H - PEOPLE FILES
- Ted Haggard - Graylan Hagler - Contanze Hagmaier - Leslie A Hahner - Malynda Hale - JD Hall - Joseph Hall - Mark David Hall - Nick Hall - Kevin Halloran - Jen Hamilton - Laura Hammans - John Hammer - Cally Hammond -
==ted haggard====== |
Ted Arthur Haggard is an American evangelical pastor. Haggard is the founder and former pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado and is a founder of the Association of Life-Giving Churches. He served as president of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) from 2003 until November 2006. Ted Haggard was born on June 27, 1956 in Delphi, Indiana, USA. He has been married to Gayle Haggard since 1978. They have five children.
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New Life Church Elders Are Worthy Of Praise In September of 2018, a book I wrote called “The Mystery of 23: God Speaks” was published and released to the public. It chronicles my experiences with Ted Haggard and the New Life Presbytery led by Pastor Larry Stockstill from Bethany Church in Baton Rouge, LA. In February of 2001 I received a prophetic vision of Pastor Ted. In October of 2001 I met with the New Life Presbytery to share that word. It was dismissed and during that meeting my repentance was called for. I went into a wilderness of confusion.In November of 2006 the truth came out with Pastor Ted fell publicly. I went into a dark season asking the Lord why He would have me carry such burdens only to see them seemingly make no difference in the outcome of Pastor Ted’s life and ministry. Matter a fact, the cost was beyond measure in my own life personally with little to show for it with Pastor’s Ted spiritual 9/11 occurred. (Pastor Kelly 8/23/25) READMORE>>>>> |
July 26, 2022: Religion News Reported: Former Colorado megachurch pastor Ted Haggard, who fell from grace in 2006 after a gay sex-and-drug scandal, is now facing some of the same allegations at another church. Haggard, 66, is being accused of using methamphetamine and behaving inappropriately with young men at St. James Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, a church he founded in 2010, The Denver Gazette reported. |
January 10, 2023: Religion & Politics: Bad Preachers’ Wives
By the 2000s, the conservative evangelical stance on homosexuality had cemented itself in a series of denouncements, prohibitions, and therapeutic treatments. God wanted everyone to be straight; some just had to work a bit harder at it. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE), knew this intimately. Haggard was the charismatic founder and pastor of the 14,000-member New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was friendly with the anti-gay Focus on the Family leader James Dobson and served as an occasional advisor to George W. Bush’s White House. In 2006, as marriage equality was being debated in state and federal courts, Haggard endorsed Colorado’s proposed ban on same-sex marriage. When sex worker Mike Jones learned about his long-time client’s true identity and political activism, he rushed to the press with the explosive details of Haggard’s double life.
By the 2000s, the conservative evangelical stance on homosexuality had cemented itself in a series of denouncements, prohibitions, and therapeutic treatments. God wanted everyone to be straight; some just had to work a bit harder at it. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE), knew this intimately. Haggard was the charismatic founder and pastor of the 14,000-member New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was friendly with the anti-gay Focus on the Family leader James Dobson and served as an occasional advisor to George W. Bush’s White House. In 2006, as marriage equality was being debated in state and federal courts, Haggard endorsed Colorado’s proposed ban on same-sex marriage. When sex worker Mike Jones learned about his long-time client’s true identity and political activism, he rushed to the press with the explosive details of Haggard’s double life.
==graylan hagler======
Rev. Graylan Scott Hagler is a prominent pastor emeritus and a decades-long activist focused on racial and economic justice, both in local Washington D.C. communities and on a national and global scale. Hagler served for three decades as the Senior Minister at the Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C., until his retirement in 2022. He is a senior advisor with the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR-USA), where he inspires work on racial and economic justice. Hagler is the founder and director of Faith Strategies USA, an organization dedicated to organizing and advocating for issues of importance to marginalized communities.
He co-chairs the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Poor People's Campaign and the Black Homeownership Strike Task Force. Hagler has been involved in political ministry and organizing for over 40 years. His work includes:
Community Organizing: He has a long history of local activism, including fighting against an Exxon "super gas station" in his church's neighborhood, which he successfully transformed into 69 units of subsidized housing for the elderly. He has also worked to fight predatory businesses, such as keeping liquor stores off every corner and advocating for public examination of corporate property tax records. He has spoken out on a range of issues, including race relations, terrorism, the Iraq War, and the D.C. Control Board. Hagler is an outspoken supporter of Palestinian human rights and a critic of U.S. foreign policy, leading a clergy witness trip to the West Bank in 2015. His activism on this issue has sometimes drawn controversy and even death threats.
