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“All major religions teach the practice of compassion, love, forgiveness, and tolerance. If people who really, seriously, sincerely follow their own tradition, then [there will be an] immense effect to bring inner peace, genuine peace.” More
The US has more people in prison than any other country in the world, and a disproportionate number of them are African Americans; and faith groups like Urban Village Church in Chicago are reaching out and welcoming transgender individuals More
The US has more people in prison than any other country in the world, but UC Berkeley public policy professor Steven Raphael suggests that “instead of spending so much money on incarcerating very old inmates we could use that money to hire more police, have anti-violence interventions for youth, and be more proactive about having a society that is less violent and generates more productive citizens.” More
“When we make a mistake, we want a little grace, we want a little room to be forgiven, and that’s what everybody wants. If you tell a lie, you’re not just a liar. If you take something that doesn’t belong to you, you’re not just a thief. And even if you kill someone, you’re not just a killer. That idea has to have resonance in a just society that’s going to be both compassionate and just.” More
“What’s wrong with us that we don’t have space for folks to transcend and expand our understanding of what it can be to be female and what it can be to be male?” asks Rev. Emily McGinley of the Urban Village Church in Chicago. Her ministry reaches out to and welcomes transgender people, whom she says pose complex theological questions for faith communities. More
Growing social acceptance of same-sex marriage and other LGBT issues poses new challenges for evangelicals; Britain’s former chief rabbi leads a global effort against religious extremism and violence; an ancient vision in Mexico of the Virgin Mary inspires millions of religious pilgrims. More
In a historic ruling in June, a divided Supreme Court made same-sex marriage legal in every state. “Christianity require you to push back against the world,” says Collin Hansen of the Gospel Coalition. But author Matthew Vines of the Reformation Project suggests that once even some evangelicals are willing to change their position, then “it starts to significantly shift the dynamic.” More
“American culture is changing. We simply have to hold onto the truths we believe have been articulated to us, in a way that is loving and compassionate and is balancing both truth and grace.” More
“There’s no quick fix here. You don’t suddenly turn radicals into moderates. You have to educate a generation.” More
“We have to go back to the 17th century and ask what healed all that harm? And of course the simple answer is that what wins wars is weapons but what wins peace is ideas.” More