Institute on Religion & Democracy

IRD's Jean Bethke Elshtain Fellowship focuses on exploring the fundamental principles of Christian realism and applying those principles to contemporary challenges to see how they stand up. Learn more at: providencemag.com/the-jean-bet...

Review: A Sense of the Divine Every person stands in need of Christ because their natural knowledge of God as Creator and Judge implicates them.

How should one make sense of the Christian confession that God has instilled a “sense of divinity” in every person?

Tuesday night at @pressclubdc.bsky.social IRD joined with @baylor.bsky.social co-sponsoring “the problem of dirty hands” and the challenge with both having a good regime and keeping it. More here: washington.web.baylor.edu/events

A Methodist ‘Croaker’ Surveys the State of the Christian Faith Riley Case shares personal experiences that grew out of 69 years as a Methodist pastor beginning with rural Indiana Methodism and concluding with Pentecostalism.

Methodist Pastor Riley Case connected early in his ministry with a camping program that afforded great freedom and saw campers brought to Christian faith on decision night.

Are Christians Free to Be Holy? Methodist pastor Matt O'Reilly of Christ Church in Birmingham, Alabama discusses his new book Free to Be Holy: A Biblical Theology of Sanctification.

WATCH: Methodist pastor Matt O’Reilly of Christ Church in Birmingham, Alabama, and who teaches at Beeson Divinity School and Wesley Biblical Seminary, discusses his new book Free to Be Holy: A Biblical Theology of Sanctification.

Seal of the Confessional: Virtue Signaling on a Vital Issue The state must not dictate conscience. Religious freedom means little if people can be required to act against strongly held religious precepts.

Religious freedom means little if people can be required to act against strongly held religious precepts, writes IRD's Rick Plasterer.

Resurgence and the Future of the Church If stewarded wisely, this moment could mark the beginning of a new chapter in American Christianity, shaped by the unexpected faithfulness of those once thought least likely to return.

American congregations of the future may be younger and more male than at any point in recent history, writes Lauren Knights.

Methodist Pastor Discusses Reaching Out in Anxious Times Here’s third generation Methodist pastor Andrew Forrest of Asbury Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma discussing his new book Love Goes First:...

Third generation Methodist pastor Andrew Forrest of Asbury Church in Tulsa joins IRD's @markdtooley.bsky.social to discuss his new book Love Goes First: Reaching Others in an Age of Anxiety and Division.

Could the Presbyterian Church in America be an Established Church? Could the Presbyterian Church in America be the official religion of the United States of America?

Would historic Reformed thought permit the Presbyterian Church in America to be an established church?

Baptist Pastor Voddie Baucham’s Life and Legacy Baucham was known for his outspoken conservative theological and social stance on contemporary issues such as social justice, progressive Christianity, and family roles.

Influential Reformed Baptist pastor Voddie Baucham passed away on September 25, at the age of 56 after suffering an emergency medical incident.

Anglican Chaplains Face Choice as Bishop Departs A dispute between the leadership of the Anglican Church in North America and its endorsing body for chaplains resulted in the latter unilaterally cutting ties with the church.

Is the Anglican Church in North America a "woke" church? As the bishop of the endorsing body for chaplains unilaterally cut ties with the North American church last week, some warn that it is deflection from a straightforward misconduct investigation.

Religious Merchants Still at Risk The Tastries Bakery case should be taken up, otherwise the 303 Creative decision will be eroded. More cases of creative professionals required to act against religious precepts and their consciences w...

The state of California seeks to coerce baker Cathy Miller to provide a custom-made cake for a same-sex wedding. Haven't we been here before?

The Transformation of Christian Worship Worship is not validated by zeal or creativity, but by obedience to God’s commands.

If worship becomes a concert, we may gain an audience but lose the altar, writes IRD's Lauren Knights.

Church Officials Respond to Charlie Kirk Death Some church officials characterize Charlie Kirk’s death as a blow to democracy and the foundation of America, and many offer and solicit prayers on the behalf of Kirk's family.

Some church officials characterize Charlie Kirk’s death as a blow to democracy and the foundation of America. IRD's Miranda Mobley surveys Baptist, Anglican, Catholic, Lutheran and Pentecostal responses.

Satan & Politics In polarized political times there is temptation to ascribe almost unlimited power to evil, and to assume political adversaries are themselves evil. Divine sovereignty is often forgotten.

