evangelical

Everyday

1. (church) Evangelical describes Christians and churches that put great weight on the Bible, on a personal faith in Jesus and on telling others the good news. tree →
2. (church) An evangelical is a person who belongs to this kind of Christianity. tree →
3. Very keen and eager to persuade others about something you believe in, like a cause or a hobby. tree →

In the lessons

In stories and lessons on church life it tells the reader what kind of church or believer someone is: lively worship, Bible study, sharing faith. In everyday talk «evangelical about» means wildly enthusiastic: «evangelical about recycling». Phrases: evangelical church, evangelical Christian, evangelical zeal.

Examples

• Our neighbours go to an evangelical church on the corner. tree →
• Evangelical Christians believe that each person can have a personal friendship with God. tree →
• The evangelical preacher spoke about the good news of Jesus. tree →
• Many evangelicals read the Bible every day. tree →
• My uncle is evangelical about cycling and tells everyone to get a bike. tree →
• She was almost evangelical about her new vegetable diet. tree →
• The evangelical youth group sang songs at the summer camp. tree →

Note

Comes from «evangel», an old word for the gospel, the «good news». Capital letter is optional but common when naming a group. Not the same as «evangelist» (a person who preaches the gospel, or one of the four Gospel writers). The everyday sense «very keen» is a bit of a joke-comparison; it is not about religion.