Ron Sider and Evangelicals for Social Action

Have you considered Evangelicals for Social Action? I have; I just joined as a member too! It is very likely that the continued rise of such culturally relevant and biblically solid Evangelical expression will render newer and thinner expressions pointless and maybe even a tad silly too (the more videos like this I watch, the less I want to hang out with either side).

Suggestion: If you are looking for something deeper, don’t toss out all of Evangelicalism just because a whole bunch of people may have not expressed it as well as it could have been. Don’t buy into the latest book-selling gimmick or popular fad. Just dive even deeper into faith and history and do it right yourself. You may find others who will happily join you on this deep journey at Evangelicals for Social Action.

Incidentally, ESA was founded by Ron Sider - author of Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience (these books, according to the web site, articulate ESA’s vision).

What’s wrong with a faith expression that is equal parts solid doctrine and social relevancy/action? Nothing! There is nothing wrong with that kind of faith! In fact, it’s the best there is to be found! Trust me, I have tried on most of it in my search for a deep and relevant Christianity. Ironically, I have discovered the answer to not be within the creation of a “new” expression, but in an authentic attempt to deeply live the “old” one. More often than not, what our ancient Christian faith and calling requires of us is not “reformation” of a proud, revolutionary, and radical sort, but an honest attempt to wear the original as it was meant to be worn. Should we decide to actually do faith this way, the answer we all have been searching and longing for will be discovered blaring at us as loudly as an afternoon sun. The rest seems needlessly extracurricular, and even silly.

So, rather than leaning on escape - which is as far removed from Jesus of Nazareth as one could possibly get - and running for the next “new” thing that comes along just as Evangelicalism seems socially and spiritually kaput, stand up, dive deeper, and do it the way you are dreaming it. We need dreamers, not escape artists (escape is never the safest path). And if ESA is an organized representation of the biblical and spiritual conviction and social activism contained in its founder/president’s (Dr. Ron Sider) books (Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience), then I would highly recommend that you start right there.

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