Author and Speaker: He is a frequent author and commentator on social justice and political issues for various news outlets, including Common Dreams, The Real News Network, and Mondoweiss. He has appeared numerous times on C-SPAN. Hagler received his education from Hampton Institute (University), Oberlin College, and the Chicago Theological Seminary. He was born on March 1, 1954
He co-chairs the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Poor People's Campaign and the Black Homeownership Strike Task Force. Hagler has been involved in political ministry and organizing for over 40 years. His work includes:
Community Organizing: He has a long history of local activism, including fighting against an Exxon "super gas station" in his church's neighborhood, which he successfully transformed into 69 units of subsidized housing for the elderly. He has also worked to fight predatory businesses, such as keeping liquor stores off every corner and advocating for public examination of corporate property tax records. He has spoken out on a range of issues, including race relations, terrorism, the Iraq War, and the D.C. Control Board. Hagler is an outspoken supporter of Palestinian human rights and a critic of U.S. foreign policy, leading a clergy witness trip to the West Bank in 2015. His activism on this issue has sometimes drawn controversy and even death threats.
Author and Speaker: He is a frequent author and commentator on social justice and political issues for various news outlets, including Common Dreams, The Real News Network, and Mondoweiss. He has appeared numerous times on C-SPAN. Hagler received his education from Hampton Institute (University), Oberlin College, and the Chicago Theological Seminary. He was born on March 1, 1954
'Keep off our property' | DC area Christian leaders ask ICE to stop parking in church lots
Rev. Graylan Hagler, a senior advisor to Fellowship of Reconciliation-USA, said he began hearing reports from fellow clergy about as soon as President Donald Trump announced his plan, earlier this month, to add federal oversight to Metropolitan Police Department leadership and surge federal troops into the District. Fears, the lead pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church, said ICE's staging has forced clergy to rework charity events, such as food distributions, because some community members were afraid to show up. "We've had to set up systems where we give out food other ways," Fears told WUSA9, while leaving out the specifics. "I don't want to expose what we're doing." (WUSA9 8/23/25) READMORE>>>>>
Rev. Graylan Hagler, a senior advisor to Fellowship of Reconciliation-USA, said he began hearing reports from fellow clergy about as soon as President Donald Trump announced his plan, earlier this month, to add federal oversight to Metropolitan Police Department leadership and surge federal troops into the District. Fears, the lead pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church, said ICE's staging has forced clergy to rework charity events, such as food distributions, because some community members were afraid to show up. "We've had to set up systems where we give out food other ways," Fears told WUSA9, while leaving out the specifics. "I don't want to expose what we're doing." (WUSA9 8/23/25) READMORE>>>>>
==constanze hagmaier====== |
The Reverend Constanze Hagmaier was elected to the Office of Bishop on Saturday, June 1, 2019 at the South Dakota Synod Assembly. Bishop Constanze Hagmaier is married to The Rev. Dirk Hagmaier and they have two biological children: Paul, 20; Emma, 4; and one foster son, Lymann, 21. Bishop Hagmaier had most recently been serving as the administrative pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Madison, SD with her husband, Rev. Dirk Hagmaier
How some South Dakota churches are adapting to attendance declines
Falling attendance and membership at many South Dakota churches has prompted pastors, leaders and elders to look for creative ways to keep people engaged and pursuing a larger purpose. Constanze Hagmaier, bishop of the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, said that includes using technology to allow for remote attendance and encouraging lay church members to take a more active role in spreading the gospel outside the walls of the church. (Bart Pfankuch/Sioux Falls Argus Leader 4/8/23)
Read More>>>>>
Falling attendance and membership at many South Dakota churches has prompted pastors, leaders and elders to look for creative ways to keep people engaged and pursuing a larger purpose. Constanze Hagmaier, bishop of the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, said that includes using technology to allow for remote attendance and encouraging lay church members to take a more active role in spreading the gospel outside the walls of the church. (Bart Pfankuch/Sioux Falls Argus Leader 4/8/23)
Read More>>>>>
Constanze Hagemaier
“Oftentimes, when we look at civic resources and civic engagements, it’s all about what can I do. It’s all about me, me, me, me, me and how we need to save ourselves. And if we can’t do that, we get frustrated and all these things bubble up and we start pointing fingers and conflict arises. But the church, ideally speaking, has this other voice, this countercultural voice, where if we take ourselves out of the picture and put God at the center, and that’s part of our message, then we can take our own differences away and look at life from a different lens, and work for communal good.....If we still think we live in the times that we lived in when our forefathers founded the land and the church, and these young people have all the pressing issues that we are not able to talk about, then they won’t be interested. If the church is not relevant in their lives, they won’t participate in church or be part of a church. They’re very selective in how they engage. The church has a clear and profound message at which the true God is at the center and from there we reach out to offer an alternative way of life. But if the church loses the focus we become fear driven and operate from a preservative mindset....If we believe that in everything God’s at the heart of things we are free to engage in our culture and offer an alternative.”
