5 Things Evangelicals Get Wrong About Mainline Churches
I used to think mainline churches were where faith went to die.
When people left evangelical churches for mainline congregations, we whispered that they’d “gone liberal” like it was a diagnosis of some terminal illness. Then, I found myself on staff at the largest mainline church in North America, and I discovered that almost everything I’d been told was either wildly exaggerated or completely backwards.
The Narrative I Inherited
The story I grew up with was that evangelical churches were Bible-believing, Spirit-filled, growing communities of genuine believers. Mainline churches were theological museums, preserving the forms of Christianity while abandoning its power. They’d compromised with the world, prioritized inclusion over truth, and were slowly dying as God’s judgment on their unfaithfulness. They were to be avoided at all costs.
When I finally stepped into a United Methodist church, I was shocked to discover a community that loved scriptur…
