Marking This Day of Light and Darkness

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

Wow—what a January 6. It seems fitting that January 6th is now (in the United States) both the observance of the Epiphany when the Magi beheld the Christ Child—and, for Americans, the commemoration of the terrible attack on the U.S. Congress three years ago. Two Contrasting Days Why? Because Jesus was born at a similar time of social and political turmoil, when tyrants oppressed minority populations, pompous autocrats abused and exploited their constituents, and false messiahs spawned violent rebellions. In... Read more

Trump as Our Example . . .

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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Throughout the 1980s and 90s, I used Donald Trump as an example in many sermons. Those mentions were not complimentary, however. What I saw Trump was then is what I see him as now: a perfect example of what it means not to live as a Christian. Trump and I Go Way Back In the last ten years, I’ve met Donald Trump in person twice, but he has played in the background of my life and formation as a minister... Read more

Court May Be Right, But Teacher’s Wrong

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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The Supreme Court of Virginia recently ruled in favor of a public school teacher fired for refusing to use male pronouns for a transgender student. Lower courts had dismissed the teacher’s lawsuits against his former employer, but the state’s highest court reinstated his right to sue them. The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a Christian conservative public interest law firm representing the teacher, hailed the court decision as a significant victory for religious freedom. The teacher asserts using the male pronouns... Read more

Would Republicans Welcome Jesus Christ And Mike Pence?

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Pence has been a curiosity from the time Donald Trump selected him as running mate in 2016, through his enormously consequential role in the January 6 electoral vote count and its aftermath, to his bumpy bid for his party’s nomination for the 2024 election. I think the entirety of Pence’s political career parallels the turbulent and deleterious course of the American evangelicalism that Pence claims as his personal faith and that he relied on throughout... Read more

The Imperfect Bonhoeffer: A Model For Prophecy In The Public Square

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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A Talk Delivered To The National Unity Gathering, National Council Of Churches, Nashville, Tennessee, October 10, 2023, By The Reverend Dr. Rob Schenck Thank you, one and all, for your presence in this session and for supporting the National Council of Churches and its work to repair the world. The gracious invitation to be with you, extended by the Rev. Dr. Leslie Copeland-Tune, our esteemed Chief Operating Officer, leaves me humbled. My Penitential Visit To You A few of you know... Read more

Trump: Emperor Of Conservative Donor World

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:00 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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The agonizingly unanswered question haunting so many Americans is, “Why do they stay with Trump?” In my context, “they” are generally the Republican politicians and religious right leaders who support the ex-president despite his chaotic, unseemly, profane, and possibly criminal behavior. It’s a vexing and even maddening quandary. But I think I know part of the answer. One Key is The Keys To The Treasury The Bible warns, “The love of money is the root of all evil.” Love of... Read more

I’m Too Quick To Judge–how About You?

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:23 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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I’m biased and judgemental. There, I said it–and I feel crappy about it. Yes, I am becoming increasingly conscious of how much I judge others, especially now. Too Easy To Judge It’s too easy to judge others. At a time when American society is riven by social, political, and racial tensions, it’s reflexive. We do it when we jump to conclusions, blameshift, and engage in stereotyping regarding others who are unlike us. To all that, I plead, “Guilty!” I’ve been... Read more

A Trumpian Form of Terrorism

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:01 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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Donald Trump and the extreme right wing of the Republican Party adhere to arbitrariness. It’s immoral, unethical, harmful, and dangerous to Americans. It is contrary to both the rule of law and biblical concepts. The Psalmist declares, “The King in his might loves justice. You have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.” Equity, justice, and righteousness require fair, coherent, understandable, uniform rules, judgment, and consequences. Trump’s idiosyncratic, intensely personal, ad hoc propensities are a form of... Read more

Blame Or Bless Baptists For The Wall

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:01 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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Evangelicals must blame or thank the Baptists. I’m referring to the “wall of separation between church and state.” After all, those free-church dissenters are why the phrase was concocted. It’s ironic that the spiritual ancestors of today’s religious conservatives are responsible for what most vexes my co-religionists. When I was a Washington, DC, religious right activist in the 1990s and early 2000s, we called that metaphorical wall “the Supreme Court’s atheistic brick wall.” Plenty of us banged our heads against... Read more

Is the Government Hostile to Christianity?

Last updated on: March 4, 2025 at 10:01 am By Rev. Rob Schenck

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Contrary to a popular evangelical myth, the U.S. federal government is not hostile to the Christian faith. In fact, not only is it friendly to religion, but it employs more Christian ministers than many denominations. Various agencies grant these chaplains broad freedoms, including preaching content, personal communications, worship, prayer, and even evangelistic activities. When conflicts over the religious prerogatives of federal chaplains and their charges arise, adequate internal mechanisms exist for resolution. (Also see https://icece-endorsers.com/) The Myth And Its Origins... Read more