Weekly wrap
The Catholic Right, state of the union, Sandra Cisneros, blackface, problems with “Religious Left,” and more!
Polar vortex, global warming, assimilation, Kirk Franklin, women leading churches, Democratic Socialism’s biblical values, and more!
Americans’ global warming concerns, Roma’s Yalitza Aparacio, clergy abuse survivors, Catholic curricula and Native Americans, sex robots, and more!
“They struggle in the absence of information.”
With Brexit, the chumocrats who drew borders from India to Ireland are getting a taste of their own medicine.
Impact of the shutdown, marginal tax rates, Opus Dei, app accessibility, Cyntoia Brown’s clemency, and more!
1. The Border Wall Fight at the Center of the Government Shutdown, Explained
Steel slats, concrete, walls and fences: here’s what Trump actually wants to build, and what Congress might be willing to pay for.
2. Fashioning a New Congress: What This Freshman Class Wears to Work Matters More Than Ever
“They are unafraid to wear their identities on their sleeves, helping to mark a striking shift in how politicians—and specifically, women in politics—have traditionally been expected to present.”
A look back at Sojourners favorite stories in 2018, Lin-Manuel Miranda, modern parenting, and more on this week's Wrap!
Christmas at the border, winter solstice, Mary's Magnificat, top word of 2018, and more!
1. ‘Tis the Season: Here’s How Jesus Became So Widely Accepted as White
“White Jesus is so much more than an icon. It’s not neutral because it has been proliferated and it’s expanded in terms of its presence over centuries and it has been largely tied to what we call an imperial project. The agenda of a nation state.”
2. Cruel Messengers: The Street Preaching Industry
A look at the Street and Open-Air Preachers of America conference and how street preaching is an organized industry.
1. VIDEO: The Church That Meets in a Parking Lot
Every year thousands of churches shutter their doors and die. But here's one congregation that found that shutting their doors — and destroying their building — gave them a new way to survive. Watch and learn more about Los Angeles First United Methodist Church.
2. He Built an Empire, With Detained Migrant Children as the Bricks
The New York Times does a deep dive on the founder of Southwest Key Programs, which has collected $1.7 billion in government contracts and houses more children who have crossed the border than any other detention group in the nation.
1. Feds deport undocumented immigrant whose church supporters went to jail to protect him
Samuel Oliver-Bruno took refuge in a church basement for 11 months until he was detained during an appointment with immigration authorities last week.
2. At Capacity: Weaponizing Inefficiency at the Border
“The asylum process is inefficient, and no one has an incentive to fix it.”
1. How to Have a Conversation with Your Angry Uncle Over Thanksgiving
Get some practice, via the Angry Uncle Bot, courtesy of New York Times.
2. This Is the Face of the Reconquista
“They are too young to have heard how the words Mexican and American have used against one another. In their lives, they have been combined into one. The contours of their lives cross boundaries. The hard lines of difference and the borders of the past have not formed walls of divisions for them.”
1. Diversity as a Second Job
“ … factoring in the unpaid demands of work as unofficial diversity and inclusion liaisons, minority journalists might actually be working twice as hard for half as much money.”
2. Where We Start the Migration Story Matters
Many have focused on the arrival of the “caravan” of asylum seekers to the U.S. But we need to start at the beginning of the journey.
1. A List Of Firsts For Women In This Year's Midterm Elections
The next Congress will include the first Muslim women, the first Native American women, and the youngest woman ever elected to that body.
2. Exit Polls: How Voting Blocs Have Shifted From the ’80s to Now
Democrats won the House as voters across nearly all demographic groups moved to the left, especially women and young people, according to exit polls.
1. Last-Minute Tips for Figuring Out Your Ballot and Making Sure You Can Vote
The midterms are here. Here’s everything you need to know to hit the polls and cast an informed vote this election season.
2. We Are Watching: Lawyers & Collars
On Nov. 6, we'll be watching at the polls to ensure all have the right to vote. Here's how you can join us.
1. Trump Cannot Define Away my Existence
The administration seems to think transgender people like me are as imaginary as hippogriffs.
2. The Secret Anxiety of the Upwardly Mobile
Children who do better than their parents often must choose between blending in and standing out.
1. Can The Good Place Save Us from Our Real Life Bad Place?
Asking for a friend …
2. For the Men Asking ‘What Can We Do?’
To start: listen.
2. What Do Survivors Need to Hear Today?
Start here: “You are beloved.” “You will recover.” “God is with you.”
3. Blocking Poor Immigrants Could Be Very Costly
“Worse health outcomes, especially among pregnant women. A jump in emergency room usage. More communicable diseases. Higher poverty and housing instability, including among U.S. citizen children. Lower productivity. Reduced educational attainment. And ‘downstream and upstream impacts on state and local economies, large and small businesses, and individuals.’ What are all these terrible things? They’re all potential consequences of a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule—according to DHS itself.”
1. The Quiet Evangelical Campaign to Help Republicans Hold onto the House and Senate
The Faith and Freedom Coalition, Focus on the Family’s Family Policy Alliance, and more are stepping up their ground game — and spending millions of dollars — to stave off a blue wave.
2. This Is How #MeToo Has Moved the Needle in Churches
In 2014, protestant pastors were surveyed about how they talk about sexual and domestic violence in their congregations. Results were dismal. In 2018, after nearly a year of #MeToo revelations, the survey was conducted again — here’s what’s changed.
“Serena's declaration was an instantaneous declaration of freedom. Freedom for every woman who deserves an apology from the boss who gave her a #MeToo story to tell.”
2. Women Rally for More Inclusion at Toronto Film Festival
“Because our north star is not diversity. It is not inclusion. But it is belonging. We must all feel as if our voices and our stories matter.”
3. Franklin Graham’s Uneasy Alliance with Donald Trump
The evangelical pastor is well aware of the critique often levelled against him: that he’s more politically and spiritually partisan than his father, Billy