YOUR FEEDBACK ON PERSPECTIVE
The gracEmail for July 5 titled “Perspective” touched on the influence of Christianity in America. Not surprisingly, it generated even more feedback than usual. Following is a sample of your comments:
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FRANK COATS — Beautifully said, Edward.
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ANN CLARDY — Mr. Fudge, I thank God for your ministry through gracEmail as Ive been blessed by them for many years now! I especially appreciate this one from July 5 as I find that so many Christians confuse being American and being Christian, patriotism and living a cross-centered life, etc. Your statistic about churchgoers in 1776 was intriguing. Do you have a reference so that I can cite it when challenged? May God continue to use you to direct our thinking to Gods goodness in fresh ways that cause us to praise Him joyful, reverent awe.
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I do not have a specific citation on the church attendance comparison, but I have seen multiple references to Finke and Stark, The Churching of America 1776 – 1990: Winners and Losers in our Religious Economy (Rutgers University Press, 1992), who say that American church membership in 1776 was about 17% compared but to 62% in 1990. There are many problems with such comparisons, of course, involving the difficulty of polling scattered agrarian settlers in 1776, and the uncertain and ultimately unknowable relationship in any age between church membership, regular attendance, and a living faith. The available statistics probably prove only that America did not begin as a nation filled with zealous Christians.
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NEIL BALDRIDGE — Thank you for the perspective in the midst of all the noise.
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PAUL WOODHOUSE — Yes, Edward. Yes!
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JAY ALTIERI — You never . . . answered the question: “Are we a Christian nation?” . . . As far I know, neither the Declaration of Independence nor the U. S. Constitution ever mentions Jesus Christ, redemption, resurrection, atonement or any other keyword associated with the gospel. If you dont have the gospel you cannot be Christian. Vaguely mentioning “God” and “Creator” in the Declaration hardly counts as evidence of Christianity. Muslims and Hindus believe in God and Creator, yet . . . they are not Christian.
The personal convictions of the founding fathers is irrelevant for me in answering this question. We should limit ourselves to the wording of the documents–Declaration and Constitution. Whether the founders were born-again believers, deists, or Shinto doesn’t really matter. We are governed by the paperwork that they put in place, not by their individual beliefs.
Morality must come from the inside out . . . Attempting to mandate it from the top will never work and will only backfire. To be God pleasing, morality must be a working of the Holy Spirit within the heart of the individual. If millions of people have that inner working of the Spirit then surely this country would be put onto a good long-lasting path . . . My opinion is that America is not a Christian nation, but wishfully it would be a nation of Christians.
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STEVEN CLARK GOAD — Well reasoned, old pal. Thanks.
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PAT ANDREWS — Thanks, Edward, for these good thoughts this Sunday morning!
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JOHN ROLLER — I wonder if the statistic that A smaller percentage of Americans regularly attended church in 1776 than do so today relates to the fact that CARS hadnt been invented yet, and it would have taken the average person a lot longer to get to the nearest church building than it does today . . . There were also a LOT of people who didnt live in neighborhoods, but way out in the country. American culture was NOT primarily urban in 1776!
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GAYLE CROWE — You always say what needs to be said, Edward. Thank you!
DVDS 2015 RH CONFERENCE
Sponsors of the Rethinking Hell Conference 2015 just held at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, California announce that they are producing a set of 4 DVD discs containing video of all plenary sessions at the conference, as well as a number of this year’s important breakout sessions. The DVD set costs USD $35, which includes shipping. For more information or to order, go to: rethinkinghell.com
