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But it seems important to see Christianity in all its dimensions. As Ron Sider has argued so well in his recent book, there really is a Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience. We are indeed morally sloppy, and I think it is because we have embraced truncated versions of the Christian faith that have trained us to be this way.

Which evangelical traditions today train their adherents in the kind of rigorous self-examination represented by the Catholic tradition of the "examination of conscience"? The Puritans and the followers of Wesley used to engage in such practices, but they have largely disappeared.

Which evangelical traditions today encourage the kind of daily self-examination and rigorous accountability represented by the evangelical Wilberforce? Can one find this kind of moral seriousness actively taught in any branch of the evangelical world?

Christianity is more than an event, an experience, or a set of beliefs. It is a way of life characterized by moral seriousness and the quest for holiness.

David P. Gushee is the author, most recently, of Only Human.

Copyright © 2005 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

CT interviewed Ron Sider about the book.

In September, Harper's Magazine published The Christian Paradox | How a faithful nation gets Jesus wrong.

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November 2005, Vol. 49, No. 11