Younger evangelicals like myself tend to reject this way of thinking.
As evangelicalism in the U.S. has been working its way through something of an identity crisis over the past few years, and as many
young evangelicals like myself have reconnected with the spiritual disciplines, this seems to be a recurring point of contention, and therefore one that should be addressed.
Maybe
young evangelicals like me avoid talking about abortion because it's just not as cool as talking about sex trafficking and immigration.
Not exact matches
The standard argument goes something
like this: the culture war is either over or increasingly irrelevant to
younger generations of
evangelicals, who respond to a much broader array....
I've been speaking at many small colleges that have historical ties to the oldest mainline denominations in the U.S. I have been noticing something interesting: a terrific hunger for a deeper spirituality on the part of many
young people who come from
evangelical backgrounds
like mine and also
like me are looking for something outside of the right wing conservatism they come from.
And it seems to me that this conundrum in particular — this tendency among
young, social media - savvy
evangelicals to consume information about the depravity of our culture
like Cookie Monster at an Oreo Factory, only to belch out the same tired critiques — comes down to our understanding of the Kingdom of God and how it's made.
Mainline churches looking to retain and attract
young people, particularly «homeless»
evangelicals like myself, would do well to look to Missiongathering as a model, for, at least from my perspective, they have managed to combine all that is great about the mainline with all that is great about evangelicalism into one faith community.
First,
young Christians are increasingly turning away from the supernatural nonsesnse of religion (immortality, mind reading, sky - gods, talking snakes etc.) and no longer buy into the core morality of the
evangelicals on important issues
like gay rights and $ exual mores.
I have attneded
Evangelical churches and other
Evangelical meetings
like Young Life back in the day, and the people there had absolutely no problem cheerfully consigning people to hell in the absence of any atheists or other critics at all.
The
young evangelical approaches the problem
like this: «Feminism [for example] is true; the Bible teaches the truth; therefore the Bible must teach feminism.»
«Worldly» considerations
like pragmatic or political realities (the real though hidden origins of the
young evangelical's own position) must bow to exegetical arguments.
«Whereas
evangelical churches (and increasing numbers of mainline ones) seek to attract
young people by designing spaces stripped of Christian symbols or tradition, JW people seem to
like the traditional feel of the sanctuary, with its dark wood, stained glass and high ceilings.
His now - famous 1949 Los Angeles crusade, where William Randolph Hearst supposedly «discovered» and presented him to the nation
like an
evangelical debutante, was in fact a meticulously orchestrated event, accompanied by a storm of handbills, billboards and full - page newspaper ads heralding «America's Sensational
Young Evangelist» — accompanied of course by a «Dazzling Array of Gospel Talent.»
It is the
evangelicals who power massive communities
like Willow Creek in Chicago and the Vineyard Fellowships with all their huge appeal to the
young, as well as what is claimed to be the largest single congregation not just in London but even in Europe - Kingsway International Christian Church.
The
Evangelical Immigration Table, including leaders
like National Association of
Evangelicals (NAE) president Leith Anderson and Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) president Russell Moore, wrote the President and congressional leaders this week to tell them that Dreamers are «leading in our churches and our communities» and to «find solutions that allow these
young people to stay in our country long - term and continue to be a blessing to our communities.»
As a
young evangelical myself, I confess I have grown tired... no, weary... of responding to comments
like these with some honest suggestions for how my fellow
evangelicals might avoid said retirement, only to be discounted and disparaged for believing the earth is more than 6,000 years old, for voting for Democrats from time to time, and for daring to serve communion to gays and lesbians.