The Missing Peace of Evangelicalism: Do you Need to be Converted?
by Rick Love
The word “peace” conjures up different things to different people. I am a child of the sixties, so my generation links peace with hippies, anti-Vietnam war protests and free love. Others think of beauty queens declaring their hope for “world peace” (I can’t help but picture Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality). And many conservative evangelicals assume peace is for liberals (whether theological or political).
Other evangelicals, who appreciate the Bible’s emphasis on peace, tend to have a narrow view of God’s peace purposes, focusing primarily on interpersonal peacemaking among believers. For them, peace is unrelated to the gospel, the Kingdom of God, or the pressing social issues of the day. No wonder so many Evangelicals minimize peacemaking or feel that the concept of “peace” is wimpy.
But is peace just for hippies, beauty queens and liberals? Is peace only relevant for “the faithful few”?
Jesus didn’t think so! Peace is a major piece of the Bible! It’s BIG.
Are you one of those evangelicals who need to get converted to peacemaking? If so, you should watch the following video of my presentation on peacemaking at the Society of Vineyard Scholars.
Here I describe the church as a “reconciling community” and reflect on the comprehensive and multi-dimensional nature of peacemaking. If you are a reader, you can find this paper here.
