Saturday, April 23, 2016

Evangelism: Give the People What They Want.

I found this article posted at First Things' First Thought's blog.  It has much wisdom in it and I've been thinking along similar lines, but have been unable to articulate my thoughts.

I also haven't been able to do enough research to speak confidently on this, but it seems to me that many of the early converts to Christianity converted because Christianity offered something that they wanted or needed.

  • Slaves converted because Christianity offered human dignity to them
  • Women converted because Christianity offered respect.
  • Scholars converted because of the philosophical claims of Christianity opened up new avenues of study.
  • Constantine converted to win a war, leading to
  • Constantine's toadies to convert as a political ploy.

Other than the last two, these are not bad reasons to convert to Christianity, but they represent a promise, not an actual fact.  Slaves may convert, for instance, but unless their masters also convert, their human dignity will only come in the next world.

Accordingly, if we are to evangelize the world today, we need to offer a clear benefit to the world.  What are the issues that people complain about in the US?  I can think of a few.

  • A combination of loneliness and overstimulation that comes from electronic communication.
  • Stress of the busyness of raising a family.
  • Economic uncertainty.
  • Dissatisfaction and hopelessness.
  • Fear of crime and terrorism.

There are other ills to be sure. I'd mention "lust" and "envy" but these are the ones that people themselves recognize.  They have to be convinced that "lust" and "envy" are problems.

Can Christianity speak to the list above?  I think it can.  It currently is not.  For most problems, people are currently turning to the government instead of the Church for solutions.

It's something to think about.  I'll have to ponder it some more before I can figure out what to do.

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