One Door and Only One?

“One door and only one, and yet its sides are two. I’m on the inside. On which side are you?” I remember this song from my childhood, but I am not sure how to think about it. In its best light, it sounds like an invitation to be on the right side of the door. However, in its worst light, it could be a declaration that I’m right, you’re wrong, and you’d better get on the right side with me.

• Many churches today are singing this song in its worst light. Worse still, they are not singing it to those outside the faith; they are singing it other Christ-followers.

This reality has powerful implications for church health and church renewal. Michael Graham and Skyler Flowers write about this reality in two articles, “The Six Way Fracturing of Evangelicalism” and “One Year Later: Reflecting on Evangelicalism’s Six-Way Fracturing”(see also “The Rise of the Right-Wing Exvangelical“). Graham and Skyler quote the President of Christianity Today:

• “New fractures are forming within the American evangelical movement, fractures that do not run along the usual regional, denominational, ethnic, or political lines. Couples, families, friends, and congregations once united in their commitment to Christ are now dividing over seemingly irreconcilable views of the world. In fact, they are not merely dividing but becoming incomprehensible to one another.”

Graham and Flowers paint a picture of four groups that are still either in the church or closely associated with it, but do not trust one another:

Dividing lines in churches today

1. Neo-Fundamentalist Evangelicals

• This group is deeply concerned about a drift toward theological and political liberalism. They are often suspicious of other Christians they see as becoming “woke” theologically and politically.
• They desire to “batten down the hatches” and make sure everyone lives within their particular theological and political world. Those outside that world are considered suspect or even unfaithful. While it is not a foregone conclusion, this is the group most likely to slide into Christian nationalism.

2. Mainstream evangelicals

• Historically, this term has described Protestants who hold to the “Bebbington Quadrilateral” of conversionism, activism, biblicism, and crucicentrism. The emphasis for this group is on fulfilling the Great Commission.
• While they may have some concern about the Christian Right and the dangers of Christian nationalism, they are more concerned about sliding toward the secular left and liberal theology. Many in this group are willing to support Trump as a “lesser evil.”

3. Neo-evangelicals

• This group continues to be doctrinally evangelical but is deeply concerned about the drift of evangelicals (groups 1 and 2) toward MAGA.
• They pursue justice around issues such as racism and sexuality in ways that often mark them as “woke,” especially in the eyes of Neo-Fundamentalists. This is the smallest group in the evangelical world and often feels homeless, even as they remain in local churches and serve faithfully within them.

4. post-evangelicals

• This group has left evangelicalism as a movement but continues to hold to the historic doctrines of the church. Many are still in congregations.
• When they look inside the church, they are focused on abuse, corruption, hypocrisy, Christian nationalism, and the secular right. When they look outside the church, they are primarily concerned with injustice, inequity, the secular right, and, to a lesser extent, the radical secular left.

These groups carry significantly different philosophies of ministry into the same congregation. Because these groups have such different instincts, any ministry and mission path that tilts toward one group will likely face strong pushback from another. Graham and Flowers note that 1s and 2s can often inhabit the same congregation, 2s and 3s can inhabit the same congregation, and 3s and 4s can inhabit the same congregation. But any greater separation usually brings deep struggle and often leads to people moving on.

• So what does all of this mean for the church you serve? What side of the “door” is your congregation on, and how do you discern that wisely, without simply declaring, “I’m on the inside; on which side are you?” In the next article, we’ll explore how to locate your congregation on this continuum and what that means for ministry, mission, and renewal.