CHRISTIANITY WITHOUT THE RELIGIONAugust 2017www.ptm.org

CWRmagazine

Moving On...

Faith after Evangelicalism

insideMoving On

– Brad Jersak p1

Vive la Révolution! – Brian Zahnd p7

Do Only Christians Go ToHeaven? – Zack Hunt p8

On Wisdom Amidst the Crowd

– Danielle Schroyer p11

Teaching the Cross toChildren – Brad Jersak p12

Trinitarian Revolution– Richard Rohr p14

Pastoral Perspective – Greg Albrecht p15

by Brad Jersak

I’m so over him! she sobbed, I’mmoving on! confirming that shehadn’t even begun the processof “moving on.”

Theirs had been love at firstsight—butterflies of infatuationassured her that she had found“Mister Right”—or, “the One” as sheliked to call him. How had it cometo this? Not worth recounting, though

she rehearsed the melt-down everysleepless night. If she was truly “soover him,” why couldn’t she let goand just move on? Instead, she alternated between

depression and panic, fits of rageand fountains of tears. “Over him?”Not as long as her identity was tiedto his, even by resentment. Let’sface it: he still filled her thoughts,however gloomy.

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The Big Break-up

I’m speaking a parable. The ‘boy’in this drama is not a boy, but amovement. The energetic, sexymovement some callEvangelicalism.

Evangelicalism gets its namefrom the old term, evangel—tracking back to its NewTestament Greek roots,euangelion. Evangel in thatcontext meant good news orgospel, from euangelos—eu(good) + angelos (messenger).That’s where we got the termevangelist: messenger of thegood news. Or evangelism—sharing the gospel. In that sense, all Christians are

evangelical (lower case ‘e’), if weall believe in the good news ofJesus Christ and see ourselves asmessengers of the gospel. Wewould hope so, anyway. How is it, then, that one sub-

sect of Christendom took on themoniker “Evangelical” (uppercase ‘E’) and ultimately becamean –ism? While believers ofvarious Christian tribes rightlyclaim to be small-e evangelicals,let’s coin a term for themovement or –ism in itscurrent form. I’ll use“Evangelicalist,”mirroringthe language of “Islamist” toidentify the –ism’s extremesand potentially violentnature.But I’m racing ahead. Back to

the romance. Even “cradleEvangelicalists” cannot beborn into the movement. EveryEvangelicalist (even toddlers)must discover their inherent“lostness” ASAP so that through“The Sinner’s Prayer,” they can

be “born again” and have“assurance of eternal life.” Themany quotation marks aboveindicate the heavy dose ofinsider lingo common to themovement, but the language isnevertheless “biblical” (anotheressential term in their glossary). The brand of Evangelicalism I

knew identified itself as theonly true Christianity, as overagainst churches that were notEvangelical and therefore, nottruly Christian. Why not? The “mainline” churches

(Presbyterian, Methodist,Lutheran) and the “motherchurch” traditions (Catholic,Anglican, Orthodox) all featuredinfant baptism, none seemed tobelieve in conversion or the

need to be “born again.” Andsince Jesus and Billy Grahamboth said, “You must be …,” ifthey weren’t, then they couldn’tpossibly be “believers.”In other words, when we asked

if someone was Evangelical, thatwas code for, “Are they bornagain, saved and going toheaven?” True, we were beingexclusive—just like heaven, justlike Jesus, who said, “Narrow isthe way that leads to life.”

The Allure

So, what’s the allure? Whatattracts so many to join theEvangelicalist camp? Onpositive notes, Evangelicals areunabashed in their worship ofJesus. If you want to meet Jesus,they are more than willing topounce … er, help. And I truly didencounter Christ in that context.I will forever be grateful to themfor introducing me to Jesus. They also presented the Bible

in a way that made me ravenousfor its life-giving words andwisdom. That, plus the array ofenthusiastic worship music—from gospel quartets to swayingchoirs to rockin’ worshipleaders—made for enthusiasticmeetings that filled our hearts. And of course, there was a

shared sense of mission. We wereoften exhorted to participate inChrist’s “Great Commission” ofMatthew 28:18-20. Every childhad it memorized early in gradeschool. Repeat after me: “All authority in heaven and on

earth has been given to me.Therefore, go and make disciplesof all nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of theSon and of the Holy Spirit, andteaching them to obey everything

Moving On...

