Convincing Millennials to join churches is no easy task. Ask any minister.
But Brent McDougal, the senior pastor at Cliff Temple Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, has assigned himself an arguably even harder task: convincing young adults to bring their faith and compassion into the political realm.
Brent McDougal
McDougal takes up that effort in his 2018 book Faith, Hope & Politics: Inspiring a New Generation to Community-Changing Political Engagement.
Brushing aside stereotypes of Millennials as self-absorbed and socially disengaged, McDougal argues the generation possesses a deep concern for others and readiness to help those in need. It makes them ideal for tackling the ills that plague American politics – if they can see the value of involvement.
The generation “offers us a way forward and a synthesis between social justice and genuine gospel witness,” he said.
McDougal spoke with Baptist News Global about his book and the effort to engage young people in public life. Here are this comments, edited for clarity.
What were you seeing in your life and ministry that prompted you to write this book?
I’m privileged to work with a lot of young people in a variety of vocations, from teachers to medical professionals to engineers. What I realized was that people were wanting to see their faith expressed in an integrated way, whether in everyday life or working or at play. They want their faith to be a significant part of what they do. But I saw, almost exclusively, that government, and specifically running for office, was not part of a direction they wanted to go in. That was concerning to me as someone who sees an overlap between faith and political life. So, I wanted to inspire a generation to not give up on politics and to believe that’s as valid a faith impulse as any other pursuit in life.
It seems conservative Christians certainly see that overlap as important.
There has been a bit of a one-sided conversation driven by a fundamentalist culture war mentality, and that may cause people to see politics as a place where faith cannot be lived out. Among conservative outlets, faith centers around particular issues and is limited to one perspective often from a very skewed biblical interpretation. It’s often focused on immigration as a national security issue and throwing out Bible verses on obeying your leaders. There is a whole side that is not represented in the debate.
A lot of people have scaled back their news consumption in recent years. Is this also true for Millennials?
I don’t know if they have so much abandoned news, but they are curating what comes into their field of view. Because of that, they are experiencing an echo chamber of people who agree with them. There is a necessity to limiting the amount of knowledge we are consuming, but we need to be intent on listening to voices that are different than ours. In terms of that consumption, the question to ask is what is the most dominant voice you are hearing? Are you listening to the voice of God that is ultimately going to define your identity, or are you more shaped by trends and a deluge of facts?
How can Millennials be convinced to embrace political engagement in an environment so cynical and caustic?
You try to speak the language of authenticity, the language of vulnerability. That has a very strong of resonance among Millennials. You have to make it about relationships. It’s about listening and trying to shape character in such a way that people are more willing to engage in a caustic environment.
Are there any signs that’s actually happening?
I would say I’m very encouraged by what I see in pockets of communities and networks of people that are really speaking differently and rejecting what’s been accepted in American political life, which is the belief that there has to be a divide between people and a zero-sum approach. I see much more collaborative approaches happening.
Where do you see that happening?
In my own neighborhood there is a robust conversation around gentrification and the impact of new housing units coming in and raising the cost of living for those on fixed incomes. There is an effort among younger leaders to balance out the different currents of the issue and a desire for a people-centered approach rather than a policy-centered approach. It has elevated the conversation.
How does the challenging you lay down in the book dovetail with ministry?
I think that what God is up to in the world is bigger than what we might call “church work.” Whatever we may define as “politics” and “church” and “social life,” I think I think God sees the whole. So, ministry to me is always about the recreation and the redemption of communities and individuals. We can recapture that by modeling sacrifice and engaging the whole heart in following the call of Jesus.
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Inspiring a new generation to community-changing political engagement