Progressive Christianity

All you want to know about Progressive Christianity

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Progressive Christianity is the name given to a movement within contemporary Protestant Christianity characterized by willingness to question tradition, acceptance of human diversity (including the affirmation of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people), and strong emphasis on social justice or care for the poor and the oppressed(see Minority groups). Progressive Christians have a deep belief in the centrality of the instruction to "love one another"(John 15:17) within the teaching of Jesus Christ. This leads to a focus on compassion, promoting justice and mercy, and working towards solving the societal problems of poverty, discrimination, and environmental issues.

This movement is by no means the only significant movement of progressive thought among Christians (see the 'See also' links below), but it is currently a focus of such issues in many parts of the world.

In recent years the term Progressive Christianity has been used interchangeably with the term Liberal Christianity. Some argue that Progressive Christians are theologically distinct from liberal Christian thought, in that Progressive Christianity draws on the insights of multiple theological streams including: 19th century evangelicalism, 19th and early 20th century Christian liberalism, 20th century neo-orthodoxy, and late 20th and 21st century liberation theology. [1]. Perhaps the most comprehensive statement of a progressive Christian point of view is "Progressive Christian Beliefs: An Introduction..." found at http://progressivetheology.wordpress.com, by Delwin Brown, apparently a reformed liberal theologian. While it is often on the liberal side of the spectrum, it should be noted that progressive Christianity is not synonymous with political liberalism.

The characteristics of Progressive Christianity, and its distinction from Liberal Christianity, have been articulated in an article [2] by Hal Taussig. These can be summarized as:

  • A spiritual vitality and expressiveness, including participatory, arts-infused, and lively worship as well as a variety of spiritual rituals and practices such as meditation
  • Intellectual integrity including a willingness to question
  • An affirmation of human diversity
  • An affirmation of the Christian faith with a simultaneous sincere respect for other faiths
  • Strong ecological and social justice commitments

Contents

Origins

A priority of justice and care for the down-trodden are a recurrent theme in the Hebrew prophetic tradition inherited by Christianity. This has been reflected in many later Christian traditions of service and ministry, and more recently in the United States of America through Christian involvement in political trends such as the Progressive Movement and the Social Gospel.

Throughout the 20th century, a strand of progressive or liberal Christian thought outlined the values of a 'good society'. It stresses fairness, justice, responsibility, and compassion, and condemns the forms of governance that wage unjust war, rely on corruption for continued power, deprive the poor of facilities, or exclude particular racial or sexual groups from fair participation in national liberties. It was influential in the US mainline churches, and reflected global trends in student activism. It contributed to the ecumenical movement, as represented internationally by the World Student Christian Federation and the World Council of Churches internationally, and at the national level through groups such as the National Council of Churches in the USA and Australian Student Christian Movement.

The contemporary movement

The ascendancy of Evangelicalism in the US, particularly in its more socially conservative forms, challenged many people in mainline churches. Recently, a focus for those who wish to challenge this ascendancy has been provided by Jim Wallis of Sojourners, who described himself as a progressive evangelical Christian. This has enabled many Christians who are uncomfortable with conservative evangelicalism to identify themselves explicitly as "Progressive Christians." At the onset of this new movement to organize Progressive Christians, the single largest force holding together was a webring, The Progressive Christian Bloggers Network, and supporters frequently find and contact each other through dozens of online chat-rooms.

Notable initiatives within the movement for progressive Christianity include the Center for Progressive Christianity (TCPC) in Cambridge, MA, the campaigning organization CrossLeft, the technology working group Social Redemption.

CrossLeft joined with Every Voice Network and Claiming the Blessing in October 2005 to stage a major conference, Path to Action, at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Among the speakers were E. J. Dionne, Richard Parker, Jim Wallis, Senator Danforth, and David Hollinger.

Examples of statements of contemporary Progressive Christian beliefs include:

  • the Eight Points produced by TCPC: a statement of agreement about Christianity as a basis for tolerance and human rights;
  • the Phoenix Affirmations produced by Crosswalk (Phoenix, AZ) - include twelve points defining Christian love of God, Christian love of neighbor, and Christian love of self.
  • the article, "Grassroots Progressive Christianity: A Quiet Revolution" by Hal Taussig published in 'The Fourth R,' May-June 2006.

Differences between Progressive Christianity and traditional Christianity

Holding to the ideals of Progressive Christianity sets the movement apart from other forms of traditional Christianity. Many Progressive Christians believe that the Bible is not the literal word of God. While all Progressive Christians recognize Jesus Christ, some view him not as the only way to God, but one of many ways. Inclusiveness and acceptance is the ultimate foundation of Progressive Christianity. Progressive Christians tend to focus on issues of social justice rather than missionary efforts to convert others.

Seventh-day Adventism

Main article: Progressive Adventism

Within the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the liberal wing describe themselves as "progressive Adventists". They disagree with some of the traditional teachings of the church. While most are still of evangelical persuasion, a minority are liberal Christians.

Notable Progressive Christians

See also

References

  1. ^ Witness Articles - Progressive Christian Witness
  2. ^ http://www.sdc.unitingchurch.org.au/WestarProgressiveArticle.pdf

External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_Christianity"

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