Evangelicals make mark on society as they bring faith into marketplace, author says_32204

Posted: 3/19/04

Evangelicals make mark on society
as they bring faith into marketplace, author says

DALLAS–Evangelical Christians are making a mark on American society as they bring their faith into the marketplace, author Michael Lindsay told students and faculty at Dallas Baptist University.

Lindsay, a Baylor University graduate who is completing his doctorate in sociology at Princeton University, recently delivered the second annual George Gallup Jr. Distinguished Lectures Series at DBU.

At one point in American history, faith was deemed private and not appropriate for discussion in the public sphere, he told a DBU chapel audience.

But a new generation of evangelical Christians is breaking out of that mold, said Lindsay, who co-wrote two books with Gallup.

Research among self-identified evangelical Christians throughout the United States identified a growing group of leaders in Hollywood, Silicon Valley, New York City and Washington, D.C. These individuals have become convinced Christianity is not a private faith, Lindsay noted.

“Evangelicals are rising to positions of influence and power in this country, and they are working to bring their faith to bear on their vocations,” he said.

“These committed believers, in turn, have begun to change their world in big ways.”

Lindsay challenged the DBU student body to catch this vision of cultural renewal.

“These new trends are exciting, and a cause for great hope,” he said.

“And the most exciting things are occurring among your generation.”

Lindsay, who served previously as special assistant to the president at DBU, told faculty and staff to remember the mentoring role teachers at Christian schools perform.

“Mentors help us find our way,” he said.

“And as mentors to DBU students, you are helping these young people find their way and become all that God has called them to be.”