Joshua Guthman
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469624860
- eISBN:
- 9781469624884
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469624860.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
This introductory chapter briefly explores the emergence of the Primitive Baptist movement between the 1820s and 1850s. Primitive Baptists in the antebellum South struggled not only with missionary ...
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This introductory chapter briefly explores the emergence of the Primitive Baptist movement between the 1820s and 1850s. Primitive Baptists in the antebellum South struggled not only with missionary adversaries but with a set of beliefs that placed them at odds both with their fellow evangelicals and with their own fraught consciences. These beliefs distanced them from the optimistic strains of evangelical Protestantism. The chapter also explains how the study of the Primitive Baptist movement reflects a concurrent emotional turn in scholarship across the humanities and social sciences. In the case of nineteenth-century American evangelicalism, the Protestant construction of the emotional profile of other groups functioned as a primary means by which to distinguish themselves from such groups. Emotionality, just as importantly as skin color, national origin, language, or social class, served as a marker of difference for the Protestant middle class.Less
This introductory chapter briefly explores the emergence of the Primitive Baptist movement between the 1820s and 1850s. Primitive Baptists in the antebellum South struggled not only with missionary adversaries but with a set of beliefs that placed them at odds both with their fellow evangelicals and with their own fraught consciences. These beliefs distanced them from the optimistic strains of evangelical Protestantism. The chapter also explains how the study of the Primitive Baptist movement reflects a concurrent emotional turn in scholarship across the humanities and social sciences. In the case of nineteenth-century American evangelicalism, the Protestant construction of the emotional profile of other groups functioned as a primary means by which to distinguish themselves from such groups. Emotionality, just as importantly as skin color, national origin, language, or social class, served as a marker of difference for the Protestant middle class.
Katharine K. Wilkinson
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199895885
- eISBN:
- 9780199949861
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199895885.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The roots of climate care run deep into American evangelicalism's past, fostering its emergence and molding its contours. As one phenomenon within the patchwork of contemporary evangelicalism, ...
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The roots of climate care run deep into American evangelicalism's past, fostering its emergence and molding its contours. As one phenomenon within the patchwork of contemporary evangelicalism, climate care is affected by the community's broader dynamics and trends. It also affects them. This chapter discusses how evangelical interest in climate change, developed out of more than three decades of evangelical engagement with broader environmental issues. While evangelicals have often been cast as anti-environmental, mainstream evangelical leaders and scholars long displayed receptivity to the concerns of environmentalism—though to different degrees and at different points in time. This history has two main axes: first, the process of building a theology of creation care and, second, the process of putting that ecotheology into practice.Less
The roots of climate care run deep into American evangelicalism's past, fostering its emergence and molding its contours. As one phenomenon within the patchwork of contemporary evangelicalism, climate care is affected by the community's broader dynamics and trends. It also affects them. This chapter discusses how evangelical interest in climate change, developed out of more than three decades of evangelical engagement with broader environmental issues. While evangelicals have often been cast as anti-environmental, mainstream evangelical leaders and scholars long displayed receptivity to the concerns of environmentalism—though to different degrees and at different points in time. This history has two main axes: first, the process of building a theology of creation care and, second, the process of putting that ecotheology into practice.
Ryan P. Harper
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781496810908
- eISBN:
- 9781496810946
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781496810908.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
The first chapter focuses on the first decade of the Homecoming franchise. The first Homecomings occur against the backdrop of late 1980s/early 1990s American politics, economics, evangelicalism, and ...
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The first chapter focuses on the first decade of the Homecoming franchise. The first Homecomings occur against the backdrop of late 1980s/early 1990s American politics, economics, evangelicalism, and mass entertainment. It is through these early videos that the Gaithers must establish the trust of an audience often alienated by televangelism and other subgenres of contemporary Christian music.Less
The first chapter focuses on the first decade of the Homecoming franchise. The first Homecomings occur against the backdrop of late 1980s/early 1990s American politics, economics, evangelicalism, and mass entertainment. It is through these early videos that the Gaithers must establish the trust of an audience often alienated by televangelism and other subgenres of contemporary Christian music.
