In Defense of Evangelicalism: A Response to Its Cultured Despisers

Evangelicalism is a favorite scapegoat of American public life. Christianity Today deputy editor Bonnie Kristian argues that the most common attacks fall apart under scrutiny, issuing a bold call for evangelicals not to be ashamed of their tradition and, instead, to preserve and deepen it.

Evangelicals are subjected to a steady stream of criticism about what they believe and how they live out their faith in public. This isn’t new: Evangelicals have felt slighted and misrepresented for a century. But in the current political era, a cottage industry consisting of podcasts, essays, and dozens of books has arisen―all dedicated to criticizing evangelicalism. The question is not whether evangelicalism has faults but whether the accusations are fair, coherent, and a path to destruction or reform.

Drawing on research, original reporting, and a lifetime in the evangelical movement, author and deputy editor at Christianity Today Bonnie Kristian addresses five serious criticisms of evangelicalism, offering a deeply informed and theologically sound defense. Kristian engages with the work of influential critics of evangelicalism―including Kristin Kobes DuMez, Beth Allison Barr, and Tim Alberta―as well as interviews with theologians, pastors, and thought leaders, to deftly dismantle bad-faith critiques while acknowledging where reform is necessary and desirable.

In Defense of Evangelicalism demystifies and humanizes evangelicals, demonstrating irrefutably that evangelicals are not the menace they’ve been made out to be. In fact, Kristian maintains, the evangelical movement is a force for good that every American should want to preserve.