I say bravo. There may have been (I don't remember now) minor points I'd tweak or change, but on the whole I said "bravo" to the document.
We DO have a history we need to repent of and other aspects of our history we need to celebrate and continue to embrace.
The religious right/Christian Coalition/Dobson, Falwell, Colson etc. crew HAS gone way too far in zealous control of government and its hurting the evangelical cause, so bravo to those leaders who signed the document.
We ought not be apolitical isolationists who withdraw from society. We also ought not be thoroughly political people where church and state become one and the same. Evangelical does not equal Republican.
So bravo for the manifesto! A powerful document if we submit to its wisdom. Engage the culture in spiritual movement. MLK Jr. did this. Let us follow his prophetic lead as an example.
I read this several weeks ago and it has really encouraged me. I am usually so distraught with the Church. I just found this link and I think it is another appropriate response. What do you guys think?
Hi Troy...thanks for reawakening our conversation. I have mixed emotions about the battle for evangelicalism. On the one hand I am concerned that the politically motivated 'right' have/are working to claim the evangelical mantle as a voting block or political action committee. And another group is fighting to reform evangelicalism into a strongly conservative/calvanistic group - similar to the Southern Baptist takeover.
Here's what I'd like to have happen, and I think the Manifesto takes a good stab at it; I'd like to have the designation 'evanglical' clearly mean something and yet be broad enough to include a maximum number of people who embrace that clearly articualted meaning. This would mean that those of us who disagree with each other would have to commit ourselves to not trash each other or try to steal the evangelical title from each other. Maybe that's not possible in our current climate of antagonism within the Church and society.
I'll create a new post on the Dobson/Obama issue. I just saw it this morning. More mixed emotions from me on this one.
3 comments:
I say bravo. There may have been (I don't remember now) minor points I'd tweak or change, but on the whole I said "bravo" to the document.
We DO have a history we need to repent of and other aspects of our history we need to celebrate and continue to embrace.
The religious right/Christian Coalition/Dobson, Falwell, Colson etc. crew HAS gone way too far in zealous control of government and its hurting the evangelical cause, so bravo to those leaders who signed the document.
We ought not be apolitical isolationists who withdraw from society. We also ought not be thoroughly political people where church and state become one and the same. Evangelical does not equal Republican.
So bravo for the manifesto! A powerful document if we submit to its wisdom. Engage the culture in spiritual movement. MLK Jr. did this. Let us follow his prophetic lead as an example.
REV
I read this several weeks ago and it has really encouraged me. I am usually so distraught with the Church. I just found this link and I think it is another appropriate response. What do you guys think?
http://www.jamesdobsondoesntspeakforme.com/
Hi Troy...thanks for reawakening our conversation. I have mixed emotions about the battle for evangelicalism. On the one hand I am concerned that the politically motivated 'right' have/are working to claim the evangelical mantle as a voting block or political action committee. And another group is fighting to reform evangelicalism into a strongly conservative/calvanistic group - similar to the Southern Baptist takeover.
Here's what I'd like to have happen, and I think the Manifesto takes a good stab at it; I'd like to have the designation 'evanglical' clearly mean something and yet be broad enough to include a maximum number of people who embrace that clearly articualted meaning. This would mean that those of us who disagree with each other would have to commit ourselves to not trash each other or try to steal the evangelical title from each other. Maybe that's not possible in our current climate of antagonism within the Church and society.
I'll create a new post on the Dobson/Obama issue. I just saw it this morning. More mixed emotions from me on this one.
Post a Comment