The Next Evangelicalism: Freeing the Church from Western Cultural Captivity
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
The future is now. Philip Jenkins has chronicled how the next Christendom has shifted away from the Western church toward the global South and East. Likewise, changing demographics mean that North American society will accelerate its diversity in terms of race, ethnicity and culture. But evangelicalism has long been held captive by its predominantly white cultural identity and history.
In this book professor and pastor Soong-Chan Rah calls the North American church to escape its captivity to Western cultural trappings and to embrace a new evangelicalism that is diverse and multiethnic. Rah brings keen analysis to the limitations of American Christianity and shows how captivity to Western individualism and materialism has played itself out in megachurches and emergent churches alike. Many white churches are in crisis and ill-equipped to minister to new cultural realities, but immigrant, ethnic and multiethnic churches are succeeding and flourishing.
This prophetic report casts a vision for a dynamic evangelicalism that fully embodies the cultural realities of the twenty-first century. Spiritual renewal is happening within the North American church, from corners and margins not always noticed by those in the center. Come, discover the vitality of the next evangelicalism.
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- Invites readers to examine critically the version of Christianity they are exporting to the world
- Seeks to realize true reconciliation within the body of Christ, and not to inspire a superficial reconciliation of people
- Addresses how captivity to Western cultural pressures have influenced the Church's theology, bibilical priorities and interpretations, and ministry strategies
Part One: The Western, White Cultural Captivity of the Church
- Individualism: The Heartbeat of Western, White Cultural Captivity
- Consumerism and Materialism: The Soul of Western, White Cultural Captivity
- Racism: The Residue of Western, White Cultural Captivity
Part Two: The Pervasiveness of the White Captivity of the Church
- The Church Growth Movement and Megachurches
- The Emergent Church's Captivity to Western, White Culture
- The Cultural Imperialism of the White Captivity of the Church
Part Three: Freedom from the White Captivity of the Church
- Suffering and Celebration: Learning from the African American and Native American Communities
- Holistic Evangelism: Learning from the Immigrant Church
- A Multicultural Worldview: Learning from the Second Generation
Top Highlights
“The reality of white privilege is that very little needs to be done to maintain this position of privilege.24 Not confronting white privilege is the passive acceptance of that privilege, which equates to an active embracing of that privilege. White privilege continues with even a passive acceptance of the status quo, which maintains the status of white power and dominance. To confront and alter the state of white privilege requires a proactive yielding and a purposeful laying down of power by those who are beneficiaries of white privilege.” (Page 162)
“In our pursuit of success based upon material norms, have we become more and more unwilling to confront sin? For example, would we be more willing to confront environmental injustice if we didn’t benefit economically from the abuse of the natural world? Have we sold our souls to be relevant? How substantially different would the church look if we measured success on the basis of the parable of the sheep and the goats of Matthew 25 or the self-sacrificial community of Acts 2 instead of measuring success based upon cultural values of consumerism and materialism? The American evangelical church needs to break the shackles of consumerism and materialism and turn instead toward biblical values in understanding and measuring success.” (Page 58)
“The phrase ‘captivity of the church’ points to the danger of the church being defined by an influence other than the Scriptures. The church remains the church, but we more accurately reflect the culture around us rather than the characteristics of the bride of Christ. We are held captive to the culture that surrounds us. To speak of the white captivity of the church is an acknowledgement that white culture has dominated, shaped and captured Christianity in the United States. At times, the white evangelical church has been enmeshed with Western, white American culture to the great detriment of the spread of the gospel. This state of American evangelicalism cannot continue if we are to move toward the future of a next evangelicalism.” (Pages 21–22)
One of the most important changes now going on in American--and indeed world--religion is the profound transformation of evangelicalism, a movement which encompasses hundreds of millions of people. This book is the best and most balanced treatment of the subject now available. It is well researched, clearly written and comprehensive.
Harvey Cox, Hollis Professor of Divinity, Harvard University, and author of When Jesus Came to Harvard
It's already shifted! America will soon be a minority-majority. Already some cities are. Who will lead the way into the future? You may be surprised to know there is a rising group of third-culture, liminal citizens forging paths of influence in every sector of society. Soong-Chan Rah in his book The Next Evangelicalism powerfully provokes us to take a hard look at our sins against the immigrants and this rising tide of the next generation of Christ-followers representing many tribes and nations.
Dave Gibbons, lead pastor of NEWSONG and author of The Monkey and the Fish: Liquid Leadership for a Third-Culture Church
Soong-Chan Rah doesn't just write about the changing face of evangelicalism; he is leading it. As a church planter, pastor, professor and scholar Rah is actively creating a path forward for Christians who have been caught in the traps of individualism, consumerism and racism. With real-world experience and depth of wisdom he paints a picture of church done differently and points to models, leaders and communities that are already blazing this trail. For anyone who wants to understand the future of the church in this new century, The Next Evangelicalism is a must-read.
Jim Wallis, president, Sojourners, and author of the New York Times bestseller The Great Awakening