CT Daily Briefing – 04-03-2026

April 2, 2026
Christianity Today
April 2, 2026
CT Daily Briefing

This edition is sponsored by Cru

Today’s Briefing

Peter Chattaway reviews The Christ, a new audio drama telling the Easter story, featuring David Oyelowo as Pontius Pilate and Paul Walter Hauser as John the Baptist.

Hans Holbein the Younger’s painting of a dead Christ on Holy Saturday gripped Fyodor Dostoevsky, transforming his faith—and teaching us about resisting the rush from cross to empty tomb. 

On The Bulletin, the crew analyzes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s imprecatory prayer against America’s enemies, the Supreme Court’s ruling on sexuality-and-gender therapy, and the job market for college grads.  

Historian John Fea considers a new book in light of two earlier works that might help Christians consider the “God-inspired” manifest destiny that devastated Native American culture in early US history.

From our Lent devotional: Why do we call Christ’s death “good”?

Behind the Story

From senior editorial project manager Mia Staub: I chuckled while reading the introduction to Jeremy Treat’s article on Good Friday. Treat happens to be my pastor, and he starts his piece by acknowledging some of the silly ways humans have attempted to heal themselves. It made me think of my daily walk in Los Angeles, which passes a skin care spa, a marijuana dispensary, and an Erewhon where you can buy sea moss the colors of the rainbow or the most expensive smoothies you have ever seen, all of these places a testament to self-induced wellness. 

But the sickness we humans are inflicted with is more holistic than any manmade remedy can fix. The whole earth and our whole health—spiritual, emotional, mental, physical—feel the weight of the Fall. Good Friday, as Treat explains, is about Jesus as our healer. The Cross is the remedy for our ailments. 

Tonight, my church, along with many other churches, is holding a Good Friday service. The evening is often full of melancholy, lament, and grief while acknowledging the consequences of our sin. Our grief is not in vain, because Christ is our healer and the Cross is the start of our healing.

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In Other News

Today in Christian History

April 3, 1593: George Herbert, one of England’s greatest religious poets, is born in Montgomery Castle. After shocking the country by quitting his skyrocketing political life to become rector of rural Bremerton (a post he held for three years), “Holy Mr. Herbert” died of tuberculosis.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

SCOTUS Ruling on ‘Conversion Therapy’ Is a Win for Christians

The US Supreme Court recently delivered a big victory for a Christian counselor and, in the process, bolstered the First Amendment’s protections for free speech. While it remains to be…

Easter Is Not a Zombie Story

This piece was adapted from Russell Moore’s newsletter. Subscribe here. Most unbelievers are civil or even curious when we talk together about the Christian faith, with less than a handful of exceptions.…

Churches Try Drones and Skydiving Bunnies for Easter Outreach

As Americans open their wallets to spend a projected $24.9 billion on Easter this year, some churches are thinking beyond Easter eggs and Passion plays, budgeting for helicopter rentals, skydiving…

The Evangelical Roots of North Korea’s Kim Family

Last month, North Korean president Kim Jong-Un said in a speech that the war in Iran highlights his country’s need to continue its nuclear program to protect against potential American…

IN THE MAGAZINE

In this issue of Christianity Today and in this season of the Christian year, we explore the bookends of life: birth and death. You’ll read Karen Swallow Prior’s essay on childlessness and Kara Bettis Carvalho’s overview of reproductive technologies. Haleluya Hadero reports on artificially intelligent griefbots, and Kristy Etheridge discusses physician-assisted suicide. There is much work to be done to promote life. We talk with Fleming Rutledge about the Crucifixion, knowing that while suffering lasts for a season, Jesus has triumphed over death through his death. This Lenten and Easter season, may these words be a companion as you consider how you might bring life in the spaces you inhabit.

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