This Month's Cover
Magazine

Sojourners Magazine: May 2023

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In a post-Roe world, simple answers aren't enough.

Features

An illustration of pink bubbles on a purple backdrop with various things in them, such as a baby in utero, pro-life and pro-choice signs, a Bible, a law book, and a hand holding a sprout.

While many lawmakers deny the intricacies of reproductive health, most people in the U.S. hold more nuanced views.

by
Liz Cooledge Jenkins
Magazine
Features
A cartoon illustration of Brother Lawrence praying with a giant sunnyside egg as a backdrop with the yellow yolk behind his head, made to look like a halo. To the left and right, there are mirrored reflections of objects like a Bible, fork, apple, etc.

An interview with translator Carmen Acevedo Butcher on the relatable monk who meets God over an omelet.

by
Betsy Shirley
An illustration with a black man and black woman standing side by side, both breaking through red prison bars with the man reaching up to the sky.

To affirm the value of Black life requires the possibility for Black life beyond survival: life that is rich and creative, flourishing.

by
Vincent Lloyd

Voices

Voices
Mobilizing Hope
An illustration of a child with red-brown skin and dressed in white socks and a white shirt with teal pants  sitting on a rug while playing with a ring stacker toy; a yellow ring sits on its head like a halo.

The church could be a game changer in ensuring that every child in the U.S. is able to get the best start in life.

Voices
From The Editors
An illustration of Rev. James M. Lawson Jr. with a quote above his head that reads, "We must earn to work and struggle, not for simply what we see in front of us. We must work that we might be citizens of a country that has not yet appeared."

Despite the seemingly insurmountable reality of racial injustice, we must remember that God is love.

by The Editors
Voices
Commentary
An illustration of a smiling woman with a red headband on a political poster with a mail-in ballot in hand and a mailbox in front of her. The poster reads, "Mail your ballet today! Vote by mail."

It's long past time to radically disrupt the systems that stifle women and our democracy.

by
Brittini L. Palmer
An illustration of pairs of migrants, depicted in shades of black and white and grey, wearing backpacks and walking in a line, superimposed over an in-color American flag.

A new initiative from the Biden administration could rejuvenate our refugee resettlement program.

by
Danilo Zak
Voices
Columns
An illustration of a red cartoon heart with black streams flowing from it against a blue backdrop. Diamond-shaped stars and circles in green, red, yellow, and purple sparkle all around the heart.

It remains vital for clergy and congregants to foster church spaces that practice a form of healing justice.

by
José Humphreys III
A silhouetted black illustration against a pink background; a baby and dollar sign on both ends of a weighted scale; the baby outweighs the dollar sign.

In a post-Roe world, we need to imagine easier access and greater services for pregnancy and childbirth — no strings attached. 

by
Rose Marie Berger
Voices
Eyewitness
A group of protestors wearing masks, hats, and sweatshirts touch and gather around a memorial stone dedicated to Manuel Esteban “Tortuguita” Paez Terán, a 26-year-old demonstrator killed by law enforcement.

Atlanta's police department plans to construct a massive training facility for its force by razing a forest, and Georgians ain't having it.

by
Micah Herskind

Vision

Vision
Culture
A picture from the TV show ‘Dead to Me’ of Jen (Christina Applegate) and Judy (Linda Cardellini) in black dresses as they stand side by side with arms locked.

Will this Netflix drama rank among the best TV comedies of all time?

by
Da’Shawn Mosley
The cover for the music album ‘And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow’ by Weyes Blood. The artist, Natalie Mering, has long hair and looks to the side. She wears a low-cut dress with her upper chest exposed. A warm light glows from within where her heart is.

And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow reminds us that the answer to empire is never more empire.

by
Aarik Danielsen
An illustration of Jesus sitting on a globus cruciger as he raises his hand to text that reads, "Glory to God for all things." One version depicts the text in the colors of the LGBT Pride flag and the other the colors of the transgender flag.

Art of Marza blends Orthodox iconography and street art to bring hope and beauty to public spaces.

by
Cassidy Klein
Vision
Books
A black-and-white lithograph of rippling ocean waves, meticulously drawn by Vija Celmins so as to appear like a black-and-white photo.

Vija Celmins' lithographs inspire us to live out a posture poised for awe.

by
Sarah James
The book ‘Daring Adventures: Helping Gender-Diverse Kids and Their Families Thrive’ has a cover with swirling paint strokes of blue and pink. The book is hovering at an angle, cast against a light purple backdrop.

Daring Adventures is a beacon of hope for transgender and nonbinary youth — and their families.

by
Laurel A. Dykstra
Kayije Kagame plays as Rama in the film ‘Saint Omer.’ She is a Black woman with box braids wearing a creased linen olive-green v-neck dress. She sits in the pews of a court with a crowd of people blurred in the background.

Three culture recommendations from our editors.

by
The Editors
Vision
Poetry

A poem.

by
Nate Castellitto
Vision
Living The Word

May reflections on the Revised Common Lectionary, Cycle A

by
Natalie Wigg-Stevenson
Vision
H'rumphs

I'm sorry; I'm afraid Bing can't do that.

by
Ed Spivey Jr.