Return to Our First Love
I struggle to understand the specific brand of American Evangelicalism described in our book this week. I’ve been somewhat detached from American Christianity, and it’s taken a bit to get my bearings in recent years. I remember my feelings of dismay when returning for a short holiday break in 1999 to find my favorite local Christian bookstore stockpiling water and emergency meal kits in preparation for Y2K. Uncomfortable feelings resurfaced as I read Losing Our Religion: An Altar Call for Evangelical America by Russell Moore. I couldn’t help but recall images from January 6th and sense a growing agitation and bewilderment as I continued to read. There was a confusing mixture of sadness, anxiety, and discouragement before I detected a little spark of hope. The book caused me to revisit the definition of evangelicalism and familiarize myself with Christian nationalism. I guess I still have some working out to do.
What does evangelical mean? It seems the definition has changed.
I reached for Evangelicalism in Modern Britain by D.W. Bebbington, as I recalled that some of my evangelical anxiety was resolved by reading a more complete history of the topic. By way of comparison, Bebbington explained the four quadrilaterals of evangelical religion as “conversionism, the belief that lives need to be changed: activism, the expression of the gospel in effort; biblicism, a particular regard for the Bible; and what may be called crucicentrism, a stress on the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.”[1] These points indicate a personal and corporate response to the gospel that compels us to live according to the ways of Jesus and share God’s message of reconciliation. These characteristics seem missing from the current perceptions of evangelicalism.
Moore’s definition and focus are specific to evangelicalism in the United States. He writes, “Evangelical is just a word we impose artificially to describe a particular kind of Christian.” He prefaced this statement by noting that most evangelicals don’t identify as evangelicals, preferring terms like “born again” and “Bible-believing” and may have little in common.[2] His point rings true when I consider how narrowly defined “evangelical” has become in recent years. Moore defines evangelicalism as a specific type of cultural Christianity and religious identity that has little to do with faith in the Bible, sacrificial service, sharing of faith, or living a cruciform life and more with holding on to a specific cultural identity and prerogative. Moore notes that evangelicalism’s emphasis on individualism has gone too far and has damaged the effective witness and function of the church.[3]
The evangelicalism that Moore writes is that of American Christian nationalism. He bluntly states, “Christian nationalism is a prosperity gospel for nation-states, a liberation theology for white people.”[4] He continues, “Christian nationalisms and civil religions are a kind of Great Commission in reverse, in which the nations seek to make disciples of themselves, using the authority of Jesus to baptize their national identity in the name of blood and of the soil and of the political order.”[5] Is this anything new or just uniquely expressed in American culture? Identity politics and protection, the commodification of religion, and a sense of vulnerability and threat seem to fuel this type of Christian nationalistic thinking and behavior.
Identity and Belonging
The theme of identity continues to emerge throughout our readings. Russell Moore contributes to the discussion with this statement: “Christian nationalism, blood-and-soil identity politics, and every other self-defining cultural or political category is really rooted in something God created and declared to be good—the longing for membership.”[6] In other words, we long to belong, but that God-given desire is corrupted when our loyalties to a specific group or cultural identity exclude others and, in this case, reject the tenets of genuine faith and Christian virtue. Grounded in pursuing a political identity, Christianity loses its power and central message.
In Identity: The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment, Francis Fukuyama states, “Demand for recognition of one’s identity is a master concept that unifies much of what is going on in world politics today.”[7] Politicizing Christianity to justify actions that are counter to our faith in the name of God adds nothing to our deepest desire to belong or a sense of our true identity in Christ as God’s beloved children. The need to belong can be addressed by the church and faithful Christians who know its purpose in creating community while living as cultural aliens and strangers. In a Gospel Coalition video, Russell Moore noted that a loss in “cultural Christianity” signifies God’s favor.[8] Love identifies us as Christ’s followers.
Returning to Our First Love
Is there hope? Moore argues that young evangelicals are walking away from the church, not necessarily from their faith. They simply question whether the church believes what it teaches.[9] He calls for the church to return its first love. Christians, regardless of how we identify within evangelicalism, may need to lose our religion to gain Christ and be found abiding in God’s love. A little deconstruction benefits us all. Isn’t that what repentance, sanctification, and spiritual growth are all about? Aren’t we supposed to become more like Jesus together? We will find connection and belonging in that pursuit.
Maybe this is the beginning of a more authentic Christian witness to the world. One grounded in love and the way of Jesus. Losing Our Religion is an altar call to all Christians, not just “evangelicals,” to not give up and continue the pursuit of our first love, Jesus. That is a call to which I must respond daily.
[1] D. W. Bebbington, Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A history from the 1730s to the 1980s (London: Routledge,1989), 3.
[2] Russell Moore, Losing Our Religion: An Altar Call for Evangelical America (New York, NY: Sentinel, 2023),14.
[3] Moore, Losing Our Religion, 16-18.
[4] Ibid., 117.
[5] Ibid., 120.
[6] Ibid., 136-137.
