Evangelicalism
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“”For much of American history, evangelicalism was aligned with progressive political causes. Nineteenth-century evangelicals fought for the abolition of slavery, universal suffrage, and public education.
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Evangelicalism originally meant Protestantism [2] though the term is sometimes loosely defined.
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[edit] Modern meaning
Over time Evangelicalism among English speakers has come to mean a branch of Christianity which is centered on the following:-
- The need to be "Born Again" as an adult.
- A strong focus on the Gospel as good news, on bringing Christianity to others.
- A renewed focus on the resurrection aspects of Jesus in both one's spiritual life as well as one's personal day-to-day expressions of life.
- Strong belief in the authority of the bible.
[edit] Contrast
Evangelicalism is often contrasted with "liturgical" Christianity (e.g., Roman Catholicism, high-church Anglicanism), which puts more emphasis on liturgy, religious ritual and church tradition.
[edit] Fundamentalism
From the 1980's on, Evangelicalism backtracked from its more progressive roots and became associated with dauntingly conservative causes, supporting the American right with the informal formation of the religious right. Because of this conservative push including such things as biblical literalism, an increase in the teaching of creationism in schools, a movement to be politically "pro-life", etc., people generally associate Evangelicalism with fundamentalism, especially in the United States, due in no small measure to the large influence of the television on Christian expression, and the dominance from the 1980's forward of Fundamentalists on the television. The Religious right is sometimes referred to as the evangelical vote though this may not be accurate as a sizable minority of evangelicals (African-Americans in particular) vote Democrat. [3] Many evangelicalists are also fundamentalists and supporters of the Religious Right but not all.
Other Evangelicals are associated with groups like the Methodists who support Social justice and Evangelicals do not necessarily support the American Religious right. [4] Randall Balmer for example considers himself an evangelical but believes that the Religious Right are hijacking evangelicalism. [5] [6]
[edit] See also
[edit] Footnotes
- ↑ Thy Kingdom Come: How the Religious Right Distorts the Faith and Threatens America: An Evangelical's Lament
- ↑ Evangelicalism
- ↑ Religion and Politics in the United States: Nuances You Should Know
- ↑ Evangelicalism
- ↑ Thy Kingdom Come: How the Religious Right Distorts the Faith and Threatens America: An Evangelical's Lament
- ↑ Evangelical: Religious Right Has Distorted the Faith