Jeannie hails from the lush suburbs of San Diego, where it is just as common to see birds of paradise growing along the freeway as it is to see a gleaming red arrow pointing you to hamburger heaven, otherwise known as In-N-Out. By the time she graduated high school, the comforts of home proved to be too, well, comfortable! And so she left to brave the frigid winters of Pittsburgh, where she studied English literature and professional writing at Carnegie Mellon University. After four years, the masochist in her decided she needed to subject herself to more bad weather, and so she moved to Wheaton, Ill., to study American church history at Wheaton College. There she learned that while cold is bad, cold plus wind is even worse. She returned home, hung up her down parka, and finally entered the working world as an editor at Outreach Magazine and youth pastor at Temecula Calvary Korean Church. After many late deadline nights and trips to Pinkberry with her students, God called her to Sojourners in Washington, D.C. She couldn’t be happier.
These days, Jeannie spends most of her time fiddling with syntax, thinking up new web initiatives, and learning from veteran Sojourners editors. Her idea of a perfect afternoon includes black coffee, a good book, and her magnificent sister.
Posts By This Author
The latest news on the Bailout, Auto Industry, Prop 8, Obama Transition, Germany, Iran, Sudan, Congo, North Korea, and Israel.
Voters' Voices: The new evangelicals, in their own words
Once thought to be in the pocket of the Religious Right, many American evangelicals today are discovering that to be pro-life is to be pro-everyone's-life.
The Meaning of 'Life'
Joshua Hopping of Sweet, Idaho, helped put George W. Bush in the White House, and four years later helped keep him there. As an evangelical Christian, Hopping was part of the so-called “values voters” bloc that some pundits credit with Bush’s electoral success. But this year, Hopping isn’t a lock to support the Republican ticket. He says he’s open to consider which candidate best embodies his Christian values—and that very openness represents what could be one of the most significant shifts in this election season, because evangelicals, especially those under 30, are no longer a safe bet to vote for the furthest-right option on the ballot.
Why the loosening of party attachment? The questions that matter most to Hopping, 28, aren’t as narrowly defined as they used to be. He says he’ll be paying close attention to what the candidates are saying about the issues most important to him, which now include not only abortion and same-sex marriage but also the environment, poverty, and immigration—“and that’s not even counting the war in Iraq, health care, social security, and all those other things that are important,” Hopping told Sojourners. Looking at the records of the two parties on those issues, Hopping says, gave him pause about the unquestioned convictions he held in the past. “I said, ‘wait a minute,’ I want to take another look and see who’s out there, who actually cares about life beyond the womb.” Hopping says this line of thinking feels outside of his conservative comfort zone, but he cannot ignore his new convictions, particularly about the environment.
“Eight years ago, I began working in the environmental field, and it really hit me that God tells us to take care of the environment. The more I read the Bible, I see that the environment affects the poor, the young, and the old—the same people God said to go reach,” he says.
The latest news on the VP Debate, Egypt, North Korea, Bailout, Pakistan, Immigration, Wachovia, Employment, Taiwan, Russia-Georgia, Tehran, Tata Cars, Mandelson, and Sudan.
The latest news on the Bailout, India, U.S. Markets, International Markets, Baghdad, Vice-Presidential Debate, North Korea, Burma, Global Financial Crisis, Israel-Palestine, Economy, and Afghanistan.
Talking to the New Evangelical Voters
Daily News Digest
The latest news on Pakistan, the Election, the Philippines, Georgia-Russia, Israel-Palestine, the Olympics, Off-shore Drilling, and select Editorials.
Sign up to receive our daily news summary via e-mail »
Pakistan. Pakistan's [...]
Daily News Digest
Top stories on U.S.-Poland relations, Evangelicals and the Election, the Economy, Pakistan, China, the Georgia-Russia conflict, Musharraf, Zimbabwe, Paraguay, the Philippines, and select Editorials.
Daily News Digest
The latest news on the Georgia-Russia conflict, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Darwish, Arkansas, Minorities, the Economy, Offshore Drilling, Lebanon-Syria, and select Editorials.
Daily News Digest
The latest news on Lebanon, Palestine, Afghanistan, Immigration, Zimbabwe, the Georgia-Russia conflict, the Olympics and select Editorials.
Sign up to receive our daily news summary via e-mail »
Lebanon. Bomb blast rocks north [...]