Music, regardless of context, is a powerful medium of connection and transcendence. In church, it accompanies the believer’s journey toward God, while in secular settings, the experience of impactful music carries its own kind of spiritual authority. Similarly, Albert Blackwell … Read More

“They speak the language of democracy while practicing the authoritarian politics of coercion and exclusion.” This summarizes the current state of our political climate: one under attack from wealthy funders, ideologues, religious nationalists, and streams of disinformation. In her newest work, Katherine Stewart delves into these attacks on American democracy, diagnosed as “reactionary nihilism.” Read More

On September 9, 2025, Duke University theologian and clinical psychiatrist Warren Kinghorn spoke in Professor Charles Marsh’s fall seminar on anxiety. His lecture examined the theological and philosophical foundations of mental health treatment, focusing on how agency, freedom, and medication intersect in theological contexts. Drawing on Thomas Aquinas, he showed how classical theological anthropology can inform our understanding of mental illness and psychiatric care. Read More

A Poignant Memoir Collection That Examines Biographies as a Genre, Reflect on Life’s Lessons Through Compelling Stories Throughout her life, Megan Marshall has sought to “learn what [she] could from others: how to live, how not to live, what it … Read More

At its core, it is the aspiration of equality, inclusion, and mutual respect. While these principles may appear simple, true examples of communities that have embodied them are rare. Camp Woodland is one of those rare examples. Its founder, Norman Studer, shaped by the social and political upheavals of World War II, sought to create a summer camp that would model cultural inclusion, progressive education, and democratic values. Bill Horne, a camper deeply influenced by the lessons he learned there, later chronicled the camp’s importance within the broader sweep of American history in his book The Improbable Community. Read More

Narratives about Mississippi often focus on segregation and discrimination in the Magnolia State; however, Adam Gussow’s story chronicles love and reexamines race relations. Without dismissing Mississippi’s tumultuous history, Gussow shares his own experience, in which an interracial couple is embraced by their community in the midst of racial protests and the Black Lives Matter movement. Read More

Music and religion are often intertwined for the emotional connectivity, catharsis, and fulfillment that an individual song offers; however, rarely is a band’s cultural impact compared to biblical foundations. Finding parallels between the rise of Deadhead communities and the early Christian movement, Coogan urges readers to consider the depth of spiritual energy as it pertains to other walks of life. Read More

A Memoir and a Meditation on a Vital Organ At a young age, Jeff Kosky was diagnosed with a congenital bicuspid valve defect—his heart didn’t function properly. The persistent back-and-forth between hospital visits escalated into an internal struggle between hope … Read More

“When in Rome” is a well-worn phrase that encapsulates the tourist experience. Similarly, it reflects how most people engage with Paul’s letters—fleeting moments with worthwhile highlights. As a metaphor for the book of Romans, Gaventa’s work “When in Romans” invites readers to venture off the beaten path, making Romans accessible to new audiences without undermining the complexity of the letters. Read More

Between the 18th and 19th centuries, a significant number of African Americans were institutionalized for a psychosis known as “religious excitement.” During this Jim Crow era, Black spirituality was often pathologized by white psychiatrists as a form of mental illness. Where a white Christian might have been praised as pious, a Black Christian would be considered delusional or deranged. Weisenfeld’s book, Black Religion in the Madhouse, explores the religious institutionalization of Black Americans and draws powerful connections to contemporary racism, particularly within mental health systems and police encounters. Read More