This article was originally published in the Journal of Christian Legal Thought, Volume 14, Issue 1 (2024). It is republished here with permission from the original publisher. Christians from many different theological streams share a conviction that our faith ought to have something to say about social-political issues. At the same time, Christians rightly perceive that our influence in the broader culture is waning. Fewer people call themselves Christians in America than ever before, while expressive individualism and its associated harms are culturally ascendant. Common good constitutionalism is one prescription for this diagnosis, a call to abandon positivism and viewpoint […]

On July 19, 2024, the Religious Liberty in the States (RLS) project released its third annual report measuring how well the 50 states protect crucial dimensions of individual and institutional religious freedom. In what will likely be a surprise to many, the report ranks the state of Illinois as most protective (Florida and Montana are next) and West Virginia as the least (Alaska and California are nearly as deficient). That counterintuitive ranking, if nothing else, should encourage advocates, citizens, policymakers, and reporters to visit the project website for the downloadable brief 2024 report and the extensive web-based resources detailing the […]

Charitable giving in 2023 reached a new high in total dollars but declined in actual value when adjusted for inflation, according to Giving USA. Giving by individuals increased less than giving by foundations or corporations, or through bequests, and giving to religious organizations notably decreased. Forty years ago, 58% of all donations went to congregations and other religious organizations; by 2022 that share was down to 29%. One reason for declining individual donations is the 2017 tax law’s weakening of the tax incentive for giving. That negative factor ought to be reversed in any tax reform package adopted by Congress […]

Welcome to the Academics Corner! CPJ’s ongoing series sharing the good work that Christian academics are doing to promote public justice from their research to the lecture hall.  EC: How were you initially connected to CPJ?  JJ: I was connected to CPJ in 2013. I had just started my PhD. at Fuller Seminary and got to know Gideon Strauss, who was a former executive director [of CPJ] through our shared neo-Calvinist circle. He had a great fondness for CPJ and introduced me to it.  That year, CPJ was doing one of their annual lectures out in California, so I was […]

The best way to fight incarceration and recidivism is to keep people — especially students — out of carceral systems to begin with. We should not be unnecessarily policing schools and creating environments that are preparing kids for incarceration.

According to the Department of Justice, a healthy juvenile justice system “…enhances public safety, ensures that youth are held appropriately accountable to both crime victims and communities, and empowers youth to live productive, law-abiding lives.” The U.S. justice system for youth has failed to do all these things. Its high recidivism rates leave public safety more tenuous and perpetuates the expansion and inefficient funding of a failing system. Its focus on surveillance, punishment, and force rather than positive youth development and needs-based care is not “appropriate accountability.” Finally, the system as a whole, via its stunting effects on youths’ education […]