Don't Know What Redeems

Every once in a while, I come across an article where the author has worked himself into a tizzy about the declining numbers in Evangelical churches.  If this trend continues, they warn, Evanglicalism will be unable to have any kind of voice in the larger society that demands recognition and attention.  These articles all seem to conclude that the Evangelical church is under supernatural attack like never before, with influential opinions and movements eroding the very base, and that the proper response to this crisis is to double down on things, telling the faithful to believe even harder in their own rightness and their own righteousness.

But then I read things like this, and I find it easier to believe that if Evangelicalism fails to survive into the 22nd century, it won't be because of any fancy "attacks by Satan" -- it will be because Evangelical Christians decided to be assholes.

And when I say "decided to be", I don't necessarily mean that they created a complicated matrix of pluses and minuses and evaluated various outcomes and went with "asshole".  I mean that, as far as a lot of Christians are concerned, thinking unkind things about God is The Worst Thing You Can Do(*) -- and that any other pain, suffering, or damage to actual people is very much secondary.  If Evangelicalism falls apart, it will be because that priority scheme will be shown to be as wrong and dangerous and harmful as it actually is, and adherents will have increasing amounts of difficulty getting those who aren't bound to that idea to internalize it.  Any deity worth any level of good wouldn't be interested in such a ruinous priority system(**).

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(*) And, by extension, questioning what you've been taught about Him, or questioning those who teach you about Him.

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(**) And that, honestly, is one big reason why I'm encouraged by stories in the Bible about people picking fights with God about the right thing to do and winning... but that's a whole 'nother rant.

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