Here is Deepa Bharath at the Associated Press: Fuller Theological Seminary, an evangelical school in Pasadena, California, is deliberating whether to become more open to LGBTQ+ students who previously faced possible expulsion if found to be in a same-sex union. […]
LGBTQ issues
DeSantis’s anti-LGBTQ ad is hateful and strange. It is also politically smart and savvy
Fasten your seat belt. Here it the ad: Here is conservative New York Times columnist Brett Stephens on the DeSantis ad: “I guess my main takeaway is that DeSantis isn’t going to be the next president. He makes Trump seem […]
Whitworth University will now hire LGBTQ faculty
Here is Yonat Shimron at Religion News Service: Whitworth University, a Christian school affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has revised its policies to allow for the hiring of LGBTQ faculty and to add sexual orientation to its non-discrimination statement. […]
David Brooks makes a Kuyperian argument against the LA Dodgers
Here is the The New York Times columnist: If I walked onto the field at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles and stomped on a Dodger’s uniform on home plate, I hope that the Dodgers and their fans would be upset. […]
What does the Uganda anti-homosexuality law say? How are some American evangelicals responding?
As you may have heard, Uganda just passed an anti-homosexuality law. Here is a summary: Read the entire bill here. Here is Caleb Ecarma at Vanity Fair: Antigay sentiment in Uganda has climbed in recent years due in no small […]
Every revival has its Old Lights and skeptics
If you’ve been following my ongoing curation of the Asbury University revival going on right now, you will see that there are a lot of skeptics. Anyone who knows something about the history of revivalism in the United States is […]
Some evangelicals will be tempted to support Trump in 2024 if it means striking a blow to the LGBTQ community
When Donald Trump was president he said very little about gay marriage and other LGBTQ issues. But when he did speak about the LGBTQ community it was usually positive. In April 2016, The New York Times published a piece by […]
Pope Francis: Homosexuality is “not a crime…but it’s a sin”Â
Francis recently spoke to the Associated Press: A taste: Pope Francis criticized laws that criminalize homosexuality as “unjust,” saying God loves all his children just as they are and called on Catholic bishops who support the laws to welcome LGBTQ […]
What happens when gay rights clash with religious freedom?
Here is Tish Harrison Warren at The New York Times: This week, the Supreme Court will hear a case that will reignite a continuing conversation about what to do when long-established religious convictions clash with gay people’s civil rights. In 303 […]
Religious freedom vs. LGBTQ rights on college campus: a short primer
Over at The Conversation, University of Dayton professor Charles Russo gives us the lay of the land. Here is a taste: Disputes over religious freedom and LGBTQ rights in the United States have led to some of the most high-profile […]
More from the “Evangelical Fearmongering 101” syllabus
When Thomas Jefferson was running for president in 1800, Federalist evangelicals claimed that if the Virginian won the election he and his henchman would try to close their churches and confiscate Bibles from their homes. When Irish Catholics started arriving […]
David French’s civic pluralism versus Al Mohler’s Christian nationalism
Last week, the Senate advanced the Respect for Marriage Act. The bill legalizes (“provides statutory authority” for) same-sex and interracial marriages. Here is a summary of the bill from Congress.Gov: Specifically, the bill repeals and replaces provisions that define, for […]
What is going on at Calvin University?
Here is Yonat Shimron at Religion News Service: Calvin University’s board of trustees has allowed a group of faculty members to dissent from a clause in a confession of faith that regards sex outside of heterosexual marriage as sinful, thus […]
Why I almost came to see Josh Hawley as a sympathetic figure
Notice the word “almost” in the title. As most readers of this blog know, I am not a Josh Hawley fan. In fact, the guy usually makes my skin crawl. But the other day I actually found myself, at least […]
What is going on at Seattle Pacific University?
Back in May, Seattle Pacific students held a sit-in. Here is Alejandra Molina on June 3 at Religion News Service: For nearly two weeks, students from Seattle Pacific University, a Christian school associated with the Free Methodist Church, have staged […]
Calvin University faculty are “polishing their CVs” after the Christian Reformed Church codified its opposition to homosexual sex
The “polishing their CVs” quote comes from Calvin historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez. Here is a taste of Yonat Shimron’s piece at Religion News Service: The Christian Reformed Church, a small evangelical denomination of U.S. and Canadian churches, voted Wednesday […]
What if Disney left Florida?
The governor of Colorado has rolled-out the red carpet for Disney. Here is Dana Milbank: Mickey Mouse needs a sanctuary city. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Hades) got his state legislature this week to abolish the favorable tax arrangement that brought Disney World to Orlando and […]
What is going on at Oklahoma Christian University?
A graphic design professor who taught at the school for more than 40 years was fired for bringing a gay speaker to campus. The speaker was an Oklahoma Christian University alumnus. Professor Michael O’Keefe invited the speaker to his “The […]
How the head of the Russian Orthodox Church is spinning Putin’s invasion
Here is Cathy Young at The Bulwark: In the past ten days, plenty of rationalizations have been offered for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine—everything from “Russia needs a buffer state to keep NATO at a distance” (just about every Kremlin […]
Supreme Court upholds Obamacare (7-2) and religious liberty (9-0)
Here is Politico on the Texas challenge to the Affordable Care Act: The Supreme Court on Thursdaythrew out a lawsuit threatening the entirety of the Affordable Care Act, finding that Republican-led states behind the case did not have legal ground […]