Timothy Gloege
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469621012
- eISBN:
- 9781469623191
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469621012.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
American evangelicalism has long walked hand in hand with modern consumer capitalism. This book shows us why, through an engaging story about God and big business at the Moody Bible Institute. ...
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American evangelicalism has long walked hand in hand with modern consumer capitalism. This book shows us why, through an engaging story about God and big business at the Moody Bible Institute. Founded in Chicago by shoe-salesman-turned-revivalist Dwight Lyman Moody in 1889, the institute became a center of fundamentalism under the guidance of the innovative promoter and president of Quaker Oats, Henry Crowell. This book explores the framework for understanding humanity shared by these business and evangelical leaders, whose perspectives clearly differed from those underlying modern scientific theories. At the core of their “corporate evangelical” framework was a modern individualism understood primarily in terms of economic relations.Less
American evangelicalism has long walked hand in hand with modern consumer capitalism. This book shows us why, through an engaging story about God and big business at the Moody Bible Institute. Founded in Chicago by shoe-salesman-turned-revivalist Dwight Lyman Moody in 1889, the institute became a center of fundamentalism under the guidance of the innovative promoter and president of Quaker Oats, Henry Crowell. This book explores the framework for understanding humanity shared by these business and evangelical leaders, whose perspectives clearly differed from those underlying modern scientific theories. At the core of their “corporate evangelical” framework was a modern individualism understood primarily in terms of economic relations.
Sarah E. Ruble
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- July 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780807835814
- eISBN:
- 9781469601601
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/9780807837429_ruble.6
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
This chapter focuses on American evangelicals and the affirmation of their normativity. It begins by discussing a brief historical background of the evangelicals and the impact of Cold War in their ...
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This chapter focuses on American evangelicals and the affirmation of their normativity. It begins by discussing a brief historical background of the evangelicals and the impact of Cold War in their missionary work. The chapter then discusses the critique, challenge, and limits of acceptable evangelical dissent during the late 1950s and the 1960s, with a particular focus on Elisabeth Elliot's critiques of missionary attitudes and tactics. It also discusses evangelical reflections on American missionaries in Christianity Today and in Free Methodist publications during the last three decades of the twentieth century.Less
This chapter focuses on American evangelicals and the affirmation of their normativity. It begins by discussing a brief historical background of the evangelicals and the impact of Cold War in their missionary work. The chapter then discusses the critique, challenge, and limits of acceptable evangelical dissent during the late 1950s and the 1960s, with a particular focus on Elisabeth Elliot's critiques of missionary attitudes and tactics. It also discusses evangelical reflections on American missionaries in Christianity Today and in Free Methodist publications during the last three decades of the twentieth century.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This introductory chapter sets out the book's purpose, namely to explore the extraordinary appeal of five evangelicals who make strong cases to replace Billy Graham as America's leading preacher and ...
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This introductory chapter sets out the book's purpose, namely to explore the extraordinary appeal of five evangelicals who make strong cases to replace Billy Graham as America's leading preacher and evangelist: Paula White, T. D. Jakes, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen, and Brian McLaren. The present study makes the case for sa supply-side analysis of religious vitality, contending that clergy (and their congregations or followers) hold the key to understanding why certain movements thrive while others decline. It argues that religious suppliers thrive in a competitive spiritual marketplace because they are quick, decisive, and flexible in reacting to changing conditions, savvy at packaging and marketing their ministries, and resourceful at offering spiritual rewards that resonate with the existential sneeds and cultural tastes of the public. Religious suppliers carve out a niche in the spiritual marketplace and distinguish their ministries by offering an array of spiritual goods and services that match the tastes and desires of religious consumers.Less
This introductory chapter sets out the book's purpose, namely to explore the extraordinary appeal of five evangelicals who make strong cases to replace Billy Graham as America's leading preacher and evangelist: Paula White, T. D. Jakes, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen, and Brian McLaren. The present study makes the case for sa supply-side analysis of religious vitality, contending that clergy (and their congregations or followers) hold the key to understanding why certain movements thrive while others decline. It argues that religious suppliers thrive in a competitive spiritual marketplace because they are quick, decisive, and flexible in reacting to changing conditions, savvy at packaging and marketing their ministries, and resourceful at offering spiritual rewards that resonate with the existential sneeds and cultural tastes of the public. Religious suppliers carve out a niche in the spiritual marketplace and distinguish their ministries by offering an array of spiritual goods and services that match the tastes and desires of religious consumers.
