Today, while there is still the need to address doubt, there is another concern that needs to be addressed that is hindering the Christian witness: the many people who are experiencing church hurt and religious trauma. To address this, I think we can also read “Doubting Thomas” more charitably as “Thomas the Traumatized.”
Tag: American religion
Protected or Privileged: Evangelism in the Federal Workplace
The recent Federal guidelines that explicitly protect federal employees who engage in religious expressions, including those that seek to persuade their co-workers to convert, raise serious questions about evangelism’s place related to the government. The practice is protected, but is it a good thing for it to be privileged?
Seek Ye First Your Personal Contentment
A curious new set of data has been reported by LifeWay Research that looks at the intersection of consumerism and the Christian faith in the United States. The a summary of the report can be found here. What makes the report curious is that the most active American Christians (those who attend worship services at…
What American Christians Misunderstand about What Americans Think about Them
Do Americans’ perception of Christianity match what American Protestants think they are? Not really, but there is a way forward.
The End of Evangelism in the Public Square?
Does the lack of comfort Christians and non-Christians alike have with inviting others to change their beliefs mean that evangelism as a practice is no longer possible in the United States? No. Does it mean that certain practices of evangelism should be retired, at least for this cultural moment? Absolutely yes.
Reframing “Spiritual but Not Religious” as “Belief but Not Accountability”
The “spiritual but not religious” hold to spiritual beliefs and practices that allow them to claim personal spirituality without being held accountable to any sort of religious community, set of doctrines, or even to God. It is a spirituality without accountability.