To illustrate this, in this post and the next two I want to describe three prominent theological worlds within the Christian tradition. In this post we'll describe the theological worlds of evangelicalism.
Let me argue that evangelicalism is characterized by three main theological worlds, Guilt, Belonging and Self-Alienation.
The obsessio of Guilt should be obvious. Given the dominant views of atonement within evangelicalism, oriented around penal substitutionary atonement, the primary predicament of the human condition is our sin. The epiphania for our guilt is Christ's atoning sacrifice on the cross. Accepting Jesus as our Savior is the primary experience of salvation. From Jonathan Edwards' "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" to the sermons of Billy Graham to Tim Keller, Guilt is an obsessio of the evangelical theological world.
Along with Guilt, I would add the obsessios of Belonging and Self-Alienation. You see these obsessios mainly in the lyrics of Christian praise and worship music. It has long been noted that Christian praise and worship music is very focused upon the self. The pronouns of the music are me, me, and me. This focus upon the self, in its search for connection and self-acceptance, highlights the obsessios of Belonging and Self-Alienation. The modern self is lonely and alienated, so we search for home. The modern self is also experiencing a mental health crisis. We are anxious and depressed. So we search for an inner experience of cosmic compassion, love, and acceptance to overcome our self-alienation.
Together, the obsessios of Belonging and Self-Alienation create the theological world of Moralistic Therapeutic Deism. God sees me, loves me, supports me, and wants to make me happy.
As we step back and look at these theological worlds--Guilt, Belonging, and Self-Alienation--we can discern some tensions. A fire and brimstone presentation of Guilt can undermine the epiphanias of Belonging and Self-Alienation. We can come to feel that God hates and loathes us, which undercuts feelings of connection and love in relation to God. But the very best expressions of the obsessios and epiphanias of the evangelical theological world present a powerful and compelling connection between Guilt, Belonging, and Self-Alienation. We are drawn into the music and sermons by our obsessios of Belonging and Self-Alienation. We are looking for home, seeking connection. We are emotionally lost and unwell. These twin obsessios bring us powerfully to the third: our separation from God. Overcoming this separation from God in the epiphania of grace and the epiphanias of belonging and cosmic mattering follow. As you are likely aware, this is a powerful cocktail of obsessios when expressed with rhetorical skill and power, and it has proven very attractive. Many people live in the theological worlds of Guilt, Belonging, and Self-Alienation and the evangelical message resonates strongly with them.
Of course, the three keys of this piano--Guilt, Belonging, and Self-Alienation--can be played to create very different melodies. Some preachers lean heavily into Guilt, creating a old-school fundamentalist, fire and brimstone melody. Other preachers deemphasize Guilt, leaning more into Belonging and Self-Alienation. These sermons play a more "therapeutic" song, God loves me and wants me to be happy. In prosperity gospel spaces a theology of "blessing" accompanies this therapeutic message. Most evangelical pastors try to maintain a balance among the obsessios.
To conclude, gather the sermons and praise songs of evangelicalism and you will find the obsessios of three theological worlds: Guilt, Belonging, and Self-Alienation.