-Constanze Hagameir 4/8/23
-Constanze Hagameir 4/8/23
July 19, 2022: Aberdeen News: Churches in South Dakota, nationwide dealing with lower attendance, affiliation numbers“As the world keeps turning and changing around us, we expect the church to always be the same … well, nowhere in Scripture does it say the church will be the same,” said Constanze Hagmaier, bishop of the ELCA South Dakota Synod. "If we can’t hear the voices that are out there and respond with faith, then we’re emptying the church on our own; we’re just helping them pack and go out the door because we refuse to open ourselves up to actually listen.”
Changing and adapting is critical in reaching and attracting the next generation of Americans and South Dakotans, who look at the world and institutions with a more critical eye and demand more payback for the time and energy they invest, she said
Changing and adapting is critical in reaching and attracting the next generation of Americans and South Dakotans, who look at the world and institutions with a more critical eye and demand more payback for the time and energy they invest, she said
Oct 29, 2021: South Dakota Public Broadcasting: Bishop to Bishop: A conversation with ELCA Bishops Constanze Hagmaier and Megan Rohrer
This interview is from SDPB's daily public-affairs show, In the Moment, hosted by Lori Walsh.
This interview is from SDPB's daily public-affairs show, In the Moment, hosted by Lori Walsh.
May 4, 2021: Capital Journal: Madison pastor, German native, elected bishop of SD synod of ELCA; succeeds former Pierre pastor
The Rev. Constanze Hagmaier was elected bishop of the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on Saturday, June 1, in Sioux Falls, to succeed Bishop David Zellmer, who was a pastor in Pierre from 1993-2007.
The Rev. Constanze Hagmaier was elected bishop of the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on Saturday, June 1, in Sioux Falls, to succeed Bishop David Zellmer, who was a pastor in Pierre from 1993-2007.
===leslie a hahner======
Leslie A Hahner
“Christian Nationalism,” she explained, “is a set of ideological beliefs expressed by [some] white, evangelical Christians. Their beliefs champion the U.S. as a Christian nation, as one that is ordained by God. It’s often connected to, if not an outright embodiment of, ideologies of white supremacy.........Christian Dominionism is a set of beliefs and practices [that] often manifest through a smaller sect of white, evangelical Christians and some sections of Catholicism.” According to Hahner, followers of Christian Dominionism, many of whom are supporters of former Pres. Trump, believe that “God gave [them] the [United States]…and that God’s battle with Satan is currently playing out in the arena of politics and elsewhere.” In that way, she says, “Dominionism suggests that white supremacy manifests through God’s hand.” -Leslie A Hahner; 2.14.21
==malynda hale======
‘Vertical Morality’ Might Describe Why MAGA Christians Seem So Unchristian
“I think both are important in the Christian faith, but a lot of people today get hung up on the vertical as a priority and forget about the horizontal altogether,” said Malynda Hale, an advocate and executive director of The New Evangelicals, a nonprofit focused on promoting inclusivity, justice and compassion in Christianity. “In Matthew 25, Jesus describes people who fed and clothed those in need, who welcomed the stranger, who took care of the sick and visited those in prison,” she noted. “He then says, ‘What you did for the least of these, you did for me.’ He equates loving our neighbors (horizontal morality) with loving Christ (vertical morality).”
