Adam Russell Taylor, the president of Sojourners and a pastor ordained in the American Baptist Church + the Progressive National Baptist Convention, will be joining National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) president Walter Kim for a presentation on “civic discipleship,” teaching Christians how to “participate in public life” i.e. politics. The event is being sponsored by The Trinity Forum, a Christian organization founded by Os Guinness.
Sojourners describes itself as “an ecumenical Christian media and advocacy organization that works towards social and racial justice.”
In 2022, Taylor wrote an op-ed for the publication about bans on what he labels “gender-affirming care” for “trans kids.” He declared: “these bills and efforts represent an assault on imago dei and contradict the Great Commandment [to love one’s neighbor] (Matthew 22:36-40).”
Last year during Pride Month, Sojourners ran a series of articles titled “The Joy of Being Queer and Christian.” The headlines in the series:
“Asexual and Aromantic People Are Often Forgotten, But God Sees Us”
“The Trinity Delights In My Unique Trans, Nonbinary Identity”
“Black, Butch, Queer — and Baptized Into God’s Scandalous Love”
“Mary, Mother of God, Help Me Find Queer Joy”
“Led Out in Joy, with Rainbow Cookies and Fresca”
“God Created Me To Be a Transgender Man”
“How the Pride Flag Speaks to the Promises of God”
That same month, Taylor shared a photo of himself and other Sojourner staffers on their office balcony having a “Popsicles For Pride” event, with several of his subordinates waving “Progress Pride” flags.
This is not the kind of mealy-mouthed, “I hold to biblical sexual ethics but cannot abide homophobia” fence-riding you see throughout the evangelical publishing industry. This is full-blown “queerness of the Trinity” liberalism.
There is very little chance that the NAE’s Walter Kim and The Trinity Forum, led by Cherie Harder, are not aware of Taylor’s activism on this issue. We’re reached out to both organizations and will update this article if any comment is forthcoming.
These organizations are presenting Taylor, who cannot even co-sign bans on transing kids, as an expert on Christian political witness.
2 John 10-11 warns Christians regarding false teachers: “Do not take them into your house or welcome them. Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.”
This article was written by Woke Preacher TV on his FB page and has been (mildy) adapted and posted with permission.
Led by Walter Kim and having Ed Stetzer on their Executive Committee, the lobbying group that represents tens of thousands of churches from over 40 denominations recently demonstrated their lack of representation by supporting a legislative initiative called Fairness for All, which sought to codify sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes, adding them to federal nondiscrimination laws. This is in addition to a thousand other progressive cuts and hot takes perfectly by their newly released blockbuster report Loving the Least of These.
According to the Hill, the bill would “require the federal government to recognize a marriage if it was valid in the state where it was performed and guarantee that valid marriages are given full faith and credit in other states.” while also protecting religious groups from being forced to accommodate them (even though it won’t do the latter at all.)
Kim called the legislation “important, commonsense provisions” and thanked the politicians for “diligently working to ensure the inclusion of important religious freedom protections” in the act.
Noted Christian scholar Robert Gagnon expressed his disbelief at NAE’s actions, calling for the Resignation of Kim for supporting “the worst legislation in my lifetime, which pulls the rug out from any reasonable definition of marriage.
When NAE pushed back, offering that “NAE supported the religious liberty protections in the Respect for Marriage Act, but did not endorse the bill as a whole,” Gagnon doubled down, writing:
“This response by the NAE to my calling for Kim’s resignation is a prime example of doublespeak. Kim falsely extolled the bill as a whole for “advancing religious freedom for all.” Last year he lamented a Christian “winner-take-all” approach & supported “gay rights” legislation.”
Twitter user Tyler points out the real issue here with the NAE and other groups like them, a resignation to playing the defense rather than an aggressive insistence on going on the offensive.
That the NAE would such forethought and clarity of purpose.
The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) was founded in 1942 as a new coalition to ‘unify evangelicals and to function as a “middle way” between the bitterly divided fundamentalist and progressive streams of American Christianity.'”
In actuality, they emerged as an ecumenical organization designed to serve as controlled opposition to the more liberal American Council of Churches, but soon broke left after their original founders – including Bob Jones and John Rice – were out of the picture. They’ve remained there since, becoming increasingly entrenched in their recalcitrance and pitiful in their irrelevancy.
