What Progressive Christianity Sounds Like: Enduring Voices of Compassion and Justice

Why Compassionate Christian Voices Are the Antidote to Loud, Hateful Rhetoric in Today's Faith and Politics

Clergyman’s daughter, Harriet Beecher Stowe, was a vibrant abolitionist. Progressive & Social Gospel Christianity is a direct descendant of the anti-slavery movement. Photo (cropped) is in the public domain, courtesy of The Met Museum.

Want to follow the path of progressive Christianity? These five theologians and ten powerful organizations offer peace, justice, and spiritual depth in today’s noisy religious landscape.

Let’s take a moment to remember

Why do words of love, justice, and compassion from progressive Christian leaders—past and present—matter so much today? The faithful are being offered two very different paths. Consider the Lord’s Prayer, and how the words, “your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” from Matthew 6:10 are interpreted.

Progressive Christians—especially those shaped by the Social Gospel tradition—see themselves called to feed the hungry, lift up the poor, dismantle systemic oppression, and affirm the full dignity of every person. Their theology is grounded in compassion, inclusion, and the belief that everyone is worthy of love, agency, and respect.

Meanwhile, Christian nationalists, Dominionists, and other members of the far-right evangelical movement are praying for something else entirely: the Seven Mountains Mandate — that is, a kingdom built not on justice, but on control. They push for policies that curtail others’ rights in the name of righteousness—using God to justify power grabs, restrict freedoms, and impose their beliefs on the nation as a whole.

Yet the mission of Christianity was never about political control

Progressive theologians across recent decades—both living and legacy voices—believe the true calling of Christians is to relieve suffering, promote justice, and uplift human dignity. Unlike today’s Christian nationalists, they don’t call for dominance through laws or executive power. Instead, they speak of a deeper revolution—one that renews the soul.

For them, following Jesus means undergoing a personal transformation; it means love, compassion, and humility. This happens not in the halls of government, but in the quiet places of the human heart. This revolution is within, inside the recesses of each person’s heart; it calls us to change ourselves first, then offer our compassion, equality, and service to the world.

Reverend William J. Barber II

As Rev. William J. Barber II preaches today of a nonviolent justice movement reminiscent of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. In his book, The Third Reconstruction: How a Moral Movement Is Overcoming the Politics of Division and Fear, Barber says,

It’s not enough to conquer the opposition. In a nonviolent struggle, we are committed to fight on until we win our adversaries as friends.”

Later, he says,

“A nonviolent struggle has two possible ends: winning the opposition as friends or giving up the battle.

He reminds us that a just society is not built through domination but through open hearts, community, and compassion for one another.

Only a fusion coalition representing all the people in any place could push a moral agenda over and against the interests of the powerful. But such coalitions are never possible without radical patience and stubborn persistence.

Working in an accepting and open way with people of all walks is not the easy path. We have to acknowledge our own prejudices and assumptions, while managing those of others. Barber recounts:

Not long ago I was a guest on Real Time with Bill Maher, with one of America’s most prominent atheists. Wearing my clerical collar, I realized that I stood out among his guests. So I decided to announce to Bill that I, too, am an atheist. He seemed taken aback, so I explained that if we were talking about the God who hates poor people, immigrants, and gay folks, I don’t believe in that God either. Sometimes it helps to clarify our language.

Barber and Maher could have argued for an hour over the existence of God or not, but chose to drop their weapons and shake hands instead. The result is a deepening of understanding all around.

Tim Alberta

Tim Alberta, prize-winning journalist and son of an evangelical preacher, says that Jesus calls us to take up the cross, not the sword, and that we have to choose which ne we will serve.

In his book, The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, Alberta writes,

“Two things can be true. First, most of America’s founding fathers believed in some deity, and many were devout Christians, drawing their revolutionary inspiration from the scriptures. Second, the founders wanted nothing to do with theocracy. Many of their families had fled religious persecution in Europe; they knew the threat posed by what George Washington, several weeks into his presidency in 1789, described in a letter to the United Baptist Churches of Virginia as “the horrors of spiritual tyranny.”

He continues,

Washington was hardly alone: From skeptics like Benjamin Franklin to committed Christians like John Jay, the founders shared John Adams’s view that America was conceived not “under the influence of Heaven” or in conversation with the Creator, but rather by using “reason and the senses.”

In his books, essays, and frequent interviews, Tim Alberta reminds Christians that they cannot both seize the reins of government and remain faithful to the inner transformation Christ demands. The kind of soul-deep renewal Jesus spoke of cannot be legislated or enforced through political power. As Alberta often points out, the Kingdom of Heaven is not—and never will be—a government on Earth.

