In “American Evangelicals: The Overlooked Globalizers and Their Unintended Gospel of Modernity,” author Joshua Yates talks about the massive spread of Evangelical Christianity, specifically in the global south, not just in the North/West. According to Yates,
Evangelical Protestantism (especially in its Pentecostal manifestations) is arguably the most consequential religious movement in the world today. […] In Latin America, for example, Protestants numbered around 15 million in the 1960’s; in less than two decades, that number grew to at least 40 million. […] The number of Christians on the African continent rose from around 9 million in 1900 to over 330 million in 2000 — over 120 million of whom are Pentecostal. In Asia, the story is no different. In 1900, the number of Christians figured around 20 million; by the year 2000, it had grown to over 300 million. (409)
The evangelical gospel has now become a global religion, not just a Western religion. It has used the concepts of the globalized market, specifically the idea “Act Globally Think Locally”, in order to spread its vision. It has managed to influence all areas of life, including politics, as we saw with the anti-gay laws in Uganda.
Being raised by my mother, an Evangelical Christian, has always been interesting, especially considering my academic journey. I was constantly being reminded that “God created the earth, not the Big Bang”. I was always told that the school system was in the wrong for taking out religious teachings, and for confusing the youth on what was actually “the truth”. What is the current state of evangelicalism and science now?
According to Megan Gannon, contributor to LiveScience, a majority of evangelicals today do not see science and religion as being in conflict. According to a survey conducted by Rice University, “about 48 percent said they see science and religion as complementary to one another, while 21 percent think science and religion refer to different aspects of reality and see them as entirely independent of one another”. At the same time however, “the share of evangelical Christians who think religion and science are in conflict (and see themselves on the side of religion) is 29 percent — more than double the figure in the general population (14 percent)”.
What kind of consequences has the belief that evangelicalism and science cannot coexist had on a global scale? With its continuous growth, what kind of effect will it continue to have?
Link to LiveScience article:http://www.livescience.com/50162-most-evangelical-christians-dont-feel-hostile-to-science.html
