There was arguably no religious demographic that made more headlines in the United States in 2017 than evangelicals.Whether it was for supporting President Donald Trump, being critical of the new administration or even opening a new museum dedicated to the Bible in the nation’s capital, quite a few evangelicals left an imprint on 2017. Here’s a look at six evangelicals who made an impact in 2017.
1) Steve Green- Green, the president of Hobby Lobby, serves as chairman of the board for the recently opened Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. As chairman of the Museum of the Bible, Green assembled academics, designers and professionals who helped create the 430,000-square-foot, $500 million facility that opened in November just three blocks from the U.S. Capitol.
2) Beth Moore- The #MeToo hashtag spread like a wildfire this past October with women worldwide sharing their stories of how they were sexually assaulted or harassed. Among those to chime in about the movement was Beth Moore, the 60-year-old founder of Living Proof Ministries in Texas, a Bible-based organization for women. Although Moore has shared her experiences of abuse for years, she used the momentum from the #MeToo movement to launch her own #WeToo movement.
3) Lee Strobel- In April, a new documentary was released that focused on the life of Strobel, a former atheist journalist whose quest to disprove biblical accounts of the resurrection after his wife became a Christian actually led him to Christ. The documentary goes by the same title as Strobel’s best-selling 1998 book, The Case for Christ. Strobel, who is played by actor Mike Vogel, is shown in the documentary interviewing experts about the resurrection and the validity of biblical accounts.
4) Paula White- The Florida televangelist became known during the 2016 presidential election as Trump’s “God whisperer” as she helped rally the support of prominent evangelical leaders around the thrice married billionaire real estate mogul before the general election. Having known Trump for over 17 years, White, the 51-year-old pastor of New Destiny Christian Center in Apopka, is considered to be Trump’s closest spiritual adviser and often attests to the president’s Christian faith. She was also one of six faith leaders to speak at Trump’s inauguration.
5) Johnnie Moore- Moore has played a vital role as an informal adviser to the Trump administration. He now heads The Kairos Company, which provides media relations for many of the evangelical pastors and authors who serve as advisers to the Trump administration. Moore is considered to be the informal spokesperson for the group of evangelical advisers to the Trump administration. Moore was given the “Medal of Valor” award by the leading Jewish human rights organization, The Simon Wiesenthal Center, for his work of advocating for persecuted Christians in the Middle East.
6) Mike Pence- In 2017, Mike Pence went from being the governor of Indiana to the vice president of the United States. For many evangelicals, Trump’s selection of Pence, a conservative with a strong pro-life record, as a running mate in the 2016 election was what helped win over their support in addition to Trump’s vow to select conservative judicial nominees. The 58-year-old Pence broke more ties in the U.S. Senate in his first year in office than any other vice president in history, having broken six ties. Throughout 2017, Pence delivered symbolic remarks at a number of events that showed certain Christian communities that the Trump administration stands with them. In January, the vice president spoke at the March for Life in Washington, D.C. and also spoke at the World Summit of Persecuted Christians in Washington, D.C., an event organized by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.