The Church Report (whatever that is) has a new list of the 50 most influential Christians in America (via Addison Rd).
T.D. Jakes tops the list, which I think is probably a good choice (they took nominations, and listed those with the most nominations). Also on the list are lots of televangelists, Brian McLaren, Len Sweet, Billy Graham, lots of seeker-sensitive megachurch pastors, and the entire Christian Coalition. Oh yeah, and Dr. Phil. And the Pope - but he’s #43, well below Rob Bell.
Judging from the number of broadcasters on the list, these people were chosen because of the size of their audience. At the moment. In 20 years, though, I think very few of these people will have made any kind of lasting difference to the church or to the world. Power. Fame. Wealth. Book sales. All a flash in the pan, to be forgotten in the smoke and light of the next big names.
Billy Graham will never be forgotten. He has entered the ranks of John Wesley, Charles Finney, Jonathan Edwards, the Booths, and other preachers we still quote.
Len Sweet has made a conscious effort to push Christians into thinking like the rest of the postmodern world, and I think he will make a lasting impact. He’s a little too smart and edgy to go totally mainstream, though, so he probably won’t be remembered much in 20 years.
McLaren will continue to get more famous and influential, much to his chagrin. He has helped a generation of Christian leaders and thinkers own their doubts and rethink their faith, and will continue to do so. He draws heavily on Sweet, but will be remembered better because he’s more accessible.
So who’s missing? I think we’ll have forgotten many of these people by 2026, but we’ll still remember Tom Wright (who will likely still be alive, since he’s only 58 now). His influence has yet to be fully felt on this side of the Atlantic, but it’s coming. American theology has been mediocre for a long time, and Americans are listening to N.T. Wright. If Chuck Norris were British, Tom Wright would be the Chuck Norris of theology. ‘Nuff said.
justin…this is a great assessment of the big list…i’ll nominate you next year…if you nominate me.
hey we still need to do coffee. we will make it work. blessings.
I certainly won’t forget Billy Graham, especially the part about him being a two-faced anti-semite exposed so blatantly on Nixon’s secret tapes. The following went between them when talking about how they both believed the Jews controlled the media.
Graham: “This stranglehold has got to be broken or the country’s going down the drain.”
Nixon: “You believe that?”
Graham: “Yes, sir.”
Nixon: “Oh, boy, so do I. I can’t ever say that but I believe it.”
Graham: “No, but if you get elected a second time, then we might be able to do something.”
Or how about when he wrote to Nixon in a secret letter to step up the war and bomb the dikes in North Vietnam that “could overnight destroy the economy of North Vietnam” despite the fact that it would have killed about a million people?
And now I get to listen to his son talk about how Islam is “an evil and wicked religion” while he performs good friday services at the Pentagon.
Ugh.
LOL! That’s hilarious.
So… what about Walter Bruegemann, Stan Grenz, James D.G. Dunn, Robert Webber, Dallas Willard, Tony Campolo, Sally Morganthaler, Phyllis Tickle, Chuck Smith, and Bono?
I can’t believe TD Jakes is up there. He’s a heretic for not believing in the Trinity. Also, you didn’t mention that Joel Osteen and his health and wealth gospel is in the top 5. I hope this group is NOT influenial for the next 20 years or the American church is in trouble.
I was heartened to see NT Wright listed. He’s probably the most important theologian of our generation.
the chuck norris of theology…superb image statement, that is worthy of Len Sweet
made my day, thank you!
Joel,
Here’s a part of the doctrinal statement from The Potter’s House website:
I’ll leave it at that…
Joel-
Let’s avoid using the H-word, shall we? Especially when we have not done our homework (see David’s comment above).
I haven’t checked, but I’m pretty sure it requires an ecumenical council of bishops to declare someone a heretic, and that hasn’t happened for a long time.
Otherwise, I think it’s more helpful to say what you don’t like about a person’s doctrine, rather than slam them with the H-word.
Now now.
Let’s play nice.
How did such a benign post get such a radical bunch of comments? Don’t make me drive up there and go “Norris” on ya!
#&*%$(@ … that’s a curse word just to keep the mood steady.
from wikiedia.org
In Christianity, Sabellianism (also known as modalism) is the third-century belief that the three persons of the Trinity are merely different modes or aspects of God, rather than three distinct persons. It is attributed to Sabellius, who taught a form of this doctrine in Rome in the third century. Hippolytus knew Sabellius personally and mentioned him in the Philosophumena. He knew Sabellius disliked Trinitarian theology, yet he called Modal Monarchism the heresy of Noetos, not that of Sabellius. Sabellianism was embraced by Christians in Cyrenaica, to whom Demetrius, Patriarch of Alexandria, wrote letters arguing against this belief.
