Here’s a gem from Steve McCoy, Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Woodstock, IL. In his piece Lots of Links McCoy links the  “Christianity Decay Today” Leadership Journal article What Leaders Can Learn from Rob Bell. Then McCoy says of Rob Bell:

I’m convinced that Bell is one of the most engaging and important communicators of our time.  Regardless of what you think about his message or his theology, I think he knows how to engage with listeners better that most.

Ah, who cares about his theology? So what if Bell’s a borderline universalist; the guy sure can pack a house. What a communicator! But for that matter, so is Oneness Pentecostal T.D. Jakes. He only denies the Trinity; but there’s a top notch orator for ya!

Well, how about Joel Osteen of the Word Faith movement? He’s a real leader; in fact, his home church is double the size of Bell’s! And hey; while we’re at it in our desperate search for “leaders” Oprah Winfrey says she’s a Christian (yep, isn’t everyone?). Arguably she’s one of the most powerful women in America. O sure, her theology is New Age; but hey, let’s face it, she is quite a leader and communicator.

Well, hopefully this little bit of reductio ad absurdum makes it obvious that we need to be thinking very long and very hard about the theology of these “leaders and communicators” before we accept their views about God and salvation.