Monday’s News & Ideas - 3/16/2026

John Perkins, civil rights leader, influential Bible teacher, dies at 95
Religion News Service: “John Perkins is probably one of the true unsung heroes in America — not in Black America, not in the church community, but in America,” said the Rev. Barbara Williams-Skinner, co-founder of the Skinner Leadership Institute.
The New York Times: John M. Perkins dies at 95; evangelical minister espoused social justice*

The new faces of Christian nationalism*
The New Yorker: Trump has hollowed out the Johnson Amendment, which prohibited churches from endorsing candidates. Mercy Culture, in Fort Worth, has sprung into action.

US troops were told war on Iran was ‘all part of God’s divine plan,’ watchdog alleges
The Guardian: Religious freedom group says 200 troops sent complaints of superiors using extremist Christian rhetoric to justify war.

Taylor Tomlinson’s Netflix special is too ungodly for many churches. This one welcomed her.
Religion News Service: Fountain Street Church, where the formerly religious comedian filmed her special in November, has a legacy of rejecting dogma and pushing the envelope.

Southerners tend to be more religious than other U.S. adults — but less religious than they used to be
Pew Research Center: Between 2020 and 2025, religiousness in the South and in the other regions generally has been stable. But over the longer term, religiousness has declined markedly in each part of the country.

The Spark

The majestic artistry of the Mardi Gras Indians
On Super Sunday, a 150-year-old tradition of painstaking craftsmanship* is put on display in New Orleans’ streets with suits made of delicate beads and billowing ostrich feathers.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers