@publicroad

National correspondent at The New York Times covering religion, faith and values. No relation. [email protected]

 Dallas, TX
Joined July 2009
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Some Personal News: I'm writing a book! SONS OF GOD is about the young American men moving into more demanding forms of Christian faith and practice, and what that means for the country’s political and spiritual future. Truly excited about this reporting. Here we go!
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Ruth Graham retweeted
Liam Adams@liamsadamsOct 15
A 2016 survey of Church of the Resurrection found 49% of parishioners were Republicans, 21% Democrats and 24% independent. @publicroad looks at how Adam Hamilton's ministry at a politically diverse congregation is a roadmap for his Senate campaign: nytimes.com/2026/10/15/us/ad…

How Adam Hamilton Built a Megachurch Where People Can Disagree

As he seeks to unseat a Republican in Kansas, Mr. Hamilton speaks of his work leading one of the state’s largest churches — and making it appealing to nonreligious people.

nytimes.com
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Adam Hamilton, the political newcomer in a remarkably close Senate race in Kansas, is also the founding pastor of a bona fide megachurch. I spent some time with him on the campaign trail recently (including a church visit): nytimes.com/2026/10/15/us/ad…

A Megachurch Pastor is Running for Senate. Will Democrats Vote for Him? (Gift Article)

As he seeks to unseat a Republican in Kansas, Mr. Hamilton speaks of his work leading the state’s largest church — and making it appealing to nonreligious people.

nytimes.com
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You truly have to read this to believe it. @JonMalesic finds convincing evidence of an AI author who is real success in a genre one might hope would be resistant to slop: spiritual essays in small, serious Christian magazines. jonmalesic.substack.com/p/ho…
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who is *finding* real success .... see, no smooth-talking bot would leave out a crucial verb like that!
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My dispatch from St. Louis, where Archbishop Fulton Sheen, whose TV audience once rivaled Milton Berle and "I Love Lucy," moved one step closer to sainthood yesterday. nytimes.com/2026/09/24/us/fu…

‘America’s Bishop’ Was Beatified. 50,000 Catholics Showed Up.

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, who was the country’s most visible Roman Catholic clergyman of the 20th century, is one step closer to sainthood after a ceremony in St. Louis.

nytimes.com
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I don't want to spoil this very human essay that has lots of shocking/depressing elements, but at least one essay Jon finds was a cover story in a print magazine. Its "author" has published 31 articles in ten months in six languages.
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@markdtooley
@markdtooleySep 10
"He also characterized the church’s push for greater independence as part of a larger American phenomenon in which most churchgoers ultimately want decisions to be made at a local level." nytimes.com/2026/09/06/us/hi… @publicroad

Why the United Methodist Church Is Suing a Thriving Texas Congregation

The fight reflects a larger American phenomenon: Churchgoers increasingly want decisions to be made at the local level, not by a national denomination.

nytimes.com
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back from Europe where I'm sorry to report I witnessed the depths of human depravity
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Last weekend I went to George, Washington, for Freedom Con, a testosterone-fueled celebration of Christianity and patriotism. (Not mentioned here: It was also my birthday.) Gift link: nytimes.com/2026/06/26/us/po…

Where Testosterone and the Bible Are the ‘New Punk Rock’ (Gift Article)

Thousands of men and boys gathered in central Washington for masculinity, Christianity and right-wing politics.

nytimes.com
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Ruth Graham retweeted
Edward Pentin
@EdwardPentinJun 2
Pope Leo XIV has appointed @EWTN's head of news, Maria Montserrat Alvarado, as prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, replacing Paolo Ruffini who has served as prefect since 2018. Alvarado will become the first laywoman to head a dicastery of the Roman Curia. She will take up her new position on November 1.
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Tidbit I liked in our Talarico story: He often cites his grandfather, a former Baptist pastor, as a spiritual influence. His grandfather said I was the first person to call him up, and we ended up talking about divides in the Southern Baptist Convention. nytimes.com/2026/06/01/us/po…
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Nov. 3 will be a referendum on Betteridge's Law
Ben Smith
@semaforbenJun 1
There's a famous rule about question heds
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ATX data
@data_atxJun 1
In all seriousness though , I’ve been waiting for someone to ask him this and I am surprised but good answer , thank God 🙏🙏
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James Talarico has put his Christian faith front and center in his Senate campaign. He is a seminary student, his campaign slogan is a Bible reference, and he has injected unusually complex theological arguments into discussions of progressive policy.
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The candidate also told us he doesn’t agree with Rigby on everything: He has no issue with using male pronouns for God & sees the resurrection of Jesus as a historical event, for example. (You’ll have to click through to see which Bible translation he uses.)
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For this story, reported with @jdavidgoodman, I spent time with Rigby at his church, a thriving progressive congregation in Austin. Here's our story on the theological and political debates this campaign is kicking up in Texas and beyond: nytimes.com/2026/06/01/us/po…

Are Texans Ready for Talarico’s Kind of Christianity? (Gift Article)

Jim Rigby, a pastor who rarely uses the word “God,” is a key to understanding the Senate candidate trying to pull off something unusual in Texas.

nytimes.com
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Recording yesterday w/ @SamAdlerBell, I mentioned one of the most incredible essays I've ever read, Edward Mendelson's "The Secret Auden," about all the acts of Christian charity W.H. Auden performed but intentionally concealed from his friends (example below, link to follow):
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Moral relativism has no place in the Madeline Universe
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Ruth Graham retweeted
Josh Good@josh_good_Apr 29
How is religion in America changing? USC's Center for Religion and Civic Culture is offering $5,000 stipends to 100 journalists & freelance writers, to try to find out. Applications due May 4th: @RNS @interfaithusa @publicroad @shadihamid @faithandmedia dornsife.usc.edu/crcc/journa…

Journalism Fellowship for Stories for Change in American Religion Initiative - Center for Religion...

dornsife.usc.edu
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