This weekend marks the first anniversary of the Trump administration. Over the past year, we’ve heard faith voices grow louder, both in support and in resistance to the administration’s agenda. This week on State of Belief, Interfaith Alliance’s radio show and podcast, we will talk about how diverse faith communities are coming together to support immigrants, especially after the president ended critical protections for immigrants, and what the #MeToo movement means for organized religion.
One of the few issues that brings together people of faith from across the theological and political spectrums is immigration. With a clarity of moral vision and uncompromising rhetoric, leaders and people in the pews have stepped up, again and again, to push for more just immigration policies, including support for the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy arbitrarily scheduled for termination by Donald Trump. This week, Sara Benitez, immigration program director at Faith in Public Life, will join host Rev. Welton Gaddy to bring us up to speed on the latest developments.
The president recently caused a stir with his foul-mouth racist comment made during a meeting in the Oval Office with legislators. The ensuing argument over the exact wording and which senator best recalled the meeting, we all lost sight of the substance of policy changes impacting hundreds of thousands of lives. Rabbi Jack Moline, president of Interfaith Alliance, will speak with Welton this week about this phenomenon of our collective ability to be easily distracted and his thoughts on how we pursue a responsible agenda for the nation despite it.
As the #MeToo movement continues to raise up the voices of persons impacted by sexual harassment and assault, voices within organized religion have added to the chorus with #ChurchToo. The emphasis of obedience, surrender, secrecy and redemption within faith communities make serious transgressions easier to perpetrate – and easier to hide. This week on State of Belief, Welton will speak with Dr. Jessica Johnson about on the special challenges facing sexual harassment and assault victims within organized religion. She’s the author of the recent Religion Dispatches column: #Churchtoo: Apology of Evangelical Pastor Accused of Sexual Assault Shows Why Sorry Isn’t Enough.
We’ll wrap up this week with a Word from Welton, as our host shares some thoughts about the just-passed Martin Luther King, Jr. commemoration and seeing the movie, The Post. And as always, we’re eager to hear your thoughts and feedback. Please use the contact information provided on our website.
