A historic lawsuit has been filed by the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, in partnership with the Center on Faith and Justice, on the behalf of a broad coalition of 27 national church and organization plaintiffs, whose combined membership numbers in the millions, to defend the teachings of Jesus and the traditions of all Abrahamic religions.

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Rev. Jim Wallis speaks with two important leaders involved in the case of Mennonite Church USA VS The Department of Homeland Security: Kelsi Brown Corkran, the Supreme Court Director at the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown Law, and Reverend Carlos Malave, the president of the Latino Christian National Network (LCNN), which is a broad Christian Latino network in our country, including Pentecostals, evangelicals, Catholics, and mainline leaders.

On the first day of his second term as President of the United States, according to Fox News, Donald Trump ordered the Department of Homeland Security to upend a decades long practice honoring sacred spaces and “sensitive locations” to allow religious leaders and congregants to obey the commandment of Jesus from Matthew 25: “As ye have done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” Jesus’ words include “the stranger” which means immigrant and refugee in Greek.

Immigrants and refugees, who rely on these sacred spaces for sustenance for their souls and bodies, are being deterred by the aggressive and unorthodox tactics from the Trump Administration that the lawsuit alleges are a violation of the First Amendment right to freely practice religion.

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In the wake of the decisive victory of Donald Trump and his followers, Rev. Jim Wallis speaks with Executive Producer Paul Woodhull about what must take place before we consider what lays before us. Wallis counsels that it is appropriate and healing to feel grief and to lament where we find ourselves as a nation. But he warns against falling into despair.

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Elizabeth Neumann, Former Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism at the Department of Homeland Security and the author of Kingdom of Rage talks with Jim Wallis about her time serving at the Trump White House.

Neumann says, “This is what another four years would be. Nobody tells [Trump] no. And then you end up violating people's constitutional rights… His rhetoric was inspiring hate crimes and violence. We actually have documentation of that now.”

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Daniel Gutierrez is the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, the second oldest and fourth largest diocese in the Episcopal Church. He also served as Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and as Director of Economic Development there.

Regarding America’s immigration policy Gutierrez analyzes the dilemma by reconciling both a practical and a Christian viewpoint.

Pragmatically, Gutierrez says, “Migrants, immigrants pay taxes. And then what would happen if every worker in our fields, starting in Iowa, California, Arizona, Texas, were deported? Look at what that would do to our economy. Almost overnight, it would ruin American businesses in the agricultural industry.”

More importantly, Bishop Gutierrez reflects upon the teachings of Jesus when regarding migrants and refugees. “The only way to have union with Jesus is to have union with one another.” He continues, “I want my diocese to be the diocese of the poor, compassionate, merciful, and loving.”

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Christian Ethhicist David Gushee explains how White Evangelicals have lost their way as religious reactionaries work to destabilize our democracy.

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Jim Wallis convenes a roundtable of thought and faith leaders to discuss our responsibilities for the upcoming 2024 Presidential election:

Jemar Tisby--New York Times bestselling author, national speaker, and public historian on a mission to deliver truths from the Black experience with depth and clarity

Kristen DuMez--New York Times bestselling author and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Calvin University.

Diana Butler Bass,Ph.D.--Award-winning author, speaker, preacher, commentator on religion and contemporary spirituality

Robert P. Jones --the president and founder of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and a leading scholar and a New York Times bestselling author.

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As threats of deadly violence are mounted against election officials across the country, Jocelyn Benson, the Secretary of State and Chief Election Officer of Michigan, analyzes the unique challenges they face in 2024. Despite an onlslaught of efforts to intimidate, Benson shares her commitment to ensure all votes are counted and the true electors are certified.

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In this election special Faith Factor season, we will be releasing weekly in-depth exclusive interviews focused on the most consequential Presidential Election of our lifetimes.

Ian Bassin, the co-founder of Protect Democracy, outlines how Donald Trump and his radical right-wing enablers plan to subvert the democratic institutions of our country in order to amass and maintain power.

Trump’s well-documented and self-proclaimed policies adhere to what Bassin calls The Authoritarian Playbook, the well-worn tactics executed by the most brutal dictators in world history, including:

• Policize Institutions
• Spread Disinformation
• Aggrandize Executive Power
• Quash Dissent
• Target Vulnerable Communities
• Corrupt Elections
• Incite Violence

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