Culture & Politics
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TagsResist the drama of national electoral politics and invest your time in local issues
Engaging in local politics helps avoid “political hobbyism” and focuses on the spaces most immediate to our lives.

‘Sharing the Crust: A Communion of Saints in a Baltimore Neighborhood’
In this excerpt, the author writes about his friend and mentor Allan Tibbels’ “gift of prophetic conscience” and how it drove his work to build Christian community in a marginalized neighborhood.

Building a great affirmation: 3 postelection truths every church can claim
In the midst of ongoing political turmoil, pastors can step back and cling to three affirmations.

Here we go again: What it means to be a Black man in a white Christian workplace
The pressure to refute the “diversity hire” narrative is exhausting and demoralizing for people of color, writes the associate director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches.

Community is inconvenient. But worth it
When the author got a second car, her life was much easier. But that convenience came at a cost — the small connections between people that build a sense of belonging.

God meets us in the dust
The first months of 2025 have held tragedy for many. What might we consider from that as Lent begins?

Mariann Edgar Budde’s national prayer service homily falls within the prophetic tradition
The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington preached to a nation at a crossroads with a call to faithful witness, writes a director of programs and grants for Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.

Churches and immigration: The clarity of Jesus’ call
Eight years ago, two congregations in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, worked together to provide sanctuary to a woman facing deportation. A pastor deeply involved in that effort looks back on the experience and considers what recent government actions mean for Christian commitment to the vulnerable.

Going beyond just keeping the peace to becoming ambassadors of peace
In the months before the 2024 presidential election, the Purple Church Initiative helped members of hundreds of UMC churches in North Carolina talk with fellow congregants with whom they disagreed.
Anna Robbins: What happens when a seminary course is AI-generated?
Acadia Divinity College is experimenting with a course created entirely by AI, part of a project to understand and reflect on the impact of this emerging technology on theological education.