Evangelicalism and the Future

Some years ago, a long-time friend of mine was asked, at the last minute, to take part in a radio debate. At the end of the programme the producer thanked her for her contribution, and then made a memorable comment, “If you’d not been able to make it, the next person on our list was one of those awful evangelical people.” I grew up evangelical. I am an evangelical. That’s why I find this kind of story exceptionally painful to listen to. 

The terms ‘evangelical’ and ‘evangelicalism’, alongside the act of ‘evangelism’, are rooted in two New Testament Greek words; the noun euangelion which means ‘good news’ and the verbeuangelizo meaning ‘to bring or announce good news’. In classical Greek an euangelos was a messenger of joyous good news (all three forms of the word were formed from the Greek ‘eu’ meaning ‘well’ and ‘angelos’ meaning ‘messenger’ (or angel)). Euangelion and euangelizo are often translated into English in the New Testament as ‘gospel’. 

Any encounter with evangelicalism, therefore, should always be to experience the kind of good news that stirs your soul and pours the oil of joy into the grind of everyday life. To that end, Jesus built relationships with a vast array of ordinary people. He loved being with them and, in calling them to follow him, he constantly acknowledged the burdens of life that they struggled with and reassured them with his gentleness. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest…for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:28-30). That’s good news! Indeed, the only groups that Jesus ever chose to seriously critique were the various religious leaders who included themselves but chose to exclude others from the always-given welcome and embrace of God. 

In recent years, however, the term ‘evangelical’ has often become a word of revulsion in the media, and even left many of its own adherents wrestling with their allegiance to it. Andrew Walker for instance, who is an evangelical and Emeritus Professor of Theology, Culture & Education at King’s College, London, writes here of his exasperation with the “fad-driven, one-dimensional spirituality of modern evangelicalism”. 

So, what has gone wrong?

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