iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 06/10/2026

Not just them: Hamilton is one of 8* pastors, former pastors and seminarians running for Congress as Dems this year — 6 in tight races or likely to win. Hamilton and Haynes are both megapastors. Garriott and James are ordained clergy. (Talarico hasn't finished his MDiv, nor is he ordained.)

Candidate District/State Religious ID Party
James Talarico (seminarian) Texas PC(USA) Dem
Rev. Sarah Trone Garriott IA-3 ELCA Dem
Rev. Lindsay James IA-2 PC(USA) Dem
Rev. Freddie Haynes III TX-30 PNBC Dem
Pastor Robb Ryerse AR-3 Progressive evangelical (Source: us) Dem
Rev. Adam Hamilton Kansas UMC Dem
Rev. Emanuel Cleaver MO-5 UMC Dem
(Former Rev.) Anna Golladay TN-3 UMC Dem

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 06/10/2026

We basically don't have any broadly-respected polls of the South Carolina Senate race, but the polls we do have (with one exception) suggest a race that could be…weirdly close for South Carolina? South Carolina last elected a Democratic senator in 1998. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Polls conducted in the last month showing Graham, the Republican, leading by 1 or 2 points in South Carolina.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 03/10/2026

Also buried in here: Dems appear to be winning the character race across the board in this poll.

Asked whether the Texas U.S. Senate candidates have “good character,” 55% say Talarico, and 32% say Paxton.

Asked whether the Kansas U.S. Senate candidates have “good character,” 44% say Hamilton, and 42% say Paxton.

Asked whether the Ohio U.S. Senate candidates have “good character,” 49% say Brown, and 40% say Husted.

Asked whether the Alaska U.S. Senate candidates have “good character,” 48% say Peltola, and 32% say Sullivan.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 03/10/2026

Note: The KS polling is a win for Dems no matter what, because (as AP reported yesterday) the GOP is being forced to burn money in a state that hasn't had a Dem senator in nearly a century. A Hamilton win remains unlikely, historically speaking, but: this is WILD. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/u...

Polling results from Senate races the latest NY Times/Siena poll. Dems trial by a point in Iowa, but lead in Texas, Alaska, and Ohio. And most striking of all: Dems are tied with the GOP in Kansas.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/09/2026

There were, in fact, many young families and kids when we were there. However:

Yet Hamilton is also an exemplar for mainline Protestantism, a Christian subcategory that includes the UMC, as well as other
denominations, such as the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. The tradition's members skew older, a demographic shift that appeared to extend to Hamilton's church: When thousands rose to their feet for the passing of the peace during Hamilton's return, the prevailing hair color in the room was gray.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/09/2026

More importantly, Hamilton has garnered good will across the state. When Vice President Vance attacked him recently, a Kansas UMC bishop and *120 UMC pastors* in the state (which actually include more bishops) penned a letter in his defense. Even the pastor of Hamilton’s opponent said nice things.

But the attacks have also revealed the positive reputation Hamilton has forged among his co-religionists. Last week, David Wilson, the United Methodist bishop who oversees Hamilton's regional conference, published a statement dismissing attacks on Hamilton by Vance and Marshall as "inaccurate and unwarranted," describing them as an "invective against the church, of which Adam is the founding pastor."

"The language used, in effect, criticizes fellow Christians merely for living up to what Jesus taught in the Gospel texts," wrote Wilson, who oversees the Great Plains Annual Conference.
A few days later, 120 UMC pastors from across the state signed a public letter to Marshall, urging the senator and the Vice President to tone down the rhetoric.
"When you attack Adam's pastoral ministry, his home congregation, and our denomination as a whole, you sow seeds of division and dissent," read the letter. "You tear at the fabric that is the body of Christ."
And when Marshall derided Hamilton in August as a "megachurch pastor that's too woke for Kansas," Hamilton's campaign quickly noted that the pastor of Marshall's own nondenominational church has publicly referred to Hamilton as a "middle-of-the-road pastor who is willing to listen to all sides."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/09/2026

Now, will all those people vote for him? We talked to a bunch of people going into his church, and almost all said they plan to back him. One man said he wouldn’t, but praised his pastor all the same. And he voiced frustration with attack ads against targeting Hamilton.

