Editor’s Note: A lot has happened this year, and there has been much to cover — much to lament, much to praise, and much to record into history. It has been our privilege and honor to write, edit, and read along with you. In no particular order, here are our 15 favorite stories of 2015.
1. Ruin in Me That Which Is Opposed to Ruin
by Tyler Wigg-Stevenson
The Syrian refugee crisis has been erupting for years. But it wasn’t until early September, when the photo of 3-year-old Alan Kurdi was displayed across the Internet and newspaper front pages, that the world seemingly galvanized to address it. In this beautiful yet gut-wrenching piece, Tyler Wigg-Stevenson says that global action is a good thing — but that political outcomes are merely our vain attempts at playing God. “There is no political outcome that will make these children not drowned. …There is no politics that will give these children another life that does not end in terror and despair and cold water.”
2. Rejecting Refugees, Rejecting Christ
by Stephen Mattson, Sojourners contributor
Attention spans and fear are funny things. Two months after that seeming galvanization of the world around Syrian refugees, the Paris attacks sent public sentiment toward refugees, at least domestically, drastically backward. Stephen Mattson’s piece put that type of xenophobic backlash, particularly from Christians, in the crosshairs.
3. An Open Letter to Franklin Graham
by Lisa Sharon Harper, Sojourners Chief Church Engagement Officer
It has been a sobering year as we continue to observe case after case in an endless pattern of police-involved deaths of African Americans. Back in March, Billy Graham’s son and president of Samaritan’s Purse Franklin Graham took to Facebook to tell “Blacks, Whites, and Latinos” to “listen up,” and offered a staggeringly uninformed and inappropriate “lesson” on obedience. This is how the church responded — to an inspiring chorus of “amen”s from our audience.
4. Refusing to Be Comforted: Charleston, Black Death, and Prophetic Grief
by Jennifer Bailey, Sojourners contributor
On June 17, Dylann Roof entered Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C., and shot and killed nine people gathered for a Bible study. His motive: he believed black people were taking over the country. The confluence of domestic terrorism, explicit racism, gun violence, and invasion of sacred space shocked the nation and led to the eventual removal of the Confederate battle flag from South Carolina state house. But Jennifer Bailey’s powerful piece here reminded us that the roots of Roof’s white supremacy can only be addressed when we are honest about our complicity in them.
5. Christian Leaders in U.S. Voice Support for #SCOTUSmarriage
by Betsy Shirley, Assistant Editor for Sojournersmagazine
Less than two weeks after Charleston, a landmark Supreme Court ruling meant that same-sex marriage was now legal nationwide. The Internet basically exploded with cheers, hashtags, a rainbow-lit White House — and laud from many a faith leader, showing just how quickly our society has shifted its public opinion. Betsy Shirley got reactions from a handful of those faith leaders — including Rachel Held Evans, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Rev. Dr. Amy Butler, and more — for this great compilation.
6. Sitting Between Two Hashtags
by Dr. Sharon Groves
“When I think about Charleston, it makes it harder to believe in the hashtag #lovewins.” The dual emotions of outrage over the Charleston shooting and exuberance at the SCOTUS marriage decision were enough to cause whiplash. In this piece, Dr. Sharon Groves dives deep into addressing the work that still needs to be done in our churches.
7. A Newsfeed of Fear
by Gareth Higgins, Dawn Cherie Araujo, C. Christopher Smith, Rev. Keith Anderson, a number of Sojourners editors
From the pattern of death, from the near-daily news of yet another mass shooting, from the constant worry about ISIS and terror threats, a common theme emerged: Our newsfeeds were terrifying. So an impressive group of writers decided to explore the thread of fear and what we can do about it — as pastors, as parents, as members of the media, and more. Take a look at the whole series.
8. How a Global Christian Hackathon Is Reprogramming the Church
by Catherine Woodiwiss, Sojourners Senior Associate Web Editor
While the church at large may give a bit of side eye to all things digital — like said scary-as-hell newsfeeds — a group of global hackers are taking a different approach. Editor Catherine Woodiwiss traveled to Nairobi to document the first global Christian hackathon — where those gathered developed and scripted new apps and websites in service to the kingdom.
