Greg Austen

I’ve been in a season of having both the challenge of reassessing my vocational direction and identity, and the gift of reimagining both. And so, I offer this piece as, first, a way to connect with new subscribers and update those who still find value in this blog and are journeying with me (thank you!); and, second, as a way to set an expanded direction for this site where I can more freely share things I’m exploring or being challenged by.

According to the Pew Research Center, as cited in my latest copy of Christianity Today, “Americans now hold negative views of evangelical Christians in higher percentages than any other religious group.” But what is an evangelical? In the last half-century, much has been written to define or redefine the term. The most technically precise definition, the one thought leaders cite most often, was written by David Bebbington in 1989. It’s called the “Bebbington Quadrilateral” and, despite shortcomings, is a helpful, non-political way to define evangelicalism in these four ways:

• “Biblicism: A belief in the Bible as the ultimate authority for Christian life and doctrine.
• Crucicentrism: The focus on the atonement of Jesus Christ on the cross as the central event for salvation.
• Conversionism: The conviction that individuals must have a personal, born-again experience to be saved.
• Activism: The belief that the Christian faith should be expressed through active work, such as evangelism, missions, and social reform.”[1]

Most people, however, understand and define evangelicals as the voting bloc of conservative Christians that overwhelmingly voted for Trump in the last three elections. This more popular understanding of evangelicalism has so muddied the waters that many, myself included, no longer want to be identified as an evangelical.

And so here is where I am on a few things related to evangelicalism, including the activism I still wish to be part of:

1. The Trump years have definitely moved me “left” and out of the “moral majority” into what Russell Moore calls the “prophetic minority.”[2] The fact that I am no longer a vocational pastor, however, does not negate my responsibility to continue to write, and especially, daily, see, have compassion, and engage like Jesus.
2. Although I am not an exvangelical, I find much common ground with one of the central tenets of this diverse movement: “repudiating the simplistic, fundamentalistic Christian view of the world.”[3] I agree with Tish Harrison Warren, however, that “many of those who most vocally deconstruct Christianity jettison a thin version of American fundamentalism and mistake it for the whole tradition” when what they need is to “assess the actual faith, not a truncated version of it.”[4]
3. I still believe the study of Scripture is more about “mystery discerning” than “problem solving.” Agreeing with the late John Stott, not all seemingly contradictory statements in Scripture, of which there are many, need to be dismissed as “proven errors.” Some can remain “unresolved problems.” But when it comes to God, ancient texts, origins, and the future, it’s all mystery-discerning to a large extent, as this side of heaven, we all “see through a glass, darkly.”[5]
4. I have long believed that self-awareness and empathy are foundational qualities to being a healthy human. Indeed, these qualities are essential for being a healthy evangelical—still my primary circle, tribe, and sphere of influence.
5. In my 35 years of nonprofit leadership and pastoring, most of the transformation I saw came in contexts of healthy families, one-on-one mentoring, and small groups. Often, I would express this conviction in various contexts as “Maturity requires mentoring, and life-change often happens best in healthy marriages, families, and small groups. In the small groups I’ve run, I’ve tried to elevate honesty and humility as the most important virtues for creating an environment for growth. Humility is seeing yourself as needing help, and honesty is being real with God and people.

Going forward and as time permits, much of what I want to do in this blog, in sync with continuing to offer constructive thoughts on faith and life, is to broaden horizons—helping others, myself included, be more humble, honest, self-aware, and empathetic, especially when it comes to others who might think differently. As always, we will continue to do so in a way that avoids the revenge tour, seeks to listen well, and models civility.

Finally, here are a few of the people and books I’m learning from these days:

• People: N.T. Wright, Eugene Peterson, David French, Russell Moore, Tim Keller, Curtis Chang, Esau McCaulley, Tish Harrison Warren, Fleming Rutledge, Phillip Yancy, and David Brooks
• Books: Where the Light Fell by Phillip Yancey, The Sin of Certainty by Pete Enns, All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir by Beth Moore, and When Everything’s on Fire by Brian Zahnd

[1] Chat GPT overview.

[2] Riley, “Russell Moore: From Moral Majority to ‘Prophetic Minority.’”

[3] Blake Chastain, Exvangelical and Beyond (Penguin Random House, 2024),221.

[4] Warren, “The Church Needs Reformation, Not Deconstruction.”

[5] 1 Cor. 13, KJV.