Social Gospel

Evangelizing Politics

The purpose of Christian engagement in politics is not to eradicate injustice and evil but to express love towards people and to testify to the goodness of Christ

The Battle Call of American Protestantism

WASPs tended to identify themselves as uniquely positioned guardians of the nation’s heritage. As their cultural influence had begun waning by World War I, their spokesmen resorted with greater ferocity to a crusading mindset to bolster their influence.

The Problems with Utilitarian Christianity
The Problems with Utilitarian Christianity

In religion, to which we want to direct our attention, the growth of the utilitarian spirit is an alarming phenomenon. Utilitarianism seems to mark not only the attitude of the political powers that use religion for the sake of social control and transform it to suit their purposes, but also the attitude of many who oppose them.

Christian Realism: An Introduction
Christian Realism: An Introduction

The realism in Christian Realism lies in the tension between the redemption and hope that the Gospel brings for a world ensnared in sin and cynicism, and the reality that sin and its effects are still pervasive and will continue to cripple and limit the possibilities for justice this side of paradise.

Six WWI Lessons for US Christians

World War I profoundly affected American churches and Christian thought. Recalling that impact offers counsel for the future.

An Ecumenical Consensus: A Moral Calling for International Engagement
An Ecumenical Consensus

In this article, originally published on July 26, 1943, in Christianity and Crisis, John C. Bennett praises the document “The Church and International Reconstruction” issued by the World Council of Churches. He notes that it unequivocally supports public engagement by the Church, organized worldwide political interaction, and consistent condemnation of national shortcomings for all countries, not merely those most culpable.

What about Amillennialism in Foreign Policy?
What about Amillennialism in Foreign Policy?

If Michael Doran and Walter Russel Mead insist that Christian eschatology is relevant to American foreign policy, it makes sense to at least mention and analyze amillennialism and preterism.

Religious Left Misdiagnoses Crisis of Evangelicalism - Donald Trump - Power
Religious Left Misdiagnoses Crisis of Evangelicalism

The long history of Christian reflection does not share Mark Labberton’s confidence that “God so loved the world” means the rejection of power and worldly politics.

The Delightful Heresy of Jacksonianism
The Delightful Heresy of Jacksonianism

Christians should remember this: any political theology that treats its own people as a divinely chosen political community treads on heretical soil.