Post-Protestant
Encyclopedia
Post-Protestantism is a movement in the 20th century and 21st Christianity
that seeks to distance Christian
faith from the influence and traditions of the Roman Catholic church
and "her sister churches" (traditional, mainline, liturgical Protestant denominations dating back mostly to the 17th and 18th centuries).
and fundamentalist movements of the earlier 20th century, and partly includes, but is not limited to, British New Church Movement and the Community Church movement
, who refer to themselves as being post-Protestant and postdenominational.
, to the point that they totally deny or are even oblivious to the history of Christian denominations, and the meaning of the word Protestant. They argue that this creates confusion and contributes to a mistaken belief that only churches with the words "Christian", "Christ", or "Jesus" in the name are Christian, and that Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Catholics, etc. are something else.
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
that seeks to distance Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
faith from the influence and traditions of the Roman Catholic church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and "her sister churches" (traditional, mainline, liturgical Protestant denominations dating back mostly to the 17th and 18th centuries).
Details
Many of these "post-Protestant" churches refer to themselves simply as "Christian", or nondenominational, but also commonly use the terms "Church of", followed by such words as "God", "Christ", "Jesus", "The Bible", etc. The trend was the natural outgrowth of the evangelicalEvangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
and fundamentalist movements of the earlier 20th century, and partly includes, but is not limited to, British New Church Movement and the Community Church movement
Community Church movement
- Community Churches :Community churches have existed in the United States since the early nineteenth century. Small communities did not always have the population or finances to sustain churches of all denominational types, so community leaders would cross denominational lines and pool their...
, who refer to themselves as being post-Protestant and postdenominational.
Criticism
Critics say that the leaders of these often promote points of view which are anti-intellectual, or at least ahistoricalAhistoricism
Ahistoricism refers to a lack of concern related to history, historical development, or tradition.Ahistoricism is most frequently used as a criticism, referring to being historically inaccurate or ignorant...
, to the point that they totally deny or are even oblivious to the history of Christian denominations, and the meaning of the word Protestant. They argue that this creates confusion and contributes to a mistaken belief that only churches with the words "Christian", "Christ", or "Jesus" in the name are Christian, and that Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Catholics, etc. are something else.