Welcome to The Light, your quiet hour for reflection.
A new report from Open Doors and World Relief warns that the United States is on course to admit zero persecuted Christian refugees in fiscal year two thousand twenty six. The golden door, as Emma Lazarus once called it, may be closing entirely on some of the world's most vulnerable believers. It is a silence worth sitting with.
From questions of who belongs to questions of what we believe about belonging — Al Mohler, one of American Christianity's most prominent voices, has drawn sharp criticism from fellow Baptist leaders, including Richard Land, who has known him for thirty years. At issue are recent remarks on Christian Nationalism that some say contradict the Baptist tradition's deep commitment to religious liberty for all people, not merely the faithful.
And then there is this quieter dissonance — a researcher named Willoughby Britton set out to prove that meditation heals, only to discover it sometimes harms. Anxiety, dissociation, even psychosis emerged in some participants. The practice we reach for in search of peace carries, it turns out, a shadow worth acknowledging honestly.
Three stories, each asking us to look more carefully at what we assume brings safety, belonging, and stillness. That is this hour's reflection. Carry the light gently.
