What is an evangelical?

[havevisions]

We hear much in the news nowadays about the evangelical community. Political analysts and various religious leaders and others oftentimes throw the word around and it is assumed that everyone knows who they refer to.

I don't remember if anyone here has ever defined the term; forgive me if they have. I often have friends and nonbelievers use the term to make statements. My impression is that it does not necessarily refer to church attendance (some evangelical may not even attend church, at least not regularly), and many are not Protestants.

I thought it might be a good idea to attempt a definition. Having looked at several sights on the web, I formed a general definition that seems to capture a lot of them. I'm sure there will be disagreements and additions.

Evangelical refers to those hold hold these beliefs:
1. The Bible is the highest authority and is the basis for morality. 2. Because of Christ’s mandate to take the Gospel to the world, we engage in personally encouraging or inviting non-Christians to trust Jesus as Savior. 3. Belief and acceptance of the cross of Christ as the only sacrifice that can remove the penalty of sin. 4. Only through trust in Jesus Christ as Savior can one receive the free gift of eternal salvation.

What are your thoughts? I'd like to hear your definition if you do not agree with these.

 

[Job8]

What are your thoughts? I'd like to hear your definition if you do not agree with these.

Ideally Evangelicals believe that the preaching of the Gospel and the New Birth are essential for salvation. At the same time there is a wide spectrum of evangelicals today.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

Evangelical refers to those hold hold these beliefs:

Are they born again ?
Find out, before listening to one.
That's the first test.

 

[ValleyGal]

There is a difference between evangelicals and Evangelicals. Someone who is evangelical is someone who evangelizes (in whatever capacity that is, and for whatever Christian persuasion). The term Evangelical describes a movement. There is an Evangelical Manifesto which describes Evangelicals quite nicely. You can download the summary or the full article from this link:
http://www.evangelicalmanifesto.com/the-manifesto/

 

[Goodbook]

I would think they are born-again christians who follow Jesus commands to preach the gospel.

evangelicals can be from any denomination, except those that don't hold to the trinity, eg Mormons, JWs, and other fringe sects.


When its talked about in the news often its just subset of christians in america, as it tends to be americans who are quite outspoken about their faith and also politics. But evangelicals do not actually have to hold prescribed political views. It depends what country they are from.

I would agree with your definition anyway.

 

[seashale76]

We hear much in the news nowadays about the evangelical community. Political analysts and various religious leaders and others oftentimes throw the word around and it is assumed that everyone knows who they refer to.

I don't remember if anyone here has ever defined the term; forgive me if they have. I often have friends and nonbelievers use the term to make statements. My impression is that it does not necessarily refer to church attendance (some evangelical may not even attend church, at least not regularly), and many are not Protestants.

I thought it might be a good idea to attempt a definition. Having looked at several sights on the web, I formed a general definition that seems to capture a lot of them. I'm sure there will be disagreements and additions.

Evangelical refers to those hold hold these beliefs:
1. The Bible is the highest authority and is the basis for morality. 2. Because of Christ’s mandate to take the Gospel to the world, we engage in personally encouraging or inviting non-Christians to trust Jesus as Savior. 3. Belief and acceptance of the cross of Christ as the only sacrifice that can remove the penalty of sin. 4. Only through trust in Jesus Christ as Savior can one receive the free gift of eternal salvation.

What are your thoughts? I'd like to hear your definition if you do not agree with these.

I see Evangelicals as newer breakaway groups from the Mainline Protestant denominations. Generally, I see them as almost entirely an American phenomena, emerging specifically from the so-called Great Awakening. I see them as being almost entirely about rejecting any and all traditions that came before and all about embracing feelings, experiences, free form worship, and vastly different theology from traditional Christianity as a guidepost for how 'saved' one is or isn't and to determine how one's walk with Christ is going. They are literalists where others aren't and embrace allegory where others don't (i.e. in areas where I- as an Orthodox Christian- accept things as literal an Evangelical would see allegory, and vice versa). Mainstream Protestant denominations also tend to look at the scriptures as being the highest authority, so Evangelicals are nothing new there. All Christians throughout time are about taking the gospel to the world, so this is also not unique to Evangelicals. All Christians, presumably, believe that only through Christ can one receive salvation, so that is also not only an Evangelical thing. If one does not believe this, then I fail to see how they are Christian at all. I find the definition of what an Evangelical is, as presented by the OP, to be severely lacking.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

What does a 2 year old think an evangelical is ? or evangelicalism ?
If you tell him an evangelical is coming, or is at the door , what does a 2 year old think ?

