Perhaps “cancel culture” is such a buzzword that it has lost most of its meaning, but I think it’s safe to say that for many people it has to do with erasing and forgetting. We erase someone’s platform or legacy so that we can both punish them and also forget them, pretending they don’t exist. While people may get mired in endless debates about the definition or appropriateness of cancel culture, I think its underlying themes are worthy of our reflection.
I’m excited about two new pieces that explore our tendency to erase. Yolanda Pierce ponders the central role of remembering in Advent—remembering both the glorious moments and the terrifying aspects we’d rather delete from the Christmas story. Jennifer Kaalund explores the ancient Roman practice of damnatio memoriae, which prefigures some of our current cancel culture and works against the sacred act of remembering in the Christian faith.
Scroll down for even more great new content, including one of my favorite essays of 2025: a reflection from McKenzie Watson-Fore about the contrast between two music artists—one who escaped from toxic evangelicalism and one who remains trapped within it. Our video of the week, with Julie Faith Parker, is a tribute to the late Phyllis Trible and her groundbreaking work in feminist biblical studies. Plus even more great content below, including a column from Brian Bantum about the ways his hearing impairment relates to Advent waiting.
Jon Mathieu Email me: How would you define “cancel culture”?
“Just as the Roman elite made efforts to systematize the erasure of an unwanted past—to create the illusion of a pure one—so the legislatures across our country are attempting to do the same.”
“It was probably just a coincidence that I was singing a Newsboys song with Flamy Grant on the night I would learn about Michael Tait’s misdeeds. But I think there is something important in the contrast between these two artists.”
“Maybe in this Advent season waiting isn’t hoping for the end of this terror but attending to the moment when God asks us to join our voice and our life—in all their limitations—to create a little beauty.”