(HuffPost 11/15/25) READMORE>>>>
“I think both are important in the Christian faith, but a lot of people today get hung up on the vertical as a priority and forget about the horizontal altogether,” said Malynda Hale, an advocate and executive director of The New Evangelicals, a nonprofit focused on promoting inclusivity, justice and compassion in Christianity. “In Matthew 25, Jesus describes people who fed and clothed those in need, who welcomed the stranger, who took care of the sick and visited those in prison,” she noted. “He then says, ‘What you did for the least of these, you did for me.’ He equates loving our neighbors (horizontal morality) with loving Christ (vertical morality).”
(HuffPost 11/15/25) READMORE>>>>
===jd hall======
‘Being a pastor is an awful existence,’ JD Hall says a year after being removed from the pulpit
Just over a year after he was removed from ministry for abusing the prescription drug Xanax, and later accused of embezzling money from his church and physical abuse, former pastor and notorious polemics blogger, Jordan Daniel "J.D." Hall, says being a pastor is an “awful existence” and he would never want his son to follow in his footsteps. Hall, who formerly led Fellowship Baptist Church in Sidney, Montana, and was known for his scathing criticisms of Christian leaders on his polemics website Pulpit & Pen, and, more recently, Protestia, was removed from his roles with those organizations after news broke about his arrest on DUI and a weapons charge last summer. However, no alcohol was found in his system when a blood alcohol test was administered.
(Christian Post 10/26/23) READ MORE>>>>>
Just over a year after he was removed from ministry for abusing the prescription drug Xanax, and later accused of embezzling money from his church and physical abuse, former pastor and notorious polemics blogger, Jordan Daniel "J.D." Hall, says being a pastor is an “awful existence” and he would never want his son to follow in his footsteps. Hall, who formerly led Fellowship Baptist Church in Sidney, Montana, and was known for his scathing criticisms of Christian leaders on his polemics website Pulpit & Pen, and, more recently, Protestia, was removed from his roles with those organizations after news broke about his arrest on DUI and a weapons charge last summer. However, no alcohol was found in his system when a blood alcohol test was administered.
(Christian Post 10/26/23) READ MORE>>>>>
==joseph hall======
Trump campaign touts evangelical support in Iowa as faith leaders endorse him
"As a pastor in Iowa, I believe President Trump has demonstrated a profound understanding of the issues that are crucial to us," Crossroads Church Senior Pastor Joseph Hall said. More than 150 faith leaders in Iowa have thrown their support behind former President Donald Trump ahead of the state's primary contest, potentially helping him to shore up a key voting bloc in Hawkeye State.
(Ben Wedon/Just The News 11/21/23)
READ MORE>>>>>
"As a pastor in Iowa, I believe President Trump has demonstrated a profound understanding of the issues that are crucial to us," Crossroads Church Senior Pastor Joseph Hall said. More than 150 faith leaders in Iowa have thrown their support behind former President Donald Trump ahead of the state's primary contest, potentially helping him to shore up a key voting bloc in Hawkeye State.
(Ben Wedon/Just The News 11/21/23)
READ MORE>>>>>
===mark david hall======
Mark David Hall (born 22 February 1966) Mark David Hall is a Professor in Regent University's Robertson School of Government and a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy, an initiative of First Liberty Institute. Mark David Hall arrived at George Fox 2001 after receiving a BA in political science from Wheaton College and a PhD in political science from the University of Virginia. In addition to teaching politics and honors, he is director of the John Dickinson Forum for the Study of America's Founding Principles. As well, Mark is Distinguished Scholar of Christianity & Public Life at George Fox University, Associate Faculty at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University, and a Senior Fellow at Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion. In 2022-2023, he was a Garwood Visiting Fellow at Princeton University’s James Madison Program and a Visiting Scholar at the Mercatus Center.
