All posts tagged: Clergy & Congregations

Christian nationalists need to look again at their religious DNA

Christian nationalists need to look again at their religious DNA

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — In honor of the 250th birthday, many believers gathered this weekend to celebrate the Christian roots of America. As Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has previously said: “America was founded as a Christian nation. It remains a Christian nation in our DNA, if we can keep it.” The Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, echoed the point by saying the lineup of speakers at Rededicate 250 — most of them evangelical and Christian — is “pretty much a depiction, a screenshot of (America’s) foundation.” Whatever you may think about the role of religion in the public square today, these leaders had better check their religious DNA tests again. The religious ancestors of the modern evangelicals leading the event in Washington, D.C. — not to mention the Catholics and the sole rabbi who also spoke at the rally — were outcasts in 1776. Much of the criticism of the event Sunday (May 17) has been that it conflicts with separation of church and state (and it does). But I want …

The Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act. Black churches know exactly what to do.

The Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act. Black churches know exactly what to do.

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — The U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision on Wednesday (April 29) that struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, making it nearly impossible to challenge racially discriminatory voting maps without proving intentional discrimination. Hours after the ruling, Florida’s Legislature approved a new congressional map, skewed in Republicans’ favor, and many experts are predicting a historic drop in Black representation in Congress — and much longer lines for Black voters.    None of this is surprising. The history of civil rights in America is one in which there is progress followed by retrenchment, expansion followed by restriction.    In 1870, the 15th Amendment promised that the right to vote could not be denied on account of race. Within a generation, that promise was hollowed out by poll taxes, literacy tests and racial terror. Nearly a century later, there was the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — recognizing that discrimination in voting was systemic and required federal oversight of states with histories of disenfranchisement. Black voter registration surged. Representation followed. And then, …

How the sanctuary movement became the faithful’s answer to ICE raids

How the sanctuary movement became the faithful’s answer to ICE raids

Published by Sam Flores

This is the second in a series of articles about faith and protest. (RNS) — In January 2025, President Trump signed an executive order lifting a 14-year ban on enforcing immigration laws at sensitive locations like churches and schools. It was part of a larger crackdown on mass arrests and deportations that instilled fear in immigrants across the country — and galvanized faith communities and leaders, who drew on a tradition stretching back to the Hebrew Bible to protect and advocate for immigrants.  The crackdown reignited tension between the U.S. government and religious communities over immigration that has flared on and off ever since the birth of the “sanctuary movement” in the early 1980s, when churches and synagogues began offering shelter and support for undocumented immigrants, believing they were obeying a higher moral obligation than U.S. laws. Today the movement continues — and is still led by clergy and religious groups — though the focus has shifted from offering physical shelter to providing aid to immigrants too fearful to leave their homes.   The concept of …