What does a 2 year old think of Jesus ?
If Jesus knocked on your front door, and you told the 2 year old "Jesus is here!" how would he act ?

Have you ever seen a small child point to someone and say joyfully "Mommy, There's Jesus!"

Have you even seen a small child point to someone and say excitedly "There's s&nt& cl&us!"
(would they recognize Jesus ?)
Have you ever seen anyone get joyful or excited , point and say "There's an evangelical!"
(would they recognize Jesus ?)

 

[havevisions]

So, is it correct or incorrect to say that: "All Christians are evangelicals but all evangelicals are not Christian." ?

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

So, is it correct or incorrect to say that: "All Christians are evangelicals but all evangelicals are not Christian." ?

"Correct?" , where? Neither is accurate.
Some Christians are evangelical.
Some evangelicals are Christian.
Each on a case by case basis. (Like the individuals in the assemblies in Revelation >>


To the Church in Sardis

3 “To the angel[a] of the church in Sardis write:

........

4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

.

 

[ViaCrucis]

The answer largely depends on time and place.

The term "Evangelical" was first adopted by the earliest Lutherans--it's what Lutherans called themselves, in German it's Evangelische (which is still the modern German equivalent to "Protestant" in reference to Lutherans and Reformed Christians). The terms "Lutheran" and "Protestant" came later, the term "Lutheran" was used in a derogatory manner to insinuate that Luther was the founder of a heretical and schismatic sect, though the Lutherans themselves understood themselves to be catholic Christians, which is made plain in the confessional literature such as the Augsburg Confession; the term "Protestant" originally referred to the German elector princes who protested the Second Imperial Diet at Speyer which reversed the imperial decision at the first diet which gave the princes the choice of whether to practice the Roman or Evangelical forms of religion (the 2nd Diet said all princes were required to enforce the Roman forms) and so the Evangelical princes protested, and became known as the Protestants--it was then later applied more broadly.

It's been used in other contexts in the English-speaking world; in the 18th and 19th century it referred to a kind of broadly Pietistic form of Protestantism, Pietism having originated among some Lutherans in the 17th century and especially notable among the Moravian Brethren--it was fiercely criticized and condemned by orthodox Lutherans. A resurgence of this occurred again in the 2nd Great Awakening in the United States through Revivalism, and thus combining elements of Pietism and Revivalism, with a significant shift away from what was basically a Reformed (Calvinist) normalcy which frequently dominated 19th century American Protestantism.

In the 20th and 21st first centuries Evangelical/Evangelicalism more properly refers to Neo-Evangelicalism, a renewed and reinvigorated revivalistic tendency that was largely in response to the social isolation of the Fundamentalists of the early 20th century. It took a lot of the momentum and ideas of the 2nd Great Awakening--in particular the New Measures invented by Charles Finney--and also influenced by the evangelistic work of Billy Sunday; it began to enter into the American religious landscape with more earnest with the evangelistic work of Billy Graham.

I would say that what is distinctive of modern Evangelicalism is what it inherited from its Pietistic and Revivalist forebearers, though most prominently what is distinctive of modern Evangelicalism is its emphasis on an individual conversion experience. And the thrust of Evangelical practice is in preaching to others and to encourage others to become a Christian through an individual conversion experience. This individual conversion experience frequently takes the form of the altar call (one of the New Measures mentioned earlier) or the Sinner's Prayer (something Billy Sunday came up with).

There are other distinguishing characteristics of modern Evangelicalism, a frequently espoused one is a literal interpretation of Scripture (except that's not universally true) or a belief in biblical inerrancy (which again is not universally true). So I would argue that what is most distinct is that emphasis, an insistence even, of an individual conversion experience. That is somewhat unique to the modern Evangelical tradition, and is perhaps what most marks Evangelicals as Evangelicals--where they will frequently disagree on many other points and issues.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[ViaCrucis]

So, is it correct or incorrect to say that: "All Christians are evangelicals but all evangelicals are not Christian." ?

