They say he's always been the reason for the season, but Christmas notwithstanding, not much else about Jesus in America has stayed the same, finds Stephen Prothero in American Jesus.The American love affair with the Prince of Peace is fascinating, and this intellectual history does it full justice.
Our colonial predecessors, more concerned with cowering before God, relegated Jesus to a secondary role. But by the 19th century, evangelicals—boosted by the writings of Thomas Jefferson—began to champion a direct connection to the doctrines of Jesus. In the 20th century, Americans became more Jesus-loving than God-fearing, and Jesus himself changed from a symbol of the Christian church into an all-purpose spiritual figure. Kind, wise, tolerant and attentive, the 21st-century Jesus is more like the perfect, chaste boyfriend than a remote godhead. Now, two-thirds of us claim to have made a "personal commitment to Jesus Christ." We listen to Amy Grant, wear T-shirts that say, "Christ Cafe: Open 24 Hours, Forgiveness Any Time" and ask "What Would Jesus Do?"