Reinhold Niebuhr: “The sad experiences of Christian history show how human pride & spiritual arrogance rise to new heights precisely at the point where the claims of sanctity are made without due qualification.”

Grace & Power of Methodist Theology Here’s my conversation with Methodist theologian Kenneth Collins of Asbury Theological Seminary about his new book Generous Divine Love: The...

Podcast with Methodist theologian Kenneth Collins of Asbury Seminary on his new book "Generous Divine Love: The Grace & Power of Methodist Theology."

This week IRD welcomes University of Virginia graduate Miranda Mobley, whose love for literature, theology, and international relations drew her to work at IRD. She serves at The Falls Church Anglican in a 9-month spiritual formation and leadership program. Welcome, Miranda!

Personal Freedom Absent God? Our culture often tells us we can build life on comfort, progress, or personal freedom alone. But without God, these collapse under the strain.

Without faith, meaning collapses, and with it the will to endure.

The Demise of the Religious Left? There will always be religious voices on the political and theological left of course. But its main institutions are all...

Where did the Religious Left go? Few under a certain age can even identify it. Some think it's non-MAGA evangelicals.
@markdtooley.bsky.social recalls the late great Religious Left.

A Wesleyan View of Baptism For John Wesley, as for the historic church, baptism communicates the salvific remedy that the sinner so desperately needs.

The claim that infant baptism and infant dedication are of equal value is to move well beyond what Wesley taught, and arguably to offer an ahistorical Wesleyanism that bears little resemblance to the namesake, writes Ryan Danker.

This week IRD welcomes College of William and Mary graduate and intern Rafa Albolote. Rafa discovered IRD through his interest in religious liberty and serves with the Fourth Fellows, a young adult leadership program at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Bethesda. Welcome, Rafa!

Shut Up About Pope Leo As Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate finds its footing, remember that the chatty, media-savvy pope is a modern invention, not a Catholic necessity.

“Woke pontiff”? “The most based Pope ever"? The faithful have become conditioned to consume the papacy as spectacle. Yet Leo’s pontificate may offer the chance to recover a quieter, older form of devotion.

Focus on Formation Boston's Church of the Advent is engaging faithful scholars to work with the church as they go deeper into the Christian faith.

When IRD founded the John Wesley Institute, we saw need for deeper formation in the broad Wesleyan family, to dive deeper into the Scriptures, to provide training in the historic Christian witness, the “faith once delivered to the saints,” and to promote the Christ-like life, scriptural holiness.

Orthodox Patriotism American Orthodox churches have been strained by the pull between filial loyalty to their coreligionists in Russia and respect for the liberal democratic values that drive U.S. support for Ukraine

American Orthodox churches have been strained by the pull between filial loyalty to their coreligionists in Russia and respect for the liberal democratic values that drive American support for Ukraine.

Has mainline Protestantism fallen? In 10 years, most mainline denominations will likely still legally exist but most of them will be little more than shells

The collapse of denominational loyalties in America may actually be good news for many mainline congregations, writes IRD's @markdtooley.bsky.social in The Christian Post.

Jen Hatmaker is Back (Minus Church) Jen Hatmaker's cohort of “exvanglicals” are worth following up on to see where their paths have led, writes IRD's Jeff Walton.

There was an identifiable trajectory for Jen Hatmaker. Fortunately, it's not the end of the story, writes IRD's Jeff Walton.

The Rhythm of Surrender: The Art of Fasting Lauren Knights reflects on the practice of fasting within the Orthodox Tradition and the Healing of the Whole Person.

As understood and taught by the Church fathers, fasting is not a spiritual technique for self-improvement, it is about surrendering.

Virginia Wesleyan Becomes Virginia Batten University The old denominational age is ending, in higher education and much else. What will replace it?

Virginia Wesleyan University removing “Wesleyan” from its name evinces further decline in denominational higher education, writes @markdtooley.bsky.social⁩.

Immigration, ‘Heritage Americans’ and Gospel Confidence Concern at demographic change may reveal a lack of confidence in both the resilience of Western institutions and culture.

IRD's Jeff Walton considers discussion of “Heritage Americans.” How does that square with what he sees in his own parish?

America’s Awakenings Last week for the first time I visited the Cumberland Gap through which, in early America, Daniel Boone, followed by...

We who admire the Second Great Awakening are grateful for its churn, believing it providential, enacting the biblical promise that the last shall be first, and the first shall be last, writes @markdtooley.bsky.social.