Bill Hybels and "The Gatekeepers"

"Gatekeepers" is the nick name of a group of eight Chicagoland pastors who are working together to bridge the divides that exist within the church. They were featured in a couple of articles in the Sun Times in February. For those of you who might have missed it, I've included links.

• One Faith, One Bible - But Two Races
  


• Church Leaders Work to Alter Public Perception
  

Below are just a couple of excerpts:


Evangelicals have a growing imprint in politics and across a wide swath of American culture. Still, some evangelical Christian leaders worry that people have the wrong idea about them, equating "evangelical" with "conservative," "Republican," "reactionary" and "judgmental." That's among the obstacles the Gatekeepers say they face, even as they attempt to navigate their own differences in doctrine, worship style and vision for their ministries...

"If this group really does come together for some great causes, it will represent hope that diverse yet Christ-honoring groups can come together and span some of what used to be thought of as uncrossable chasms," said Hybels, who describes his massive congregation as largely "centrist evangelicals." "I think some evangelicals have put too much emphasis on what Christ's followers are against, as opposed to what are the great causes that we should get up early in the morning and be motivated to give ourselves to because of the love of Christ?"

And what would those causes be? "First would be the poor and the oppressed," Hybels said, ". . . the hungry, the homeless. Right next to that would be bridging the racial divide. Certainly, it would be AIDS. Lack of education. It's the classic causes that Jesus talked about in the Sermon on the Mount."