This was was shown when they supported a legislative initiative called Fairness for All, which sought to codify sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes, adding them to federal nondiscrimination laws, along with a thousand other progressive cuts and hot takes and exemplified perfectly by their newly released blockbuster report Loving the Least of These.
Representing tens of thousands of churches from over 40 denominations, including the SBC (and up to a few short weeks ago, the PCA) The NAE (who has Ed Stetzer on their Executive Committee) gathered up all their social capital and published a sweeping 96-page report designed to address some of the most pressing matters of this current age.
It’s not about the abortion holocaust, in which NAE supports the bleeding of babies in cases of rape and incest anyway. It’s not the militancy of the transgender movement cracking evangelicalism wide open, nor is it about the purposeful grooming and manipulation of children by blue-haired teachers in incubating classrooms or by parents dragging them to drag shows. It’s not about the social contagion of kids identifying as LGBTQ nearing a majority, nor the decimaction of an ability to articulate what a woman is and what makes them uniquely made in the image of God. Lastly, it’s not about the mutilation of healthy penises and breast tissue on children through mephistophelean medical experiments; a grotesque obsession by conscience-seared madmen competing to see who can create the most realistic approximation of sex organs on a 16-year-old.
Instead, their major announcement is about climate change, where they bemoan melting ice and glacier loss, rising sea levels- “As ocean temperatures rise, the water expands and raises the water level. Melting glaciers also contribute to the rise in sea level. From 1880 to 2020, sea levels rose 8–9 inches (20–23 centimeters). A 2022 report suggested that future sea level rise is predicted to be another 10–12 inches (25–30 centimeters) by the year 2050.” agricultural losses, loss of forests, loss of biodiversity, damage to fisheries, and pollution challenges.
After spending fifty pages lamenting the ways the earth is falling apart, they offer up ways that Christians can stop sucker-punching the planet and mitigate their impact on this world through these acts of ‘loving their neighbor.’
“In Bible study groups, learn about creation care and its biblical foundations.
Worship God with songs and prayers that reflect his might in creating the world.
In your church, make sure your Sunday school programs, outreach activities and sermons include theology of creation care.
Invite fellow believers whose congregations are affected most noticeably by changing environments to speak at your church.
Make your church facilities as environmentally friendly as possible and help others to do the same.
Consider buying sustainable foods, recycling, composting, and switching to renewable energy
sources and less polluting vehicles.
Ask what God wants you to do about the threats to the health and survival of human beings, as well as the animals and plants on which we rely on.
Use more efficient appliances, shift to public transportation and renewable energy-powered vehicles, prioritize energy savings, eat more plant-based diets, and pass legislation that helps speed up the transition to renewable energy.
When you purchase a plane ticket, consider paying for carbon offsets.”
The report concludes by noting, “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. God will show you the next steps.”
This completely misguided endeavor might be forgivable if it weren’t at the expense of battles not being fought. More than that, they’re not doing their congregations any favors. One of the most powerful Christian organizations in the United States, the NAE, is not popping up in the public square to proclaim the primacy of Christ or grabbing their gear to do trench warfare for the souls of our children.
Rather, they’re talking about installing solar panels on churches and the Christian’s obligation to buy a Tesla. Look at the last six months of articles- are they getting a little blood on their boots where the battle burns hottest?
Megan Basham explains why this is so problematic, pointing out that other than coopting the jargon to advance their position, they’re not in the thick of the battle but rather on the outskirts of it.
All the Christianese jargon is here. NAE claims becoming a climate change activist is part of “loving your neighbor,” “showing hospitality,” and recognizing “lived experience.” Get some new terms guys. Maybe you could find some in the Bible!
While children are being mutilated, this is where Evangelical orgs are throwing that “social capital” they’ve been guarding so carefully. Climate change. But if you suggest that they’re deliberately choosing to align with causes that will make them “co-belligerents” with the leftwing media and government power structures, you’re divisive and out of order.
Want to know what they’ve said about transgender ideology destroying children’s lives & bodies? Nothing. Two generic articles from 2016. Don’t tell me they’re just seeking to represent Biblical values in public sphere.”
The National Association of Evangelicals is not even in the same fight, they don’t have the same priorities as you, and at this rate they never will.
