ABSTRACT
In the last few years a steady stream of books and journal articles have flowed from evangelical academics that have attempted to engage with, as Millard Erickson puts it, both the promises and perils of postmodern thought.1 Reactions have varied from complete dismissal to what many describe as capitulation and accommodation of the Christian faith to the ‘spectre of postmodernism’. In many ways the diversity of such a reaction within evangelicalism reflects how broad the understanding is that evangelicals have of themselves. When one takes into consideration the many contexts in which evangelical Christianity is practised it is easy to see why such an umbrella term as ‘evangelicalism’ is variously interpreted and understood. It is not the intention of this book to examine the variety of interpretations of evangelicalism here. Suffice it to say that, like many, I commend David Bebbington’s Quadrilateral as the yardstick by which evangelicalism can be measured.2 The four distinctives that Bebbington highlights – conversionism, activism, biblicism and crucicentrism – still comprise the most succinct summing-up of evangelicalism.3 Moreover, no time will be spent outlining some of the differences between North American and British evangelicalism. Instead when the term evangelical is used it is in its most generic sense. That said, there will be times when the reader may think that I am only addressing a North American audience due to the content and context of the discussion (particularly when examining approaches to the Bible). Nevertheless, the issues raised here provide food for thought for evangelicals, whatever their stance, background or geographical context.