It would be correct to say that all Evangelicals are Christians but not all Christians are Evangelicals. Evangelicals, in the modern sense, is a subset of Protestant Christianity that exists as a tradition that crosses denominational lines, and is often used in contrast to Mainline Protestantism (which is itself a somewhat fuzzy category).

-CryptoLutheran

 

[havevisions]

Thanks very much for your knowledge and the explanations you gave.
That makes it much clearer.

 

[Albion]

We hear much in the news nowadays about the evangelical community. Political analysts and various religious leaders and others oftentimes throw the word around and it is assumed that everyone knows who they refer to.

I don't remember if anyone here has ever defined the term; forgive me if they have. I often have friends and nonbelievers use the term to make statements. My impression is that it does not necessarily refer to church attendance (some evangelical may not even attend church, at least not regularly), and many are not Protestants.

I thought it might be a good idea to attempt a definition. Having looked at several sights on the web, I formed a general definition that seems to capture a lot of them. I'm sure there will be disagreements and additions.

Evangelical refers to those hold hold these beliefs:
1. The Bible is the highest authority and is the basis for morality. 2. Because of Christ’s mandate to take the Gospel to the world, we engage in personally encouraging or inviting non-Christians to trust Jesus as Savior. 3. Belief and acceptance of the cross of Christ as the only sacrifice that can remove the penalty of sin. 4. Only through trust in Jesus Christ as Savior can one receive the free gift of eternal salvation.

What are your thoughts? I'd like to hear your definition if you do not agree with these.

I think that definition is a good as any, but the point is that there is no firm definition, no universally agreed upon definition, and it's not the historic meaning of the word, which included all mainline Protestants.

Evangelical has become almost a catchall used by the media to refer to all those Protestants who do not belong to the traditional denominations (Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, etc.) but rather to a vaguely defined mass of Pentecostals, Non-denominationals, and others who are characterized by the press as fanatical and fundamentalistic.

 

[WolfGate]

I think that definition is a good as any, but the point is that there is no firm definition, no universally agreed upon definition, and it's not the historic meaning of the word, which included all mainline Protestants.

Evangelical has become almost a catchall used by the media to refer to all those Protestants who do not belong to the traditional denominations (Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, etc.) but rather to a vaguely defined mass of Pentecostals, Non-denominationals, and others who are characterized by the press as fanatical and fundamentalistic.

And that catchall is a vaguely defined mass in many people's minds. Pentacostals to Calvinists. "Seeker friendly" churches with an emphasis on service to very traditional congregations with a focus on conversion through solid biblical preaching. It is hard to define the word when so many who would say they are evangelical consider each other to have severe errors in doctrine or approach.

 

[Albion]

And that catchall is a vaguely defined mass in many people's minds. Pentacostals to Calvinists. "Seeker friendly" churches with an emphasis on service to very traditional congregations with a focus on conversion through solid biblical preaching. It is hard to define the word when so many who would say they are evangelical consider each other to have severe errors in doctrine or approach.

I don't think it's usually cast as "Pentecostals vs. Calvinists" or even "Calvinists vs. all other Protestants," but I think you're right that this is a vague catchall term as understood by ordinary people and also as used by the media. And it does conjure up--often by design--visions of waving arms, praise bands, and preachers wearing blue jeans. They are all supposed to be Republicans who "hate" anyone who doesn't look like them, of course.

 

[WolfGate]

I don't think it's usually cast as "Pentecostals vs. Calvinists" or even "Calvinists vs. all other Protestants," but I think you're right that this is a vague catchall term as understood by ordinary people and also as used by the media. And it does conjure up--often by design--visions of waving arms, praise bands, and preachers wearing blue jeans. They are all supposed to be Republicans who "hate" anyone who doesn't look like them, of course.

No, I wasn't trying to convey "vs" in the statement. You are correct I was talking about how evangelicals are often perceived by those who do not understand they are lumping together congregations with very different doctrine. Was not totally clear, perhaps. And you're right, in much of the public mind evangelicals are all "hate" filled Republicans.

