In a famous slip of the pen in the Washington Post from February 1993, a writer asserted that evangelical Protestants were “largely poor, uneducated and easy to command.” When the dust had finally settled in the letters columns, it was clear that at least a few evangelicals were educated enough to offer such an ascription the comeuppance it deserved. More recently, in a much-discussed article in Dissent on “The Death of Intellectual Conservatism” (Winter 1995), Michael Lind opined that “the hitherto silent majority of white evangelical Protestant conservatives” had hijacked the mind of America’s right wing. But are evangelicals, in fact, really a majority in America–and are they all right wing?
Loose talk about “evangelicals” or “evangelicalism” reveals a failure to make critical distinctions. Differences between “evangelicals” and “fundamentalists” are a good case in point. More subtle distinctions recognized by insiders–such as the differences between the “Pentecostal” and “holiness” families under the evangelical umbrella–are even more frequently blurred by commentators. Some evangelical scholars go so far as to suggest that the term evangelical be abandoned altogether. Indeed, attempts to clarify the meaning of evangelicalism recall the king of Siam’s words to his schoolmistress, Anna: ” ’tis a puzzlement!”
Such a puzzlement cannot be ignored by social scientists who study contemporary American religion. With two colleagues (James Guth and Corwin Smidt) we carried out a large-scale survey in 1992 of 4,001 Americans (with a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts) for the express purpose of clarifying the size and the impact of American evangelicalism. What follows is a brief report on our results.
We began with the assumption that evangelicalism is a multifaceted phenomenon, and that there is no one single way to define the term. Instead, we employed three approaches: doctrinal essentials; religious movements closely associated with these doctrines; and affiliation with churches and denominations associated with these doctrines and movements.
DOCTRINAL ESSENTIALS
Evangelicals, however defined, naturally turn to questions of doctrine and theology when talking about the Christian faith. In our work we used four criteria to define evangelicalism doctrinally: (1) belief that salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ (“Jesus Only” in the tables); (2) experience of conversion, “Born Again” in the tables; (3) belief that it is necessary to spread the gospel through missions and evangelism (“Witness” in the tables); and (4) belief in the truth or inerrancy of Scripture (“Bible True” in the tables).
Not all observers would agree with these choices, but we feel they capture beliefs historically associated with the term evangelical. In addition, these measures allow us to explore some sticky questions that routinely generate controversial discussions–such as, is a person an evangelical if he or she has not had a born-again experience but passes the other tests?
We find (table 1) that from 31 to 46 percent of the population affirmed these evangelical distinctives. Does that mean that the size of the evangelical population in the United States is somewhere between 31 to 46 percent? The answer is yes if a single measure of evangelical doctrine is used. If all four of the distinctives are employed, however, only 14 percent of the population meet the four criteria.
RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS
Our approach to defining evangelicalism also focused on religious movements. Religious movements, the crucial “change agents” in religion, are made up of individuals dedicated to reforming and revitalizing existing institutions. American evangelicals have viewed established institutions and dogma with great suspicion as they strive for a vital faith. As a result, they are famous for their movements, some of which are alive and well today: fundamentalism, Pentecostalism, the charismatic movement, and “evangelicalism” (not to be confused with “evangelical” doctrines or tradition).
We asked our respondents if they “affiliated” with these movements. The results of our analysis are presented in table 2. In contrast to the individual doctrinal measures, movement affiliation is much smaller, with just under one-twentieth of the population affiliating with evangelicalism and fundamentalism and about twice as many with the “Spirit-filled” movements (Pentecostals and charismatics). Altogether we found that 17 percent of the population could be classified as “evangelical” by this approach.
This measure gets at the “card-carrying” and often the most dynamic members of the evangelical community, but it also highlights the complexities involved in defining that community. Some of those who affirmed two, three, or even all four of the doctrinal distinctives did not wish to use the term evangelical (or a similar label) in identifying themselves. At the same time, some who affirmed only one of the four distinctives were nonetheless self-identified as evangelicals.
RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS
Our third approach was to group denominations and local church bodies that loosely affirm the above doctrinal essentials and/or are linked to the above religious movements and to others now faded. This approach taps affiliation with churches and related religious institutions and, as a result, gets at the locales where evangelicals spend a great deal of their lives.
This avenue of research presumes accurate measurement of the religious affiliations, a care rarely taken in surveys. To illustrate the problem, the answer “Presbyterian” is of little value in itself since it does not allow the analyst to distinguish between the moderate-to-liberal Presbyterian Church U.S.A. (PCUSA) and the conservative Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Once good measurement was achieved, we examined the doctrinal and institutional history of denominations and independent churches (for example, Bible churches) to sort out distinct religious traditions. We identified five relatively large groupings: White Evangelical Protestant, White Mainline Protestant, Black Protestant, Roman Catholic, and a group of nonpractitioners we call “Seculars.”
Assigning denominations to one of the three Protestant traditions was very complicated and, of course, subject to error (especially in the case of smaller denominations, of which there are hundreds in the pluralistic American religious environment). The separation of Black Protestants from Evangelical Protestants is particularly touchy, since the religious beliefs of these two traditions are very similar. Yet the two are very different in terms of historical evolution and contemporary practices.
This definitional effort (see table 3) revealed that roughly one-fourth of the American population is Evangelical Protestant, slightly less is Roman Catholic, somewhat less than one-fifth affiliate with Mainline Protestantism, about one-fifth are Secular, and 8 percent are Black Protestant. (Smaller traditions, including Eastern Orthodox Christians, Jews, Muslims, and others, account for the remaining 7 percent of the population.)
A FINE-TUNED DEFINITION
The results so far show that the simple question What is an evangelical? quickly produces a complex answer. And things get even more complicated if we combine these various measures of evangelicalism. A simple version of these combinations is presented in table 4. The second entry identifies what might be called the “true-blue evangelicals,” a group that holds all four doctrinal distinctives, affiliates with an evangelical movement, and belongs to a church or denomination in the evangelical tradition. This group is relatively small–about 5 percent of the adult population–but is still significant, outnumbering Jews and Episcopalians two to one. If an “almost true-blue” category is added (those holding three doctrinal essentials plus affiliation with an evangelical movement and tradition), the 5 percent figure jumps to almost 9 percent.
In contrast, note that Mainline Protestants who affirm at least three doctrinal essentials and identify with an evangelical movement make up only 1.5 percent of the U.S. population. Catholics with three or four evangelical doctrinal distinctives number a rather sizable 4 percent of the population (only a handful of Catholics identify with evangelical movements).
These findings force us to examine a tough question over which you hear fierce arguments in evangelical coffee klatches: Are Roman Catholics evangelical? The answer obviously depends on the definition of the term. If doctrinal distinctives are the basis, Catholics can meet the criteria specified. If religious tradition or movement is the basis for definition, they cannot. Thus, table 4 suggests that there are millions of Catholics with whom Evangelical Protestants share common doctrines, but not necessarily liturgy, historical ethos, or notions of church authority.
The core of evangelicalism is small but intense. From data not presented, we know that this core is regularly in the pews and feels that religion is the central force in their lives. If “evangelically oriented” Mainline and Black Protestants, as well as Roman Catholics, are added to the 9 percent in the evangelical tradition with three or four doctrinal essentials and movement affiliation, about one-sixth of the population is “distinctively evangelical.” Attempting to mobilize such a disparate group is not easy, but its size makes it an important force for moral values in American society.
Does all this complexity make a difference? While we can only scratch the surface here, the answer is a resounding yes.
Just one issue, abortion, demonstrates the point. Most people would expect evangelicals to be pro-life, and table 5 confirms this expectation. But for this exercise in definitions, the results show that how you define and measure evangelicalism determines your findings. The material at the top of the table shows the impact of each of the definitions of evangelicalism on pro-life attitudes. The doctrinal essentials (in the upper left-hand corner of the table) have about the same impact, between 52 and 58 percent. And the evangelical religious tradition (top center in the table) shows a similar result. However, it is defining evangelicalism by a religious-movement measure that has the greatest impact (see the upper right portion of the table). Fully 70 percent of the card-carrying evangelicals are pro-life, and those who identify as fundamentalist or charismatic/ Pentecostal are not far behind.
