Nyquist, Kaleb
Kaleb Nyquist presently resides in Washington DC where he works as a strategist to foster democracy through data-driven initiatives and faithful approaches. A lifelong Covenanter and former youth ministry director, he has also been a leader for the Young Evangelicals for Climate Action movement.
What is going on in Europe? (Spring/Summer 2018)
It was pleasantly warm the night of the Brexit referendum, or at least it was in New Orleans. I was in The Big Easy as part of a gathering of millennial faith leaders converged around the issue of global climate change. On our final evening together, the ministry students, like myself, were organizing a group rideshare down into the festive French Quarter. I was trying to convince some new friends, all professional policy wonks, to come join us in the excursion, but it was like convincing a sports fan to skip out on a league championship. They legitimately wanted to watch the Brexit results come in.
Partisanship and confession (Fall/Winter 2025-26)
Partisanship in the United States is on the decline. The number of Americans who identify as politically independent has reached historic highs after a decades-long trend of disaffiliation. Among many factors, this appears to be the natural result of an electorate fatigued by national polarization, aggressive campaigning, and an angry divisiveness leading to government dysfunction. It might be tempting to interpret a rise in political disaffiliation as something to celebrate — perhaps especially for those of us who are Pietists with a free-church heritage that affirms the importance of being able to hold independent beliefs.
Partisanship and confession (Summer/Fall 2026)
In the first part of this essay, I articulated why good partisanship is an important ethic missing from our Pietist political imagination, which has historically been non-partisan or even, at times, anti-partisan. I then explored how some of the hang-ups we have with partisanship are similar to or shaped by the same hang-ups we have with confession. Now, I sketch out a framework of “partisan confession” to help cultivate an ethic of good partisanship that remains rooted in our tradition.