Mark David Hall
This book…(Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land) focuses on the ways in which Christians have advanced liberty and equality in the American context. Contrary to many academics and popular authors, I show that Christians have regularly been motivated by their faith to create fair and just institutions, fight for political freedom, oppose slavery, and secure religious liberty for all. Of course, some Christians have appealed to the Bible and Christian theology to oppose such reforms or to justify evil practices. Americans of other faiths and no faith have also worked to advance liberty and equality for all. Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land cannot tell all of these stories; its more modest goal is to put to rest the myth that Christianity has been a regressive force with respect to positive political, legal, and societal reform in the United States. --Mark David Hall
Kevin Deyoung Files
Hall has written an important book full of important history and corrective scholarship. As a physical book, the quality would have been improved with a better typeface, better paper, a better cover design, and something besides running footnotes (so that the total reaches 555 for the entire book). The impressive content, though, more than makes up for the lackluster design. Although the second half of the book strays a bit from the historical question “how Christianity has advanced freedom” into present-day advocacy for religious freedom, the book as a whole is thoroughly researched and effectively argued. Hall’s work is a needed reminder that even if America never was, and is not now, “Christian” in every sense of the word, we can never fully separate—nor should we want to separate—Christianity from America. The fight for liberty, not least of all religious liberty, is ongoing and should be the concern of all Americans. And for that liberty in the first place—for all Americans—we have Christians to thank. --Kevin DeYoung; 5.24.23
===nick hall======
Nick Hall is an international evangelist and the founder of PULSE, one of the largest student-led prayer and evangelism efforts in America. He also on the Board of Directors Executive Committee of the National Association of Evangelicals, and author of the book Reset: Jesus Changes Everything.
Mar 22, 2023: Church Leaders: Nick Hall on Asbury, Gen Z and Why He Believes ‘God Is Doing Something’
“People would stand up in the middle of Asbury. They would say, ‘Hey, if you’re here, you need to repent.’ Somebody stood up and said, ‘I’m guilty of adultery and I’m stuck in my sin.’ And the whole room would say, ‘The blood of Jesus forgives you.’ And then somebody else would stand up and say, ‘I’m addicted to porn or I have hate in my heart’ or whatever—’The blood of Jesus forgives you.’”
“People would stand up in the middle of Asbury. They would say, ‘Hey, if you’re here, you need to repent.’ Somebody stood up and said, ‘I’m guilty of adultery and I’m stuck in my sin.’ And the whole room would say, ‘The blood of Jesus forgives you.’ And then somebody else would stand up and say, ‘I’m addicted to porn or I have hate in my heart’ or whatever—’The blood of Jesus forgives you.’”
Feb 28, 2023: Religion News: The Asbury revival is over. What happens now?
On Sunday (Feb. 26), Minneapolis-based evangelist Nick Hall brought an Asbury-inspired revival event to Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky, about half an hour from the Christian school’s campus.
Hall is the leader of Pulse, a ministry that aims to bring “Jesus to the next generation” by hosting big events. He attended the Asbury revival in its first week and said he was overwhelmed by what God was doing.
On Sunday (Feb. 26), Minneapolis-based evangelist Nick Hall brought an Asbury-inspired revival event to Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky, about half an hour from the Christian school’s campus.
Hall is the leader of Pulse, a ministry that aims to bring “Jesus to the next generation” by hosting big events. He attended the Asbury revival in its first week and said he was overwhelmed by what God was doing.
==nick halloran======
Kevin Halloran is Product Manager for Open the Bible and leads the Spanish-language outreach of the ministry, Abre la Biblia. Kevin loves spending time with his wife, Jazlynn, and two young daughters. In his free time, you can find him reading, writing (in English at Anchored in Christ and Spanish at Anclado en Cristo), and serving at his church. Kevin is the author of When Prayer is a Struggle: A Practical Guide for Overcoming Obstacles in Prayer (P&R) and the free video course Pray the Bible.
