In the past few weeks we have been subjected to a
massive barrage of publicity about the 20 pages and
several thousand words which make up a document
titled "An Evangelical Manifesto." It is essentially
the production of social critic Os Guinness, working
with a "Steering Committee" of nominal Evangelical
individuals, and guided in its promotional aspects
by a professional publicity agent. It is a lengthy
dissertation on Mr. Guinness’ opinion of what it
means to be an Evangelical.
The web site lists a lot of signers . . . some totally
invalid (example: the name of the late Jerry Falwell
was added). In another case the name of the president
of a major theological seminary was listed without
his permission. In short, it isn’t the significant
document it was purported to be.
But now Evangelicals – real Evangelicals – have a
new document to sign. It is called the "We Get It"
Declaration, developed by the Cornwall Alliance for
the Stewardship of Creation, and is a Biblical-based
approach to the theory of Global Warming. It is a
brief document, less than one page in length, and
utilizes just over 150 words. Strong, conservative
Evangelical scholars are among the supporters of
the declaration.
This approach to the rush to acceptance of Al Gore’s
Global Warming theory is welcome and important.
We have experienced in recent days an attempt by
the Religious Left to redefine "Evangelicalism" by
moving it away from its main emphasis on the
power of the Gospel to change lives, and "broaden
its agenda" to include poverty, HIV/AIDS, and the
environment. The ability of the Church of Jesus Christ
to bring about social and cultural change and bring
relief to the poor and suffering is based entirely on the
message of the Gospel. Conservative Evangelicals have
always had a strong commitment to all of those issues
as part of the total Gospel message.
The "We Get It" Declaration may be summarized in
these main points: "God said it ...We get it ...They
need it ...Let’s do it." To read the entire Declaration,
and to add your name as a signer, go to:
More about the author
The Evangelical Viewpoint is pleased to present this
new series of essays by Dr. Jerry Beavan, in which he
offers mature discussions of important elements of
the Christian faith, with the goal of helping Christian
believers to live the Christian life more effectively.
At age 89, he already has a lifetime of experiences in
Christian ministry, as a graduate theologian, as a
professor in college and seminary, and as a world
traveler involved in government relations at high
levels, here in America and around the world. The
late Dr. Jerry Falwell referred to him as "one of
God's giants and modern patriarchs." Dr. Billy
Graham said of him, "Jerry Beavan is the architect
of world evangelism as we know it today." Now
living in "active retirement" on America's Pacific
coast, although physically impaired, he is using his
writing skills, via the internet, to help other believers
gain a better understanding of their Christian faith.
He is the author of several works, including his recent
volume, ""A Handbook of Applied Christianity."
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