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May 5, 2021

Volume 138, Issue #9
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Features

First Person

My husband and I moved to be near friends

Why does this sound strange to people?

by Heidi Haverkamp

How My Mind Has Changed

We have to be willing to begin again

This is true of failures in writing, in faith, in life itself.

by Kathleen Norris

Interviews

Iconographer Kelly Latimore sees God in plain sight

“People asked, ‘Is it George Floyd or Jesus?’ My answer was yes.”

Robert Lowes interviews Kelly Latimore

Eastern University has served as the evangelical left’s laboratory

The school has produced limited doctrinal controversy—and a lot of prominent advocates for justice.

by Elizabeth Eisenstadt Evans

Critical Essay

Christian peacemaking and the role of forgiveness

Seeking justice is critical. Is it enough?

by Johnathan C. Richardson

Books

How a small group of activists took down the mining company destroying a Salvadoran watershed

This time, David beat Goliath.

by Jeannine Marie Pitas

Meritocracy’s trail of humiliation

Michael Sandel considers some alternatives.

by Charles Scriven

The Kindest Lie is a story about race and much more

In Nancy Johnson’s debut novel, a family secret draws a successful Black woman home to small-town Indiana.

by Katara Patton

Why did ISIS film its destruction of ancient Assyrian artifacts in the Mosul Museum?

Aaron Tugendhaft says all acts of image-breaking are also acts of image-making.

by Nathan J. Ristuccia

Departments

Faith Matters

Emptying the tombs of the city jail

“There’s a group of people outside,” I said through the intercom, “and they’ve raised money for your bail.”

by Isaac S. Villegas

How Quebec went from one of the most religious societies to one of the least

Americans don’t have to look as far away as Europe for an example of how quickly secularization can come.

by Philip Jenkins

First Words

Patient care means listening to the patient

There’s little excuse for doctors skipping over basic compassion.

by Peter W. Marty

On Art

Lamentations 8:46­­–18:19, by Michael C. Gibson

It is usually late at night when Michael C. Gibson creates his works of art....

art selection and comment by Lil Copan

From the Editors

Woke corporations?

Unlike today’s Republican party, Delta and Coca-Cola are responsive to public opinion.

News

Teen in hijab aims to be TikTok ‘Afro-influencer’

In Milan’s chic Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a spacious mall that would be jammed with shoppers were it not for the pandemic, a young Black woman wearing a violet hijab and matching lipstick propped up her phone and moved her hips to a tinny-sou...

by Trisha Thomas

People

Former Century editor James McKendree Wall dies at 92

James McKendree Wall, who served as editor and publisher of the Christian Century from 1972 to 1999, died March 22 at the age of 92....
People

Emily Awino Onyan­go becomes first female Anglican bishop in East, Central Africa

The second woman to be ordained a priest in the Anglican Church of Kenya, Emily Awino Onyan­go, has been appointed to serve as assistant bishop in the Diocese of Bondo. She will be the first female Angli­can bish­op in East and Central Africa....
People

Lil Nas X music video revives 'satanic panic'

Just before Easter, rapper Lil Nas X revived a bit of the “satanic panic” of the 1980s with the re­lease of the music video for his song “Mon­tero (Call Me by Your Name),” which is rife with satanic imagery....

by Dawn Araujo-Hawkins

Refugee resettlement in limbo awaiting promised changes

In February, President Joe Biden signed an executive order saying he would “begin the hard work of restoring our refugee admissions program.”...

by Emily McFarlan Miller

New Mexico latest state to adopt medically assisted suicide

New Mexico has become the latest state to provide a legal pathway for terminally ill patients to choose when and how they die....

by Cedar Attanasio

Following successful campaign, Virginia
interfaith leaders explain how other states can
abolish the death penalty

Connecting legislation with spirituality and supporters with tangible actions propelled death penalty opponents in Virginia to victory, said two organizers of the movement during a March 29 webinar hosted by Baptist News Global....

by Jeff Brumley

United Methodist minister takes on QAnon through podcast

Derek Kubilus is no cookie-cutter United Methodist minister. He has the dynamic voice of a talk radio host, brings his two Great Pyrenees to Bible study, and calls himself “vicar” rather than “pastor.”...

by Sam Hodges

Lectionary

May 23, Pentecost B (Acts 2:1–21)

Maybe we should see Pentecost as a celebration of land and labor in which the Holy Spirt is made known.

by Benjamin J. Dueholm

May 16, Easter 7B (John 17:6–19)

Jesus’ high priestly prayer is a call to a new kind of knowing and loving.

by Benjamin J. Dueholm

May 13, Ascension (Acts 1:1-11; Luke 24:44-53)

What we see reminds us of what we miss, and vice versa.

by Benjamin J. Dueholm

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