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I have walked among evangelicals my entire life. Raised in a conservative Baptist tradition, my faith changed after I attended a national meeting where the denomination officially separated themselves from Walt Disney, Promise Keepers, and Billy Graham. While I understood their fear of modern culture exemplified in media giants like Walt Disney, I wondered how anyone would call Rev. Billy Graham “evil?”
Since then, I have moved among various denominations under the umbrella of Evangelicalism. Evangelicalism as a movement arose within Protestant Christianity in the 1940’s. The National Association of Evangelicalism (www.nae.net) is the organization which defines and leads this movement. Approximately 26.3% of Americans identify themselves as Evangelicals, according to Pew research. While “the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ” is a stated value of the organization, their divergent views on politics and culture may now be causing the movement to break apart.
Cultural issues like homosexuality, politics, and sexism have been splintering the unity of evangelicalism for the past decade. The organization does not hold official doctrinal statements on these issues and therefore seeks to remain united in spite of their diversity. However, Millennials might be the wedge that splits this movement. The rift is not because Millennials want to fracture the movement, or because they hold a hidden secret agenda. Nor is it due to the media’s frequent characterization of them as lazy, narcissist, or delusional.
Rachel Evans, a popular blogger and speaker.
Millennials are sometimes viewed as the catalyst for progressive changes within Evangelicalism. In the divide between conservative evangelicals – like Trenton Wax; and more progressive perspectives like Rachel Held Evans, each holds different views on how to reach and re-engage Millennials. While these and other writers can contribute to change within the church, during the process they are trailblazing pathways in seemingly opposite directions. (see Note below)
Many articles are filled with reasons why evangelicals are leaving the church, including: churches are too cool; churches are not cool enough; churches are irrelevant; churches are too relevant; churches are too strict; churches are not strict enough; and on and on and on. However, upon dissecting these statements, one finds that the focus often shifts from young adults themselves onto the cultural war happening within Evangelicalism.
Our desire to reach Millennials may become the wedge that will split us. The progressives are yelling, “Well, if you would stop living in the past…” while conservatives shout back, “If you would stop conforming to the culture!” Each side is being consumed by their own beliefs. Each side is filled with anger at “others” who they perceive to be injuring the church. Each side claims spiritual discernment and is filled with righteous indignation.
Many assert that without change, the future of the church is at stake. This fear motivates us – especially when it revolves around our children and the legacy we will leave for them. Unfortunately, this fear often also motivates us to move in unhealthy directions.
All the while, each side is contributing to the fracturing within Evangelicalism, when both should be focusing on the Millennials who are stuck in between them.
Religious communities must ask themselves key questions:
- Do we understand emerging adults and their needs during this life phase?
- How do we reach and re-engage emerging adults?
- What are our expectations (spoken and unspoken) of emerging adults within our community?
- Where is there room for Millennials to serve and lead within the church?
- What messages are we sending to them, and how can we communicate our confidence in them?
These are changes that conservative and progressive evangelicals can agree upon. May we focus not on the issues that divide, but upon the gospel, and seek to follow the voice of our one God and Savior Jesus Christ.
Dr. G. David Boyd is the Founder and Managing Director of EA Resources, a non-profit designed to equip parents and churches to understand emerging adulthood. If you need someone to help your community understand the challenges of emerging adulthood, contact him at gdavid@earesources.org.
Notes:
- I believe these authors and leaders want to find unity within the church (just as Jesus prayed for his followers to be one in John 17). Rachel Held Evans blogged about her personal struggles with the future of evangelicalism, and then “left” evangelicalism and now worships at an Episcopalian church. However, the church must question whether our unity is even reflected through man-made labels like “evangelicalism.”