And the one Resurrection worshipper who said they did not support Hamilton's Senate bid signaled discomfort with attacks directed at the pastor. David Izzard, who has attended Resurrection for 13 years, said he does not plan to vote for Hamilton in November because the Democratic Party has "turned into socialism?
But the ads criticizing Hamilton, he said, are a bridge too far.
"The ads they started to run on television must be AI, because there's things he has never said," Izzard said. He added: "I don't trust any of that."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 23/09/2026

Big subtext: Hamilton is proving to be a hard target for the GOP. When Vance attacked his faith, a local UMC bishop and 120 UMC pastors issued statements defending him. When his competitor Sen. Marshall called him a pastor who is "too woke for Kansas," Marshall's *own pastor* suggested otherwise.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 23/09/2026

It would appear that Bishop Robert Barron, who has spoken at White House events and sits on Trump's religious freedom commission, has retweeted an apparently AI-created video of himself dressed as a cardinal. Note: Barron is not, in fact, a cardinal. He's the bishop of Winona–Rochester

A screenshot of a video, showing that it was retweeted by Bishop Barron. Barron, dressed in cardinal attire, stands amid a group of apparent priests. The video appears to be an AI-edited version of a music video, which does not originally feature priests or Barron.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 21/09/2026

Also, FTR: The final number of pastors, seminarians and former pastors running for Congress as Dems this cycle *after* the various primaries is now actually eight. Some are long-shots, but most are either in competitive races (or, uh, suddenly/unexpectedly competitive races?) or strong favorites.

James Talarico (seminarian) Texas PC(USA)
Rev. Sarah Trone Garriott IA-3 ELCA
Rev. Lindsay James IA-2 PC(USA)
Rev. Freddie Haynes III TX-30 PNBC
Pastor Robb Ryerse AR-3 Progressive evangelical (Source: us)
Rev. Adam Hamilton Kansas UMC
Rev. Emanuel Cleaver MO-5 UMC
(Former Rev.) Anna Golladay TN-3 UMC

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 17/09/2026

Relatedly: Today Rev. Susie Hayward, a UCC minister who was among the Minneapolis faith leaders who pushed back against DHS in January, testified before the state's "Truth Council" created by Gov. Walz. She called the DHS surge a "spiritual crisis," then listed all the reasons she sees it that way:

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 16/09/2026

Note: The spectrum of religious groups that have sued/are suing the Trump administration over his immigration policies is, uh, broad.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 04/09/2026

Relatedly, the Vermont state police have posted the mug shots of those arrested while protesting, which include them wearing their collars and stoles. vtstatepolice.blogspot.com/2026/09/vsp-...

Mugshots of clergy in collars and stoles.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 04/09/2026

Well I didn't know this test was gonna go and get *that* specific on me but, I mean…yes.

A map of the U.S. showing which region I mostly line up with in terms of my dialect. The Southeast and Texas are the reddest (meaning most like me), and the caption reads "you talk most like someone from South Carolina — about 57% of your answers match a typical resident."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/08/2026

Many other folks spoke but my phone overheated (see my report later), but Barber is now attempting to deliver a letter to the county executive. They’re saying she isn’t here. Activists say they sent the letter ahead of time and asked her to meet. A local pastor is now leading the group in prayer.

Barber attempts to deliver a letter, surrounded by journalists and clergy.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/08/2026

Barber says a church that doesn’t stand with immigrants “being terrorized” should “take church off the sign and put ‘club’ up instead.”

Rev. Barber standing next to a group of activists and clergy.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/08/2026

Lots of signs, and also some dancing.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/08/2026

There’s a news helicopter in the sky, and protesters are crossing traffic. One woman in a truck is constantly honking and angrily flipping people off.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 26/08/2026

I’m here in Salisbury, MD today, where Rev. William Barber is leading a protest in support of the local Haitian community. Around 10% of Salisbury is Haitian, and many are facing potential deportation after the Trump admin ended their TPS status. Joined by faith leaders, reps from Sens and the Gov

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 22/08/2026

Buried in this @cnn.com piece: in Dec 2019, Harp appears to have literally inserted Trump’s name (specially, his Twitter handle) into biblical scripture. www.cnn.com/2026/08/22/p...