[7] Francis Fukuyama, Identity: The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment (New York: Picador, 2018), xv.
[8] Russell Moore, “Russell Moore on How the Loss of Cultural Christianity Is a Sign of God’s Favor,” The Gospel Coalition, December 14, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C67VLwIH-Y
[9] Moore, Losing Our Religion, 41.
About the Author
Jenny Dooley
Jenny served as a missionary in Southeast Asia for 28 years. She currently resides in Gig Harbor, Washington, where she works as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Certified Spiritual Director in private practice with her husband, Eric. Jenny loves to listen and behold the image of God in others. She enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with her family which include 5 amazing adult children, 3 awesome sons-in-law, a beautiful daughter-in-law, and 8 delightful grandchildren.6 responses to “Return to Our First Love”
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Hi Jenny,
You wrote, “A little deconstruction benefits us all. Isn’t that what repentance, sanctification, and spiritual growth are all about? Aren’t we supposed to become more like Jesus together? We will find connection and belonging in that pursuit.
Brilliant….Just Brilliant.
Then you went on to say, ” Maybe this is the beginning of a more authentic Christian witness to the world. One grounded in love and the way of Jesus. Losing Our Religion is an altar call to all Christians, not just “evangelicals,” to not give up and continue the pursuit of our first love, Jesus. That is a call to which I must respond daily.
I remember a Nigerian was in one of my bible studies an someone asked, What is Christianity. She responded, “It is my response, to Christ’s dying for my sins.” Wow back to basics.
Moore quoted poet and novelist Wendell Berry when he spoke to a group of concerned environmental activists as saying, “The great problems call for many small solutions.”
I love that. It reminds me of Cascades: How to Create a Movement that Drives Transformational Change, Greg Sartell.
At the advance someone asked, “where does the change come from?” and I answered it comes from us. WE are the changers, we will cause the ripples via our NPOs that are intended to change the church and the world.
If the church needs changing, the seeds for the changes are within us.
Shalom…
Reply
Hi Russell,
Thank you for your comments and insights. Having just finished up a conference with 90 pastors in Indonesia from various countries in the region, I’m even more dismayed by the necessity of Moore’s “altar call.” Evangelical means something completely different here both in terms of making the love of God known and attending to the injustices of the world… largely, in situations in which it is dangerous or illegal to mention the name of Jesus. Freedoms are being taken away and yet Christians are faithfully loving and serving. We talked a lot about our identity being found through abiding in God’s love and seeing the image of God in those we serve. Without that I think we’re all in trouble.
Hi Jenny, Great post!
I am thinking a lot about Christian nationalism this week – duh, it is the week before the election. I have a friend I met in our college ministry who has become a very loud Christian nationalist. Finally, after scrolling past post after post of hers, I took the bait and wrote to her on her facebook page (I DO know better!). A podcast she was recommending used such divisive and hurtful language for those voting for Harris, that I felt like I had to ask her if instead of using language like that, if we could simply have good hope that those of us who follow Jesus but who vote differently might be doing the best we can to be a disciple. She did not take kindly to my question. Instead I got a tirade of how a “vote for the Dems” would cause all kinds of evil in our country – and I mean, she got DETAILED in her descriptions of this evil! Whew!
After mentioning quotes Moore uses to describe Christian nationalism, you ask, “Is this anything new or just uniquely expressed in American culture? Identity politics and protection, the commodification of religion, and a sense of vulnerability and threat seem to fuel this type of Christian nationalistic thinking and behavior.” I am now wondering if Christian nationalism is new or if we’ve seen it in other countries and in our own country lived out in different ways. Certainly the commodification of religion is nothing new. And threats usually fuel fear which then fuels bad behavior… which then can lead to things like Christian nationalism.
Good food for thought as I wrestle with what to do (or, most like what not to do) about my friend.
Hi Kally,
That sound like a rough situation. It’s a strange tension to hold for sure when trying to engage fellow Christians. Being on the other side of the world many of my Christian friends are scratching their heads! I’m not sure there is much of a chance that an Asian Christian nationalism would ever be a thing here, and I hope it never happens. You were courageous and loving in your response. I hope your friend gives some thought to what you shared. Jesus refused to be a king by any worldly definition and just kept loving, healing, and tending to people who were hurting. I keep praying that all Christians remember that the world will know we are Jesus’ followers because we love like he does.
Wonderful post Jenny, I think you hit the nail on the head. Returning to our first love. I felt a bit jealous that you had a hard time understanding what’s happening with Evangelicalism in America right now. That’s a great problem to have. It really is a mess, but I feel encouraged that Christians, whether conservative or progressive, are recognizing how little it reflects Jesus. Have there been specific things you have had to discern in Asia that get mixed into the Christian faith that needs addressing?
Hi Adam,
My apologies for the late response. I think some of what gets mixed in has been imported from the West. The prosperity gospel and celebrity are two things that stand out that can derail Christians from their first love and call to serve others. Bias looks different here as well so I imagine that can create an us vs. them mentality. I need to consider this more. Thanks for the question!