National Association of Evangelicals

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The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) is an agency dedicated to coordinating cooperative ministry for evangelical denominations of Protestant Christians in the United States and is part of the larger World Evangelical Alliance (WEA).

Contents 1 Mission statement 2 History 3 Overview 4 Initiatives 4.1 Global warming 5 Member denominations 6 Presidents 6.1 NAE Accepts Haggard Resignation 7 References 8 External links 9 Bibliography

[edit] Mission statement

"The mission of the National Association of Evangelicals is to extend the kingdom of God through a fellowship of member denominations, churches, organizations, and individuals, demonstrating the unity of the body of Christ by standing for biblical truth, speaking with a representative voice, and serving the evangelical community through united action, cooperative ministry, and strategic planning."

[edit] History

The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) was formed by a group of 147 people who met in St. Louis, Missouri on April 7-9, 1942^[1]. The fundamentalist/modernist controversy, and the related isolation of various fundamentalist and evangelical denominations and leaders, provided the impetus for developing such an organization. Early leaders in the movement were Ralph T. Davis, Will Houghton, Harold Ockenga, and J. Elwin Wright. Houghton called for a meeting in Chicago, Illinois in 1941. A committee was formed with Wright as chairman, and a national conference for United Action Among Evangelicals was called to meet in April 1942. Harold Ockenga was appointed the first president (1942-44).

Carl McIntire and Harvey Springer led in organizing the American Council of Christian Churches (now with 7 member bodies) in September 1941. It was a more militant and fundamentalist organization set up in opposition to the Federal Council of Churches (now National Council of Churches with 36 member bodies). McIntire invited the Evangelicals for United Action to join with them, but those who met in St. Louis declined the offer.

The tentative organization founded in 1942 was called the National Association of Evangelicals for United Action. In 1943 the proposed constitution and doctrinal statement were amended and adopted, and the name shortened to the National Association of Evangelicals. The National Religious Broadcasters was formed in 1944.

At the National Association of Evangelicals' 1983 conference in Orlando, Florida, NAE President Rev. Arthur Evans Gay, Jr. introduced President Ronald Reagan for what was to become known as his "Evil Empire" speech^[2].

[edit] Overview

There are currently 60 denominations with about 45,000 churches in the organization, 52 of which are listed below. [NOTE: List needs updating.] The organization is headquartered in Washington, D.C. There are 27 regional affiliates of the NAE. Leith Anderson has been its president since November 7, 2006. He succeeded Ted Haggard, who on November 3, 2006 resigned after admitting he had solicited prostitute Mike Jones for homosexual sex and methamphetamine.

[edit] Initiatives

[edit] Global warming

In January 2006, 24 evangelical leaders including Charles Colson, James Dobson and Richard Land wrote to the NAE board, requesting that the NAE not take a position on global warming.,^[3] In response, the NAE's Executive Committee passed a motion acknowledging that "global warming is not a consensus issue" and instructing its staff "to stand by and not exceed in any fashion our approved and adopted statements concerning the environment contained within the Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility."^[4][5] (The 2001 document, For the Health of the Nation: An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility, includes a section on "protect[ing] God's creation" but does not mention climate change.^[6])

On January 17, 2007 Vice President for Governmental Affairs Richard Cizik announced that the NAE would join a group of prominent scientists in a statement calling for "urgent changes in values, lifestyles and public policies to avert disastrous changes in climate."^[7] Cizik's advocacy has been controversial among evangelicals, and demonstrates a widening gap between "old guard" evangelical leaders such as Dobson, Colson, and Franklin Graham, and new evangelical leadership that includes Rick Warren, Duane Litfin and David Neff that stands behind NAE's climate change position.^[POV]

In December 2008, Leith Anderson stated that For the Health of the Nation contains the NAE's only official position on the environment, and confirmed that "we don't [have a specific position] on global warming or emissions. [Cizik] has spoken as an individual on that."^[8]

[edit] Member denominations

United States Christian bodies  v • d • e

United States Interchurch National Association of Evangelicals National Council of Churches Churches Uniting in Christ S. Conference of Orthodox Bishops in America North Am. Presbyterian & Reformed Council Anabaptist & Friends Church of the Brethren Friends United Meeting Mennonite Church USA Old Order Amish Mennonite Church Baptist & Stone-Campbell Baptist Alliance of Baptists American Baptist Association American Baptist Churches Baptist Bible Fellowship International Baptist General Conference Baptist Missionary Association of America Conservative Baptist Association of America General Association of Regular Baptist Churches National Association of Free Will Baptists National Primitive Baptist Convention North American Baptist Conference Southern Baptist Convention African-American Baptist National Baptist Convention of America National Baptist Convention, USA National Missionary Baptist Convention of America Progressive National Baptist Convention Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Christian Churches and Churches of Christ Churches of Christ International Churches of Christ Catholic & Anglican Episcopal Church Old Roman Catholic Church Polish National Catholic Church Roman Catholic Church Holiness & Pietist Christian and Missionary Alliance Church of God (Anderson) Evangelical Covenant Church Evangelical Free Church of America Church of the Nazarene Salvation Army Seventh-day Adventist Church Wesleyan Church Lutheran Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod Methodist African Methodist Episcopal Church African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Free Methodist Church United Methodist Church Orthodox Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Orthodox Church in America Serbian Orthodox Church Non-Chalcedonic Armenian Apostolic of Am. Armenian Apostolic Diocese of Am. Coptic Orthodox Church Pentecostal Assemblies of God Church of God (Cleveland, TN) Church of God in Christ Church of God of Prophecy Full Gospel Fellowship Intl. Church of the Foursquare Gospel Intl. Pentecostal Holiness Church Pentecostal Church of God Oneness Pentecostal Pentecostal Assemblies of the World United Pentecostal Church Intl. Presbyterian & Reformed Christian Reformed Church in North America Conservative Congregational Christian Conference Cumberland Presbyterian Church Evangelical Presbyterian Church Korean Presbyterian Church in America International Council of Community Churches National Asso. of Congregational Christian Churches Presbyterian Church (USA) Presbyterian Church in America Reformed Church in America United Church of Christ Other Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Community of Christ Grace Gospel Fellowship Independent Fundamental Churches of America Messianic Jewish Alliance of America Plymouth Brethren Vineyard USA

These Protestant church groups were members as of 2008:

• Advent Christian General Conference (joined 1986)
• Assemblies of God (joined 1943)
• Baptist General Conference (joined 1966)
• The Brethren Church (joined 1968)
• Brethren in Christ Church (joined 1949)
• Christian Catholic Church (Evangelical Protestant) (joined 1975)
• The Christian and Missionary Alliance (joined 1966)
• Christian Church of North America (joined 1953)
• Christian Reformed Church in North America (joined 1943-51; 1988)
• Christian Union (joined 1954)
• Church of God (Cleveland) (joined 1944)
• Church of God Mountain Assembly, Inc. (joined 1981)
• Church of the Nazarene (joined 1984)
• Church of the United Brethren in Christ (joined 1953)
• Churches of Christ in Christian Union (joined 1945)
• Congregational Holiness Church (joined 1990-92; 1994)
• Conservative Baptist Association of America (joined 1990)
• Conservative Congregational Christian Conference (joined 1951)
• Conservative Lutheran Association (joined 1984)
• Elim Fellowship (joined 1947)
• Evangelical Church of North America(joined 1969)
• Evangelical Congregational Church (joined 1962)
• Evangelical Free Church of America (joined 1943)
• Evangelical Friends International of North America (joined 1971)
• Evangelical Mennonite Church (joined 1944)
• Evangelical Methodist Church (joined 1952)
• Evangelical Presbyterian Church (joined 1982)
• Evangelistic Missionary Fellowship (joined 1982)
• Fellowship of Evangelical Bible Churches (joined 1948)
• Fire Baptized Holiness Church of God of the Americas (joined 1978)
• Free Methodist Church of North America (joined 1944)
• General Association of General Baptists (joined 1988)
• Great Commission Churches (joined 2007)
• International Church of the Foursquare Gospel (joined 1952)
• International Pentecostal Church of Christ (joined 1946)
• International Pentecostal Holiness Church (joined 1943)
• Mennonite Brethren Churches, USA (joined 1946)
• Midwest Congregational Christian Fellowship (joined 1964)
• Missionary Church, Inc. (joined 1944)
• Open Bible Standard Churches (joined 1943)
• Pentecostal Church of God (joined 1954)
• Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church, Inc. (joined 1988)
• Presbyterian Church in America (joined 1986)
• Primitive Methodist Church USA (joined 1946)
• Reformed Episcopal Church (joined 1990)
• Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (joined 1946 / voted 2009 to withdraw) ^[9]
• Regional Synod of Mid-America (Reformed Church in America) (joined 1989)
• The Salvation Army, National Headquarters (joined 1990)
• The Wesleyan Church (joined 1948)
• University Bible Fellowship (joined in 2008)
• Worldwide Church of God (joined 1997)

[edit] Presidents

• Harold Ockenga (1942-1944)
• Leslie Roy Marston (1940s)
• Arthur Evans Gay, Jr. (1980s)
• Don Argue (1995-1998)
• Kevin Mannoia (1998-2001)
• Leith Anderson (2001-2003)
• Ted Haggard (2003-2006)
• Leith Anderson (2006-)

[edit] NAE Accepts Haggard Resignation

Wikinews has related news: President of National Association of Evangelicals resigns over gay sex scandal

Ted Haggard, President of the National Association of Evangelicals and founder of New Life Church, resigned his positions at his church and the National Association of Evangelicals on November 2, 2006, confessing to what he called "sexual immorality". The NAE posted a statement accepting his resignation with regret and are encouraging him to participate in the discipline process and oversight of his church. Leith Anderson was appointed as the new president on November 7, 2006. A press release is available in pdf here [1]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• National Association of Evangelicals Web Site

[edit] Bibliography

• Harold Lindsell, Park Street Prophet: The Life of Harold John Ockenga (Wheaton: Van Kampen, 1951).
• George Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism: Fuller Seminary and the New Evangelicalism (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1987).
• James DeForest Murch, Cooperation without Compromise: A History of the National Association of Evangelicals (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1956).