Natalie Harp @NatalieJHarp
Follow
"Vindicate [@realDonaldTrump], my God, and plead [his] cause against an unfaithful nation.
Rescue [him] from those who are deceitful and wicked."
- Psalm 43:1
Donald J. Trump •
@realDonaldTrump
Can you believe that I will be impeached today by the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats, AND I DID NOTHING WRONG! A terrible Thing. Read the Transcripts.
This should never happen to another President again. Say a PRAYER!
8:25 AM - 18 Dec 2019

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 20/08/2026

UPDATE: Faith groups in this case have filed a motion to comply, arguing the Trump admin has committed "multiple egregious violations of the preliminary injunction in this case," pointing to newly released court documents describing surveillance at churches — particularly the Baptist church below.

NOTICE OF DEFENDANTS’ NON-COMPLIANCE
AND MOTION FOR ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE
AND FOR EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION
Plaintiffs write to alert the Court to recently disclosed evidence of Defendants’ multiple
egregious violations of the preliminary injunction in this case, including deploying an undercover
ICE agent into one of Plaintiffs’ protected churches to surveil and record people inside. Plaintiffs
respectfully request that the Court issue an order to show cause why Defendants should not be held
in contempt for violating the preliminary injunction. Given the blatant and repeated nature of
Defendants’ violations, the harm to fundamental rights of religion and expressive association, and
the threat of future similar violations, Plaintiffs also respectfully request the Court’s expedited
consideration of this motion. Defendants oppose the requests for an order to show cause and for
expedited consideration.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 19/08/2026

Note: One of the churches listed as surveilled by DHS belongs to 2 faith orgs suing the Trump admin. In Feb, a judge mostly barred DHS from warrantless actions on church grounds. Church leaders say they put up signs around the church citing the court order. Agents, it seems, surveilled it anyway.

A sign outside a church that reads "Federal agents not permitted on premises"

A sign that reads: "NOTICE: These Premises
are a Protected Area
Pursuant to Federal Court Order
in New England Synod v.
Department of Homeland Security,
Case No. 4:25-cv-40102-FDS

5. Pursuant to the court’s preliminary injunction order, on February 27, 2026,
plaintiffs in that case provided DHS a list of “protected areas” in and around all the
churches covered by the preliminary injunction. University Baptist Church was included
on that list of “protected areas.” See Notice, Doc. 78-1 at 160, New England Synod, et al.
v. DHS, et al., Case No. 25-cv-40102 (D. Mass., filed February 27, 2026).
6. Also pursuant to this court order, on March 11, 2026, University Baptist
prominently posted signs at all main exterior entrances to the Church stating: “These
Premises are a Protected Area Pursuant to Federal Court Order in New England Synod v.
Department of Homeland Security, Case No. 4:25-cv-40102-FDS.”
7. A true and correct copy of this signage is attached as Exhibit B to this
Declaration.
8. Exhibit 19 to Defendant Isaac Sant’s Motion for Discovery in this case
describes an undercover HSI agent conducting enforcement activities in University Baptist
Church on May 28, 2026. The signage attached as Exhibit B was posted and easily visible
at all main entrances to the Church on that date.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 17/08/2026

This is an incredible paragraph, bc it's not necessarily wrong (tho some mainliners may quibble with what "adapt" means here), but the way it's *framed* says a lot about the political subtext. Mainliners = defined by their place in the broader culture Evangelicals = defined by exclusive theology

The divergent takes on Talarico can be explained in part by differences between the mainline Protestantism he espouses and the evangelical Christianity that makes up a plurality of Christian voters in Texas.

Mainline Protestants tend to view faith as part of a pluralistic religious and social landscape that can adapt to the needs of the people it serves. Evangelicals recognize only one form of salvation — through Jesus — and the infallibility of the literal text of the Bible.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 16/08/2026

One of the many manifestations of the ongoing “techlash”: Kobo has apparently expanded its market share in the U.S., doubling its sales as it pulls folks away from Amazon’s Kindle. They attribute that at least partly to politics associated with Amazon. www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...

