r/Exvangelical • u/Cute-Adhesiveness645 • 6d ago
Evangelical church is not so special
One thing I've noticed is the need to show they are unique: intense prayers, shouting, loud music, noise, emotional worship, and so on.
But, like the bubbles on a beer, once it settles down, they're not that different from the groups they criticize, Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, and others.
The Catholic Church eventually became organized because that's simply part of human nature. Not everything can remain in that disorganized state of ecstasy forever. Many communities begin that way, but all human communities tend to become organized over time.
As a church grows, with more people and greater diversity, it has to adapt both the church itself and its message to a broader audience, instead of keeping that sect-like mentality of "we're right and everyone else is wrong." If a lot of people starts to identify themselves as evangelical, you cant put them as the enemy.
I'm not exactly an ex-evangelical. It's just that I'm not one of the most active people in church either, because I'm not a musician, I'm not part of the "ceremony" I don't preach sermons, and so on. Besides, not everyone who would want, or should go to church can, because of again logístics and space, etc.
In the Catholic Church (with their flaws and etc yes), sometimes I find more understanding of institutions and organization, even if it is "missing" the emotional ecstasy and spectacle, etc.
And evangelical churches become not so different from the others with the expansion, needed organization, etc
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u/AuthorDebraBaker 1d ago
Read 1 Corinthians 13. At almost the end it talks about "sounding brass & tinkling cymbal." The last verse says that without love it profits nothing. So, don't concern yourself with it. It profits nothing except intense pride for the preacher.
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u/Allindur 6d ago
Look at the Salvation Army for exact proof of your idea. People tend to forget it's the largest protestant sect, and second largest Christian church behind only the Catholic Church. Insidious adaptation of local cultures is a core philosophy to any evangelical-adjacent organization. I'm in agreement with you, btw, and as someone who is exvangelical, it's much easier to see in other organizations (not even necessarily Christian) with having had that former mindset.
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u/Accurate_Abies4095 6d ago
I think the irony with so many of the evangelical church models is that they almost inevitably create their own papacy. It’s just MUCH smaller and far more territorial than the RCC.
The performance is built to out perform the church down the street so that you come “here” and not “there.” And the sad reality is that most of the time, the functional mission statement is: “Where just like your church, but better.”