Michael J. McVicar
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469622743
- eISBN:
- 9781469622767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469622743.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
This concluding chapter charts the aftermath of Rushdoony’s theological legacy. As a result of Rushdoony’s ill health, financial setbacks, and the premature deaths of theologians such as Bahnsen and ...
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This concluding chapter charts the aftermath of Rushdoony’s theological legacy. As a result of Rushdoony’s ill health, financial setbacks, and the premature deaths of theologians such as Bahnsen and Chilton, the 1990s and early 2000s marked an era of change for Rushdoony’s Chalcedon Foundation and North’s ICE. Worse, the theology of R.J. Rushdoony has since become a screen upon which critics project competing interpretations of the proper place of religion in American society. By using Reconstructionism to embody “bad” religion, such narratives reify the normative and naïve assumption that “good” American evangelicalism simply seeks to bring the light of Christ’s Gospel to a fallen world. Such saccharine discourses, however, conveniently ignore that both evangelicalism and secularism are culturally constituted systems of exclusion facilitated by powerful institutional, legal, and governmental mechanisms.Less
This concluding chapter charts the aftermath of Rushdoony’s theological legacy. As a result of Rushdoony’s ill health, financial setbacks, and the premature deaths of theologians such as Bahnsen and Chilton, the 1990s and early 2000s marked an era of change for Rushdoony’s Chalcedon Foundation and North’s ICE. Worse, the theology of R.J. Rushdoony has since become a screen upon which critics project competing interpretations of the proper place of religion in American society. By using Reconstructionism to embody “bad” religion, such narratives reify the normative and naïve assumption that “good” American evangelicalism simply seeks to bring the light of Christ’s Gospel to a fallen world. Such saccharine discourses, however, conveniently ignore that both evangelicalism and secularism are culturally constituted systems of exclusion facilitated by powerful institutional, legal, and governmental mechanisms.
Randall Balmer
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- March 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199360468
- eISBN:
- 9780190258252
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199360468.003.0022
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
This epilogue presents the author's thoughts about the evangelical subculture and the future of evangelicalism in America. He discusses the importance of belief to evangelicals; how their doctrinal ...
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This epilogue presents the author's thoughts about the evangelical subculture and the future of evangelicalism in America. He discusses the importance of belief to evangelicals; how their doctrinal precisionism has produced the diverse evangelical subculture in America; and how the media, especially television, have permeated evangelical worship. He also believes that evangelicalism will also persist because of its timeless appeal. It promises intimacy with God, a support community, an unambiguous morality, and answers to the riddles of eternity.Less
This epilogue presents the author's thoughts about the evangelical subculture and the future of evangelicalism in America. He discusses the importance of belief to evangelicals; how their doctrinal precisionism has produced the diverse evangelical subculture in America; and how the media, especially television, have permeated evangelical worship. He also believes that evangelicalism will also persist because of its timeless appeal. It promises intimacy with God, a support community, an unambiguous morality, and answers to the riddles of eternity.
Valerie C. Cooper
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814797303
- eISBN:
- 9780814789070
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814797303.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter focuses on two movements that unfolded, American Evangelicalism and Wesleyan Holiness, and how changing understandings of women's appropriate place in public life laid the foundations ...
