Evangelicalism

A document whose aim was to foster greater cooperation between Protestant evangelicals and Roman Catholics is instead causing friction among evangelicals, some of whom think the declaration undermines their basic Protestant beliefs. "Evangelicals and Catholics Together," issued as an unofficial document almost a year ago, called on evangelicals and Catholics to recognize each other as Christians and work together on issues on which they tend to agree, such as abortion and pornography.

The Harvest Crusade, the evangelical festival that revolutionized the old-fashioned revival meetings with its mix of scriptures and pop culture, returns to Anaheim this evening for its ninth year with a renewed mission of bringing Christianity to young people.

The steady stream of Latino immigrants into Southern California has sparked a battle for their souls that church leaders say will last throughout the 1990s. The struggle pits the Roman Catholic Church, for centuries the predominant religion among Latinos, against evangelical Christian groups competing with increasing success for Latino converts. As a result, besieged Catholic leaders throughout the nation are being forced to grapple with the realities of a rapidly transforming flock.

Marking a major milestone in its movement toward mainstream Christianity, the once cultish Worldwide Church of God has been accepted into full membership by the nation's largest association of evangelical churches. Officials with the National Assn. of Evangelicals said Friday they had voted overwhelmingly to admit the Pasadena-based church into the fold after a detailed examination of its doctrines. Best known for its Plain Truth magazine and the teachings of its late founder, Herbert W.

More than 300,000 people are expected to join prominent Christian speakers and Elizabeth Dole, wife of Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole, in a four-day celebration of God and country at one of the largest evangelical revivals in the nation. The seventh annual Harvest Crusade opens on the Fourth of July at Anaheim Stadium, with fireworks and a message about "a second chance for America," organizers said Tuesday. "I'm concerned about the course our country has taken, i.e.

Barack Obama isn't in the White House yet, but conservative evangelical Christians are worried that he will threaten their freedom to live according to the Bible and profess it as the literal word of God. If evangelicals don't act now, prayer in schools and on the airwaves would give way to pornography and same-sex marriage, some predict. "We've seen what we feel is a clear rise in hostility among our institutions -- political institutions and media institutions," said Craig Parshall of the National Religious Broadcasters, a Virginia group.

Dea Green, a secretary at Birmingham Southern College, left Bill Clinton's rally at the school last week contemplating a possibility she couldn't have imagined only a few months ago: voting for the president on Tuesday. "I have thought of him as a social liberal," said Green, a small, soft-spoken woman wearing a large cross around her neck. "But today he talked more traditional values."

What's ahead for American churches in the 1990s? The evangelical churches will sustain their pattern of growth from the past decade and the old-line denominational slump will continue, church analysts say. And if there's going to be any "Establishment" faith for the 1990s, it is likely to be Roman Catholicism, which has grown a solid 16% in the United States during the past 20 years.

It used to be very simple: Catholics knelt, Baptists did not. But like so many other things, the posture of prayer has become so much more complicated in the 1990s. Prominent evangelical pastors are calling their flocks to their knees, while American Catholics are considering a proposal to make kneeling optional. Even Presbyterians who prided themselves on never leaving their seats have been lifted from them by folk guitar services and the charismatic movement.

By the tens of thousands, evangelical Christians are expected to pour into the Rose Bowl next weekend to praise Jesus and listen to exhortations to follow their Lord. But you would be wrong to assume this is another massive stadium event staged by Promise Keepers, the nationwide evangelical men's group. In fact, you wouldn't even have the gender right. This group calls itself Chosen Women.