After the Revolution: What Comes Next?

My colleague Caleb Lines recently said it clearly: we need a Progressive Christian revolution. And he’s right.

But revolutions can’t just be fiery words from a pulpit or slogans on bumper stickers. They only matter if people join. They only work if folks stay curious enough, brave enough, to help shape what comes next.

And that’s where Progressive Christianity shines. It’s not only about resisting what’s broken in the church today. It’s about reimagining faith itself. 

It’s about returning to our roots in radical love and justice and creating communities where people can be real, wrestle with life’s messiness, and still find belonging.

I know the reaction when people first hear the phrase “Progressive Christianity.” You can almost hear the eyebrow raise: What’s that supposed to mean? Isn’t Christianity just one thing?

Truth is, it’s never been just one thing.

And Progressive Christianity doesn’t show up to hand out a checklist of beliefs or shame people for having questions. That’s not how Jesus taught, and it’s not how we live. Scripture itself is a patchwork of voices.

And Jesus? He was always asking questions, spinning parables that left people scratching their heads, making space for curiosity and doubt.

We try to do the same. We lean into the big questions, like:

• How do we live out Jesus’ vision of Love in a world obsessed with greed and violence?
• How do we build churches that heal instead of harm?
• How do we let science, art and faith speak to each other instead of pretending they’re enemies?
• And how do we keep fighting for justice when some of the loudest voices claiming the name “Christian” seem to be working against it?

Doubt isn’t the enemy of faith. Change isn’t either. If anything, they’re what keep faith alive.

Here’s the hard truth: Christianity’s got a reputation problem. Too many people look at the church and see patriarchy cloaked in scripture, nationalism wrapped in a cross. They see climate denial while the planet burns and cruelty paraded as “family values.”

And honestly? They’re not wrong.

But that’s not the faith I know. And it’s not the faith Jesus lived.

Jesus sought out the people society threw away. He challenged corrupt power. He painted a picture of God’s dream for the world: a dream where justice mattered, peace was more than silence and love sat at the center of it all.

That dream isn’t gone. It’s still calling.

If we’re listening, then it calls us to speak truth with tenderness and with courage. To love big. To live bravely. To practice a faith that doesn’t just sit in pews on Sunday but shows up in the streets on Monday.

So if Caleb’s call for a revolution stirred something in you, then here’s my ask: don’t stop at stirred. Stay curious.

Check out our core values. Ask yourself: What would faith look like if it were really about love first, last and always?

We’re not here to hand out easy answers. We’re here to help grow a movement where faith fuels compassion and courage. Where churches become places of belonging. Where communities practice justice and joy together.

And the good news? You don’t need to have it all figured out to join in. None of us does. You just need the courage to imagine that Christianity can be more than you’ve been told it has to be.

The revolution’s already rolling. The only question left is: what part will you play in what comes next?