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This chapter focuses on two movements that unfolded, American Evangelicalism and Wesleyan Holiness, and how changing understandings of women's appropriate place in public life laid the foundations for the Azusa Street Mission. It considers how nineteenth-century, black Evangelical women contributed to the establishment of the largely egalitarian ethos of early Afro-Pentecostalism by bringing to their involvement in Azusa changing expectations about their roles in public ministry and public life, biblically based arguments for women's religious leadership, a developing pneumatology, and eschatological expectancy. It also considers how black women's views about public activism and theology influenced the dynamic sociological and historical factors that produced Azusa Street.Less
This chapter focuses on two movements that unfolded, American Evangelicalism and Wesleyan Holiness, and how changing understandings of women's appropriate place in public life laid the foundations for the Azusa Street Mission. It considers how nineteenth-century, black Evangelical women contributed to the establishment of the largely egalitarian ethos of early Afro-Pentecostalism by bringing to their involvement in Azusa changing expectations about their roles in public ministry and public life, biblically based arguments for women's religious leadership, a developing pneumatology, and eschatological expectancy. It also considers how black women's views about public activism and theology influenced the dynamic sociological and historical factors that produced Azusa Street.
Randall Balmer
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- March 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199360468
- eISBN:
- 9780190258252
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199360468.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
This is book about popular evangelicalism, a kind of travelogue into the evangelical subculture in America—a subculture that encompasses fundamentalists, charismatics, and pentecostals. This prologue ...
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This is book about popular evangelicalism, a kind of travelogue into the evangelical subculture in America—a subculture that encompasses fundamentalists, charismatics, and pentecostals. This prologue explains the author's rationale for writing this book. It presents his account of venturing outside the confines of the evangelical subculture wherein he was reared, and the lessons he learned from the theological liberals he had been taught to despise. As a historian, his primary goal was to produce a book that might appeal both to scholars interested in popular religion in America and to the general public curious about a phenomenon that has received a good deal of attention in the past decade.Less
This is book about popular evangelicalism, a kind of travelogue into the evangelical subculture in America—a subculture that encompasses fundamentalists, charismatics, and pentecostals. This prologue explains the author's rationale for writing this book. It presents his account of venturing outside the confines of the evangelical subculture wherein he was reared, and the lessons he learned from the theological liberals he had been taught to despise. As a historian, his primary goal was to produce a book that might appeal both to scholars interested in popular religion in America and to the general public curious about a phenomenon that has received a good deal of attention in the past decade.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter explores how Brian McLaren attracts many followers by challenging evangelicalism. McLaren is a pastor, best-selling author, ministry consultant, and influential leader in a rapidly ...
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This chapter explores how Brian McLaren attracts many followers by challenging evangelicalism. McLaren is a pastor, best-selling author, ministry consultant, and influential leader in a rapidly growing evangelical movement called the emerging church. McLaren engages in progressive dialogues on the global economy, the growing economic divide between the rich and the poor, and the mounting danger of violence from both terrorists and antiterrorists. His writings attract many who criticize and critique evangelicals' partiality with American nationalism and neoconservative politics. By offering a relational and organic model of spiritual community that emphasizes friendship, fosters dialogue, and makes no claim to having a monopoly on truth, McLaren constructs an archetype for a new kind of evangelicalism that addresses the alienation, isolation, and rampant individualism of our society.Less
This chapter explores how Brian McLaren attracts many followers by challenging evangelicalism. McLaren is a pastor, best-selling author, ministry consultant, and influential leader in a rapidly growing evangelical movement called the emerging church. McLaren engages in progressive dialogues on the global economy, the growing economic divide between the rich and the poor, and the mounting danger of violence from both terrorists and antiterrorists. His writings attract many who criticize and critique evangelicals' partiality with American nationalism and neoconservative politics. By offering a relational and organic model of spiritual community that emphasizes friendship, fosters dialogue, and makes no claim to having a monopoly on truth, McLaren constructs an archetype for a new kind of evangelicalism that addresses the alienation, isolation, and rampant individualism of our society.
Randall Balmer
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- March 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199360468
- eISBN:
- 9780190258252
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199360468.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
This book takes a journey into the world of conservative Christians in America. This book, which is a tour of the highways and byways of American evangelicalism, describes a visit to a revival ...