Single measures of evangelicalism, however, be they doctrinal distinctives or religious tradition or religious movement, do not adequately show the strength of pro-life attitudes. It is the combination of all four doctrinal essentials, affiliation in an evangelical denominational context, and identification with the movement that produces the strongest pro-life attitudes (see the bottom of table 5). Note the decline in pro-life positions as one moves down the table and examines other possible combinations. What stands out is that all three of our definitional possibilities (doctrine, movement, and religious tradition) make a difference.
What does this suggest? Being in an evangelical religious tradition makes one more susceptible to picking up pro-life cues, as does holding evangelical doctrinal positions. But, finally, considering oneself a card-carrying evangelical makes a big difference, too.
To conclude, answers to the question What is an evangelical? depend on how you define the term. Our results suggest that the size of the evangelical community could range from a low of about 5 percent to a figure as high as 46 percent. We have found that a fine-tuned definition that includes doctrine, affiliation, and movement is better than any single definition or measure. Given this complexity, it is no wonder that commentators on American religion often produce unsatisfying and often contradictory results.
We need not be thorougly skeptical whenever we hear the word evangelical used in a public report. We should, however, ask how the term is being used and assess the information provided from that perspective. This will begin to lift the fog of imprecision and help us to assess the difference that the evangelical community is making in American society.
DATA IN TABLES
TABLE 1
Bible True 44%
Jesus Only 46%
Witness 37%
Born Again 31%
All Four 4%
Percentage of the U.S. population who can be identified as evangelicals with doctrinal criteria
TABLE 2
Evangelical 4%
Fundamentalist 5%
Charismatic/Pentecostal 8%
None 83%
Percentage of the U.S. population who can be identified as evangelicals by movement criteria
TABLE 3
Evangelical Protestant 26%
Roman Catholic 23%
Mainline Protestant 17%
Secular 20%
Black Protestant 8%
Other religious 7%
Percentage of the U.S. population in major religious traditions
TABLE 4
Percentage of U.S. population who can be identified
as evangelicals through a combination of criteria
4 doctrines only14.0
4 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 5.1
3 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 3.8
3 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 4.0
4 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 3.2
3 or 4 doctrines, mainline tradition, evangelical movement 1.5
3 or 4 doctrines, mainline tradition, no religious movement 5.1
3 or 4 doctrines, Roman Catholic tradition 4.0
3 or 4 doctrines, black Protestant tradition, evangelical movement 1.9
3 or 4 doctrines, black Protestant tradition, no religious movement 3.0
1 or 2 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 5.6
0 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 2.7
0 to 2 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 1.1
TABLE 5
Pro-life positions on abortion according to varied ways of identifying evangelicals (percentages in the table are pro-life only)
Pro-life Attitudes for the Total U.S. Population 38 Percent
Doctrinal Essentials
Born Again 58%
Witness 56%
Bible True 53%
Jesus Only 52%
Religious Tradition
Evangelical Protestant 53%
Black Protestant 45%
Roman Catholic 40%
Other traditions 38%
Mainline Protestant 30%
Secular 18%
Jewish 8%
Religious Movement
Evangelical 70%
Charismatic or Pentecostal 64%
Fundamentalist 63%
No movement identification 32%
Combinations of Doctrinal Essentials, Religious Tradition, and Religious Movement:
4 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 81%
3 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 70%
4 doctrines only 69%
4 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 65%
3 or 4 doctrines, Roman Catholic tradition 56%
3 or 4 doctrines, black Protestant tradition, evangelical movement 56%
3 or 4 doctrines, mainline tradition, evangelical movement 55%
3 doctrines only 55%
3 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 50%
3 or 4 doctrines, mainline tradition, no religious movement 46%
2 doctrines only 39%
1 or 2 doctrines, evangelical tradition, evangelical movement 36%
1 doctrine only 31%
1 or 2 doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 29%
No doctrines, evangelical tradition, no religious movement 28%
Copyright (c) 1995 Christianity Today, Inc./BOOKS AND CULTURE Review
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