James Davidson Hunter’s To Change the World has been hailed as one of the most important analyses of evangelicalism in recent memory. Our own ridiculously prolific guest-blogger Christopher Benson had an interview with him in Christianity Today that hit on many of the major themes. I’ve remained silent on the book because, well, I’ve been travelling for a month and was swamped with other projects prior to leaving.
That’s about to change.
On Monday night, the American Enterprise Institute is hosting Dr. Hunter to address the shifts that have taken place in younger evangelicals within the context of his broader analysis of evangelicalism. They’ve invited two younger evangelical respondents, one of whom is…..me.
If you’re in the DC area and interested in the future shape of evangelicalism, this is a great opportunity to hear from one of its most careful observers (who is Dr. Hunter, in case there is any confusion about the referent of that clause). Let me know by email if you intend to come, as I always love meeting Mere-O readers.
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MATT: Awesome! How did you get an invitation to speak at AEI? I’ll be eager to hear your response to James Davison Hunter’s message. As you know, I think Hunter’s right on target.
I went to the link you provided and noticed the title of your forthcoming book, Earthen Vessels: Breathing New Life into a Broken Faith. Wouldn’t it make more sense to say “Breathing New Life into a Broken Body” because the focus of your book is embodiment?
Welcome back to the USA! I hope you’re pleased with my efforts at guest-blogging. While my disputational posts on the three purposes of sex, the role of disgust in the same-sex marriage debate, and the relation between Christianity and postmodernism generated the most heat, I’m proudest of my quiet and reflective posts on developing an ecological orientation through the narrative imagination. Willa Cather’s O Pioneers! has been my muse.
Christopher,
I’m pretty sure they drew names out of a hat.
I’m actually a member of the board for AEI’s outreach to young evangelicals.
As for the book title…..nope. You’re approaching the title like an academic. My publisher is approaching it with a goal of selling books. : )
And thanks. I haven’t yet had a chance to read through everything, but I am sure you did a great job. And I’m particularly looking forward to reading the stuff on Cather–sounds really interesting.
matt
MATT: I wasn’t aware that AEI has an outreach to younger evangelicals. Then again, I’m not plugged into the world of think tanks.
The posts on Willa Cather are definitely “out of the box” for Mere Orthodoxy. I spent a lot of time on these posts but they haven’t generated much attention because (1) Mere O readers have disappeared over the summer; (2) textual analysis of literature isn’t provocative and polarizing, which blog readers thrive on (see my posts on homosexuality and postmodernism); (3) the narrative imagination has shrunk in our technocratic age; and (4) many Americans are disconnected from the land so that any call to develop a relation to it often falls on deaf ears.