Thursday’s News & Ideas - 7/31/2025

Evangelical legal group asks Supreme Court to overturn same-sex marriage ruling 
Religion News Service: “We think that it’s not a matter of if, but just a matter of when, the Supreme Court will overrule Obergefell,” said Mathew Staver, head of Liberty Counsel.

How a Harvard initiative studying the Israeli-Palestinian conflict collapsed 
NBC News: Former staff members in Harvard Divinity School’s Religion and Public Life program say it encouraged a healthy dialogue, but critics accused it of antisemitism.

Matthew Barrett and the Baptist-to-Anglican pipeline 
Juicy Ecumenism: Last week, a prominent Baptist theologian announced he was leaving the SBC for the ACNA (Anglican Church in North America). His departure is emblematic of an evangelical-to-Anglican pipeline among students serious about classical Protestantism, writes a Program Director for the Institute on Religion & Democracy.

The book that can inspire both a pope and a politician* 
The New York Times: What can a fifth-century text by St. Augustine tell us about the priorities of the two most powerful American Catholics?

For the living of these days* 
The Bitter Southerner: Every summer, locals reenact the infamous Scopes Monkey Trial in Dayton, Tennessee, a story that continues to resonate as conservative Christianity’s influence on contemporary politics has only grown. A century later, it’s hard to tell which side won the battle — and whether this is a war that can ever truly be won.

The Spark

We face daunting global challenges. Here are eight reasons to be hopeful. 
Although the trends can be hard to perceive, we are making incredible progress on global poverty, health, longevity and climate change, says The Guardian.