Sep
29
2009
Rob Bell and Evangelicalism
I missed a recent interview of Rob Bell over at The Boston Globe. The headline reads, “Bell Aims to Restore True Meaning of ‘Evangelical’.” A lofty aim, indeed.
Here’s one Q&A that gives us a window into Bell’s understanding of what ‘evangelical’ means and what his ‘restoration’ might look like:
Q. OK, how would you describe what it is that you believe?
A. I embrace the term evangelical, if by that we mean a belief that we together can actually work for change in the world, caring for the environment, extending to the poor generosity and kindness, a hopeful outlook. That’s a beautiful sort of thing.
[Obviously, this is a very brief interview and Bell has much more to say on the subject. But what is noteworthy in this Q&A is the absence of any theological understanding of the term 'evangelical' by Bell.]
14 Comments
another “interesting” thing is that right before he defined his own ‘evangelicalism,’ Bell critiqued the media for making the term come “to mean politically to the right, almost, at times, anti-intellectual… nothing to do with a spiritual context,” and yet there’s nothing spiritual in his definition either.
I really enjoy the Nooma videos but lately I’ve started a nervous tic about Bell. Thoughts?
I think it’s worth drawing attention to this article, which comments on Rob Bell’s interview with Christianity Today earlier this year in which he was unable give a simple,concise or Biblically correct definition of the Gospel.
‘Rob Bell’s Convoluted Gospel Isn’t the Biblical Gospel’
http://www.extremetheology.com/rob-bell/
mmmm…if you want to sell in the general marketplace
then you need to scratch itchy ears. If you want to preach Christ crucified, expect to be called a fool – and ‘fools’ don’t sell well.
btw, I don’t think his take on the Beatitudes is orthodox, either.
http://www.marshill.org
Ummm…not to be rude or unkind, but is it really “noteworthy?”, (now nearly half a decade after Velvet) to see Bell’s definition of evangelical to be so devoid of the Evangel? I am saying thanks for noting this latest interview and remark–more needs to be said about this man’s message. I did think that his neoliberalism was known by more people, perhaps I am mistaken.
Has anyone ever presented the gospel to Rob Bell?
I think Rob Bell should run for president.
President of what?
[...] over at the Gospel Coalition brought this to the blogosphere this morning and had a great, short post offering a quick critique. So I read the interview, and saw something else that was [...]
Bell says that he is not embarassed by his religion. He gets no points for that. What is embarrassing about helping God to make the world a better place? That message plays well in cocktail parties and coffee shops. Bring up a bloody cross and a Savior who bore the Father’s wrath for sinners and see what happens.
The Gospel is not about what we do for or with God. It’s about what God has done in Christ Jesus. Anything else is something other than the Gospel.
Sam Hendrickson nails the obvious gaping hole in Bell’s interview: there’s no Evangel in his “definition” of evangelicalism. None. It just misses every boat conceivable. If you’re going to describe yourself as an evangelical, you might have a problem redefining the word to mean something other than having to do directly with the Evangel.
Similarly, I found this interesting:
Interviewer to Bell: I’m struck by the fact that I don’t hear a lot of explicitly religious language, or mentions of Jesus, from you.
Similar to the above, if you’re calling yourself a Christian, you probably want to make it a habit to speak often about Christ.
What we have here is another clear piece of evidence added to the pile that Bell is no pastor, no evangelical, no Christian. One wonders by his use of language if he even knows what those words mean.
Yo Quiero Rob “Taco” Bell cried the lukewarm Christians! The rise of Rob “Taco” Bell is directly parallel and proportional to a sector of Chrstians who do not know the Word of God. They don’t need to know the Word because they “Think Outside the Bun” like Bell. It is a reflection of how American Christians follow hard after fads. These fads seem to never cease and they are new every morning. The fast food gospel is being repackaged and remarketed once again by Bell who is excellent at media and marketing. Rob “Taco” Bell and his convoluted “Fourth Meal” will wither like the grass. There is a choice America; authentic Mexican food or Taco Bell?
You’re all doing an AWESOME job of turning people off from Christianity.