The chief opponent of Sabellianism was Tertullian, who labelled the movement “Patripassianism”, from the Latin words patris for “father”, and passus for “to suffer” because it implied that the Father suffered on the Cross. It was Coined by Tertullian in his work Adversus Praxeas, Chapter II, “By this Praxeas did a twofold service for the devil at Rome: he drove away prophecy, and he brought in heresy; he put to flight the Paraclete, and he crucified the Father.” It is important to note that our only sources extant for our understanding of Sabellianism is from their detractors. Scholars today are not in agreement as to what exactly Sabellius or Praxeus taught.
Today, Sabellianism is rejected by most types of Christianity and some argue that it logically leads to Nestorianism. It is accepted primarily by some Pentecostal groups, sometimes referred to as Oneness Pentecostals or “Jesus Only” Pentecostals.
Historic Sabellianism taught that God the Father was the only person of the Godhead. This teaching proports that the identity of God the Father and Jesus is the same. According to this belief, the terms “Father” and “Holy Spirit” both describe the one God who dwelt in Jesus. Some Oneness detractors call this the “Jesus-Only doctrine”.
to echo David, I’ll leave it at that.
man, that was alot of words to say absolutely nothing.
sometimes i think i’m a heretic. is self-application of this word ok?
Looking over this list of celebrities I better understand why the church is where it is today. I am not sure how these have become so influencial … maybe they are just influential to the masses. It is important to note that they do not have real influence because the price of real influence is love.
If you love people … if you build loving relaionships … you will have all of the influence that you can handle. Just imagine if God wanted to have influence in our lives but didn’t want to have a relationship with us - God doesn’t do it that way so why do we think that he wants us to have influence in peoples lives and not have a relationship with them?
Ding! Ding! Ding!!
Gotta agree with you K-Bob. I was fairly taken aback at some of the most “influential” names in Christendom.
Let’s face it, most people only know who 4 or 5 of them are right now. I’d guess that very few know who all 50 are right now. How do you remember someone you’ve never heard of?
If we’re talking about true influence, I think George W. Bush should be ranked #1. I can’t tell you how many fellow believers I know who acknowledge having some doubts about some (or many) of Bush’s decisions, but because George W. is a “man of God”, they decide to put their rational doubts to the side, get behind W., and support him (and his party) whole-heartedly. I am not questioning W.’s faith, nor am I bashing his party (I am a registered Independent who has been known to vote for a Republican or two). I just know of many Christians who, b/c of his proclamations of faith, will not only follow and support W, but will also push away any of their thoughts that contradict W’s agenda. It’s as if the Lord Himself is speaking directly through W. And for that reason, I think George W. Bush is by far the MOST influential Christian in our nation at this time.
Dad-
I’ve heard of 35 of the 50. I haven’t heard of these ones:
18, 23, 26, 28, 31, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 45, 47, 48, 49
For the most part, they are the televangelists and megachurch pastors.
David, what do you base that on? I knew who the vast majority of them were. Just curious… Was this just a “gut feeling?”
RLiz,
What’s a “registered” independent? I’ve never heard of such a thing. If you are an independent, does that not mean “unregistered” with any party? That strikes me as saying, “I’m a non-gendered male.” Huh?
DJGray–
It does sound a little contradictory. When I say “registered”, I mean registered as a voter. When I first registered to vote, I checked the box for “Independent” on the part where it asked about political party. As a result, the state of Oregon has me down as a registered Independent. Maybe it’s an Oregon thing…
Hey guys… I noticed someone above mention the tri-theism
one god three dementions… did you know that god is only one dementional? God was manifest in flesh. in other words He wraped Himself in human flesh so that when He came to earth He wouldnt kill us with his holyness…like the ark of the covonet did to anyone who wast a priest that touched it. when peter asked who is the father He said, who am i that you do not even know who I am? Jesus said that… therefore Jesus Is God. There are many titles of jesus look at what the angle told marry to call him… bunch of names huh? prince of peace, emanuel, Jesus why did everyone get stuck on the father son and holy spirit? I mean I can be a father and a son and I have a spirit does that make me three different people? no. the sad thing is all you have to do is really read the scripture. King James Version Bible is the best.(unedited) yes john 3:16 does hold value, but how could you be saved if you dont believe. to be saved follow peter’s instructions in Acts chapter 2 verse 38 and peter said unto them, repent and be baptised everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins and ye shall recieve the gift of the holy ghost. (speaking in tongues is a signal when that happens) look at The upper room. that is how you know that god forgave you and you have the ticket to heaven if you do as god tells you. most people dont want to even follow the ten commandments though. thats why only a few will make it.
Brilliant read on the list; I didn’t quite catch the 5 who’ll be remembered (albeit vaguely?) in 20 years that you’d listed, but I think people will remember Bill Hybels for being pioneering the megachurch in the late 20th century, and Rick Warren for his bestseller book and the baseball diamond diagram. Let’s permalink this one for the time capsule, and see what the polls say in 20 years, eh?