Reclaiming evangelicalism?

I’m at least self-aware enough to know that I haven’t been an evangelical Christian for almost a full decade. I have a general idea where I lost that label — in my car, somewhere between the Pacific coast of Michoacán, Mexico and Laredo, Texas.

There seem to be a good number of Christians who equate Christianity with evangelicalism. In other words, when they hear the word “Christian,” what they think is “Evangelical”. Thus, talk of a move away from evangelicalism is a move away from Christianity itself.

What I find interesting about the use of this label is that it’s a relatively new term. The Evangelical movement began in the early to middle 1700’s, not too long before the United States declared independence from England. Which means for at least 1,700 years, the church as a whole existed without evangelicalism even being a thing.

Evangelicalism can no more claim to be the ideal representation of Christianity than can any of the other 30,000+ Christian denominations in the world. All of them have their own spin on the Biblical texts, too.

[Side Note: this is why the idea of Sola Scriptura makes so little sense. Scripture can never truly be our only authority because anybody who reads it can make it say whatever they’d like; thus, our interpretations of scripture become the authority, not scripture itself.]

There has been some talk recently about reclaiming the term “Evangelical.” And while I agree that Christianity should be good news for all people in all places, I’m left wondering if we shouldn’t just let that label go altogether.

There have been some who refer to themselves as Post-Evangelical; there are still others who are attempting to go beyond Evangelical.

The question is, do we have to call ourselves “Evangelical” at all in order to still be people of the good news? Can we get rid of the bathwater without also getting rid of the baby? Why go back?

I’m thankful for my Evangelical roots. The Evangelical movement produced the tradition into which I was born — the Church of Christ — and it is this movement that is ultimately responsible for introducing me to Jesus.

There will be elements of evangelicalism that will likely be with me for as long as I live. That’s not a bad thing.

Even so, as Christianity seems to be trending away from evangelicalism, I won’t be sad to see it go.

Jesus will still be Lord without evangelicalism just as he was Lord before evangelicalism showed up.

And the good news will still be good news; for all people, in all places.