World Evangelical

The Evangelical Church has had many challenges in the 20th Century, and has managed to survive them. As of 1910, the Fundamentalist movement was essentially in charge of the organization; they rejected liberal theology while emphasizing the inerrancy of the Bible. This would endure until just after World War II, as members began debating how it would deal with a world of non-believers. As many urged that the church must engage others constructively and directly, “fundamentalist” became “an embarrassment instead of a badge of honor”, as per Kenneth Kantzer.

A criminal defence lawyer in Brampton and Harold Ockenga identified a distinct movement within the church in 1947 and called it “neo-evangelism”; it was more positive and less militant than previous generations, and they were more interested in attempting dialogue, appeasement, and less judgmentalism towards others. They also wanted more application of biblical thought in social, political, and economic arenas. The fundamentalists, however, saw their efforts as too accommodating as well as too worried about seeking outside affirmation, both in intellectual and social spheres. They also saw as heretical the efforts of Billy Graham to work with the Catholic Church.

The post-war era saw the ecumenical movement grow as expressed by the World Council of Churches, which was generally seen with suspicion by evangelists as it attempted to allow various churches to work as one rather than as separate entities; the idea was that they would be able to work on advancing Christianity as a whole. John Stott and Martyn Loyd-Jones emerged as British leaders during this period. The charismatic movement started in the 1960s, resulting in the introduction of the Pentecostal branch; this is represented by such groups as the Association of Vineyard Churches and Newfrontiers. As the 20th Century closed postmodern influences entered the church, such as the emerging church movement, a deconstruction of the more staid church in favor of opening up a conversation with those outside of it.

The Evangelical Church is welcome to the challenges of the future and is meeting them head-on. While there is still the challenge of dealing with those outside the church in an ever-changing world, the church should be able to find its way.

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Throughout the nineteenth century, Evangelicalism gained much momentum, with the US and UK Great Awakenings. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, missionary work increased and lots of the main missionary groups were set up around this period. The high church and Evangelical movements alike funded missionaries.

Mainly, the Second Great Awakening (that actually started in 1790) was a US revivalist movement, which led to significant expansion of the Baptist and Methodist churches. One key preacher during this time was Charles Grandison Finney.

In the UK, as well as emphasizing the conventional Wesleyan mix of ‘Cross, Bible, activism and conversion’, the revivalist movement aimed for universal appeal – attempting to include the poor and rich, rural and urban, and women and men. Much effort was made to appeal to children and create literature that espoused revivalist messages. This inclusive approach differentiated it from other religions.

The UK Evangelical movement used the term ‘Christian conscience’ to encourage social activism. Evangelicals thought that activism in society and in government was an effective way of eradicating the sins of a wicked world. The Clapham sect Evangelicals included people like William Wilberforce, who campaigned successfully for slavery to be abolished.

During the late nineteenth century, the Holiness revivalist movement, which centered on the principle of ‘whole sanctification’, became more extreme in rural Canada and America, where it ended up breaking away from traditional Methodism. Holiness messages were less censorious and exclusive in urban UK.

John Nelson Darby, from the Brethren in Plymouth, was an Irish nineteenth century Anglican minister, who created modern dispensationalism. This was a unique theological Protestant Bible interpretation, which was adopted while modern Evangelicalism was developing. Cyrus Scofield went on to promote the concept of dispensationalism, via the explanatory footnotes in his Reference Bible. Mark S. Sweetnam, a scholar who specializes in cultural studies, said that dispensationalism should be defined by its’ Evangelicalism, its’ emphasis on Scripture’s literal interpretation, its’ acknowledgement of phases in God’s interaction with people, its’ belief in the inevitable return of Jesus to transport his saints to heaven, and its’ approval of both premillennialism and apocalypticism.

During the latter part of the nineteenth century, key figures include Chicago based Dwight L. Moody and London based Charles Spurgeon. Their charismatic preaching was heard by extremely big audiences.

A sophisticated theological point of view was articulated by Princeton theologians, between the 1850s and 1920s. These theologians included Archibald Alexander, B.B. Warfield and Charles Hodge.

For a criminal defence lawyer , in modern times the word ‘Evangelical’ is frequently used interchangeably with the word ‘Protestant’ in Latin America. Brazilian protestantism started with immigrants from Germany, and with American and British missionaries, during the nineteenth century. This followed up on attempts that were made during the 1820s. In 1855, Doctor Robert Reid Kalley, who was a Scottish missionary, moved to Brazil with support from Scotland’s Free Church. Once there, he founded the Portuguese speaking population’s first Evangelical church in 1856. 1894 was a year marked by the arrival of Seventh day Adventists, and 1896 saw the introduction of the YMCA.

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There are several complicated descriptions of evangelicalism, however, it can be simply explained and easily understood. While there is a lot of history that goes into evangelicalism, it is best understood looking at what it is now and how it became popular.

What is Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism is essential a denomination of the Protestant religion. It occurs in nearly all of the Protestant denominations including Baptist, Lutheran, and Pentecostal. It is a denomination that prioritizes piety, and moral living, over rituals. Evangelicals believe that once you have converted, or have been “born again”, your salvation is then guaranteed.

The Popularity of Evangelicalism

In the 18th century, evangelicalism started to gain popularity. It arose, at that time, as a rivalry between the Protestant religions of New England and Britain. Original Protestant traditions emphasized the importance of following the rituals during worship. Salvation was not given, essentially automatically, as it is with Evangelicals upon conversion. Salvation was instead earned over time and with the observing of the religious rituals. Little, if any emphasis, was given to living with morals or moralistic values. Piety was not a requirement for salvation.

Revivals were the tool by which the doctrine of Evangelicals were spread. In these revivals they would preach the good of piety and living a moralistic life. The preachers would offer the chance to convert, or be “born again, at which time their personal salvation would be granted. There was no waiting to see if salvation would be granted over time. No longer did worship entail impersonal and formal rituals. Evangelicals sought to preach the message of piety over stuffy rituals. The result was a more personal message and experience. Evangelicals reached out to convert others and spread the religion unlike traditional Protestants. The movement took hold and the word evangelicalism was capitalized and made a religious denomination.

While this is a very broad generalization and overview of the Evangelical movement, it outlines the basics of it. Overtime this denomination has evolved and developed. It has proliferated over the years to not only reach several denominations, it has branched into several of its own denominations. In today’s religious climate there are non-denominational Evangelicals whose practitioners do not claim any denomination and instead claim thee practice of piety. In addition there are also open, post, progressive, and neo-Evangelicals. What divides each denomination is often complicated and is based in a difference of doctrines. What is not complicated is the fact that the movement has spread and now reaches nearly every part of the world. What was a major fundamental difference in the 18th century, salvation upon conversion, is almost assumed in many religions today. It has become so popular that nearly a quarter of all Christians are Evangelicals.

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