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AR 28:43 - Evangelism as the antidote to "cancel culture"
In this issue:
APOLOGETICS - "a poster boy for Protestant clergy who convert to the Catholic faith"
EVANGELISM - "church ... where messy people learn to get along"
HOMOSEXUALITY - Andy Stanley and "gay revisionists"
Apologia Report 28:43 (1,640)
December 19, 2023
APOLOGETICS
"If you haven't profiled the Catholic apologist Scott Hahn - now's the time to act" by Richard Ostling (GetReligion, Sep 12 '23) -- "Hahn, 65, is the longtime professor of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Franciscan University, a growing liberal-arts stronghold devoted to 'the authentic teachings of the Church.' Journalists who scan the websites for Hahn's off-campus activities and his Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology <stpaulcenter.com> will find he's a popular speaker in person and via religious TV and radio, and a prolific producer of his own and others' books, articles, DVDs, CDs, podcasts, online courses, and conferences.
"His organization, in its Catholic conservatism and independence from official church agencies, resembles the EWTN organization that grew from TV talks by the late Mother Mary Angelica beginning in 1981.
"Hahn holds a Ph.D. from the Jesuits' Marquette University in Milwaukee, but it's significant that his divinity degree is from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, a Northeast anchor of evangelical Protestant thought. He's a key figure among Catholics who draw upon their earlier evangelical resources as they spurn modern Catholic theorizing in favor of belief in a historically reliable Bible. Fans of his writings include New York's Cardinal Timothy Dolan.
"That Gordon-Conwell degree brings to journalists' attention an intriguing facet of Hahn's career: He's a poster boy for Protestant clergy who convert to the Catholic faith, per his own account here. Also see 'Rome Sweet Home: Our Journey to Catholicism,' a paperback <www.tinyurl.com/2yskfhyd> he co-authored with wife Kimberly.
"Hahn was a devoted evangelical, active as a teen in the evangelical Young Life ministry, and between seminary and [Catholic] conversion served as a Presbyterian pastor. In line with his own biography, Hahn is a speaker and official advisor <chnetwork.org> for the Coming Home Network, whose unfashionable evangelistic work is worth a story in itself.
"Since 1993, the network has helped some 1,200 Protestant ministers convert to Catholicism, as it says even 'despite the scandal' of priests who molested underage parishioners. Founder Marcus Grodi was also a Gordon-Conwell alumnus and Presbyterian pastor who gradually accepted the claims and teachings of the papal church and departed from the 'Protestant mayhem.'
"The network, made up of both fellow converts and lifelong Catholics, says conversion can be 'traumatic' for lay members and especially the clergy. 'It often results in the loss of friends and family, as well as the loss of career and financial support. It usually requires a rethinking of one's doctrinal and moral convictions, as well as one's vocation as a child of God.'
"The Coming Home Network states that it is helping Catholicism fulfill 'its mission of evangelization and its call for Christian unity as proclaimed by Pope John Paul II' in his 1995 encyclical on the ecumenical movement, Ut Unum Sint. The pope commended friendship and efforts toward unity with other Christian churches and especially the Eastern Orthodox. But he made it clear that unity with the office and authority of the papacy 'is - in God's plan - an essential requisite of full and visible communion.'" <www.tinyurl.com/3zdxb967>
Also worthy of note: An eloquent and increasingly popular Protestant apologist addressing Catholic claims is Gavin Ortlund, who recently resigned his Baptist pastorate <www.tinyurl.com/3fxj9yxv> to concentrate on his YouTube outreach, "Truth Unites.” <www.tinyurl.com/5f87ynxn> We're waiting to see how calls to submit to Papal authority play out in light of the Vatican's December 18 announcement that Pope Francis now "allows priests to bless same-sex couples." <www.tinyurl.com/3cs8sm82>)
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EVANGELISM
"How to Talk to a Christian-Curious Agnostic" by Justin Brierley (Christianity Today, Sep 12 '23) -- finds: "A new breed of secular seeker is replacing the New Atheists. ...
"The cultural ground is shifting when it comes to religion, atheism, and Christianity in the West." Brierley's perspective is based on how "Three recent stories in my social media feed are a reminder how quickly it's happening. ...
"The popular podcast host Joe Rogan, whose show receives over 190 million downloads per month, featured intelligent design expert Stephen Meyer, who advocates for a creator God behind the universe and critiques evolution by natural selection.
"And for the first time, less than half of people in the UK identify as Christian. The most recent UK census, taken every ten years, saw those who tick the 'Christian' box drop to 46%, with those identifying as 'no religion' rising to 37% of the population. This decline is mirrored in the United States, where almost half of millennials and Gen Z now identify as 'nones' (religiously unaffiliated)."
Brierley promotes his new book, <www.tinyurl.com/259wzz9h> The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God, in which he discusses "how New Atheism has become a thing of the past and in its place is a new openness toward supernatural explanations. For instance, many secular intellectuals - such as psychologist <www.tinyurl.com/AR-on-J-B-Peterson> Jordan Peterson, historian <www.tinyurl.com/AR-on-T-Holland> Tom Holland, and journalist Douglas Murray <www.tinyurl.com/AR-on-D-Murray> - are revisiting the God question. ...
"Even as [such secularists] profess personal uncertainty about God's existence, they are beginning to wonder whether any of us can really live without God.
