An excellent op ed in the Wall Street Journal addressed “The perils of ‘wannabe cool’ Christianity. Kinda reminded me of two things. First, what Paul did not mean in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. If he had meant that we are meant to imitate the culture around us, then I need to go buy a pair of skinny jeans. Not a pretty picture for a guy my age and build. Then again the sheer number of Youth Specialties Convention attendees sporting the latest trends in facial hair makes me think that skinny jeans would not be enough. Anyway, Brett McCracken, the 27 year old author of the piece, argues “If the evangelical Christian leadership thinks that “cool Christianity” is a sustainable path forward, they are severely mistaken. As a twentysomething, I can say with confidence that when it comes to church, we don’t want cool as much as we want real.
If we are interested in Christianity in any sort of serious way, it is not because it’s easy or trendy or popular. It’s because Jesus himself is appealing, and what he says rings true. It’s because the world we inhabit is utterly phony, ephemeral, narcissistic, image-obsessed and sex-drenched—and we want an alternative. It’s not because we want more of the same“
He makes a good case. Read it here.
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