Kevin Halloran
How does God respond to the world rulers rebelling against him and his Christ? He doesn’t wring his hands in despair or think, What am I going to do! Verse 4 says bluntly, “He who sits in the heavens laughs” (emphasis added). God laughs because he has set his King on the throne of the universe—and his rule isn’t challenged by term limits, opposing parties, or voter fraud. He’s the eternal King with “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18). Current turmoil doesn’t surprise him. Revelation teaches us that Christ is on his throne through the famines, wars, plagues, and revolutions of history. It was the same for the first two world wars and will be the same if a third breaks out. Christ owns the ends of the earth (v. 8) and will smash the disobedient nations to pieces with a rod of iron in judgment (v. 9). Christian, don’t let raging nations or rebellious politicians suffocate your faith; they’ll one day be Jesus’s piñata as he ushers in his perfect reign on earth. Because he has a firm grasp on the steering wheel of history, we can hope in him beyond the headlines. And according to this psalm, today’s political leaders can too. --Kevin Holloran; Open The Bible
==Jen Hamilton======
People Who Left 'MAGA Christianity' Share What It Really Took To Step Away
For many Americans raised in conservative Christian environments, faith once felt like a matter of personal conviction and community — not overt political allegiance. But over the past decade, the boundary between belief and ideology has blurred. As religious leaders increasingly endorse candidates from the pulpit and worship music shares space with patriotic anthems, congregations have since fractured over public health measures, immigration, race, and the policing of cultural “morality. A viral video by nurse and content creator Jen Hamilton, in which she reads Matthew 25 alongside a critique of MAGA politics, crystallized a conversation that had been percolating for years: When faith and ideology clash, some believers choose to walk away because of their convictions — even if it costs them the communities that raised them. (Huffpost; 12.15.25)READMORE>>>>>
For many Americans raised in conservative Christian environments, faith once felt like a matter of personal conviction and community — not overt political allegiance. But over the past decade, the boundary between belief and ideology has blurred. As religious leaders increasingly endorse candidates from the pulpit and worship music shares space with patriotic anthems, congregations have since fractured over public health measures, immigration, race, and the policing of cultural “morality. A viral video by nurse and content creator Jen Hamilton, in which she reads Matthew 25 alongside a critique of MAGA politics, crystallized a conversation that had been percolating for years: When faith and ideology clash, some believers choose to walk away because of their convictions — even if it costs them the communities that raised them. (Huffpost; 12.15.25)READMORE>>>>>
This Viral Video Has People Talking About Christianity Versus 'MAGA Christianity'
Back in June, Jen Hamilton, a nurse with a sizable following on TikTok and Instagram, picked up her Bible and made a video that would quickly go viral. A few days earlier, Hamilton, who lives in a small town in North Carolina, had posted a video asking her followers about resources she could give to people in her life who were beginning to deconstruct their loyalty to the MAGA movement. There were some helpful tips, but Hamilton noticed one reply in particular: “Whoa,” it said. “Be careful now. I am happily MAGA and I love Jesus. We are exhausted from liberal nonsense.” (HuffPost 7/27/25) READMORE>>>>>
Back in June, Jen Hamilton, a nurse with a sizable following on TikTok and Instagram, picked up her Bible and made a video that would quickly go viral. A few days earlier, Hamilton, who lives in a small town in North Carolina, had posted a video asking her followers about resources she could give to people in her life who were beginning to deconstruct their loyalty to the MAGA movement. There were some helpful tips, but Hamilton noticed one reply in particular: “Whoa,” it said. “Be careful now. I am happily MAGA and I love Jesus. We are exhausted from liberal nonsense.” (HuffPost 7/27/25) READMORE>>>>>
==laura hammans======
June 18, 2019: CalMatters: How Redding, California, became an unlikely epicenter of modern Christian culture
“Redding is their test case of turning a city that is a democracy into a theocracy,” says Laura Hammans, a member of Investigating Bethel, a Facebook group with more than 1,000 members.
Hammans is one of a dozen members of the group meeting at a Redding park one afternoon. Another member, Donna Zibull, is passing out stickers that say, “Don’t drink the Kool-Aid.”
“Redding is their test case of turning a city that is a democracy into a theocracy,” says Laura Hammans, a member of Investigating Bethel, a Facebook group with more than 1,000 members.
Hammans is one of a dozen members of the group meeting at a Redding park one afternoon. Another member, Donna Zibull, is passing out stickers that say, “Don’t drink the Kool-Aid.”
==josh hammer======
At NatCon, An Effort To Make Christian Nationalism A More Inclusive Movement
During the “Bible and American Renewal” breakout session at this week’s National Conservatism Conference, Josh Hammer stood out as the lone Jewish person on the panel of otherwise conservative Christian activists: a pastor, the editor of an online Christian magazine and a self-described Christian nationalist. Yet, it was Hammer who told an audience member that “America was founded as a Christian country.” “I’ll be the first to say that,” Hammer added. “There is very little doubt in my mind about that.”
