The Post-Evangelical

 In 1995, Dave Tomlinson, Christian iconoclast, brought out his book Post-Evangelical. His theory is that Evangelicalism as a creed is tied to modernism and no longer has a place in the increasingly post-modern world in which we live.

This Wikipedia article sums up the criticisms levelled at the Evangelical church by the post-evangelical movement.

"Some post-evangelical criticisms of the evangelical church include but are not limited to:

• Individualism, pursuit of tangible success as a sign of spiritual maturity, and a consequently underdeveloped ecclesiology
• Politicization of Christian doctrine; "theologization" of political ideology
• Ethnocentric, especially Americentric, bias in theology, often in conjunction with nationalistic or exceptionalist politics
• General lack of positive engagement with the social and natural sciences, music, art, philosophy, news media, and other expressions of culture
• Materialist and consumerist lifestyles, as well as the strong promotion of capitalist economics and neoconservative (in the United States, Republican) politics as quasi-religious obligations due to the influence of the Christian right
• Strong opposition from Reformational traditions, particularly Calvinism, to developments in biblical theology (such as the New Perspective on Paul)
• Denominationalism and resistance to ecumenical efforts"

I personally think this list is pretty accurate, especially the unhealthy focus on the US church as a template for our doctrine and church practice.

Tomlinson eventually ended up in the Church of England, as vicar of St Lukes parish in London. About a decade ago, he brought out another book, How to be a bad Christian but a better human being. Intrigued by the title and the 2 franc price tag for the e-book, I've made this my holiday reading. Tomlinson has lost none of his provocation since I first heard him speak in 1991; however, he came up with a useful summary of the main thrusts of Christianity, minus the idolisation of church:

"First, Christianity as a spiritual practice means learning to live in the presence of a loving God – knowing that you are never alone and that God's love for you will never run out. Second, it means learning to make good choices – responding to life in ways that respect our deepest sense of what is right. Third, it means learning to love our neighbour as we love our own selves – becoming givers instead of mere takers."