USA Today Opinion: Who speaks for America's evangelicals? (HT: Presbyweb)
The answer is not as clear-cut as in years past. In fact, a younger generation of ministers is changing the face and voice of this very influential constituency. With the 2008 election approaching, that’s no small thing.
On Sunday mornings, it's now commonplace to see presidential candidates in church pulpits or pews, proclaiming their faith and — not coincidentally — jockeying furiously (but piously) for crucial "values voters."
So, with so much at stake, now might be a good time to ask, "Who speaks for America's evangelicals?"
Will it continue to be bombastic, GOP-leaning, Southern preachers, such as the late Jerry Falwell, and strident, hard-line broadcasters such as Pat Robertson and Focus on the Family's James Dobson? I don't think so. From my neighborhood in the suburban Sunbelt, it is clear that a subtle, incremental but nonetheless tectonic shift is underway. And this is more than what Freud called "the narcissism of small differences."
The emerging face and voice of American evangelicalism is that of a pragmatic, politically sophisticated, pastor of a middle class megachurch. A younger generation of ministers such as Rick Warren, author of The Purpose-Driven Life; Bill Hybels, of the pioneering Willow Creek Community Church outside Chicago; T.D. Jakes, the African-American pastor of The Potter's House in Dallas, as well as a music and movie producer; and Frank Page, the re-elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Or, this younger generation might be personified by someone like Joel Hunter, of Northland Church, just outside Orlando. The amiable Midwesterner, who opposes the death penalty, looks like Johnny Carson and sounds like Gene Hackman. He's a regular reader of such periodicals as The Economist, Foreign Affairs and Harvard Business Review. ...
I don't know that one can speak for evangelicals as a single group.
It sort (though not quite as bad) like trying to speak about the 'emergent conversation' or pomos.
People want them to behave as a group because it makes marketing or politicking easier. But I don't know that it is accurate - especially now that people compete for the title. One does a little better with a term of derision or contempt like 'fundamentalist' is often used - because no one wants to occupy the same space.
Posted by: will spotts | Aug 07, 2007 at 08:51 PM
I agree with Will.
Also, Rick Warren and Bill Hybels as the "younger generation"???? Bill has grandkids, for cryin' out loud...
Posted by: Dana Ames | Aug 08, 2007 at 11:58 AM
I agree with the definition problems. However, I think Falwell was approaching 50 when kicked of Moral Majority in 1980. How old is Warren? I suspect he might have been a similar age as he has come into view. But again what is called Evangelical has become fragmented and more diverse than Falwell's day.
Posted by: Michael W. Kruse | Aug 08, 2007 at 06:03 PM
There's also another issue - leaders and those in the public eye are often so after the fact. 'Has beens' of sorts. Warren and Hybels are in the public eye now because they are no longer the cutting edge of 'evangelical' thought. Yes, they have an effect, but sort of like stock advisors: the people these influence are the ones trying to catch the wave of evangelical fashion - who are late to the game and pretty much doomed to fail. (The same as those who buy stocks at their 52 week highs and hope for continued growth.) They may succeed for a short time, but this is a movement that is past its prime. These are not the ones making the transition.
Sadly, I'm rather more disturbed by what I perceive to be the future of the 'evangelical' movement (if the term is even of any use). What one saw in Falwell was the result of many years of development before he even appeared on anyone's radar. (It just happened that he was articulating views that many had already adopted. Warren is the same way. In spite of his attempts at Liberty, Falwell's views are not continued by those educated there.)
Posted by: will spotts | Aug 09, 2007 at 03:11 AM