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I have commanded you. Andsurely I am with you always, tothe very end of the age.”Every one of us was enjoined

to become a “soul-winner,”sharing the good news withanyone who would listen. Thosewho succeeded were hailed asheroes, because after all, whatelse were we born for? Our lifegoal and mission statementechoed popular Evangelicalistministries: to know Christ and to

make him known.Well said!Some readers may think me

cynical and others, not cynicalenough. But try not to readbetween the lines. It is what it is.To this day, I continue to loveJesus, consume the Scriptures,enjoy some faith-based worship,and share the good news ofGod’s love wherever I go.If I’ve packed my bags, that’s

what I’ve taken with me.Enough to say I’m still small-eevangelical and play well withother evangelicals. But there was a dark side to the

relationship—not with God butwith the movement, especiallyas it evolved in America. Wheredid things go sour? How did itget old and ugly?

The Souring

Those who self-identify as post-Evangelicalists cite differencesthat accumulate over time. Butdifferences need not divide. Evenconflict is constructive whenbased on trust. As I said, you canbe evangelical in nearly everypart of the Body of Christ, evenwhile seeing and appreciatinghow body parts differ.

No, differences aren’t theproblem. The drama occurswhen differences are escalatedinto us–them tests of fellowship.When Evangelicals in themovement began to say, “If youdon’t believe this, you aren’t evena Christian,” the boundariesbecame walls over which tothrow opponents. At that pointfaith becomes an ideology, an –ism. That’s when an evangelicalbecomes an Evangelicalist.

That’s when unChristlikereactions to otherness leads tohurtful disillusionment and it iswhy so many have divorcedthemselves from the movement. Some Evangelicals remain in

the movement and grieve overbroken fellowship. They retainthe label “Evangelical,” hopingto retrieve the word from theextremists. They say, “My beliefshave changed, but I’m still anEvangelical.” Not a few of thesefind themselves marginalized oreven expelled as heretics.

Must You Believe?

The question comes down towhether one must hold to certainsecondary elements of doctrine,and whether the Evangelicalistcan even admit these aresecondary. For many, to befaithful to God is to adhere tothese as non-negotiable dogmas.Here are 12 examples:

1. Inerrancy: Must you believethat the Bible is the inerrantword of God? Or could youaffirm that only God is inerrant,while retaining the language ofinspiration for Scripture?

2. Creation:Must you believe

that God created the entireuniverse in six literal 24-hourdays no more than 10,000 yearsago? Or could you interpret thecreation narrative such thatGod initiated creation with abig bang 13.8 billion years ago?

3. Evolution:Must you believethat Adam was literally andinstantly sculpted from dustand Eve carved from his rib? Orcould you integrate our creationstory with evolutionary theory,allowing for common ancestrywith other living things?

4. The Flood:Must you believethat Noah’s flood actuallycovered the entire earth? Orcould we read the text to say theflood reflects on a story inwhich the waters covered theworld as they knew it, in a moreregional way.

5. Genocide:Must you believethat God literally commandedthe extermination of wholepeople groups in the OldTestament conquest narratives?Or could we attribute some ofthose incidents to humanviolence done in the name ofGod to justify their actions?

6. History: Must you believethat the entire Old Testamentrepresents historical facts ofJewish history? Or could someof these texts be historicalfiction loaded with theologicaltruth? (e.g. Job or Jonah?).

7. Judgement:Must we believethat the judgements recountedin the Bible were expressions ofGod’s anger and actual acts ofdirect divine violence? Or couldwe read the language of “God’swrath” as the intrinsicconsequences of sin itself?

8. Atonement:Must webelieve that the wrath of Godcould only be appeased throughdivine violence against Christon the Cross? Is penalsubstitutionary atonement thegospel? Or might that be just

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... when we asked if someone was

Evangelical, that was code for “Are they

born again, ‘saved’ and going to heaven?”

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humanity will be damnedforever? Or could we hold outfor a broader hope? Withoutbeing pluralists (i.e. all pathslead to God), might we hopethat God’s love, revealed on theCross, could extend to manywho never hear the gospel? Thus far in my Christian

journey, these are just twelveareas where I and millions of

others have had a change ofheart. Some might say I’ve beenenlightened. Others would callme “apostate” and a traitor totrue Christianity. Some have said to me, “All

these options are open toevangelicals. Don’t leave us; weneed you.” But others, Evangelicalists,

have told me directly, “You areno longer one of us. You are notwelcome.” They’ve publiclycalled me an “enemy of theCross,” “a false teacher” anddeny that I’m even a Christian. Some successfully

campaigned to have me

one atonement theory amongmany (and not the best one)?

