Kristin Du Mez

1 week ago | kristindumez.substack.com | Kristin Du Mez

Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Robert Prevost, is the first (US) American and first Augustinian to become pope. Here are a few more things you may not know about him:Our new pope attended high school in Holland, Michigan, at St. Augustine Seminary High School, “a Catholic prep school for young men.” In the late 1970s, the property was purchased and used as a prison. Today, the former school functions as an event venue, museum, and community space and is open to self-guided tours.

2 weeks ago | kristindumez.substack.com | Kristin Du Mez

It started simply enough. With so much division, with Christianity being wielded as a weapon, churches becoming places of exclusion rather than invitation, denominations splintering, and people being pushed out, silenced, bullied…we started thinking: What if we decided to come together? What if we gather those in who are being pushed out? What if we remember that we’re not alone and borrow courage from one another?

2 weeks ago | kristindumez.substack.com | Kristin Du Mez

Tomorrow marks the end of the first 100 days of Donald Trump’s second presidency. To assess where things stand, PRRI checked in with Americans to see what they think of what he’s done thus far. Their expansive survey and report releases this morning. Find the whole report here, but read on for a summary of some of the key takeaways:Consistent with other recent surveys, PRRI finds his approval ratings upside-down: 54% disapprove, with just 43% approving.

2 weeks ago | kristindumez.substack.com | Kristin Du Mez

I don’t know if it will end up staying, but as of now, my next book opens with a scene from my own childhood: seventh-grade Calvinette Camp. No spoilers here, but when I first heard of Cara Meredith’s new book Church Camp, I knew I wasn’t alone in having a formative experience at a Christian camp. (Mine was apparently far less traumatic than some!)I love that someone finally thought to write a book about the subject. Countless parents turned their children over to camp counselors, but to what end?

3 weeks ago | kristindumez.substack.com | Kristin Du Mez

There’s a reason this administration has started off targeting immigrants. Those in charge are calculating—and have plenty of evidence to back them up on this—that the average American won’t care. Or won’t care enough to do anything. Besides, they’ve been preparing you for this. Go back to some of Trump’s earliest speeches, and you’ll find hateful, xenophobic rhetoric. At the time, many were shocked. Now, even for those who find it abhorrent, it’s the not-even-new normal.