Tuesday's News & Ideas - 10/4/2022

My first Yom Kippur in exile*
The New York Times: The crisp Moscow autumn air; the illuminated synagogue which I called home for 30 years; my white hat and kittel, the robe Jews wear on the High Holy Days, folded up, in my apartment that now sits locked, says the former chief rabbi of Moscow.

Amid crises, rural roots anchor Southern Baptists’ president
Associated Press: A staunch theological conservative, Bart Barber touts biblical inerrancy, opposes women serving as pastors and supports abortion bans. In running for SBC president, he expressed a desire to be a peacemaker and a unifier.

A liturgy in the borderlands*
Christian Century: Alvaro Enciso plants crosses where migrants have died, to keep them from disappearing into oblivion.

C of E must welcome gay people or face questions in parliament, says MP
The Guardian: Labour’s Ben Bradshaw says church is ‘actively pursuing a campaign of discrimination’ against lesbian and gay people

Samford University cuts ties with LGBTQ-affirming ministries amid student outcry
Religion News Service: ‘When a student Googles ‘LGBTQ Samford,’ I just want the first thing to not be discrimination,’ said one current student.

The Spark

False choices and familiar stories in a California homeless encampment
How do you tell the story of the biggest crisis* on the West Coast when every typical journalistic avenue seems to have run its course? The New Yorker asks.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers