Monday, March 6, 2023

It is the 6th of March 2023 Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org, I’m Dan van Voorhis.

A very happy Monday to you and yours, if you observe. Ok- so, this past weekend, you may have heard my interview with my friend and filmmaker Chris White on the Jesus Revolution. Initially, the weekend edition was going to be something of a grabbag- I was going to talk about that film, a little more about the movement, and I was going to answer a question sent to me a while back by Brandon in Plano, Texas.

First, Plano, Texas. That sounds like if someone asked you- you are from anywhere special in Texas, you might respond, just “Plano” Texas. Do you know who's from Plano? Joseph Noteboom- Rams offensive lineman. Also, Julius Randle of the New York Knickerbockers, whom I will see in person this weekend as they take on my mighty but slumping Clippers.

Part of Brandon’s question read, “I was wondering what you thought about Explo '72 and its relationship to the Jesus People Movement and the 4th great awakening?”

Ok- so, the “4th Great Awakening” talk echoes Robert Fogel- a historian who posited 4 Great Awakenings in American history- the 4th being that which began in the 1960s. He argued that all 4 of these had this in common: a “Return to sensuous religion and reassertion of experiential content of the Bible; the rapid growth of the enthusiastic religions; reassertion of the concept of personal sin; stress on an ethic of individual responsibility, hard work, a simple life, and dedication to family.”  

And, you can argue that what made the Jesus People movement more than just an interesting subculture was Explo '72. Back in 1972, Christianity Today wrote of this conference: “Campus Crusade for Christ’s International Student Congress on Evangelism—billed as Explo '72—turned out to be the largest youth training conference in church history. It ended with the biggest Jesus music festival ever (between 120,000 and 180,000 attended, according to police and newspaper estimates).”

It was a week-long conference highlighted by nightly events at the Cotton Bowl and a concert on the last day, headlined by Johnny Cash, Andrae Crouch, Larry Norman, Love Song, and others. It was organized by Campus Crusade for Christ and Bill Bright. This is significant because Bright and Campus Crusade had initially rejected the long-haired radicals. Their acceptance of this Christian subculture as an evangelistic tool helped it go mainstream (although some think this is when the Jesus Movement went mainstream and was the beginning of the end).

What is interesting is whom Bright invited and whom he did not. Looking for some good press, Richard Nixon had asked to come and address the crowd- he was told no. Fun fact: the Friday of the conference was the day of the break into the DNC headquarters at the Watergate office building. But Bright did invite his old friend Billy Graham. Graham’s embrace of the movement signaled to many evangelicals that this was a movement of God. It was perhaps the best endorsement the Jesus People could get. Graham wrote “the Purpose of Explo” was to “dramatize the Jesus revolution” to “remind the church that the old-time Gospel is relevant to this modern generation” and to “say to the whole world that Christian youth are on the march.”

Bill Bright may have been a little hyperbolic, calling it “the most significant Christian student gathering in history” and the “most significant Christian event since Pentecost.” But Explo '72 merged two emerging streams in Protestant Christianity- the Jesus People and the new evangelicals- those conservatives who wanted to distance themselves from Fundamentalism and re-engage with culture.

The American church of the past 50 years has been profoundly affected by the union of these two groups- from worship styles to youth groups and gatherings, evangelism, and culture.

Also, let’s shout out to Dr. Pepper, who provided 30,000 gallons of syrup concentrate to the organizers to wed evangelicalism and the perennial 3rd wheel of the soda wars.

Thanks for your question, Brandon! You can send me your questions at danv@1517.org

The last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and Hebrews 3

3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. 3 Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4 For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5 “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. 6 But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 6th of March 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. 

The show is produced by a man from West Lafayette, not Fayetteville- I apologize for the mistake. He is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who sees Dr. Pepper and Whataburger as explaining everything you need to understand Texas. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.