A Third Party

Remember Ross Perot? He intended to launch a third party revolution that would permanently dislodge the two party monopoly of American politics. Despite his efforts the Democrat/Republican hegemony is as strong as ever. R. Scott Clark argues in Recovering the Reformed Confession (see previous posts here and here) that there's a third party option available to those dissatisfied with American evangelicalism. One with staying power. It's been around for almost five centuries now. This third party is largely ignored or unknown, but Clark sees good and appealing reasons why "postevangelicals" should consider embracing the Reformed confession instead of making a beeline for Rome or the Emergent Village.

Professor Clark states at the outset that this book was written primarily for the "sideline" churches of NAPARC (North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council). If you've never heard of NAPARC don't feel bad. I'd never heard of it even though I spent two years in its largest denomination -- the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Why Clark refers to these churches as the sideline quickly becomes apparent. Broadly defined, American evangelicals number 70 to 100 million souls (depending on who you ask), while the total membership of the NAPARC churches is around 500,000.

In Chapter 6 "The Joy of Being Confessional" Clark tailors his appeal to a broader audience and argues that rejecting American evangelicalism -- strongly influenced as it is by fundamentalism and revivalism -- doesn't have to mean rejecting the Reformation. In recent years we've seen prominent Protestant evangelicals leaving for Rome (e.g., Thomas Howard, Francis Beckwith) or Eastern Orthodoxy (e.g., Frank Schaeffer) often accompanied by an eloquent memoir of their journey. I can relate, having flirted with joining the Catholic Church at one time. But ironically, if I had taken that step I would have been embracing another version of what I was leaving. Clark explains:

Once one overcomes the predominating ignorance of and bigotry against Rome that permeate North American fundamentalism, once one discovers that Roman Catholics love Jesus and read the Bible, it is not a great step to trade the authoritarianism of fundamentalism for the magisterial authority of the Roman communion. In other words, though they occur in a different setting, Rome, Constantinople, and the Emergent Village each offer to fundamentalism and evangelicalism a more ancient and better-looking version of what already animates them.

It seems clear from at least some of the testimony of the evangelical pilgrims, especially from the proponents of the emerging church, that it is simply assumed that Calvinism or the Reformed faith is synonymous with American fundamentalism or revivalism. The pilgrims from evangelicalism seem to assume that, in rejecting fundamentalism and revivalism, they must also reject the Reformation. It is true that, in modernity, the Reformed churches have not always been good witnesses to their own tradition. We have too often looked and sounded and acted as though we were revivalists or fundamentalists. Nevertheless, if the adjective "Reformed" is defined by the Reformed confession, then we are not simply another version of those things evangelicals and postevangelicals are fleeing. (p. 196)

The heart of this chapter is taken up with five theological and ecclesiological virtues of the Reformed faith as it's described in the book. I'll simply list them and encourage you to read the case Clark makes for yourself. The Reformed faith is Biblical, catholic, vital, evangelical -- "To say that confessional Reformed theology is evangelical is to say that it is vitally concerned about the evangel or the good news that God the Son has come, taken on humanity in history, bringing with him God's kingdom, grace, salvation, and righteousness (Matt. 4:23; 9:35; 24:14)" -- and it is churchly. I suspect that anyone who takes a serious look will find tremendous appeal in these virtues. I suspect also that many who think they know what this book is going to say (and are sure they'll disagree with it!) may be surprised.

These days many younger Christians are looking for a radical, new way to do church. They've grown weary of the pragmatism, shallowness and boomer aesthetic that all too often characterizes the churches of their parents. Perhaps they're enthusiastic about the books of Robert Webber or Rob Bell or others who offer up various ideas of what the church should look like in the 21st century. Maybe they've been dismayed by the anti-intellectualism described in books such as Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. I've read some of those same books and they resonate with me too, but I hope some of my peers will check out Recovering the Reformed Confession. What it offers isn't exactly new, but it is radical. For those evangelicals looking for another alternative to lowest common denominator faith, this book offers a clear one. It would be a shame to relocate without investigating all the options.