Ministry News

Undercover Atheist Talks About Church

Details: Tuesday, 06 April 2010 10:31

QUOTE: "It's no accident that evangelical Christianity is as popular as it is. I even came to enjoy listening to sermons from Jerry Falwell, whose politics I was [initially] allergic to. The emotional, intoxicating experience of being at church and hearing that music, and the whole structure of a Sunday service, was moving to me. And I don't believe in God." —Gina Welch, author of In the Land of Believers: An Outsider's Extraordinary Journey Into the Heart of the Evangelical Church. Welch, an atheist, joined a megachurch for two years without revealing her nonbeliever status to understand more about evangelical Christians. [time.com, 4/5/10]

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Related Terms: atheist , church , evangelical christians , gina welch , jerry falwell

Comments

0 #7 OLUSHOLA 2010-04-08 16:33

PLS, LET ALL BODY OF CHRIST PRAY FOR HER

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0 #6 christy 2010-04-08 04:04

It was the anointing of the Holy Spirit that she was sensing, but couldn't explain. This speaks very well of the church she attended because essentially only the Holy Spirit can draw someone to Jesus. Only the Holy Spirit can convict of sin. The fact that she did this undercover job leads me to believe that she is searching for God and is desperatley hoping to find Him. And she is now closer than she was before. This is something to be excited about!

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0 #5 David Rowe 2010-04-07 02:46

I'm with Tom from Ireland: I don't believe she didn't "get it" just because she didn't give her heart to Christ. Of course Mr. Winfield has a valid concern if all she "got" was "what Jesus can do for me," though I think this unlikely; it's presumptuous for any of us who did not hear the sermons she heard to make that judgment. The blurb makes me want to read her book! I particularly wonder about her dismissive-sounding phrase "emotional, intoxicating experience:" could this be, despite her denial, a profoundly holistic experience of God touching her humanity and so on more than one level not leaving Himself without witness?

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0 #4 Susan 2010-04-06 12:37

Hopefully Gina's experience planted a seed in her that she won't forget. It is good for all of us to pray for her.

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0 #3 2fishesand5loaves 2010-04-06 05:42

I will pray for Gina. I know that I know "God is Real". When you have a supernatural experience with the Holy Spirit, you will never doubt.

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+1 #2 Tom from Ireland 2010-04-06 05:04

How do you know she didn't get it, maybe she just didn't submit to it? Some heard Jesus for three years and didn't get it or even if they did, didn't submit to the message of the king and his kingdom.

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+2 #1 tomwinfield 2010-04-06 04:26

too bad she didn't find Jesus in all of that... it doesn't reflect favorably on the preaching she heard... evidently, she still didn't see her need for Him... my church never preaches about Heaven and Hell... it's all about what Jesus can do for you... the sermon that ignited a great revival in the USA in the 1700s was titled "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," and was preached by Jonathn Edwards of New England. what was true then is still true now, and has been since Jesus came to bring salvation from God's wrath to come by accepting His sacrifice for our sinful condition... too bad Gina didn't get that Gospel Message... the one central message of the entire New Testament...

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