The Convocation Unscripted

In this week's episode of TCU, we talk about Trump's participation in a public reading of the Bible, sponsored by a white evangelical group, where he read II Chronicles 7:14, a favorite of Christian nationalists. We also talk about the continued platforming of self-described Christian nationalist, "paleo-Confederate" pastor Doug Wilson not only by the likes of Pete Hegseth but by more mainstream outlets in the evangelical world. But we also review his recent dressing down by Wajahat Ali on the Piers Morgan show. Finally, we talk about the ways local churches are banding together to advocate for and serve immigrants who have been wrongfully detained by ICE.

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Robert P. Jones- www.whitetoolong.net
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Kristin Du Mez- kristindumez.substack.com
Jemar Tisby- JemarTisby.Substack.com

On parallel channels over the last two weeks, we’ve witnessed Hegseth’s dangerous holy war rants, Vance’s arrogant lecturing Pope Leo XIV on Catholic theology, and Trump’s direct attacks on the pope, followed by an unhinged promotion of an AI image of himself as Jesus. Just typical post-Easter weeks in the MAGA era. In this week's Convocation Unscripted, we were joined LIVE by nearly 300 in TCU community. Tune in to hear a rich conversation based on your questions.

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Kristin Du Mez- kristindumez.substack.com
Jemar Tisby- JemarTisby.Substack.com

On this episode, the Convocation team talks about the large new survey by that demonstrates that most Americans want a more humane approach to immigration policy and do not support indiscriminate mass deportation, the construction of concentration camps on U.S. soil, and the increasingly aggressive and violent tactics of ICE. Jemar gives a preview of his new short documentary, “Jesus Was a Migrant.” For the film, he traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border to examine the theological crisis at the heart of American Christianity — and what it means when a nation built on faith turns its back on the most vulnerable. We wrap with theological reflections about the abandonment of any pretense of trying to make government humane by this administration in both domestic and foreign policy.

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Diana Butler Bass- dianabutlerbass.substack.com
Kristin Du Mez- kristindumez.substack.com
Jemar Tisby- JemarTisby.Substack.com

On this episode we talk about the recent bombshell story from the New York Times, “Cesar Chavez, a Civil Rights Icon, Is Accused of Abusing Girls for Years.” We note that these stories of men abusing women and children cut across ideology and reflect a broader brokenness in our culture. But we note that one thing that matters always: how institutions react when these kinds of credible, corroborated allegations come to light. Do they take them seriously or protect the powerful men at the top. We also talk about the new Varieties of Democracy (full V-Dem report here) that shows the massive decline in the United States as a liberal democracy over the past year under the Trump administration, which has by these metrics wiped out 60 years of democratic progress. Finally, we talk about the Republican push to pass the so-called SAVE Act, whose draconian voter identification measures would dramatically restrict the ability especially of women to vote.

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The Convocation- convocation.substack.com
Robert P. Jones- www.whitetoolong.net
Diana Butler Bass- dianabutlerbass.substack.com
Kristin Du Mez- kristindumez.substack.com
Jemar Tisby- JemarTisby.Substack.com

This week, we open the conversation with reflections on the challenges of living daily life amid the onslaught of horrific news, so often these days instigated by our own government. We reflect on normalcy—focusing on daily tasks of caring for family, tending friendships, and connecting with local community—as a mode of resistance. We then turn to address the war in Iran, particularly how Pete Hegseth and the Trump administration are glorifying domination and violence itself through their rhetoric and recent propaganda videos officially released by the White House. And we discuss the administration's utter lack of moral justification for the war, including how Trump has failed virtually all criteria from the just war theory tradition in Christian ethics—as two prominent American Catholic cardinals pointed out this week.

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The Convocation- convocation.substack.com
Robert P. Jones- www.whitetoolong.net
Diana Butler Bass- dianabutlerbass.substack.com
Kristin Du Mez- kristindumez.substack.com
Jemar Tisby- JemarTisby.Substack.com