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This book takes a journey into the world of conservative Christians in America. This book, which is a tour of the highways and byways of American evangelicalism, describes a visit to a revival meeting in Florida, an Indian reservation in the Dakotas, a trade show for Christian booksellers, and a fundamentalist Bible camp in the Adirondacks. Through the eyes of those encountered on the journeys, the book shows a more accurate and balanced understanding of an abiding tradition that, as the text argues, is both rich in theological insights and mired in contradictions.Less
This book takes a journey into the world of conservative Christians in America. This book, which is a tour of the highways and byways of American evangelicalism, describes a visit to a revival meeting in Florida, an Indian reservation in the Dakotas, a trade show for Christian booksellers, and a fundamentalist Bible camp in the Adirondacks. Through the eyes of those encountered on the journeys, the book shows a more accurate and balanced understanding of an abiding tradition that, as the text argues, is both rich in theological insights and mired in contradictions.
Prema A. Kurien
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- January 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781479804757
- eISBN:
- 9781479845477
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479804757.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Gender norms were another source of tension. First- and second-generation Mar Thoma Americans had divergent ideas about the obligations and behavior of Christian men and women in church, and the ...
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Gender norms were another source of tension. First- and second-generation Mar Thoma Americans had divergent ideas about the obligations and behavior of Christian men and women in church, and the gender norms and behavior of professionally educated immigrants also differed from those of less well-educated members. Changes in gender roles and class position as a result of the migration and settlement often roused gender insecurities that were manifested within the arena of the church. Chapter 4 focuses on how three groups within the Mar Thoma church: immigrant nurses, who were often the primary income earners in their families, and their husbands; professionally educated immigrant men, who were generally the primary income earners, and their wives; and well-employed second-generation women and men influenced by American evangelicalism, performed gender and normative Christian identities in very different ways in church, leading to some tension between the groups.Less
Gender norms were another source of tension. First- and second-generation Mar Thoma Americans had divergent ideas about the obligations and behavior of Christian men and women in church, and the gender norms and behavior of professionally educated immigrants also differed from those of less well-educated members. Changes in gender roles and class position as a result of the migration and settlement often roused gender insecurities that were manifested within the arena of the church. Chapter 4 focuses on how three groups within the Mar Thoma church: immigrant nurses, who were often the primary income earners in their families, and their husbands; professionally educated immigrant men, who were generally the primary income earners, and their wives; and well-employed second-generation women and men influenced by American evangelicalism, performed gender and normative Christian identities in very different ways in church, leading to some tension between the groups.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This epilogue offers some concluding thoughts about the five subjects discussed in the preceding chapters: Paula White, T. D. Jakes, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen, and Brian McLaren. All five are ...
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This epilogue offers some concluding thoughts about the five subjects discussed in the preceding chapters: Paula White, T. D. Jakes, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen, and Brian McLaren. All five are evangelical innovators who adjust and retool American evangelicalism in appealing ways that attract large segments of the religious market. Each offers a style of Christianity that is dynamic and relevant, changes many lives and meets many needs; an environment that takes varying forms and yet remains simple and satisfying; a message that rests in God's sovereignty while providing intriguing possibilities for human agency; instruction that is pragmatic yet idealistic, self-actualizing and self-therapeutic; a ministry that responds to market forces and yet remains true to core beliefs; and a scope that transcends race, ethnicity, and class. In a nutshell, these innovators offer a brand of evangelical Christianity that is brilliantly designed for contemporary Americans.Less
This epilogue offers some concluding thoughts about the five subjects discussed in the preceding chapters: Paula White, T. D. Jakes, Rick Warren, Joel Osteen, and Brian McLaren. All five are evangelical innovators who adjust and retool American evangelicalism in appealing ways that attract large segments of the religious market. Each offers a style of Christianity that is dynamic and relevant, changes many lives and meets many needs; an environment that takes varying forms and yet remains simple and satisfying; a message that rests in God's sovereignty while providing intriguing possibilities for human agency; instruction that is pragmatic yet idealistic, self-actualizing and self-therapeutic; a ministry that responds to market forces and yet remains true to core beliefs; and a scope that transcends race, ethnicity, and class. In a nutshell, these innovators offer a brand of evangelical Christianity that is brilliantly designed for contemporary Americans.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter shows how Rick Warren became the pastor of a 25,000-member church in Orange County, California, and one of the most influential Protestant leaders in the world. Warren's simple sermons, ...
