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** What do we call a year like this?
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Many of my ministry friends and I have noticed a troubling trend in our faith communities, other social circles, and ourselves. It seems like the headlines, the authoritarianism, the policy changes, the political violence, the [fill in the blank] are catching up to people. Taking a toll. It feels like many people’s fuses are shorter. I don’t know what to call it. The Year of Stress? The 2025 Spiral?

I continue to believe (despite myriad doubts and misgivings) that faith—Christian faith, in my case—and spirituality, embodied practices, and theological reflection can ground us in hope and nurture our love in times like these. And so I remain grateful for the thoughtful reflection in the pages of the Century. At a time when anti-trans rhetoric is weaponized in the halls of power, we have an essay about the book of Genesis and its nonbinary treatment of gender ([link removed]) . At a time when artificial intelligence proliferates, we have a reflection on the moral implications of AI’s mimicry ([link removed]) . At a time when liberation seems far off for some, we have an introduction to a Filipino “theology of struggle.” ([link removed])

Scroll down for more great content. In our video of the week, I chat with Presian Burroughs about the Roman Empire ([link removed]) —its relevance to Paul’s letter to the Romans and its resonance with the US empire. Plus an essay from Brian Bantum about the insecurity that fuels evil ([link removed]) , and even more below.

Jon Mathieu
Email me (mailto:[email protected]?subject=My%20nickname%20for%202025&body=Jon%2C%20) : What name would you give to the year 2025 so far?
Click to schedule ([link removed]) a Friday lunch chat with Jon
Click to find Jon ([link removed]) on (X/Twitter alternative) Bluesky
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** In the Bible, gender is not binary ([link removed])
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“Damaging interpretations of the Bible have been wielded against queer people through churches, often without any recognition that there are other ways to read these same texts.”

by Julie Faith Parker
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** Trump’s artificial images ([link removed])
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“The cruel AI memes embraced by the Trump administration are evidence of a profound moral rot, and I don’t think that moral degradation can be easily disentangled from the degrading effects AI has on information and on the earth.”

by Mac Loftin
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** A theology—and an activism—that centers struggle ([link removed])
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“I don’t want to get rid of the language of liberation, but it so often feels insufficient. It needs qualification.”

by Colton Bernasol
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** In the Lectionary for June 22 (Ordinary 12C) ([link removed])
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Psalms 42 and 43 remind us of the ways a spiritual practice can prepare us for whatever trials we meet in life.
by Martha Spong

Ordinary 12C archives ([link removed])
Get even more lectionary resources with Sunday’s Coming Premium, an email newsletter from the editors of the Christian Century. Learn more ([link removed]) .


** VIDEO: Let’s not return to the Roman Empire ([link removed])
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Presian Burroughs chats with Jon about the Roman Empire, Paul’s letter to the Romans, and current policy trends in the US.


** Insecurity and the problem of evil ([link removed])
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“I wonder if the evils of our world—whether they be individual acts toward one another or the wider, more insidious social structures that we grow within and nurture—tend to be grounded in the insecurities we refuse to acknowledge.”

by Brian Bantum
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