I have seen many posters on this board spew pretty harsh criticism at evangelicals even to the point that they are equated with extremist terrorist muslims. What is the definition of an Evangelical? Is there really anything to fear?
means entirely different things to different people. it's come to mean something very different from what i understand it to mean. it's a label i would wince at being called because i know what other people would mean by it...but it's a label i'd actually seek by my definition of it.
"Evangelical" really means someone who reaches out to try and spread their faith. A lot of people who do that are crazy, so unfortunately the word has picked up negative connotations. I think "evangelistic" pretty much always comes with those connotations.
Man I just visited Mars Hill church today in Grand Rapids, MI. Rob Bell is the regular pastor there, but today there was a guest preacher, Brian McLaren. I felt myself smiling wide and nodding my head so much during the sermon. I've had a huge spiritual struggle the past few years because I disagree with so much of what the church stands for. By the "church," I mean the only church I've ever known, the conservative-baptist-fundamentalist-fire-and-brimstone church. I'd heard of McLaren and even own his book, "Everything Must Change." I've never heard him speak though or seen anyone so effortlessly explain changes that must be made in the fabric of the church. It was wonderful and I truly felt at HOME in a church and that was a great feeling. McLaren and Tony Campolo and those kinds of guys are evangelical Christians, but they believe in a different breed of evangelicism. Truly putting people and social justice first. It was refreshing to hear and I'm excited to learn more about what I heard this morning. The idea of an evangelical is different for everyone, but the traditional Religious Right evangelical has been somewhat demonized(and sometimes rightfully so, IMO...) There are more progressive evangelical pastors that I find refreshing. It's a sect not many hear about on the news.
His sermon was terrific. He didn't incorporate politics at all, which was nice. I wanted to hear Rob, but McLaren was really good. I'm going to read his book and trust in a spirit of discernment. I think the only thing I've heard about him that scares me a bit is that he doesn't believe in hell. Not sure if that's completely true though.
That sounds really cool. I once attended a panel on hell. It had Christians from various denominations as well as Muslims and Jews. There were several Christians who argued against any kind of hell, at least in the way that it has been presented in the U.S. for hundreds of years.
I've always been really nervous about veering too far off the "beaten path" of what I've always been taught as truth, but I'm always open to listening to different points of view. I'm still pretty narrow-minded when it comes to things I'm not comfortable enough with. I mean, my mom went nuts when I told her I believed in theistic evolution; my parents are staunch believers in the 6-day-creation story and a thousand year old earth. So I've stepped outside the box on that, might as well risk a few of my other preconceived notions.
an evangelical prays in secret out of love for God, gives money sacrificially to help feed hungry people around the world, works hard to earn a living and is grateful for a good job so that they can give to others in need, they visit people in the hospital and try to help, they are always looking out to help the poor of the world, they do not wish for others to know about what they do, they look out for their neighbors and forgive their enemies, they even go out of their way to do good things for anyone who hates them, they do not complain and they stay away from arguments, they care deeply for children especially the disadvantaged, they have great compassion for the elderly and give money to help widows make it, they steer away from pointing out people's faults but they are quick to be thankful and encourage someone else, they are honest and dependable and they show more concern for others than they do for themselves, and when given the opportunity they tell people about Jesus.
That's cool, and I definitely wasn't trying to convince you of the 'no hell' stance and cause you to go to the dark side or anything. That panel I mentioned was just the first time I'd ever heard Christian theologians, or at least ones from main stream denominations espouse that belief. I was just curious about McLaren since I'm not familiar with him at all, and I'm a huge Rob Bell fan. His books really helped in my own devotion and connection to Christianity. So I was just curious about McLaren.
I'm really tempted to post something here that will get me flamed, but I'll just pose a question instead: What exactly is hell?
Awesome reply... basically, in doing those things... they've "shown" Jesus, so the "telling" is easy.