. (Julie Roys 9/6/25) READMORE>>>>>
During the “Bible and American Renewal” breakout session at this week’s National Conservatism Conference, Josh Hammer stood out as the lone Jewish person on the panel of otherwise conservative Christian activists: a pastor, the editor of an online Christian magazine and a self-described Christian nationalist. Yet, it was Hammer who told an audience member that “America was founded as a Christian country.” “I’ll be the first to say that,” Hammer added. “There is very little doubt in my mind about that.”
. (Julie Roys 9/6/25) READMORE>>>>>
==cally hammond===========
Reverend Dr Cally Hammond is the Dean of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. She is the Church Times’s Sunday’s Readings columnist.
College positions: Dean Director of Studies in Theology, Religion & Philosophy of Religion. Subjects: Classics Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion
Degrees: MA, DPhil (Oxon.) Literae Humaniores. MA (Cantab) Theology and Religious Studies. Research interests: Augustine Confessions; liturgical praxis; characterization and causation in early Christian historiography; Mariology; words. Teaching interests: Early Christian history and doctrinal development; Greek and Latin languages; Cicero, Caesar, Virgil, Augustine.
Publications: Augustine, Teaching Christianity; the Teacher (Harvard: Loeb Classical Library) forthcoming Augustine’s life of prayer, learning and love: lessons for Christian living (2019) Caesar: the Gallic War (Oxford World’s Classics 1995) Passionate Christianity: a journey to the Cross (SPCK 2007) Joyful Christianity: finding Jesus in the world (SPCK 2009) Glorious Christianity: walking by faith in the life to come (SPCK 2011) Augustine: Confessions vol. 1, 1-8 (Harvard: Loeb Classical Library 2014) vol.2, 9-13 (2015) The Sound of the Liturgy: how words work in worship (SPCK: 2015)
College positions: Dean Director of Studies in Theology, Religion & Philosophy of Religion. Subjects: Classics Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion
Degrees: MA, DPhil (Oxon.) Literae Humaniores. MA (Cantab) Theology and Religious Studies. Research interests: Augustine Confessions; liturgical praxis; characterization and causation in early Christian historiography; Mariology; words. Teaching interests: Early Christian history and doctrinal development; Greek and Latin languages; Cicero, Caesar, Virgil, Augustine.
Publications: Augustine, Teaching Christianity; the Teacher (Harvard: Loeb Classical Library) forthcoming Augustine’s life of prayer, learning and love: lessons for Christian living (2019) Caesar: the Gallic War (Oxford World’s Classics 1995) Passionate Christianity: a journey to the Cross (SPCK 2007) Joyful Christianity: finding Jesus in the world (SPCK 2009) Glorious Christianity: walking by faith in the life to come (SPCK 2011) Augustine: Confessions vol. 1, 1-8 (Harvard: Loeb Classical Library 2014) vol.2, 9-13 (2015) The Sound of the Liturgy: how words work in worship (SPCK: 2015)
Cally Hammond
In 1 Corinthians, Paul does not balance weal and woe. Instead, he sets truth against untruth. We could almost say that here is the purest distillation of the gospel; for our whole faith depends upon this one fact. If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is lies. We have even misrepresented God, and our hope is void — and not only our hope, but the hope of loved ones who have already died. If Christ has been raised, however, his resurrection is a “first fruits”. This means the first and freshest of the new harvest, which gives an indicator of the quality of what has not yet been gathered. Christ’s quality should be the guarantee of our own.
If the resurrection were a lie, or a fantasy, we would be trapped in sin, unable to escape. Then, we would deserve pity. The contrast for Paul is between a vigorous, plentiful crop full of goodness, and a failed harvest that yields nothing. Jeremiah and the psalmist both think along the same lines as Paul, although without Paul’s understanding of the resurrection. They see water and strong growth going hand in hand: those who trust in God are fruitful. --Cally Hammond; Church Times
If the resurrection were a lie, or a fantasy, we would be trapped in sin, unable to escape. Then, we would deserve pity. The contrast for Paul is between a vigorous, plentiful crop full of goodness, and a failed harvest that yields nothing. Jeremiah and the psalmist both think along the same lines as Paul, although without Paul’s understanding of the resurrection. They see water and strong growth going hand in hand: those who trust in God are fruitful. --Cally Hammond; Church Times
