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The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., on May 8, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
“The law guarantees Smith the right to practice his faith free from unnecessary interference, including at the moment the State puts him to death,” wrote Justice Elena Kagan.
Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist Church in Southeast Washington is the first faith-based vaccination partner in DC Health’s “Faith in the Vaccine” initiative. Photo by Madison Muller for Sojourners.
Senior citizens braved the winter weather on Thursday morning for their COVID-19 vaccine appointments at Pennsylvania Baptist Church in Southeast Washington, D.C. By the end of the day, 100 Washingtonians would be vaccinated at the church.
On Wednesday night, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reversed a district court’s decision and ruled that the state of Alabama must allow Willie B. Smith III’s pastor to be in the execution chamber during Smith’s execution.
Women make rosaries at Vilma Antony’s home in Koonammavu. Photo courtesy Rinton Ravi Jose.
Turning beads into elegant rosaries isn’t merely Vilma Antony’s sustenance. It’s her spiritual calling.
It has been over a month since a mob of violent protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol under the false belief that Donald Trump won the 2020 election. Since then, Joe Biden has been inaugurated as the country’s 46th president. The country is, ostensibly, moving forward. And yet, the fractures exposed by the election and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have not been fixed.
Willie B. Smith III.
On Feb. 11, the state of Alabama intends to execute Willie B. Smith III without his pastor by his side — which Smith alleges is a violation of his religious freedom.
The Virginia State Capitol, the seat of state government of the Commonwealth of Virginia, is pictured in Richmond, Va., Feb. 8, 2019. REUTERS/Jay Paul
Lawmakers in Virginia voted on Friday to abolish the death penalty. The Democratic-led House of Delegates voted 57-41 Friday, after the Senate passed the measure earlier this week. Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, said he would sign the repeal into law.
Nadine Seiler admires the fence she has been protecting since Oct. 27. Many of the signs on the fence she has had to repair with tape, plastic wrap, or zip ties after they were vandalized by pro-Trump supporters during various demonstrations since October. “The fence is like my baby, I guard it like a guard dog,” Seiler said. Photo: Madison Muller
Nadine Seiler began protesting then-President Donald Trump in 2017 with one simple sign: a pink piece of paper with the word “RESIST” written across it in black ink. Until late January, that same sign hung among hundreds of others on what community members call “the Black Lives Matter Memorial Fence” in Washington, D.C., near the White House.
A sign advocating nuclear disarmament outside the White House on July 4, 2009. Image: Frontpage / Shutterstock.com
On Jan. 27, former California Gov. Jerry Brown — now executive chair of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists — spoke passionately to fellow global leaders, scientists, and public figures at the Doomsday Clock virtual news conference. “It’s time to eliminate nuclear weapons, not build more of them,” he said.
For instance: "What does it mean to look at oneself through the gaze of one's own history?"
After graduating during the Great Recession, which also coincided with his divorce, Derek Williams struggled to build his fledgling private practice and make ends meet. He told Sojourners there were times when he was unable to pay for simple necessities, let alone meet his regular student loan payments.
Ruth E. Berggren, one of the San Antonio leaders who signed an interfaith pledge to publicly support the COVID-19 vaccine, recieves her vaccine. Photo courtesy of Ruth E. Berggren.
When Rev. Ann Helmke, who leads San Antonio’s Faith-Based Initiative, invited Kemp to sign an interfaith pledge to publicly take the COVID-19 vaccine, he was quick to say yes. Part of the pledge involves sharing a selfie of the vaccination process on social media. “The importance of people of faith speaking to their congregations, their constituency, their area of influence, cannot be overstated,” said Kemp, who received his first vaccine dose on Dec. 18 and shared a photo of it on Facebook.
A banner welcoming immigrants and refugees on the Catholic Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Church in Atlanta, Ga., on Jan. 22, 2019. Cari Rubin Photography / Shutterstock.com
Members of Congress, led by Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Tex.), wrote President Joe Biden a letter asking him to ensure those taking sanctuary in houses of worship would be protected from deportation. They also asked the Biden-Harris administration to lift the deportation orders against all people living in sanctuary.
The Parler app on the screen of smartphone. Ascannio / Shutterstock.com
Parler was removed by app stores and its web server, Amazon. But getting rid of Parler is like cutting one head off a hydra: Since Parler’s suspension, MeWe and Rumble have seen massive gains.
Pastor José Chicas, right, leaves sanctuary on Jan. 22, 2021 in Durham, N.C. Photo: Pilar Timpane.
Photo by Luke Stackpoole on Unsplash
We’ve heard an awful lot of talk about the soul during this inauguration week. Which is not all that surprising, given that President Joe Biden described the 2020 campaign season as a “battle for the soul of America.”
Rev. Dr. William Barber III preaching in 2016
President Joe Biden’s inaugural address emphasized the need to foster unity in the U.S. The next day, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber III challenged the country to go a step further: to become what Isaiah 58:12 calls “repairers of the breach.”
Photo by Cody Pulliam on Unsplash
Valarie Kaur, Simran Jeet Singh, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, and other interfaith leaders team up to heal their communities.
A crowd at a rally in Times Square joined NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio in declaring: "Today I am a Muslim" on Feb. 19, 2020. Photo: a katz / Shutterstock.com
For Muslim religious and political leaders, President Joe Biden’s inauguration ends the “nightmare” of the Trump administration; nevertheless, Muslim leaders remained cautious in expressing optimism about the Biden administration’s promises.