Shane Claiborne
Shane Claiborne is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Shane Claiborne

The 2020 election was a referendum on race and Christian faith
By Shane Claiborne — November 10, 2020
(RNS) — We can see in how the vote went our competing visions for what we want America to be.

Jesus isn’t on the ballot. That doesn’t mean Christians can opt out.
By Shane Claiborne — September 8, 2020
(RNS) — There are those who will opt out because they refuse to choose between the ‘lesser of two evils.’ But opting out has consequences too, for other people whom Christ told us to protect.

Federal executions are one more example of Trump administration overreach
By Shane Claiborne — July 29, 2020
(RNS) — This month’s federal executions are the first in 17 years, but may only be the beginning. The next federal execution is scheduled for Aug. 28, and there are 59 more federal inmates facing the death penalty.

Death in the middle of death: On the execution of Walter Barton
By Shane Claiborne — May 26, 2020
(RNS) — The pandemic has caused us to rethink a lot of things, and one can only hope that executing people is one of the things we don’t want to return to.

How the war on Christmas became the war on Easter
By Shane Claiborne — April 4, 2020
(RNS) — As states issue stay-at-home orders and bar gatherings, some evangelical Christians — those who believe they are a persecuted minority — have become convinced that religious freedom is under attack.

Will the real pro-life political party please stand up?
By Shane Claiborne — February 15, 2020
(RNS) — The presidential election is shaping up to be a tough one for those who see it literally as a matter of life and death.

‘Hymn for the 81%’: A conversation with Daniel Deitrich
By Shane Claiborne — January 21, 2020
(RNS) — A lot of contemporary worship music doesn’t offer the best theology, but 'Hymn for the 81%,' by a South Bend, Indiana, worship leader, has gone viral with a cocktail of prophetic fire and Christ-like grace.

The hero of the film ‘Just Mercy’ could be you
By Shane Claiborne — January 2, 2020
(RNS) — The biopic about the work of Bryan Stevenson isn't about a man, but a social justice movement that any one of us can join.

Is Jesus king of Kanye’s bank account?
By Shane Claiborne — October 29, 2019
(RNS) — It would be a beautiful thing to see Kanye become a prophet of resistance rather than a profiteer of the Christian market.

Let’s not ask Botham Jean’s family to choose forgiveness over justice
By Shane Claiborne — October 8, 2019
(RNS) — We’ve seen this dynamic before. The families of nine victims of Mother Emanuel church in Charleston, S.C., proclaimed both forgiveness and justice with power, but some folks only heard the forgiveness.

Ted Cruz takes Alyssa Milano to Bible study — with an NRA edition of the Bible
By Shane Claiborne — September 5, 2019
(RNS) — As the Texas senator and the actress-activist face off on Twitter over whether the right to own a gun is found in Scripture, columnist Shane Claiborne points out that Cruz's interpretation lacks one thing: Jesus.

Will grace prevail as Tennessee execution looms?
By Shane Claiborne — May 9, 2019
(RNS) — The daughter of Don Johnson has taken up his case not only to save his life, but to set herself free from the violence that has kept her prisoner.

Christians can’t allow the Bible Belt to be the ‘death belt’
By Shane Claiborne — November 1, 2018
(RNS) — Would Tennessee's governor allow a man to be executed this week if he were to come to Friday prayers on death row?

When Christians sell out Christians for political power
By Don Golden and Shane Claiborne — August 29, 2018
(RNS) — The cost of a White House dinner celebrating evangelical Christian leadership may be silence on the plight of persecuted Christians and other religious minorities around the world.

At Standing Rock, God heard our cries for justice
By Shane Claiborne — December 5, 2016
(RNS) Whatever their religious traditions, the people who stood united in prayer as the news of victory came in Sunday witnessed the power of God, writes Shane Claiborne.