Wednesday’s News & Ideas - 8/5/2026
- Clergy running as Democrats
- AI detectors
- What should chaplains do?
- Disestablishment finances
- Truett to open new campus
- Flock license plate cameras
‘They’re not real pastors’: As clergy run as Democrats, Republicans question their faith
Religion News Service: “It’s a sign that they are really scared they’re gonna lose this seat,” the Rev. Sarah Trone Garriott, a Lutheran pastor running for Congress in Iowa, said. She is part of a wave of religious figures running as Democrats for congressional seats.
AI detectors are out, new assessments are in*
Inside Higher Ed: A growing number of universities have prohibited AI detectors, arguing they are ‘unreliable’ indicators of cheating. But where does that leave faculty, who know all too well that cheating is rampant in the age of AI?
Even chaplains don’t agree what chaplains should do*
Christianity Today: The growing profession is having a moment, as federal and state leaders debate chaplains’ place in society.
The financial dilemma that wound up helping US churches thrive
The Conversation: As research into the history of philanthropy shows, disestablishment was not just a cornerstone of American democracy. It was also an engine for the extraordinary growth of philanthropy, which played an important role in fueling American churches’ growth and innovation.
Baylor’s Truett Seminary will open Dallas campus
Baptist News Global: Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary will open a Dallas campus to complement its home campus in Waco, Texas, and existing satellite campuses in Houston and San Antonio.
The Spark
How rogue officers turned a nationwide camera network into a tool for stalking
Flock’s array of license-plate cameras* was built to fight crime. But at least 50 law enforcement officers were charged with or accused of misusing it and other systems, The Washington Post says.
*access is limited for nonsubscribers