Finally, politics, Tamblyn believes, is playing a role too.
"People who have been, I think, much more conscious about what kinds of companies they're supporting in the context of the current landscape, prompting them to leave big tech ecosystems and look for alternatives," he says.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 10/08/2026

1. Mitchell’s rhetoric here continues a fascinating trend of GOP attacking the faith of clergy running as Dems (see next skeet). 2. Curious reference choice: Veggie Tales co-creator Phil Vischer is a vocal critic of aspects of evangelicalism and conservative detractors have called him “woke.”

Joe Mitchell, quote-tweeting a post from Iowa state rep and IA-2 candidate Lindsay James, who is also an ordained Presbyterian minister, commenting on Mitchell's insistence that she is a "pastor in name only":

"My niece and nephews who watch VeggieTales know far more about Christianity than you do!"

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 09/08/2026

Mace really seems to have, uh, shifted her public rhetoric since 2022, when I asked her about Christian nationalism and she championed the separation of church and state. In fact, she was one of only two Republicans I reached out to who commented on the subject. religionnews.com/2022/08/12/a...

Mace, who attends services at Sea Coast Church in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, also attributed the principle to the founders of the federal government.
"The Republican Party has room for anyone that believes in the fundamental principles of limited government, federalism, and keeping taxes low for all Americans," read her statement.
"Our founders designed a nation that explicitly maintains the separation of Church and State, something which should continue to be a guiding principle of our Republic."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 27/07/2026

Wild to see folks re-litigate the fundamentalist-modernist controversy of the early 20th century. Rejecting inerrancy has been a common dividing line between mainline Christians (which includes KS senate Dem candidate Rev. Hamilton, who is UMC) and evangelicals/fundamentalists for roughly a century

Adam Hamilton, the frontrunner for Kansas's Democrat Senate primary, is a Methodist pastor who believes the Bible is full of errors. In this 2022 sermon, his top example is: Luke & Matthew give different locations for Jesus's ascension.

[Matthew doesn't record the Ascension]

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 27/07/2026

This is what I'm talking about when I say pushback to Big Tech and AI be found on virtually all ends of the political — and theological — spectrum. Per this report, the guy you see below (that's his porch) compares the sound of a data center to literal torture. www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wDr...

Man stands on his porch in front of a banner celebrating America's 250th anniversary, with a Christian cross at the center.

Same man discussing the sound of said data center.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 25/07/2026

Golly gosh this sure has been a pleasant day I wonder how the rest of the world is doing— :: scrolls through @apnews.com front page :: …oh.

AP
LIVE
Iran war
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Trump tariffs
France and Spain wildfires
War powers vote Why Hormuz matters
LeB
Saudi Arabia strikes the port city of Hodeida in Yemen, coalition says
MORE COVERAGE
US gradually expands the scope of its attacks on Iran Stocks waver on Wall Street while crude oil prices fall for the first time in a week

AP
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France and Spain wildfires
More than 200,000 people flee raging wildfires in France and Spain, some escaping by boat
Dozens of firefighters were injured, authorities said in France, but no deaths were reported in either country.
LeB
MEASLES CLINIC
There are already more US
measles cases this year than in all of 2025

There are already more US
measles cases this year than in all of 2025
MORE COVERAGE
• Outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite linked to 4
more states
Salmonella outbreak tied to eggs has sickened 98 people since November

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 14/07/2026

Oh hey I do video reports now —> www.instagram.com/reel/DayTjIP...

Me reporting from Delaney Hall with a gas mask and a giant “press” helmet on because I guess that’s the kinda stuff I wear for work now.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 13/07/2026

Now chanting “evict GEO now” — referring to the private prison group that runs the facility.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 13/07/2026

Now reciting the names of people killed by ICE and family affiliations (aunt, sister, etc.) written on ribbons, and then tying those ribbons to a Delaney Hall gate.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 13/07/2026

I’m here at Delaney Hall, where a group of around 100 clergy are staging a protest at the detention facility, decrying what they allege are inhumane conditions endured by detainees.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 10/07/2026

Yeeeeeeeaaah I'm not quite sure the new statement matches the original one.

In one of his first interviews since the decision, McElroy told Catholic News Service it should not be interpreted as a judgment on unidentified flying objects or extraterrestrial life, but in what he sees as the proper role of an exorcist within the Catholic Church.