"All this has prompted the rise of the Christian-curious agnostic: the modern individual who still wonders whether there may be some truth (or at least usefulness) in the ancient Judeo-Christian story their ancestors once believed." Brierley's strategy in response:
"1. Make them want the story to be true; then show them that it is. ...
"2. Keep Christianity weird." Brierley has found "many secular people who seem open(ish) to Christianity." In particular, a few "agnostic thought leaders ... seem to possess a wistful longing to return to church." However, "they don't want a church that looks the same as the culture. ...
"For instance, there's Douglas Murray, the conservative-leaning associate editor of The Spectator, who once had a faith of sorts but who now labels himself a 'Christian atheist.' He recognizes the values and virtues of the Christian inheritance in the West, yet he finds himself unable to believe.
"Murray once noted in a conversation with me that if he were to return to the pews, he would need to encounter something much deeper and more mysterious in church than a warmed-over version of secular humanism."
Brierley explains: "I am not religious, so it is not my place to dictate to Christians what they should and should not believe. Still, if someone has a faith worth following, I feel that their beliefs should make me feel uncomfortable for not doing so. If they share 90 percent of my lifestyle and values, then there is nothing especially inspiring about them. Instead of making me want to become more like them, it looks very much as if they want to become more like me.
"Similar sentiments have been expressed by popular historian and podcast host Tom Holland <www.tinyurl.com/48e795un> as he navigates his way back to Christian faith. ...
"Holland laments that the church often replaces its miraculous story with a 'mush'....
Holland continues: "The churches need to … absolutely embrace [their beliefs] rather than being slightly embarrassed about [them]. … The churches have to lay claim to everything that is … weirdest, most countercultural, most peculiar. Don't duck all the stuff about angels and things - major on that!
"This advice may seem counterintuitive. Many churches have made it their mission to appear as 'normal' and unthreatening as possible in their efforts to bring people through the doors. ...
"3. Create a community that counters cancel culture."
The church "must always be a place of grace - where messy people learn to get along with other messed-up people. ...
"[W]e are created to connect with each other eye to eye in the same physical space. Churches are among the few remaining places where people can do that regularly. ...
"We need to be ready to embrace the walking wounded and make space for those at the beginning of their journeys. ...
"Grace is the antidote to an unhealthy cancel culture, and people are desperate for it.
"Perhaps the greatest witness the church can offer society is that even when we disagree, we can still love each other." <www.tinyurl.com/4xn3hnsf>
Related content: On the December 6 edition of the Post-Christianity podcast, hosts Andrew Wilson and Glenn Scrivener engagingly interview apologist Rebecca McLaughlin on the topic of "How to Reach Out in a Secular Age". <www.tinyurl.com/sud5stz> We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
POSTSCRIPT (Dec 26 '23): In "Light Dawns In A Dark Cave," Rod Dreher refers <www.tinyurl.com/5ax2ybc5> (Dec 24 '23) to the experience of novelist and essayist Paul Kingsnorth, describing the response to "the silicon paganism of the 21st century. [We] are now beginning to see a resurgence in genuine religion. Personally, and anecdotally, I am noticing this everywhere. In American Orthodox churches bursting with young families. In atheists or neo-pagans suddenly becoming Christians (I plead guilty). In my own speaking events about Christianity, which are suddenly inexplicably popular, and not because of me. Others I know report the same thing: for the first time in a long while, people are beginning to take faith seriously again. Actual religion - the thing that was supposed to die a slow death at the hands of reason - is emerging slowly from the shadows as the new paganism takes hold." <www.tinyurl.com/surjua2d>
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HOMOSEXUALITY
"Openly Gay Leaders to Speak at Unconditional Conference" by Kim Roberts (MinistryWatch, Sep 18, '23) - hosted by Andy Stanley's North Point Church, the September 28-29 conference was "billed as a 'premier event for Christian parents with LGBTQ+ children, ministry leaders, and health care professionals.' ...
"Andy Stanley, son of the late Charles Stanley, is an influential pastor.... In an opinion piece published by WORLD Magazine <www.tinyurl.com/bdh8ubdf> in January, Southern Baptist Seminary professor Denny Burk addressed a video in which Stanley contended that churches must adapt and learn how to include gay people in the life of the church. ...
"Stanley is a featured speaker at the conference put on by Embracing the Journey, a ministry started by Greg and Lynn McDonald, parents of a son who identifies as gay. They have written a book, also called Embracing the Journey, <www.tinyurl.com/42wpkhzk> that is a guide to help parents learn 'to love God, the people He created, and the church, even when they seem to be at odds.'
"Jeff Johnston, a gender issues analyst and staff writer at Focus on the Family, told MinistryWatch he has concerns about the conference. He has read parts of the McDonalds' book and is also aware of speakers at the conference who are what he calls 'gay revisionists' - they have revised what the Bible says about homosexuality. Openly gay speakers Justin Lee and Brian Nietzel are joined by David Gushee in believing that same-sex monogamous relationships are acceptable to God, Johnston said. ...
"While Johnston wouldn't encourage families impacted by these issues to attend the Unconditional Conference, he offered other resources like the Restored Hope Network, ReStory Ministries, along with Focus on the Family resources about responding to homosexuality and transgenderism." <www.tinyurl.com/yxx2m7jt>
Also see the detailed October 12 response to "Unconditional" by Alan Shlemon of Stand to Reason at <www.tinyurl.com/mryskeu7>
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