inaction.”
Wreckage and euphoria
Barbara Crooker’s new poetry collection is a journey through loss that reveals the world’s beauty.
Lessons from the land of lake effect snow
Life can be as unpredictable as the weather in upstate New York. But God’s steadfast love endures forever.
Cecil Williams kept his ear to the ground
The longtime pastor of Glide Memorial Church was involved in nearly every major social justice movement in the Bay Area for 60 years.
The Obama campaign, fictionalized
Vinson Cunningham’s debut novel focuses on a campaign staffer’s indeterminate views, using them to shed light on the rise of a political star.
November 10, Ordinary 32B (Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17)
Naomi is a climate refugee, displaced from her homeland by a natural disaster that results in widespread famine.
Steadfast love for sorrowful people (Ruth 1:1-18)
Ruth offers a striking contrast to the chaos and moral ambiguity of the judges era.
Mourning prayer
The church’s old cork board reminded me that our heartbroken cries go directly to God.
True crime at the div school
In 1991, religion scholar Ioan Petru Culianu was murdered at the University of Chicago. Was this killing related to his controversial mentor, Mircea Eliade?
Conspiracies of goodness
When I fear a dystopian future, I hold on to stories of everyday resistance.
“Do you believe this?” (Isaiah 25:6-9; John 11:32-44)
Jesus’ question to Martha extends to all believers.
When the doctrine of discovery became law
Steven Schwartzberg shows how the 19th-century arguments for Native American expulsion went against the intentions of the framers of the Constitution—and how they remain with us today.
The gift of interfaith difference
At the Muslim community center, I felt the tension of our divergence. But I also sensed gratitude.
Bone chapels and their strange art
In catacombs, crypts, and ossuaries, I’ve seen the ugliness of death transformed into something beautiful.
November 3, Ordinary 31B (Mark 12:28–34)
The scribe’s question to Jesus is not merely an academic exercise.