Communion wine and grape juice offer us elements of celebration and lament

In an 8–1 decision, the Supreme Court ruled Colorado’s law restricting gender-and-sexuality counseling for minors violates the Constitution.

Palestinian Christians are preparing for Easter amid war and cycles of settler violence.

Communion wine and grape juice offer us elements of celebration and lament.

In 1979, CT investigated deceptive Christian leaders, reported on the ethics of in vitro fertilization, and kept an eye on the Iranian Revolution.

Spy Wednesday shows us Jesus does not need a partnership with the powerful to redeem the world.

On The Bulletin: regulation of tech use in schools, anti-Trump protests, American troops in Iran, and the crisis in Cuba.

Behind the Story

From senior staff writer Emily Belz: Pulitzer-winning journalist Tracy Kidder died last week, a death that felt personal even though I had never met him. I had read Kidder’s books—like Mountains Beyond Mountains, which tells the story of Paul Farmer, a doctor and founder of the nonprofit Partners in Health. Kidder’s reporting showed me ways to report on global health.

I highly recommend Good Prose, a book he wrote with his longtime editor Richard Todd about their working relationship. As content increasingly becomes solo influencers talking to a camera, this book shows the value of an editor—even for someone as talented as Kidder. Editors confront you about stories that are no good, ideas that are unclear, or additional interviews that would make the story sharper. Kidder recounts his first interaction with Todd when Todd was editing his story and told Kidder that the problems started with the first sentence. Kidder was very proud of the sentence, but Todd said it was melodramatic.

May we all have a Richard Todd in our lives! I’ve had the privilege of several great ones over the years, including here at CT. (Thank you, Kate Shellnutt and Andy Olsen.) NASA’s Artemis 2 mission to fly to the moon for the first time in 50 years is supposed to launch later today. CT interviewed one of the American astronauts on the mission, who said in 2023 that he would pray his way to the moon since they’re using a new vehicle for the first time.  A judge has rejected the United Methodist Church’s claim that it owns a megachurch in Alabama that broke away from the denomination.  Some Christian pastors, financial influencers, and entrepreneurs are going all in on cryptocurrency while others face scrutiny for their takes and predictions. CT has previously reported churches are seeing the digital currencies show up in their collection plate, and some Christians have been ensnared by fake investment schemes. Today in Christian History April 1, 1745: David Brainerd begins his missionary work among the Native Americans of New Jersey, having previously worked in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. The New Jersey natives showed more interest than most, but Brainerd died of tuberculosis only two years into his work there.