Pastor Bryan Wilkerson moderates a panel featuring their Global Awareness Week keynote speaker, Nikki Toyama-Szeto and her Christians for Social Action colleague, Andre Henry.
What does it mean to have a unity that is deeper than agreement? How can we be people who hold strong conviction, who love Jesus with our whole hearts, and may sometimes be wrong.
Nikki Toyama-Szeto
There has been plenty of discussion about the possibility of violence in the intensity of our current political moment, but leaders like Shirley V. Hoogstra are meeting the moment. This comes at a time when the Public Religion Research Institute found that almost a quarter of Americans with the following statement: “because things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.” Hoogstra and others stand in unanimous agreement that violence is not an option.
The democracy can withstand this kind of difficulty if we call out undemocratic things. If we pray hard. And if we get involved standing up for the Constitution by being informed voters
Shirley V. Hoogstra
Tish Harrison Warren reflects on Russell Moore’s significant influence within the evangelical community, noting his prominent role as a critic of the Trump presidency and his previous position as president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. Now serving as the editor-in-chief of Christianity Today, described by The New York Times as “arguably the most influential Christian publication” in the U.S., Moore continues to shape the evangelical discourse. In a recent conversation, Warren explored Moore’s perspectives on the future of evangelicalism and his new book, Losing Our Religion: An Altar Call for Evangelical America, which calls for a reformation within the movement.
The entire interview is accesible through the New York Times.
Christian nationalism is the use of Christian symbols or teachings in order to prop up a nation-state or an ethnic identity. It’s dangerous for the nation because it’s fundamentally antidemocratic. Christian nationalism takes a political claim and seeks to make it ultimate. It says: If a person disagrees with me, that person is disagreeing with God. No democratic nation can survive that, which is why the founders of this country built in all kinds of protections from it.
Russell Moore
Nikki Toyama-Szeto highlights the journey of Russell Jeung, who was raised in a Chinese American Christian fundamentalist church in San Francisco during the 1970s. Jeung’s evangelical faith has deeply influenced his life, leading him to co-found Stop AAPI Hate, a national nonprofit aimed at combating anti-Asian racism. Jeung, who views his activism as a reflection of his Christian beliefs, emphasizes that followers of Jesus are called to seek peace and justice, opposing racism as a sin that strips people of dignity and belonging. His efforts are part of a broader movement within the Asian American evangelical community, a group that makes up about 2% of evangelical Protestants in the United States.
As Asian Americans increasingly assume leadership roles within evangelical circles, they are challenging the long-standing association of evangelicalism with White American political conservatism. Figures like Walter Kim, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, and Tom Lin, president of InterVarsity, are pushing for greater diversity and inclusion while maintaining theological conservatism. Despite these efforts, the broader evangelical community remains divided, particularly along racial lines. Scholars like Helen Jin Kim express skepticism about the ability of Asian American leaders to transform the White-centric elements of American evangelicalism, though the younger generation, through campus organizations like Cornell’s Asian American InterVarsity, is beginning to address issues of race and inclusion that were previously avoided.
You can find her full piece in the Washington Post.
America stands as the most religiously devout country in the Western world and the most religiously diverse nation globally. In today’s turbulent environment of religious conflict, prejudice, and distrust, how can we reaffirm that the American promise is closely linked to how we interact with people of different faiths and beliefs?
Tune in to a discussion on the current state of interfaith dialogue, exploring both the challenges and opportunities for religious pluralism in our polarized climate. The conversation will draw from key insights in Eboo Patel’s new book, Out of Many Faiths, and feature author Eboo Patel, series co-editor Earl Lewis, and Council for Christian Colleges & Universities President Shirley Hoogstra.
Racism is sin. The denial of the image of God is sin. The denial of place is sin. The denial of essential personhood is sin. The denial of access and opportunity is sin. Nobody is better equipped to deal with this by way of just our nature than the Church. We’re equipped to name sin, to call for repentance, and to bring about reconciliation.
Bishop Claude Alexander
As we struggle to relate to each other in our current moment across racial and partisan lines, Bishop Claude Alexander has been looking back in time to see how the early Church dealt with divisions in the incredibly diverse Roman Empire. He believes that the Church is equipped in our own cosmopolitan world to address the sin of racism. The Christian Post follows his line of thinking in a powerful article than be found here.
