Thread by @scott_m_coley

I’ve been asked why I spend time writing posts specifically about @FoundersMin and related matters (see posts on SSJG, culture wars, ultra-complementarianism and masculinity). I’ve asked myself the same question. Here’s what I got:

I became active on Twitter a few months ago in order to advance a book project on evangelicalism, politics and institutional justice. Almost immediately, I became aware of the Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel and organizations that affirm it, like @FoundersMin.

This has been an unsettling experience for me. Before disagreeing with someone, I try to sympathize with their position as much as possible. Ideally, I can argue for their position better than they can before I ever voice my disagreement. That’s what I’m trained to do.

99% of the time, the more I learn about someone else’s beliefs, the more sympathy I have for their perspective—even if I never come to agree with that perspective. But the more I learn about @FoundersMin, the stranger their agenda seems.

I take @FoundersMin at their word that they affirm the Gospel.

But when it comes to their public stance on justice, I can’t figure out what’s good or beautiful or true about their views or the way they’ve chosen to engage their audience.

Part of me wants to shrug and say, “This conversation isn’t for me” and move on. (Believe me, that’s what I’ve wanted to do--it took months for my wife to persuade me that engaging on Twitter could be productive in the first place.)

But walking away from these disagreements seems privileged. God has called me to do more than enjoy teaching, immerse myself in my favorite books and write papers that 10 other academics will read just to add lines on my CV.

Part of me wants to treat @FoundersMin the same way I might treat elderly church folks who are patient and kind to the people around them but haven’t recently asked questions about institutions because that’s just not the world as they know it.

Just smile and nod—I mean, what difference does it make? Let them go gentle into their good night. They aren’t hurting anyone.

And part of me wants to handle @FoundersMin with gentleness, the same way I might talk with a student who grew up in the same conservative, fundamentalist-ish circles that I did.

I want to say, “Think with me for a second, man. I used to think the way you do and then I started asking myself if everything I have that I don’t deserve is just up to God’s grace, or if at least some of what I have that I don’t deserve is a result of injustice.”

But @FoundersMin isn’t a harmless octogenarian or an open-minded college student. They have a platform. They’ve decided that they know all they need to know about justice. And they’re using their influence to do truly corrosive things to the body of Christ.

Why is @FoundersMin doing what they’re doing? Why do they conflate so many issues? Why do they refuse to understand institutions? Are they just being defensive? Are they afraid? Could it be that simple? Do they think they’re being blamed for something? What is their end game?

What do they want the Church to look like once we’ve done they say we should do? I’m having trouble picturing it. Why is a church that doesn’t advocate for the oppressed a better church than one that does?

How does anti-intellectualism serve the cause of Christ? The more I think about it, the more troubling it is.

Thoughts welcome—especially from those who are more familiar with this ministry. Supporters of @FoundersMin especially welcome to reply.