Hi, all! I know it has been a very long time since I've created any new content for this site. I never intended to go into blogging hiatus for seven months, but in the meantime I've been promoting my coedited anthology, Empty the Pews: Stories of Leaving the Church. I was doing some public speaking … Continue reading A Personal Update and Some Thoughts on Pluralism
Reflections on Religion News Association’s 2019 Conference
On Wednesday, September 18, I flew to Las Vegas, Nevada to attend the annual conference of Religion News Association, an organization that has been around since 1949. https://twitter.com/C_Stroop/status/1174050109606129664?s=20 Some time back, ex-evangelical journalist Liam Adams invited me to be part of a panel on religion reporting and social media along with him, Aysha Khan, and Sophia … Continue reading Reflections on Religion News Association’s 2019 Conference
On the Conservative Movement and Evangelical Spin Doctoring: A Response to A. J. Nolte
The Big Picture: The Power of Denial in the Conservative Movement If there's one consistent thing that many #NeverTrump conservatives have tried to get the American public to believe, it's that the only problem in the conservative movement and the current iteration of the Republican Party is Donald J. Trump. If we could just get … Continue reading On the Conservative Movement and Evangelical Spin Doctoring: A Response to A. J. Nolte
Authoritarian Christianity, or, what Franklin Graham Really Means when he Equates Progressivism with Godlessness
In a recent New York Times piece by Elizabeth Dias, President and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse Franklin Graham is quoted as defining "progressive" as "just another word for godless." This language might strike some readers as mere hyperbole, or as a polemical swipe at political opponents meant perhaps to be … Continue reading Authoritarian Christianity, or, what Franklin Graham Really Means when he Equates Progressivism with Godlessness
The Last Temptation of American Journalism, or, Michael Gerson is Not a Hero
If there's one temptation America's major newspapers and magazines seem unable to resist, it's the temptation to normalize America's white Christian extremists--including traditionalist Catholics, yes, but especially Evangelicals. On the whole, this 81% Trump-voting population represents a clear and present danger to American democracy and the future of human rights, but time and again The … Continue reading The Last Temptation of American Journalism, or, Michael Gerson is Not a Hero
Ex-Evangelical Means Much More than Dropping a Label: A Response to Josiah Hesse
This morning, journalist, novelist, and ex-Evangelical Josiah Hesse published an important article in The Guardian. The original (and, as of 5:06 p.m. Eastern, current) headline of the article is "'Exvangelicals': Why More Religious People are Rejecting the Evangelical Label." Hesse's article focuses primarily on a new wave of Christians dissociating themselves from the term "Evangelical" due to … Continue reading Ex-Evangelical Means Much More than Dropping a Label: A Response to Josiah Hesse
Transgender Employment Non-Discrimination and Contraception Access Rolled Back. The Trump Administration Keeps Giving us Reasons to #EmptyThePews
Yesterday, the news broke that Attorney General Jeff Sessions' (alternative) Justice Department was rescinding Obama era transgender employment non-discrimination protections. And today, in a move that is almost certainly illegal and will be challenged in court, Health and Human Services moved to essentially eliminate the ACA's contraception mandate, allowing educational institutions and even publicly traded … Continue reading Transgender Employment Non-Discrimination and Contraception Access Rolled Back. The Trump Administration Keeps Giving us Reasons to #EmptyThePews
Not Your Mission Field 