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This chapter shows how Rick Warren became the pastor of a 25,000-member church in Orange County, California, and one of the most influential Protestant leaders in the world. Warren's simple sermons, often structured around catchy acronyms, address life issues that affect many Americans. He packages evangelicalism in an unconventional, racially generic, and politically inoffensive way and is the force behind a rapidly growing purpose-driven church movement that blurs denominational distinctions and challenges traditional ways of approaching ministry. By mixing religion with the best marketing and business principles of today, along with other elements of contemporary secular culture, Warren makes evangelical ministry attractive to baby boomers and successive generations of Americans.Less
This chapter shows how Rick Warren became the pastor of a 25,000-member church in Orange County, California, and one of the most influential Protestant leaders in the world. Warren's simple sermons, often structured around catchy acronyms, address life issues that affect many Americans. He packages evangelicalism in an unconventional, racially generic, and politically inoffensive way and is the force behind a rapidly growing purpose-driven church movement that blurs denominational distinctions and challenges traditional ways of approaching ministry. By mixing religion with the best marketing and business principles of today, along with other elements of contemporary secular culture, Warren makes evangelical ministry attractive to baby boomers and successive generations of Americans.
Randall Balmer
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- March 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199360468
- eISBN:
- 9780190258252
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199360468.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
This chapter presents the author's account of his visit to the Dallas Theological Seminary in Texas. Founded in 1924 to combat the theological modernism then popular with American Protestants, the ...
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This chapter presents the author's account of his visit to the Dallas Theological Seminary in Texas. Founded in 1924 to combat the theological modernism then popular with American Protestants, the Dallas Theological Seminary has held down, in its view, the fortress of evangelical and fundamentalist orthodoxy against the sundry assaults of twentieth-century theological liberalism. The author describes his visit to the seminary as a kind of inspection tour of these doctrinal ramparts—an examination of the theological infrastructure of American evangelicalism. People here believe that the intellectual case for evangelical theology rests on the twin pillars of biblical inerrancy (the conviction that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit rendered the Scriptures errorless in the original autographs) and a nineteenth-century doctrine known as dispensational premillennialism.Less
This chapter presents the author's account of his visit to the Dallas Theological Seminary in Texas. Founded in 1924 to combat the theological modernism then popular with American Protestants, the Dallas Theological Seminary has held down, in its view, the fortress of evangelical and fundamentalist orthodoxy against the sundry assaults of twentieth-century theological liberalism. The author describes his visit to the seminary as a kind of inspection tour of these doctrinal ramparts—an examination of the theological infrastructure of American evangelicalism. People here believe that the intellectual case for evangelical theology rests on the twin pillars of biblical inerrancy (the conviction that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit rendered the Scriptures errorless in the original autographs) and a nineteenth-century doctrine known as dispensational premillennialism.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter presents Thomas Dexter Jakes as a metaphor of a new black church. As the pastor of the largest church in Dallas, Texas; a conference organizer who draws tens of thousands to his events; ...
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This chapter presents Thomas Dexter Jakes as a metaphor of a new black church. As the pastor of the largest church in Dallas, Texas; a conference organizer who draws tens of thousands to his events; the author of more than a dozen best sellers, including two critically acclaimed novels; and a movie executive who recently signed with Sony Movies to produce nine more films, T. D. Jakes redefines evangelical entrepreneurship. By appropriating a broad range of cultural tools, he tactically blends biblical teachings with psychological theories, folk wisdom, pop culture, and American idealism. His appeal comes from adeptly diagnosing problems overlooked by other evangelicals, including sexual abuse, addiction, and abandonment. Jakes' cultural repertoire for solving practical life problems concerning finances, weight loss, self-esteem, and other issues connects with many contemporary Americans.Less
This chapter presents Thomas Dexter Jakes as a metaphor of a new black church. As the pastor of the largest church in Dallas, Texas; a conference organizer who draws tens of thousands to his events; the author of more than a dozen best sellers, including two critically acclaimed novels; and a movie executive who recently signed with Sony Movies to produce nine more films, T. D. Jakes redefines evangelical entrepreneurship. By appropriating a broad range of cultural tools, he tactically blends biblical teachings with psychological theories, folk wisdom, pop culture, and American idealism. His appeal comes from adeptly diagnosing problems overlooked by other evangelicals, including sexual abuse, addiction, and abandonment. Jakes' cultural repertoire for solving practical life problems concerning finances, weight loss, self-esteem, and other issues connects with many contemporary Americans.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter chronicles Joel Osteen's rise to prominence and details the dynamics of his multifaceted ministry. Drawing from a career in religious telecasting and media production and a talented ...
