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Q&A with author David Clary about “Soul Winners”
Who are evangelicals? What do they believe?
Broadly speaking, evangelicals are Protestants who believe in the literal or near-literal truth of the Bible, feel the missionary spirit to spread the word of God, and believe that a conversion or “born-again” experience is necessary for salvation. Evangelicals encompass a wide range of Protestants — fundamentalists, dozens of Baptist groups, Pentecostalists, and charismatics. Some are independent or nondenominational or are loosely tied to an association of churches. Evangelicals are more conservative theologically than members of mainline Protestant churches who interpret the Bible through the lenses of modern science and scholarship. Evangelicals tend to be more conservative politically than mainline Protestants.
What makes evangelicals entrepreneurs?
Mainline Protestant churches adhere to traditional standards of liturgical worship and their ministers report to ecclesiastical authorities. In contrast, evangelical entrepreneurs design their own services and create their own structures, whether it is a church, Bible institute, media-based empire, or a full-fledged university. America’s open religious marketplace provided the perfect climate for innovators like evangelicals to thrive.
What made you want to write a book about evangelicals?
You cannot understand contemporary America without understanding the influence of evangelicals. They have helped shape American traits such as individualism, mistrust of government, hyper-patriotism, and faith in capitalism. I have always been fascinated by why people believe what they do. Private religious beliefs have consequences in the public arena, as we have seen in the Trump administration and during the pandemic.
Why did evangelicals support the candidacy of Donald Trump, a thrice-married former casino mogul not known for Christian piety?
Before running for president, Trump grew close to Paula White, a Florida-based megachurch pastor, and considered her his personal spiritual adviser. Her business-oriented “prosperity gospel” outlook meshed well with Trump’s worldview. She had survived scandals, and so had he. Both were entrepreneurs, brand-builders, and television personalities. Trump projected an image of wealth and certainty that evangelicals like White value and respect. Popular evangelicals like Paula White were useful surrogates for Trump. Once it became clear Trump would be the Republican nominee, most evangelicals rallied around him.
How did evangelicals fare in Trump’s presidency? And do they still support him?
Paula White enjoyed a level of White House access for a religious leader not seen since Billy Graham counseled Richard Nixon. Trump understood well that white evangelicals were his political base and he assiduously catered to their needs. He fulfilled many of the items on the evangelical wish list, particularly his nomination of conservative federal judges. With three Trump appointees on the Supreme Court, the court’s ideological balance has shifted firmly to the right — a goal evangelicals have been pursuing for decades. For all of Trump’s moral flaws, in him evangelicals saw a flawed, but faithful, ally. Polls show little erosion of white evangelical support for Trump even after his two impeachments and the insurrection at the Capitol.
You mentioned the “prosperity gospel” earlier. What is that?
It’s a controversial teaching that links Christian faith to material success. Oral Roberts preached that if a person sows a seed in a time of loss, he or she should expect to reap a benefit as great or greater than what was lost. So if his followers faithfully planted a seed by donating to his ministry, they could “expect a miracle.” It became a powerful tool for funding televangelists’ enterprises as well as their luxurious lifestyles. For critics of modern prosperity gospel preachers such as Joel Osteen, the very notion of a wealthy preacher is incompatible with Christ’s teachings of humility and simplicity. But for the tens of thousands of weekly attendees of his church and the millions of other Osteen fans, the pastor’s personal financial success is something to admire and aspire to. They find encouragement and hope that with God’s help, they can improve their lot in life. That’s a very American idea.