9. Equality: Must we believethat women should not teach orhave authority over men,excluding them from pastoralor preaching ministries to thechurch at large? Or could wemove to an egalitarian modelthat declares “in Christ, there isneither male nor female”?

10. Moralism: In the name ofholiness, must we condemn andexclude those whose moralstandards differ from ours?Doesn’t that obscure the gospel?Or might we make space in ourlives and even our worship forthose of differing convictions?

11. Hell:Must we believe thathell is eternal conscious tormentin a lake of fire, with no hope ofredemption beyond the grave?Or may we see God’s judgementswith hopeful eyes—as restorationrather than retribution?

12. Inclusion:Must we believethat the door to eternal life is sonarrow that the majority of

removed from teaching posts orcancelled from speaking atconferences. They saw it as theirmission from God.

Moving On

Eventually, I accepted my fate andleft the movement. My departurewas never over the differencescited above. I was simply weary ofthe ongoing spirit of cruelty,

rooted I believe, in the literalist’sretributive theology. As I saw it,the Evangelicalists had ceased tobe good news. I moved on. Sort of.Why only “sort of”?1. Evangelicalist exclusivists

don’t represent all Evangelicals, sowhy should I become exclusive?Many of my family, friends andcolleagues still identify asEvangelicals. We love each otherand refuse to sever fellowship.2. Evangelicalist moralism

does not represent all Evangelicals,nor should it infect me. ManyEvangelicals are not given to theextremes of the -ism. Theirhearts are expansive and their

As a post-Evangelicalist, I must not allow the bitter

taste in my mouth tobecome a bitter root

in my heart.

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mission is love. I can work with that. 3. Evangelicalists do not hold the

monopoly on evangelical faith—andneither do I. Faith arises whereverGod pleases to reveal himself. Forexample, Muslims around the worldare having visions of Jesus Christ andturning to him. Could he not alsoappear even among theEvangelicalists? 4. As a post-Evangelicalist, I must

not allow the bitter taste in my mouthto become a bitter root in my heart.Many of our readers are, like me,“posties.” Others still identify asEvangelicals (without the –ism). Theycontinue to experience spiritualnourishment and living faith wherethey are. It’s not for me to poison agood well with the toxins of mynegative experiences. In the end, we must all test the fruit

of moving on.Will our moving take uscloser to faith, hope and love inChrist—or away from him? My prayerand intent is to be an agent of love tothose still in the movement and forthose who’ve already made their exit. q

Brad Jersak is the Editor-in-Chief ofCWRmagazine.

SHE DROVE AWAYDear CWR,

For years, I have felt the frustration of having people askme what church I go to when talking about myrelationship with Jesus, automatically assuming I go tochurch. It seems more important to them to hear aboutwhat church I go to than to hear about my relationshipwith Jesus.I describe myself as a non-denominational Christian

who doesn’t go to church. But when I try to explain tosomeone why I don’t go to church or affiliate myselfwith any religion, most people don’t get it. But you guys seem to get it, and you speak for those

of us who don’t have the time, energy or intelligenceto get across what we are feeling and have been feelingfor years. I understand and accept that ours is a path of

discipleship, but still, when going down “the road lesstraveled,” it’s nice to bump into fellow disciples everynow and then.Thank you for being a voice for those of us outside

the religious system. Thanks be to God for you!

Warren, Ohio

WALKI NG AWAYA lot of walking away will do your life

good. Walk away from arguments

that lead you to anger and nowhere.

Walk away from people who

deliberately put you down. Walk

away from the practice of pleasing

people who choose to never see

your worth. Walk away from any

thought that undermines your peace

of mind. Walk away from judgmental

people, they do not know the

struggle you are facing and what

you have been through. Walk away

from your mistakes and fears, they

do not determine your fate. The

more you walk away from things that

poison your soul, the healthier your

life will be. — Dodinsky

It’s Sunday morning. Sarah has driven to her church. She’s parked.But she can’t seem to force herself out of her car. She just can’t doit anymore. She looks on, watching the people she has gatheredwith for years going into the building. Suddenly they all seem likestrangers to her. She will watch them for a little longer. Then shewill say goodbye to them in her heart. Then she will drive away.

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