“We need to stay in prayer, believe in our prayer, and begin our journey home in prayer. I believe in my prayers and in the Creator. Take the lessons we learned here and apply them at home—unity, peace, prayer.”
Graham preparing ‘Dreamers’ bill
By Seung Min Kim, Politico
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is readying legislation that would extend legal protections for previously undocumented immigrants who came here as children — benefits granted under a 2012 directive from President Barack Obama that are at risk with the incoming Trump administration.
Immigration advocates, Catholic sisters, hope Texas ruling is step to ending family detention
By Nuri Vallbona, Dan Stockman, National Catholic Reporter
Days after a Texas judge ruled that a state agency cannot issue day-care licenses to two immigration detention centers, attorneys and advocates for asylum seekers acted to ensure the decision withstands challenges. Activists and volunteers are hopeful it signals a change in U.S. immigration policy and practice.
Both Feeling Threatened, American Muslims and Jews Join Hands
By Laurie Goodstein, New York Times
Jolted into action by a wave of hate crimes that followed the election victory of Donald J. Trump, American Muslims and Jews are banding together in a surprising new alliance.
American Muslim leaders to Trump: ‘Reconsider and reject’ your bigoted Cabinet nominees
By Abigail Hauslohner, Washington Post
American Muslim leaders on Monday sent an open letter to President-elect Donald Trump, calling on him to “reconsider and reject” some of the individuals he recently named to his administration who have “a well documented history of outright bigotry directed at Muslims or advocating that Muslims should not have the same rights as their fellow Americans.”
Seminaries start Black Lives Matter courses
By Adelle M. Banks, Religion News Service
As more African-Americans are killed at the hands of police, seminaries have begun to engage with the movement and investigate how their theology can be enlisted to improve race relations.
‘We are still in mourning’: Charleston congregants prepare for Dylann Roof trial
By Oliver Laughland, The Guardian
At the Mother Emanuel AME church, where a mass shooting last year killed nine black worshippers, the mood is sombre as opening arguments begin.
Trump election may signal death – and rebirth – of American Christianity
By Jeff Brumley, Baptist News Global
“I think the church has failed and that it’s time for it to die,” said Alvaro, pastor at Spring Creek Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. Alvaro added that he was conducting his half of the interview from a cemetery because it felt appropriate when contemplating the funeral of the U.S. church. Plus, he said, there is an upside. “If funerals do anything well, they bring families back together. It may be chaotic, but it may also be an opportunity.”
Why White Evangelicals Are Feeling Hopeful About Trump
By Emma Green, The Atlantic
Right now, a large group of Americans are feeling very hopeful about Donald Trump’s presidency. In polls, they show up in different demographic categories: … But the group that stands out—the label that best seems to characterize people in the U.S. who are feeling better than they did three weeks ago because of Trump—is white evangelical Christians.
Trump’s religious dealmaking pays dividends
By Katie Glueck, Politico
The president-elect shrewdly courted evangelical leaders during his presidential run, and that transactional style appears likely to carry into the White House.
The Dakota Access Pipeline isn’t just about the environment. It’s about religion.
By Sarah Pulliam Bailey, Washington Post
Many activists have framed the issue as an environmental issue, but some observers highlight the importance of Native Americans and how they understand their religion and the land.
Deep Dive of the Week
Implications of Partial Repeal of the ACA through Reconciliation
By Linda J. Blumberg, Matthew Buettgens, John Holahan, Urban Institute
In this brief, we compare future health care coverage and government health care spending under the ACA and under passage of a reconciliation bill similar to one vetoed in January 2016.
