Young evangelicals aim to broaden agenda

By Deborah Jian Lee

PRINCETON, New Jersey (Reuters) - Matt Dunbar is not your typical evangelical Christian.

With his tousled hair, sideburns and a scruffy "soul patch" beard, the 26-year-old New Yorker belongs to a growing minority of young evangelicals who want to broaden their political agenda beyond the traditional opposition to abortion and gay marriage.

Evangelicals like Dunbar are eager to move on and tackle such hot topics as global warming and social justice.

As they move to the center of the political spectrum, they are deciding whether Republican presidential candidate John McCain or Democrat Barack Obama aligns best with their values and deserves their vote in the November presidential election.

A former Republican, Dunbar's political views began to change with the war in Iraq. "I couldn't keep my political affiliation with the Republican Party at that point," he said.

Research shows many young white evangelical Christians are moving away from the Republican Party.

Surveys by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life show a 15 percentage point drop in the alliance of white evangelicals aged 18 to 29 with the Republican Party over the past two years.

"This group is going to be definitely worth watching," said Dan Cox, a Pew research associate and author of the report. "If anything, they're becoming more independent in their outlook."

Most favor stricter laws to protect the environment, for example, an issue not typically associated with Republican platforms, yet remain conservative on issues like opposition to abortion and support for the death penalty.

BEYOND SOCIAL ISSUES

Several hundred young evangelicals gathered last week at Princeton University in New Jersey to meet with Christian leaders, discuss the evangelical agenda and look at the role of religion in public life. The conference was called "Envision: the Gospel, Politics and the Future."

Tattoos, scruffy facial hair and flip-flops abounded among the young attendees.

Shane Claiborne, author of "The Irresistible Revolution -- Living as an Ordinary Radical," called on young Christians to get politically and personally involved on issues of justice.

"I see an entire generation of young people who want a Christianity they can wrap their hands around," said Claiborne, who wears his hair in shoulder-length dreadlocks. "They don't want to just believe stuff. They're saying if you want to know what I believe, then watch how I live."

Claiborne and others at the conference pressed the crowd to move beyond the typical platform of the religious right.