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April 7, 2021

Volume 138, Issue #7
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Features

Interviews

Ethnobotanist Gary Nabhan on food justice and Jesus

“Jesus was preaching to people who were in the middle of the worst farming and fishing crisis yet.”

 Amy Frykholm interviews Gary Nabhan

Christian clergy are being kidnapped and killed in Nigeria

From farms to churches, no place feels safe.

by Patrick Egwu

10 ways for Christians to embrace our creative power

Being born is a holy calling to join God in free, joyful, and playful expression.

by Kirk Byron Jones

Critical Essay

The good White Christian women of Nazi Germany

Despite what you’ve read, most of them didn’t resist.

by D. L. Mayfield

How are dinner churches surviving the pandemic?

For some congregations, sitting down together for a meal is the heart of worship.

by Kendall Vanderslice

two album covers

New sacred choral music at the Grammys

Richard Danielpour’s universal Passion and James Primosch’s mass for doubters

by Delvyn Case

Books

How fighting for human rights can lead to idolatry

Rights are good, argues theological ethicist Nigel Biggar, but they are not the only good things.

by Paul Marshall

Who was Henrietta Mears?

A new biography of the woman who shaped the men who shaped modern evangelicalism

by Jason Byassee

A body in pain navigates the world

Poet Molly McCully Brown’s memoir of life with cerebral palsy

by Frances Kitson

Can H. L. Hix improve on Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John?

An odd, charming gospel account that draws from dozens of sources

by Jeffrey L. Johnson

Departments

Faith Matters

Leave it with me

He was moving away, the stranger said, and he wanted to leave a box in my care.

by Samuel Wells

On Art

Christ of the Tears, by Tempio Industriale

The evening after protests in Turin, Italy, Tempio Industriale—artist Valerio Perino—gathers tear gas canisters from the city streets....

art selection and comment by Lil Copan

Global Mormonism and its growing pains

Most LDS members are not from the United States. The church’s leadership and practices are another story.

by Philip Jenkins

From the Editors

Why Amazon workers deserve a union

It’s not just about how much they get paid.
First Words

Why do we care about the royals?

The monarchy, celebrity, and true greatness

by Peter W. Marty

News

On historic Iraqi trip, Pope Francis courts criticism, inspires hope

Pope Francis became the first Roman pontiff to visit Iraq when he embarked on his March 5–8 apostolic visit....

by Claire Giangravé

Planned traditionalist Methodist denomination gets name

Traditionalists committed to leaving the United Methodist Church have chosen “Global Methodist Church” as the name for the denomination they plan to launch....

by Sam Hodges

Why Oak Flat is a sacred place for the Apache

Waya Brown, barefoot and clad in a flicker-feather headdress and red-tailed hawk cape, waved a handful of feathers toward the ground. Brown, who is Apache and Pomo, twirled in a circle as he blew a double cane whistle....

by Alejandra Molina and Emily McFarlan Miller

Katie Geneva Cannon

Presbyterian Historial Society begins work on Katie Geneva Cannon digitial archive

The Presbyterian Histori­cal Society has embarked on a collaborative effort to create a digital archive of more than 1,600 pages of womanist theologian Katie Geneva Cannon’s personal records....

by Dawn Araujo-Hawkins

SCOTUS revives suit against Georgia college

The US Supreme Court is reviving a lawsuit brought by a Georgia college student who sued school officials after being prevented from distributing Christian literature on campus....

by Jessica Gresko

People

Cornel West denied tenure, leaves Harvard

Cornel West is rejoining the faculty of Union Theological Seminary, where he started his teaching career more than 40 years ago....

by Alejandra Molina

People

Jon Meacham named National Cathedral's first canon historian

Washington National Cathedral an­nounced on March 10 that it has chosen Jon Meacham as its first canon historian, a role that is part of a cathedral initiative that will turn part of a long-vacant building into its new College of Faith and Culture...
People

Popular author Beth Moore leaves Southern Baptist Convention

For nearly three decades, millions of evangelical Chris­tian women have read Beth Moore’s Bible studies and flocked to hear her speak at stadium-style events where Moore delves deep­ly into biblical passages....

by Bob Smietana

Lectionary

April 25, Easter 4B (John 10:11-18)

When I was newly pregnant with my daughter, I thought of myself as the hired hand, her temporary guardian.

by Jessica Mesman

April 18, Easter 3B (Luke 24:36b-48)

In case flesh and bone aren’t enough to convince the disciples, Jesus also asks for dinner.

by Jessica Mesman

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