Evangelicalism, Presbyterianism and Protestant Church Identity in Northern Ireland

Abstract

To be evangelical is to be committed to spreading the ‘good news of the gospel’ (Olson 2005: 3), but definition of evangelicalism refers more to an identity which derives from shifts in belief and application of Christian principles (Larsen 2007: 7). These shifts, which give rise to a range of denominations, take origin from well-established positions that serve to contain the evangelical imagination through four interrelated modes of application, which Beddington refers to as ‘conversionism, the belief that lives need to be changed; activism, the expression of the gospel in effort; biblicism, a particular regard for the Bible; and what may be called crucicentrism, a stress on the sacrifice of Christ on the cross’ (Beddington 1993: 3). A strong connection to the authority of the Bible, God’s message as recorded in Scripture, seeking salvation by trying to live up to that message and using missions to impress the need for a spiritually transformed life all converge to shape the evangelical mind (Marsden 1991: 4–5). And although denominations vary in terms of organisational structure and biblical emphasis, most adhere to overriding influences of the Reformation, Puritanism and Pietism (Pietism being an influence which sought to promote the devotional ideal of godliness and the virtue of righteousness), which use Luther and Calvin as the impetus for spiritual and theological engagement.