"It wasn't touching on the question of UFOs," the cardinal said in an interview June 29 at the Pontifical North American College. "My major objection is that I think the traditional role of an exorcist is a very private one. It's a sacred one."

Rossetti has built one of the largest online followings among Catholic exorcists through the St. Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal, with more than 146,000 followers on YouTube, as well as tens of thousands more on his personal Instagram, where he regularly discusses exorcism, spiritual warfare and demonic activity.

In May, Rossetti posted online that "probably many, if not most, UFO sightings are in fact demons," drawing widespread attention as public interest in unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAP — the government's official term for what are commonly called UFOs — has increased in recent years.

On June 3, McElroy said in a press release that "statements made by Msgr. Rossetti linking UFOs to demonic presence and the Center's recent use of social media gravely undermine the Church's very precise teaching on the devil, demons and exorcism."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 07/07/2026

Unexpected detail in here: One of the potential candidates to replace Platner is the Maine Beer Company guy (mis-IDed here as Maine Brewing Company), who briefly launched his own senate campaign before dropping out to endorse Platner's opponent. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

And Dan Kleban, who ran for Senate but withdrew last year, is also considering vying for the job, said a person close to the Maine Brewing Company owner, who argued that his lack of a relationship with Platner was a positive in his possible bid.

“He never endorsed him,” the person said of Kleban’s relationship with Platner. “He never even liked the guy.”

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 06/07/2026

I'd missed this, and it's true! Cited by Mamdani and Roberts in the span of a week! No matter how you feel about Thomas Paine, dude absolutely refuses to be irrelevant. Also: there's rising belief that Paine was involved in the Declaration —> thomaspaine.org/the-sherman-...

In a Nation of immigrants—an “asylum for mankind,” in
Thomas Paine’s words—jus soli’s broad scope took on particular importance. Common Sense (1776), in 1 Writings of
Thomas Paine 101 (M. Conway ed. 1894). The young Republic attracted tens of thousands of émigrés from the Old
World—Scotch-Irish, French, German, Welsh, and many
more, some of whom hoped to stay only a short time, others
of whom hoped never to leave. See M. Jones, American Immigration 64–91 (1960). No matter their intentions,

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 04/07/2026

Just watched a guy fishing on the beach send a drone out to drop his line instead of, you know, casting it. Y’all.

Image of Dr. Manhattan from the comic The Watchman.

He is seated on Mars, alone, under the caption: “I am tired of Earth. These people. I am tired of being caught in the tangle of their lives.”

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 03/07/2026

Pope Leo, in a letter to the U.S. on its 250th anniversary, makes a point to champion welcoming immigrants, arguing doing so is part of the Catholic Church’s larger concern for life. Full letter here: www.usccb.org/resources/48...

Defending human life also includes welcoming, protecting and assisting immigrants, whose hopes, sacrifices and contribution have formed part of the history of this country from its very beginning. In every generation, those who have arrived seeking freedom, opportunity and a place to belong have helped to shape the nation's character. To receive them with compassion and generosity is not only an act of charity, but also a recognition of the dignity that belongs to every human person.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 01/07/2026

Also in here: Back in March, GOP Rep. Michael Cloud brandished a Bible during a congressional hearing about DHS operations in Minnesota and admonished a Methodist pastor for referring to Matthew 25. Cloud didn't provide the pastor an opportunity for a full response — but she sent me one.

Another example of Republican politicians challenging faith leaders on their interpretations of Matthew 25 came up in March. At a congressional hearing on the Department of Homeland Security’s Minnesota deportation efforts, the Rev. Mariah Tollgaard, a United Methodist minister in St. Paul, read a statement criticizing the president’s immigration policies and mentioned Matthew 25. In response, GOP Rep. Michael Cloud, a former communications director at an evangelical megachurch, brandished a Bible and argued that “Christ didn’t say” to “lobby your government,” that taxes are coercive and Christian “charity” is ultimately voluntary.

Cloud’s office didn’t respond to questions about his remarks, but Tollgaard, denied time to respond in the hearing, told RNS by email that the congressman’s framing “flattens” Scripture.

“In the Bible, God’s people are instructed to build structures of shared responsibility — laws about gleaning, Jubilee debt release, and care for the stranger — that are not optional but are understood as expressions of covenant love, what we might today call the common good,” she wrote. “And even if one wanted to argue that caring for those in need should be the work of individuals, in a representative democracy our government is precisely the means by which people, acting together, shoulder that responsibility.”