 

[Albion]

No, I wasn't trying to convey "vs" in the statement.

My mistake. Now that I read it again, I see that you were referring to the sweep of reformed Christians, all the way from one group to the other one.

 

[havevisions]

I asked the question because I honestly don't always "line up" with the stalwarts of the faith. I've even described myself as a "conservatist evangelical" (such as on Facebook and when asked my political inclination) and I recently have had second thoughts about this. Some of those who, for example, are members of Trump's Advisory Council for Evangelicals are James Dobson, Jack Graham, Ralph Morris, Jerry Falwell, Jr., Richard Land, David Jeremiah and others. Some have even preached in our church. For the most part, I admire these men greatly.

For example, I was completely aghast when Trump came to Liberty University and read from "Two Corinthians.." and also when he was endorsed by Mr. Falwell, who compared some of Trump's traits to his fathers. (I have attended church a few times at Thomas Roads Baptist). I didn't agree with him, and certainly do not think the students should be "packing heat".

I was also wondering about those faiths who do not accept the virgin birth, or the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. Not to single out any particular group, but this would exclude the JW's for example.

Therefore, I'm thinking that I am going to redefine myself as just "Christian", since it seems to me that the word "evangelical" has become more of political word.

What do you think?

 

[Albion]

I asked the question because I honestly don't always "line up" with the stalwarts of the faith. I've even described myself as a "conservatist evangelical" (such as on Facebook and when asked my political inclination) and I recently have had second thoughts about this. Some of those who, for example, are members of Trump's Advisory Council for Evangelicals are James Dobson, Jack Graham, Ralph Morris, Jerry Falwell, Jr., Richard Land, David Jeremiah and others. Some have even preached in our church. For the most part, I admire these men greatly.

For example, I was completely aghast when Trump came to Liberty University and read from "Two Corinthians.." and also when he was endorsed by Mr. Falwell, who compared some of Trump's traits to his fathers. (I have attended church a few times at Thomas Roads Baptist). I didn't agree with him, and certainly do not think the students should be "packing heat".

I was also wondering about those faiths who do not accept the virgin birth, or the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. Not to single out any particular group, but this would exclude the JW's for example.

Therefore, I'm thinking that I am going to redefine myself as just "Christian", since it seems to me that the word "evangelical" has become more of political word.

What do you think?

I understand your thinking, and that is why "Evangelical" can easily be misunderstood or misinterpreted. However, to go to "Christian" instead would IMHO not make anyone you encounter any better informed about your beliefs. In fact, they might be inclined to think you are a nominal Christian or unclear in your beliefs but are only generally associating yourself with a belief in Jesus, etc. Since you identify as a Baptist, I'd think that some adjective combined with "Baptist" would be more descriptive.

 

[ViaCrucis]

In most respects I don't think Evangelicalism/Evangelicals can be characterized by praxis, polity, or even most categories of theology--but can exist all over the map in these regards. Evangelicals can be cessationist, continualist, or charismatic; Evangelicals in regard to Eschatology can be Futurist, Historicist, or Preterist, Premillennial, Amillennial, or Postmillennial; in regards to Scripture can be inerrantist or not, literalist or not. In polity Evangelicals can be presybterian (note the little 'p'), pastoral, or congregational. In regard to Soteriology Evangelicals can be basically Calvinist or basically Arminian and anywhere on a spectrum between the two.

So I would point again to what I said earlier, that perhaps the most unifying characteristic of modern Evangelicalism is the emphasis on a personal, individual conversion experience. The question, "When did you get saved?" is a perfectly normal question to ask in Evangelicalism, and the expected answer is to point to a moment at which one had a personal experience of salvation, a personal experience where one "accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior" or similar language. That kind of language is pretty unique to Evangelicalism. And is, I'd argue, what is most unique and distinctive about it as a broad tradition--because other issues such as Eschatology, or a position on spiritual gifts, or soteriological matters can be quite diverse and cover a very wide range of positions--and Evangelicals can all debate, discuss, and argue about things like that--but what they will have in common is a shared sense that salvation, regeneration, and becoming a Christian can be associated to a personal conversion experience.

-CryptoLutheran