Jonathan Merritt is one of America’s most trusted thought leaders at the intersection of faith and culture. He currently serves as a Vice President and Executive Editor for Simon & Schuster, where he oversees the acquisition of books in the faith / spirituality category as well as select general market non-fiction.
Across two decades of public life, Jonathan has significantly shaped the American religious landscape through hundreds of articles published in national outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Christianity Today and USA Today, and as an award-winning contributing writer for The Atlantic. He is the recipient of four coveted Wilbur Awards for excellence in journalism and once earned the columnist of the year award from the Religion News Association.
Jonathan has authored several critically-acclaimed books, including Learning to Speak God from Scratch: Why Sacred Words are Vanishing - and How We Can Revive Them, named “Book of the Year” by the Englewood Review of Books. He has worked as a collaborator or ghostwriter on dozens of books, with several titles landing on The New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly bestsellers lists.
Previously, Jonathan served as a top literary agent with the Christopher Ferebee Agency and as the Senior Media Strategist for Icon Media Group, where he focused on purpose-driven non-profits and crisis communications.
In addition to his writing, Jonathan has contributed cultural commentary to national television, print and radio outlets. He has been interviewed by The New Yorker, ABC World News, Good Morning America, NPR, MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, PBS, and CBS’ “60 Minutes.” He is a sought-after speaker at colleges, conferences, and churches on topics relating to faith, politics, writing and current events.
Jonathan holds a Master of Divinity from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Master of Theology from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology, and has done additional graduate work focused on Christian mysticism at The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church in Manhattan.
Jonathan currently resides in New York City where he is an aspiring dog dad, a college football fan and intolerable before coffee.