How corporate America invented 'Christian America' to fight the New Deal

How corporate America invented 'Christian America' to fight the New Deal:

The 2016 annual meeting for the Organization of American Historians (OAH) will feature a session focusing upon the provocative book One Nation Under God by Princeton history professor Keven M. Kruse. In One Nation Under God, Kruse argues that the idea of the United States as a Christian nation does not find its origins with the founding of the United States or the writing of the Constitution. Rather, the notion of America as specifically consecrated by God to be a beacon for liberty was the work of corporate and religious figures opposed to New Deal statism and interference with free enterprise. The political conflict found in this concept of Christian libertarianism was modified by President Dwight Eisenhower who advocated a more civic religion of “one nation under God” to which both liberals and conservatives might subscribe.

Kruse concludes that with the polarization of America in the 1960s over such issues such as school prayer and the war in Vietnam, politicians such as Richard Nixon abandoned the more inclusive civic religion of the Eisenhower era. Kruse writes that by the 1970s “the rhetoric of ‘one nation under God’ no longer brought Americans together; it only reminded them how divided they had become” (274).

Monasteries without walls: secret monasticism in the Soviet Union | Liturgy

Monasteries without walls: secret monasticism in the Soviet Union | Liturgy:

I recently fell over a scholarly article about the way that monasticism helped keep Christian faith alive and vibrant through the anti-theist communism of the Soviet Union.

Some people fled and lived a hidden, secret full monastic life. Others lived the monastic life beyond monastery walls, working at ordinary jobs. Still others drew on monastic disciplines, applying those into their ordinary daily lives.

Beyond Disease Transmission: Evangelical Missions and the Consequences of Colonialism | The Exchange | A Blog by Ed Stetzer

Beyond Disease Transmission: Evangelical Missions and the Consequences of Colonialism | The Exchange | A Blog by Ed Stetzer:

The reasons for this spread, in addition to contact with infected outsiders, were due to the disruption of indigenous foodways. The Russian and American commodification of Alaska’s forests and animals devastated regions where people survived by hunting and gathering. According to former Alaskan public health worker Penelope S. Easton, many of the food and care providers in indigenous communities quickly died off from tuberculosis and other diseases. These realities introduced widespread poverty and malnutrition, two significant risk factors for the spread of tuberculosis.

It in this season of mass death that many Protestant missionaries entered Alaska. Many missionaries saw the malnourishment, the strange homes, the alcoholism, and the disease, and concluded that Native Alaskans needed the gospel of civilization to save them from complete ruin. As missionaries established orphanages and industrial schools in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, many instituted policies restricting the use of Native languages and the consumption of traditional Native foods.

Onesimus: Contextualization Weirdness: Some Thoughts on Orthodox Missions and Evangelism in Kenya

Onesimus: Contextualization Weirdness: Some Thoughts on Orthodox Missions and Evangelism in Kenya:

when Orthodox Christians choose to do evangelism here in Kenya, how should we go about doing it? Should we organise pilgrimages and processions and carry icons around the community whilst chanting? Should we run seminars to better acquaint our neighbours with who we are and where we come from? It has been said that funerals are actually a significant (and for many the only) point of contact with Orthodox priests and services. To our credit (in my opinion) the simplicity and beauty of our funeral liturgy compares favourably with the way funerals are done in other denominations. But this is more on the lines of exposure as opposed to evangelism.

Linking Global Voices

Linking Global Voices:

Linking Global Voices serves the global missions community by focusing on the unique role of networks.

We live in an unprecedented period of mission history. The new paradigm of “from anywhere to everywhere” is by nature complex, resulting in an increasing need to partner with others for effective ministry. Networks are a strategic tool for ministry leaders navigating the complexities of the globalized world of missions. Mission minded churches and agencies are developing their "network engagement strategy". Healthy networks facilitate the sharing of resources and are constantly birthing partnerships.

Ed Stetzer - Monday is for Missiology: Meanings of Missional

Ed Stetzer - Monday is for Missiology: Meanings of Missional: "One of the questions in Orlando that night had to do with the meaning of the word 'missional.' The question reminded me of my need to finish my series on the subject, particularly since I am about to start a new series on the issue of contextualization in mission for my 'Monday is for Missiology' columns."

Reclaiming the Mission � Why is the Emergent/Missional Church So White?: Soong-Chan Rah’s Next Evangelicalism and Why It Doesn’t Go Far Enough (in Exposing White Western Cultural Captivity)

Reclaiming the Mission � Why is the Emergent/Missional Church So White?: Soong-Chan Rah’s Next Evangelicalism and Why It Doesn’t Go Far Enough (in Exposing White Western Cultural Captivity): "Indeed most sociologists (see Peter Berger’s article here) would agree that the great majority of the spreading church in Asia, Latin America and Africa is driven by some version of prosperity gospel and charismatic experiential Christianity. It is a version of Christianity that I would argue is indisputably tied to the Western values of individualism, consumerism and materialism."

The Missionary Who Wouldn't Retire | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

The Missionary Who Wouldn't Retire | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction: "Lesslie Newbigin, born 100 years ago today, launched a new career at age 66 by calling Western churches to act like they were in the mission field.
Krish Kandiah | posted 12/08/2009 10:07AM"