How Did Evangelicalism Get So Big?

Yet again, we had discussed different labels that Campolo uses in this chapter. The beginning of the chapter we discussed the use of the words Evangelical and fundamentalism. Campolo further explain"Today, any distinctions between evangelicalism and fundamentalism have all but disappeared, as fundamentalists have usurped the word evangelicalism and made it their own. Certainly, to the world outside the church, these two labels now are used interchangeably."

Campolo explains that Evangelicals have a social conscience and have done a good job of reaching out to the poor domestically and internationally. Early in our conversion I asked the question, "are Evangelicals persecuted in the public square as much as some may say?" We had various answers. One person shared that it seems that at the academic level when it is mentioned that one is a Christian, that it is concluded that they are not very intelligent. Another person shared that when there seems that when Christians show up on campuses to have "rallies" that most people are put off and often retaliate with insults. One person in our class shared that he feels that the reason why outsiders would shudder at the "soapbox" approach is that people would rather have a conversation or debate rather then be shouted at. Someone else in our class talked about how various sporting events some Christians show up and via bullhorn, let people know they are going to hell.

Campolo talks about how big Evangelicalism has become. Check page fourteen under the Evangelical Entrepreneurship section. What is discussed in this section, is what some may denote that Evangelicals are far from being a persecuted minority.

Campolo points out factors that have aided the growth of the Evangelical movement which are:

1. It has an abundance of charismatic entrepreneurial leaders
2. It is more effective at marketing religion
3. It has learned how to exercise political power
4. It has addressed the individualistic needs of Americans, avoiding taking positions on social issues that would alienate its constituencies

We spent the rest of the time discussing each of these but ran out of time. One other issue we discussed though was whether America is a "Christian country." A few voices agreed that America is a Christian Country and there is definitely something to return to. Although an interesting question was asked, "if America isn't a Christian country what is it, an Atheist country?"I think this is worth exploring. During the conversion on nationhood, I offered the criticism of the reason why there seems to be so much backlash to the idea of a Christian country is because of the historical acquisition of American soil being muddled with cultural Christian identity and imperialistic expansion. This and the end of the chapter's description of ethnic variances of Evangelicalism is left to be discussed next week as well as chapter three. Blessings!