The Born Again Christian Movement – An Atheistic Perspective

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Though the phrase ‘born again’ is used several times in the Bible New Testament it doesn’t refer to a physical re-birth but a spiritual one, often involving a conversion and commitment to practice Christianity. Though traditional the phrase took on new meaning in relation to the evangelical Christian revivalism of the 1960’s and 1970’s led by charismatic ministers like Billy Graham. The phrase ‘born again’ came to refer to anyone embracing religion with enthusiasm and fanaticism in this period, as Born Again. Born Again was the title of the autobiography of Chuck Colson, who found faith after being arrested as a conspirator in the Watergate scandal that brought down President Nixon. Born Agains are often not religious converts but established though lapsed Christians renewing their vows of faith. Many Christians were seen as saying they believed in God and the Bible while rarely attending church, not praying daily or trying to convert unbelievers into the fold. A commitment to being born again meant a promise to study scripture, evangelize and be very public about one’s beliefs. The movement drew in many big names among the acting, music, arts and political celebrity circuit. Cliff Richard, Bob Dylan, Chuck Norris and President Jimmy Carter among them. It was a counter-blast to weak-commitment liberal believers, and the growing hippy counter-culture that was attracting Eastern meditation cults to the US & Europe. The evangelicals were frowned on by the mainstream churches as they further drained established but dwindling church congregations, with Christian denominations often fighting each other. The movement encouraged adult baptisms, usually with full emersion in cold water pools, rivers or oceans, and active street & doorstep evangelism. Born agains often believe in Biblical literalism, creationism, an imminent apocalypse and that science, the Big Bang Theory and evolution are evil. Many people see the various born again movements as cults and a social nuisance but they are undoubtedly here to stay. Arthur Chappell