Religion
Culture Desk
Kenneth Branagh’s Airbrushed “Belfast”
The greatest threat to this film comes not from the stink of sectarian conflict but from the aroma of sweetness.
Q. & A.
How Trump Transformed the Supreme Court
The legal journalist Linda Greenhouse expects the new conservative majority to change American law on abortion, religion, and affirmative action.
On Religion
The Afterlife of Rachel Held Evans
When the beloved Christian thinker died, at thirty-seven, she left behind a legacy of constant spiritual questioning—and an unfinished memoir.
Culture Desk
Marian Anderson’s Bone-Chilling Rendition of “Crucifixion”
Her performances of the Black spiritual in the nineteen-thirties caused American and European audiences to fall silent in awe.
On Religion
What American Christians Hear at Church
Drawing on newly ubiquitous online services, Pew has tried to catalogue the subject matter of contemporary sermons.
The Political Scene Podcast
Jonathan Franzen Talks with David Remnick About “Crossroads”
The novelist discusses religion, the ethics of writing characters of a different race, and his deliberate evolution away from literary formalism and “po-mo hijinks.”
Books
The Church of Jonathan Franzen
In “Crossroads,” bad decisions and bad faith weigh down the characters—and propel the novel to startling heights.
The Front Row
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Reviewed: A Defanged Tale of Religion, Politics, Sex, and Money
The conventional bio-pic of the televangelist turns a complicated person into a simple character.
On Religion
How to Talk About Climate Change Across the Political Divide
Katharine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist and evangelical Christian, has written a book that lays out strategies for discussing the climate crisis in a divided country.
Under Review
Can We Find a New Way to Tell the Story of Climate Change?
An emerging genre of climate memoirs searches for narratives that will not only convince readers of the crisis at hand but galvanize them to do something about it.
Higher Power Dept.
Harvard’s Atheist-Chaplain Controversy
The selection of Greg Epstein, a humanist rabbi, as the president of Harvard’s chaplains led to a small uproar among the school’s other religious leaders. Will it inspire a come-to-Jesus moment of the secular variety?
On Religion
The Unmaking of Biblical Womanhood
How a nascent movement against complementarianism is confronting Christian patriarchy from within.
Annals of Religion
The Women Who Want to Be Priests
They feel drawn by God to the calling—and won’t let the Vatican stop them.
The Political Scene Podcast
A Rift Over Racism Divides the Southern Baptist Convention
The largest Protestant denomination in America is in crisis over the group’s reluctance to acknowledge systemic racism.
On Religion
The Fight for the Heart of the Southern Baptist Convention
How the Convention’s battle over race reveals an emerging evangelical schism.
Under Review
What We Can and Can’t Learn from a New Translation of the Gospels
Sarah Ruden aims to return familiar texts to the fresh clay from which they were made.
Page-Turner
A Novel for Life After the Pandemic
Sigrid Nunez’s “Salvation City” imagines the strange and intangible fallout of a global pandemic.
Daily Comment
The Wasting of the Evangelical Mind
The peculiarities of how American Christianity took shape help explain believers’ vulnerability to conspiratorial thinking and misinformation.
The Front Row
“Saint Maud,” Reviewed: A Delusional Home Health Aide, Trapped in a Horror Movie
Religion gives rise to madness in an intriguing yet frustrating début feature.