Happy Birthday, Fannie Lou Hamer <3

Everything that we care about as people of faith - including our religious liberty and our ability to advocate for issues that we care about - rests on a foundation of pluralism and the rule of law.

Faith leadership matters. Let's meet this moment - together.

"President George W. Bush said of John Cardinal O'Connor: He had a way of putting politicians on the spot, exactly where we belong."

How a real revival will look. Note: This is a personal reflection and does not reflect the viewpoint of any affiliation that I hold or employers I have or had.

A personal reflection: If this is a time for revival, then it is a time for forgiveness. It is a time for charity. It is a time for love. medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

YouTube video by Team Up Project The Best of America: The Team Up Project

To meet the moment, we have to push back against the "Us vs. Them" political strategy & find ways to come together across lines of difference to serve our neighbors. In the coming weeks, we are sharing inspiring stories that show the way: The Best of America. Trailer below.
youtu.be/9JM3Q3tgMFc?...

The Pluralism of The American Pope 100 days into the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, it appears that the College of Cardinals selected a pope with two attributes that were previously seen as impossible: An American, and a unifier.

Polling shows that Pope Leo is extremely popular. In Real Clear Religion, I talk about how his approach to the papacy represents the best of American pluralism.

He provides a textbook example of Interfaith America's "Respect, Relate, Cooperate" framework. www.realclearreligion.org/articles/202...

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Preparing for this 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time, I wrote with more vulnerability this week.

Our topic is doubt, and I sought help from one of my favorite philosophers: Daniel Tiger.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time “Vanity of vanity! All things are vanity!”

"He did not realize that the bellies of the poor were much safer storerooms than his barns."

Not a Homily: 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

I had a great time breaking bread and building bridges at @ccomaha with @CCharitiesUSA & @interfaithusa. There is amazing work happening across faith traditions to address the needs of the community.

Brilliant passage on The Good Samaritan and "Who is my neighbor?"

"The fantasy (which I regret to report is far from fanciful) illustrates the skill which with we use thought to avoid action. A classic ploy."

Not a Homily: 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings

In Sunday's Gospel, Jesus teaches us how to pray. I am reminded of how I learned to pray as a child, huddled around a pillar candle with my brother and very patient father.

This week's "Not a Homily": medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

This from Fr. Greg Boyle gets me every time. I need to be better about living it.

Most of us do!

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Not a Homily: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings

Some thoughts on The Good Samaritan:

Let's expand our idea of who is our neighbor, as God intends.

Let's open up the circle of who is "us" and stop demonizing "them."

Let's advocate for justice *and* serve our neighbors directly.

Let's get to work!
medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Not a Homily: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings

Publishing early this week: The Good Samaritan is one of the most widely known *and* underestimated stories in the Bible. Let's journey deeply into its meaning -- and into our own hearts.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Not a Homily: 14th Sunday in ordinary time Readings

"If we don't get this right, shut it down."

A "Not a Homily" reflection on the 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Happy George Gordon Meade Out-Generaled Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg Day to all who celebrate.

Meade deserves more credit for Gettysburg and his service in the rest of the war.

Thank you, Ol' Snapping Turtle.

"Everybody he was around had to repent, had to change their minds. Jesus had hard conversations where people got offended. But he didn’t leave them."

Not a Homily: The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul Readings (Mass d

Jesus asks Simon Peter, "Who do you say that I am?"

If we get this answer right, we better understand who *we* are.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Not a Homily: The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul Readings (Mass d

Not a Homily: Solemnity of St. Peter and Paul:

"I pray that each of us may live in such a way that we too can one day turn to Jesus and say, with integrity and gratitude, 'I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.'"

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

I am SO excited to reconnect with folks for this webinar tonight. I'll be leading a breakout on bridgebuilding!

In today's reflection for Corpus Christi, I share the stories of two men who distributed Holy Communion and celebrated masses within labor camps and behind prison walls: Fr. Walter Ciszek, SJ and Venerable Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

"That's crazy... You were alive!" is killing me.

Not a Homily: The Solemnity of the Most holy Body and Blood of Jesus (Corpus Christi) Archbishop Fulton Sheen once said, “The greatest love story of all time is contained in a tiny white Host.”

Not a Homily: Corpus Christi.

Featuring Fr. Robert Spitzer's explanation of the Eucharist and inspiring stories from Catholics smuggling bread and wine into labor and prison camps to celebrate the Mass in secret - at great risk to themselves.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Pope: ‘St. Thomas More offers politicians example of martyr for primacy of conscience’ - Vatican News During the Jubilee of Governments, Pope Leo XIV meets with legislators from various nations and recalls the importance of natural law, entrusting them ...

"If we consider the service that political life renders to society... it can truly be seen as an act of Christian love, which is never simply a theory, but always a concrete sign and witness of God’s constant concern for the good of our human family." - Pope Leo

www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news...

Commentary: Time to remove Antietam's Robert E. Lee statue Removal of the Robert E. Lee statue from the Antietam Battlefield is appropriate when the totality of his life is considered, a writer who examines Civil War History says.

It has come to my attention that we are doing Robert E. Lee discourse again. Here's my contribution from a year ago: "Antietam Battlefield Need Not Honor Robert E. Lee"

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/opinion/comm...

Not a Homily — Holy Trinity Sunday Readings

This week's "Not a Homily":

A reflection on the Trinity with special references to Notre Dame, my wedding, and heretical Patrick Star.

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

How to Build Democracy Coalitions to Meet this Moment In a divided country, where so many people feel isolated and angry, the only way forward is to build connection and understanding.

I am excited to begin a new chapter as Senior Director of Civic Strategies at Interfaith America!

Here, I outline the opportunities that I see and why I am hopeful about the work ahead.

www.interfaithamerica.org/article/how-...

Not a Homily: Feast of the Visitation, May 31, 2025 Readings

Not a Homily: Feast of the Visitation.

"We should put Mary on a pedestal, to be sure, but we should also make sure we don’t put her out of reach. We need her!"

medium.com/@chriscrawfo...

Give them reason to write how America was awakened My advice to Wesleyan’s Class of 2025 (and all of us)

Do yourself a favor and watch @ianbassin.bsky.social's commencement speech: www.ifyoucankeepit.org/p/you-will-d...

Not a Homily: Memorial of St. Pope Paul VI Readings

Saint Pope Paul VI went out to the world to spread God's love, defeat evil, and speak hard truths.

He published "Nostra Aetate", a firm condemnation of Antisemitism.

He spoke for peace and justice.

Let's learn from him today.
medium.com/@chriscrawfo...