Sightings Articles

Book in flames against dark background

education | literacy | politics

Banning Books; Banning Brains

Neglect of commitments to education has profound social and political implications.

March 2, 2023
Underwater image of blue tiled pool

Evangelicalism | politics | Media

Religion, Politics, and Jerry Falwell Jr.'s Fall from Grace

Hulu's new documentary about the Falwell family sheds light on entanglements of religion and politics and has important implications for the current moment.

November 11, 2022
vax protesting healthcare workers

COVID-19 | health care | politics | religious exemption

The Great Defiance: Religious Objections and Vaccine Mandates

Vaccination defiance among healthcare workers reveals much about how many Americans think about themselves and their faith.

February 23, 2022
image of the us capital

democracy | politics | right-wing

Extremism and Defense of Democracy

If we focus on policing acceptable political ideas via the state, we do more to undermine democracy than to secure it.

December 2, 2021
seder plate

Passover | politics | Media | Coronavirus

Time, Plague, and Politics at Passover

A new administration, a new pace for the news cycle, and a very old truth

March 29, 2021
Trump

political religion | politics | polls | Evangelicals

Why White Evangelicals Stuck with Trump

What polling data tells us about why White Evangelical support for Trump was undiminished in the 2020 election

February 11, 2021
manuscript

political religion | Augustine of Hippo | politics

We Hold These Truths

An Augustinian meditation on the communal dispositions required for democracy

January 25, 2021
Sibelius

music | politics | fascism | Donald Trump

Symphonic Politics, Sibelius, and the Immanent Messiah

Our country cannot afford to wait for a miracle. The music of Jean Sibelius teaches us what the alternatives might look like.

January 11, 2021
Tom Cotton

slavery | politics | political religion | United Methodists

King Cotton

The United Methodist Church's roots witness against Cotton's attack on critical history

September 3, 2020