USA Today reports this morning about an effort by
Christian scholars and theologians to recover the meaning of the
identity of what an "evangelical" is, by issuing a
new "manifesto:"
"Evangelical" has been widely used
to refer to Christians who have conservative political views, but
the Evangelical Theological Society requires members to agree on
just two points: inerrancy of Scripture, and belief in God the
Father, Son and Holy Spirit as "separate but equal in attributes
and glory" and essential for salvation.
The manifesto condemns Christians on the right and
left for "using faith" to express political views "without regard
to the truth of the Bible," according to a draft obtained last week
by the Associated Press. When faith "loses its independence," it
says, "Christians become 'useful idiots' " for
politicians.
I
wrote over a year ago that that term is no
longer meaningful, and I doubt this new manifesto will change that.
I suggested a new one that would be more difficult for liberals to
co-opt.
topics:
Religion