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This chapter chronicles Joel Osteen's rise to prominence and details the dynamics of his multifaceted ministry. Drawing from a career in religious telecasting and media production and a talented ministry team composed of engaging speakers, keen managers, and talented musicians, Osteen excels at practical preaching, offering a welcoming smile and a warm Texas drawl. While he acknowledges the ups and downs of the human condition, his appeal centers around a message of self-respect and of blessed return on spiritual investment, conditioned most readily by confluences between cognitive psychology and sacred speech. From its home in Houston—in a sports-arena-turned-sacred-space—and through his books, weekly telecasts, archived sermons, podcasts, daily “e-votionals,” and monthly ministry events called “An Evening with Joel,” Osteen's message of spiritual prosperity and positive thinking appeals to millions worldwide, crossing numerous racial, ethnic, and economic boundaries.Less
This chapter chronicles Joel Osteen's rise to prominence and details the dynamics of his multifaceted ministry. Drawing from a career in religious telecasting and media production and a talented ministry team composed of engaging speakers, keen managers, and talented musicians, Osteen excels at practical preaching, offering a welcoming smile and a warm Texas drawl. While he acknowledges the ups and downs of the human condition, his appeal centers around a message of self-respect and of blessed return on spiritual investment, conditioned most readily by confluences between cognitive psychology and sacred speech. From its home in Houston—in a sports-arena-turned-sacred-space—and through his books, weekly telecasts, archived sermons, podcasts, daily “e-votionals,” and monthly ministry events called “An Evening with Joel,” Osteen's message of spiritual prosperity and positive thinking appeals to millions worldwide, crossing numerous racial, ethnic, and economic boundaries.
Shayne Lee and Phillip Luke Sinitiere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814752340
- eISBN:
- 9780814753453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814752340.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter explains how Paula White strategically integrates her message and ministry into mainstream American religious culture and crafts a model of the emotionally healthy Christian who is ...
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This chapter explains how Paula White strategically integrates her message and ministry into mainstream American religious culture and crafts a model of the emotionally healthy Christian who is honest about her shortcomings. She is a best-selling author, noted conference speaker, life coach, and television personality. Her message infuses an emphasis on God's transforming power with the raw and honest faith of postmodern confessional culture. As the “Oprah Winfrey” of the evangelical world, White finesses dialogues with celebrity experts about self-actualization and the nitty-gritty, day-to-day realities of life. By integrating religion with American longings for youth, beauty, health, and sexual fulfillment, she offers an empowering and self-therapeutic brand of Christianity that teaches people how to become physically fit, mentally tough, and biblically literate, while trusting in the promises of God for dramatic change in life.Less
This chapter explains how Paula White strategically integrates her message and ministry into mainstream American religious culture and crafts a model of the emotionally healthy Christian who is honest about her shortcomings. She is a best-selling author, noted conference speaker, life coach, and television personality. Her message infuses an emphasis on God's transforming power with the raw and honest faith of postmodern confessional culture. As the “Oprah Winfrey” of the evangelical world, White finesses dialogues with celebrity experts about self-actualization and the nitty-gritty, day-to-day realities of life. By integrating religion with American longings for youth, beauty, health, and sexual fulfillment, she offers an empowering and self-therapeutic brand of Christianity that teaches people how to become physically fit, mentally tough, and biblically literate, while trusting in the promises of God for dramatic change in life.
