In the foothills of East Tennessee, not far from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, lies the small town of Clinton. You may have heard of it before. It is the home of the Clinton 12, a group of twelve Black students, who in 1956, bravely integrated the local high school
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In South Carolina, it feels like you can't throw a rock without hitting a place of worship. Historically, this plethora of options had a purpose in the South. Churches centralized social life and infrastructure in rural frontiers where little had existed before—making social and economic hubs for dispersed communities. It's
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Set within the isolating confines of a conservative dorm room in Searcy, Arkansas, this piece explores the intersection of queer identity, institutional religious trauma, and the eventual reclamation of personal spirituality. By utilizing and subverting heavy Old Testament iconography—such as the walls of Jericho, the Ark, and Mount Ararat—the piece
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The late Pope Francis was not a religious model of mine but a figure whose work in the Catholic Church I must commend. As all broken clocks must be right twice a day, he once attested to the idea that every religion is a way to arrive at God. We
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"Testify to Love" was released in 1997 by the contemporary Christian group, Avalon. It has been re-released by former Avalon members Michael Passons and Melissa Greene, and Ty Herdon, country music artist. The song was re-released and reframed to speak to love, affirmation and inclusion especially for our LGBTQIA+ siblings.
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Many years ago, as a wide-eyed and open-hearted student, I spent a year in France. In that long-ago era of cheap Eurail passes and Europe on $10 a Day! guidebooks, I traversed the continent, absorbing the history and culture, the art and architecture, the scenic beauty – all wildly new
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In Black culture, there is a saying: call the roll. If you grew up anywhere near a Black church, you know what that means. It is the moment when the preacher begins to cook. And yes, that is sacred language. It is when she is no longer just delivering notes
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Chocolate melts, roses wilt, heart decorations come down. Even as a child, I sensed that love refuses to stay simple, neat, or predictable. Valentine’s Day passed quickly, but the questions it raised about love lingered much longer. I learned early that love could be layered and complicated, especially when it
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As America delves into a deeper abyss of right-wing ideology and authoritarianism, the Christian faith continues to be co-opted by Christian nationalists to theologize and justify hate and greed. Following Jesus demands and mandates us to call out the sin of hate and to understand the demonic forces that distort
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In a time when systems attempt to silence women, the women of the past remind us how to sing songs that testify to the fullness of humanity’s goodness; they remind us that women have survived for centuries by gathering together, standing their sacred ground, and seeking justice, mercy, and love.
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