Rachel Held Evans

The late Rachel Held Evans, one of the most beloved voices of progressive evangelicalism, believed that God’s family includes everyone. She wrote powerfully about how faith should expand—not restrict—our capacity for love:

The gospel doesn’t need a coalition devoted to keeping the wrong people out. It needs a family of sinners, saved by grace, committed to tearing down the walls, throwing open the doors, and shouting, “Welcome! There’s bread and wine. Come eat with us and talk.” — Rachel Held Evans, Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church

All are loved; all are inheritors of the kingdom. Their desire to partake brings them to the table. Evans also called out the misuse of religious freedom:

“Religious liberty is never an excuse to discriminate. Full stop.” — Walking the Second Mile: Jesus, Discrimination, and ‘Religious Freedom’

So yes, please make that cake for the same-sex couple. Make it beautiful. Make it with love.

Bishop John Shelby Spong

The Late Bishop John Shelby Spong’s words speak directly to our time, about the nature of Christian love, and to whom it is afforded:

“Even in the widest variety of our humanity, in our deepest set of beliefs, there is no outcast in this community,” he said. “There can be no one regarded as unclean, no prejudice allowed to operate inside this vision of Christianity.” — ‘Live fully, love wastefully’: Spong delivers final lecture

Everyone in our community, and everyone in the world, an equal recipient of God’s love. If we are to follow Jesus, Spong is telling us, we are to open our arms just as wide. In his final lecture, he calls us to:

Try to transform the world so that every person living in it will have a better opportunity to “live fully, love wastefully and be all each of them was created to be.”

Spong’s vision of transforming the world is not seizing the reigns of government, but creating a society of genuine compassion and equality — where every person has the chance to live up to their highest potential.

Father Richard Rohr

Franciscan friar Richard Rohr draws a sharp line between what he calls “egoic religion” and “transformative faith.” Egoic religion, he explains, is preoccupied with control, certainty, and belonging to the “right” group. It thrives on black-and-white thinking and often aligns itself with political or cultural power. In contrast, transformative faith leads to inner freedom, humility, and a deep sense of solidarity with those on the margins. In his book Falling Upward, Rohr says,

The ego prefers a simple certainty to a complex truth.

This distinction is crucial in understanding the divide between conservative and progressive Christianity. Rohr emphasizes that the Gospel is not about grasping power—it’s about relinquishing it. Rohr often says the path of Jesus is one of “descent,” not ascent: vulnerability, not victory.

He is especially blunt about the danger of politicized religion:

If your religion does not transform your consciousness to see Christ in the least of these, it is a false religion.

For Rohr, any version of Christianity that does not lead to compassion, inclusion, and justice is missing the heart of Jesus’s message. This belief is foundational for progressive Christians, who reject exclusionary theology and power-seeking in favor of love, service, and radical welcome.

Jesus always disappoints those who prefer the sword

What Christian Nationalists call “freedom” often founds more like their freedom to dominate others. Progressive Christians, by contrast, understand freedom as the liberation Jesus spoke of: to break chains (our own, and those of others), to lift burdens, and to welcome the stranger.

Instead of militias and assault rifles, Progressives call to the gentle way. Just as in Jesus’ time, there were those looking for the militant messiah to lead them in battle against the Roman Empire. Jesus was a sore disappointment to those who wanted to grab their weapons and fight their way to freedom. In the same way, today’s activists use the name of Jesus to fulfill their ends, ignoring the fact that his words and message actually lead to a different path.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. — John 14:27

His message then as it is today is of overcoming the suffering world with love, not oppressing by force. He who lives by the sword shall die by it.

Both Progressives and Christian Nationalists are political. Both show up at the ballot box and in the streets. But one seeks to build a world of wider inclusion, and the elevation of each individual soul. The other dreams of state-sponsorship and earthly control.

The cross or the sword. Which one will you pick up?

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Let’s support the Christianity they preached

If you prefer a faith that liberates rather than dominates, here are some powerful ways to put your beliefs into action:

For Compassion and Justice

• Poor People’s Campaign
  Co-led by Rev. Dr. William Barber II, this national movement fights systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, and militarism.

• Faithful America
  A grassroots group of Christians organizing against Christian nationalism and religious extremism.

• Red Letter Christians
  A network committed to living out Jesus’ words in red—particularly his call to care for the poor, the outsider, and the oppressed.

For Spiritual Growth and Contemplation

• Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC)
  Founded by Richard Rohr, CAC nurtures the deep inner life that fuels social transformation through love.

For Faith and Democracy

• Americans United for Separation of Church and State
  Defending the First Amendment and protecting freedom of belief for all people.

• Interfaith Alliance
  Promoting pluralism, democracy, and faith that uplifts rather than dominates.

• Vote Common Good
  Helping people of faith vote their values—not party lines—by emphasizing love, justice, and the common good.

For Inclusive, Liberating Faith

• The Reformation Project
  Equipping Christians to fight for full LGBTQ+ inclusion in church and theology.

• Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
  Advocating for reproductive freedom grounded in moral agency and faith.

• Sojourners
  A faith-rooted organization committed to racial and economic justice, peace, and creation care.

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Christianity doesn’t belong to the loudest voices. It belongs to those who love, liberate, and lift others up.

Let’s follow their lead. Talk to your neighbors, family members, and fellow congregants about the difference between faith as a tool of control and faith as a force for love.

Choose wisely. Speak boldly. Act faithfully.

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