9. WATCH: Stephen Colbert on Why He’s a Christian
This year, we got to see Stephen Colbert remove the façade of [pretend] conservative punditry and get to know more about who he is and what he believes. While his Colbert Report persona always pointed to his Catholicism and role as Sunday School teacher, once the show wrapped, he sat down to talk about the real substance of his faith.
10. 8 Things About Pope Francis' Visit That Would Make Him Facepalm
by Catherine Woodiwiss, Sojourners Senior Associate Web Editor
In September, the people’s pope took the Americas by storm. Press clamored for a glimpse of the pontiff as he traveled to the U.S. and visited Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York. But from ticket scams to Pope Francis-with-a-Philly-cheesesteak-cufflinks, the 2015 papal visit struck some pretty low points for Christian consumerism.
11. Breeding 'Like Rabbits,' Sex by Rhythm Method, and Other Natural Family Planning Myths
by Sandi Villarreal, Sojourners Web Editor and Chief Digital Officer
Speaking of papal coverage — a lot of it was, well, wrong. Or, at the very least, a lot of it was taken out of the context of actual Catholic Church teaching and tradition. Those assigned to religion desks — where they still exist — did provide excellent reporting on “what Pope Francis actually said,” rather than proclaim revolution within the Church. Here was one instance where we took a closer look at Church teaching — specifically, in the bedroom.
12. 3 Reasons Christians Shouldn’t Ask Muslims to Condemn Terrorism
by Todd Green
2015 was a banner year for Islamophobia. And how that fear played out was beyond troubling — from an increase in anti-Muslim crime, to hateful rhetoric spewed by everyone from Liberty University’s president, to those clamoring to be president of the United States. Luther College professor and author of The Fear of Islam Todd Green breaks down the logic — or lack thereof — of demanding all Muslims condemn acts of terrorism.
13. Our Friend’s Photo Became a Racist Meme. Here’s How We Responded.
by Matt Worthington
Speaking of Islamophobia and lack of logic … 2015 was also the year that a comedian took the photo of revered Sikh basketball player Darsh Singh, declared him Muslim instead (because, ignorance), and used the apparent fear inherent in that label to make the Internet laugh. While there are about 15 different things wrong with that, here is his friend Matt Worthington’s take.
14. Fighting for Justice: A Commitment to Wait on the Lord
by Ryan Herring, Sojourners contributor
In a lot of ways, this has been a year of waiting: We waited for the release of the Laquan McDonald video for more than a year; we waited for indictments in the Tamir Rice shooting — indictments that did not come; we waited (and waited, and waited) for justice in countless more cases. We’ve just ended the season of waiting that culminates in the incarnation of Christ; but we might forget that in reality, that wait was longer than the mere four weeks we observe. In this poignant piece, Ryan Herring points out the importance of waiting on the Lord — “By waiting on the Lord we are acknowledging that we have faith in God's plan. We are doing what God has always required us to do; to place matters beyond our control into God's hands.”
And so we wait … and we hope.
15. The Way of Hope
by Jim Wallis, Sojourners President and Founder
Hours before the Charleston shooting, Jim Wallis opened The Summit — Sojourners’ annual gathering here in Washington, D.C. — with a talk on hope. The next morning, hope was difficult to find. But it was, and continues to be, a necessary component of our faith and of our journey to justice.
Want more? Here are two of our favorites from Sojourners magazine this year. Read now from behind the paywall, and subscribe here for a whole year of the magazine.
Four Easy Ways to Be a White Supremacist
by Lisa Sharon Harper, Sojourners Chief Church Engagement Officer
At its heart, white supremacy is not about white hoods and burning crosses. Here’s a quick primer on implicit bias.
The Politics of Contraception
by Rachel Marie Stone, Sojourners contributor
In our November cover story, Rachel Marie Stone examines the history of the apparent controversy over birth control among evangelicals. Hint: It didn’t used to exist.
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