This post is the first in a three-part series addressing the question, Do progressive/liberal and conservative Christians really think differently?  And if so, is that a problem?

Not everyone has had first hand experience being a Conservative Christian and a Progressive Christian and everything in between. However, at one time or another, I've been in each one of these camps.

I grew up mainstream Lutheran, became a Born Again Christian, and a Fundamentalist and Evangelical for about two years, and was re-baptized as an adult in a lake in Arizona by a Southern Baptist preacher.  I was very much influenced by Liberal Christianity in seminary, then became a Quaker, spent an afternoon being a Radical Christian, and am comfortable with a definition of myself as a Christian Progressive or a Christian Liberal, although don't fit neatly into every category, which seems to be true for most people. (I'm aware that there are some differences between the Progressive and Liberal, but for the purposes of these articles, they don't seem as relevant!)

Are we really so different? I've reached the conclusion that Conservative Christians and Progressive/Liberal Christians truly think differently, although not always, and not on all issues.  I believe we focus and emphasize different ideas, and sometimes have different thinking processes. I don't know if this has to do with our personalities, or how we respond to ambiguity, or whether we are rebelling against or accepting, the religion of our youth, or how wounded we were in childhood, or how curious we are, or what we've learned through our own study of theology and the Scriptures. Yet, although I no longer consider myself a conservative, there are many areas where we, as Christians who might consider ourselves Progressives or Liberals can learn from the Conservatives, if we're willing, and the Conservatives, if they're willing, could learn from us. Of course, willingness is all, and many from both sides are not willing.  

It was the Fundamentalists who  taught me about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, about the experience of prayer, about reading my Bible daily and having daily devotion and prayer time, about committing myself to Christ (as an Evangelical would say) and being committed to a spiritual life and putting God first (as other Christians might say about their own Born Again experiences.)  Christians vary in terms of their own spiritual disciplines. On the surface, one might expect that Progressive/Liberals have fewer daily devotions, but I'm not convinced about this. I expect that many Progressive/Liberals are reading spiritual literature, although perhaps not always with the same focus on the Bible as many Conservatives. And I'm sure that many Conservatives don't have daily devotions and are doing no more than anyone else in terms of a daily spiritual practice.  

Conservatives seem to emphasize belief more than action, whereas Progressive/Liberals don't care as much about what someone else believes, as long as they don't try to push their belief systems on others. They care more about the action that results from one's beliefs, since they know belief doesn't always translate into making them more caring, more compassionate, more loving, kinder, with more of the fruits of the Spirit.  

Both care about transgressions, but Conservatives often put the focus on sexual transgressions, Progressive/Liberals on social transgressions -- corruption, not caring for the poor, pollution of the environment.  

I have found more hypocrisy and self-righteousness among Conservatives than among Progressive/Liberals. Since belief is so strong, they sometimes are not reflective and introspective, pointing their fingers at others rather than looking at their own behavior. They speak more about the Letter of the Law than about the Spirit of the Law. There is much more boxing in of ideas, as if everything has to have a clear boundary and a Scripture passage to back it up, even though their Scriptural choices are often very selective, as are everyone's. As a result, their clear and absolute boundaries can make them judgmental of others which can cause deep psychological and spiritual wounds. I have spoken to so many wounded ex-Catholics, ex-Baptists, ex-Fundamentalists, but don't recall speaking to a wounded Methodist or Lutheran or Presbyterian who feel freer to change churches if one doesn't suit. So many wounded Christians simply leave the Church, since they don't feel they have choices. It's one way or no way. I find far less of this from Mainstream and more Liberal Churches, where we are encouraged to question, to struggle with figuring out our relationship with God, and where it's just fine to change denominations, to experiment, to search.   

I'd be interested in readers' perceptions of these differences. In "Part Two," I'll briefly explore different concepts of God and Christ and Humanity! 

Dr. Linda Seger is the author of Jesus Rode a Donkey: Why the Republicans Don't Have a Corner on Christ.