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Jay Bakker on LGBT Justice and the Demands of Grace

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…e for the future in the evangelical church? I think we’re going to see the numbers continue to shrink and people leave the church, but within the next 10 to 15 years things will change. We’ll see more affirming churches, more people asking questions and people’s faith developing in ways we haven’t seen before. The evangelical church will dig its heels in on tradition over love and will have a hard time. But, you never know what will happen tomorro…

‘Do They Even Read the Bible?’ — Why Exposing White Evangelical Hypocrisy is a Dead End

By Cavan Concannon

…you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (NRSV). DeSantis changed the biblical text in his allusion, equating the US Left with the devil. Few evangelicals bothered to critique DeSantis for his misquotation because he’d simply made the Bible say what they already knew it to say; namely, that political opponents of White evangelicals are in league with the devil and must be stopped. DeSantis both changed the words of scripture and l…

With Creation of Little Noticed Department, Pope Francis is Securing Liberal Reforms

By Cormac Shine

…se who oppose his reforms, and to emphasize the necessity of institutional change if the Church is to successfully adapt to the contemporary world. Indeed, without significant institutional change, the next pope could easily reverse Francis’s cautiously progressive tone, as swiftly as he himself wiped away much of the bitter taste of the austere Benedict XVI’s difficult pontificate. An insightful New York Times article in November highlighted how…

Junior Falwell Unmasked Conservatism; Let’s Thank Him For It

By John Stoehr

…sm in practice. It cannot and will not tolerate democratic change, despite change coming with the blessing of the majority. If the majority rules, Falwell and his confederates will abandon commitments to democracy. Once you abandon democracy—once you open the door to treason—there’s no end in sight. Once it seceded, “the Confederacy began to deny states’ rights,” wrote James W. Loewen in Lies My Teacher Told Me. “Jefferson Davis denounced states’…

“Ex-Gay” Therapy Revealed in Prop. 8 Trial

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…ts of sexuality as a conscious choice and people’s ability to successfully change their sexual orientation in their opening testimony. ‘It seems to me that you’ve raised the very issue to which the witness is going to testify,’ (U.S. District Judge Vaughn) Walker said, adding that Kendall’s first-hand account would be ‘very helpful.’” Kendall’s story — not an aberration — shed much-needed light on the dangers of “ex-gay” therapy. The abuses of of…

A Queer Atheist In the Heart of Mormon Country

By Chris Stedman

…d they learned more and became more aware. Only two percent said that they changed their minds because they came to believe that gay people are “born that way.” Visibility and education matter, but positive relationships across lines of difference seem to matter even more. Whether we are in agreement or not, conversation is greatly needed. The kind of tribalism that causes people to be suspicious of those they think are not like them will be overc…

Loving Uganda to Death: The Global Reach of Far-Right Christian Hatred

By Peter Montgomery

…ll continue to grow. He believes that seeing and hearing these stories can change people’s hearts. He says he was changed in the process of making the movie; getting to know some of the missionaries and IHOP staff as people made it harder to think of them as simply “evil fundamentalists.” And, he says, that after spending so much time with missionary Joanna Watson, he has come to consider her a friend. He says she recently told him that getting to…

(Ex-)Ex-Gay Activist Alan Chambers On His Prop 8 Epiphany and the Downfall of Christianity and Evangelicalism

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…they can’t control. We’re causing them to feel shame because they haven’t changed something that’s unchangeable and that is orientation. Regardless of how someone decides to steward their orientation, whether they want to opt for celibacy, monogamy or you name it, that’s up to an individual. It’s not up to someone to say, “You are going to be more acceptable,” because we can’t say that to someone else. So often, we take the Bible and we galvanize…

Deifying Matthew Shepard

By Candace Chellew-Hodge

…by the societal norms we all see, but may feel powerless to change. We can change those societal memes, though. We begin by acknowledging that Matthew Shepard had a penis. He apparently used it in irresponsible ways — perhaps driven by a society that told him he was worthless and would never have happiness because of how he wanted to use his penis. At his core, Shepard was human and he needs to be embraced in all of his flaws. Shepard can still be…

What To Do When Fred Phelps Arrives in Your Neighborhood

By Susan Henking

…those who hate fags, overtly or covertly, to understand that they need to change. Certainly a fantasy, but one that our civil religion depends on: educability. And if you want to check out some of the wonderful real-life-not-fantasy anti-Westboro picketing ever, click here and add them to your picketing, fantastical or real. In my fantasy, the family and friends of Devin Snyder understand those called to protest against Phelps in Cohocton as ac…