Features
Why my church stopped decking the halls
Charged with the grandeur of God—and the influence of Flannery O'Connor
When Islam and Christianity clash, and when they don't
Voices
Philip Jenkins
In Africa's Great Lakes region, the church is growing—and so is climate conflict
If the water keeps drying up, Christians and Muslims alike will suffer appallingly.
Stephanie Paulsell
Can we reclaim "thoughts and prayers"?
Instead of being an excuse for inaction, thoughts and prayers can turn us toward acts of love.
Books
Jewish history through Christian eyes
Must Christianity always define itself against Judaism? The Didache didn't.
Undocumented immigrants in their full humanity
Lauren Markham documents the bravery of two migrant brothers from El Salvador—and their mistakes, too.
Kamila Shamsie’s novel is filled with perfect coincidences
Of all the coffee joints frequented by all the British citizens-of-Pakistani-descent in all of Amherst, Massachusetts, she walks into his?
The incarnation and the challenge of transhumanism
If we become godlike, what god will we be like?
Can John Wesley's theology keep the Methodists united?
David Field's question is spiritual: How do we hold ourselves in right relation to those with whom we disagree?
Departments
In Africa's Great Lakes region, the church is growing—and so is climate conflict
Can we reclaim "thoughts and prayers"?
We the People, by Guy Woodard
How #MeToo calls everyone to fight sexual harassment and assault
News
Challenges arise to church-state separation and tax exemptions
The clergy housing allowance, school choice, and the Johnson Amendment are all under scrutiny.
Yousef Sadaka HaCohen, a Samaritan priest, looks to the past and future
HaCohen is one of only 802 Samaritans in the world.
Muslim and refugee groups continue fight against travel ban
With protests and lawsuits, opponents are pushing back against Trump's third attempt to deny entry into the U.S. for some foreign nationals.
David Bartlett, who sought to revitalize the Bible for liberal churches, dies at age 76
Bartlett was both pastor and professor, “a single career that integrated the two roles,” a colleague observed.
Study finds strong link between religious giving and going to worship
People who attend services once a month or more give ten times more than those who attend less often, according to a recent study.
Churches in the Philippines decry killings in antidrug crackdown
One of the country’s most powerful institutions, the Roman Catholic Church, is stepping up its criticism of President Duterte's crackdown.
Cross-shaped memorial is unconstitutional, court rules
Three secularist organizations objected to goverment funds maintaining the 40-foot-high World War I memorial.
Civil rights leader Gil Caldwell calls on Duke Divinity to confront its past
More than 60 years ago, the divinity school denied Caldwell admission because he is black.
Continued killing of Copts heightens debate over meaning of martyrdom
Some members of the 2,000-year-old church worry that the veneration of those martyred by militants goes too far.