Tollgaard added: “Matthew 25 is not a bootstraps story about self‑optimization; it is Jesus’ stark reminder that God’s judgment is revealed in how a community treats those who are hungry, sick, strangers, or imprisoned.”

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 30/06/2026

Fact check: Vought has, in fact, repeatedly expressed support for Christian nationalism by name. He has been very public about that. religionnews.com/2025/06/23/o...

Christian nationalism was incorporated into his rationale for decimating the federal government. In 2022, he tweeted, “… if the question is whether Christian Nationalism beats secular globalism & whether a woke/weaponized administrative state needs to be deconstructed … the answer is emphatically yes.”

He grew bolder about promoting Christian nationalism in public appearances and behind closed doors. In a hidden-camera footage recorded by the Centre for Climate Reporting, a British nonprofit, Vought told two men posing as relatives of a wealthy conservative donor that he believes in “Christian nation-ism” and wants to “rehabilitate Christian nationalism.”

Vought is also close to William Wolfe, a promoter of Wilson’s thought. A former mid-level Trump administration official and Heritage Action staffer, Wolfe has referred to Vought as his “political mentor.” In since-deleted tweets from 2022, Wolfe said Christian nationalism is the only option to combat liberalism, posting, “You can be a Christian nationalist, or a Rainbow Flag nationalist” before adding, “Choose wisely.”

Today Wolfe heads the Center for Baptist Leadership, a project of the American Reformer, a conservative Christian outlet that has published pieces by Vought. Vought, meanwhile, boosts Wolfe’s work on social media often and has said he is “proud” to work with Wolfe “on scoping out a sound Christian Nationalism.”

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 28/06/2026

Here's him telling the story, which is also referenced often by Russell Vought (as noted above) and is popular with many associated with Christian nationalism (a descriptor Johnson himself rejects).

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 28/06/2026

At the Faith and Freedom gathering yesterday, Speaker Johnson told a story that concluded w/John Quincy Adams saying, "Duty is ours, results are God's." But I spoke w/historians who oversee the Adams family papers. They…couldn’t find evidence of Adams saying that. religionnews.com/2025/06/23/o...

Around this time Vought was often heard using the phrase “Duty is ours; results are God’s,” an axiom quoted by Christian nationalist leaders affiliated with groups such as Wallbuilders, the organization run by activist David Barton. Vought attributed it to “the Founders” and President John Quincy Adams but, like other dictums embraced by Christian nationalists, the sourcing is dubious: Researchers at the Massachusetts Historical Society, which holds Adams family papers, told RNS they couldn’t find any instance of Adams using the phrase.

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 23/06/2026

Curious how/if this matches what Nancy Mace told me in a statement in August 2022, when I asked her about Christian nationalism. Her expressed views at the time seem…distinct from what she's articulating now. religionnews.com/2022/08/12/a...

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 18/06/2026

Speaking at the unveiling of Former President Barack Obama's new center just now, former First Lady Michelle Obama argues that refusing to respect people who "aren't exactly like us" as Americans flies in the face of the American founding and the religious belief that "each of us is a child of God."

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 18/06/2026

Leading prayers right now at the unveiling of former President Barack Obama's new presidential center are Pastor Joel Hunter, who offered the 2008 DNC benediction, and Joshua DuBois, who oversaw faith outreach during his 08 campaign and ran his the WH faith-related office* during his administration.

Pastor Joel Hunter prays at a podium that reads "Obama Presidential Center"

Joshua DuBois prays at a podium that reads "Obama Presidential Center"

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 16/06/2026

That said, DeWine *was* asked about whether his faith played a role in his decision to come out against the death penalty during this press conference. This was his response:

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 15/06/2026

Surprising interpretation from Vance here, given Francis had recently sent a letter to US bishops seen as rebuking Vance's religious justification for Trump's immigration policies. Nor sure why he tries to distinguish between the pope and Vatican diplomats. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Vance adds he was “struck that one of the few institutions with the moral authority and global perspective to address the migration question seemed so afraid of saying something controversial that it chose, effectively, to say nothing at all.”

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