I wish I could remember who, but somebody else made a similar point: evangelicalism is splitting into a faction that is retreating back to fundamentalism and a faction that is following in the footsteps of liberal churches but a generation behind.
I think we are seeing it. In my mind, the defining characteristic of American evangelicalism is addiction to fads and trends, which seems rather odd if we believe we have the "faith once for all entrusted to the saints." Small group "Bible studies" focus on trendy books from trendy authors. We see a shallowness of thinking that is reflected in a preference for entertainment over real learning. Look inside one of the remaining Christian bookstores: lots of music, lots of nicknacks, lots of fiction and feel-good self-improvement titles. Theology? You have to look for it because it's the smallest section. I don't think we really believe our own rhetoric a lot of the time.
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I think we are seeing it. In my mind, the defining characteristic of American evangelicalism is addiction to fads and trends, which seems rather odd if we believe we have the "faith once for all entrusted to the saints." Small group "Bible studies" focus on trendy books from trendy authors. We see a shallowness of thinking that is reflected in a preference for entertainment over real learning. Look inside one of the remaining Christian bookstores: lots of music, lots of nicknacks, lots of fiction and feel-good self-improvement titles. Theology? You have to look for it because it's the smallest section. I don't think we really believe our own rhetoric a lot of the time.