In my circles, branding someone a “self-professing” anything generally doesn’t rise to the level of a compliment.
I find that odd.
I profess to be a Christian.
Does that make me a self-professing Christian?
I believe so.
You got a problem with that?
Maybe you think I’m suspect as a Christian because I profess to be one?
Really, though, it’s weird to read or hear one self-professing Christian use self-professing to speak of another self-professing Christian.
I just read another instance of that in Issue 100 of the newsletter from Faith builders. In an otherwise excellent article (The Anabaptist Advantage Among Muslims) by self-professing Christian TDW, this:
Then in 2001 the self-professing “born-again” President George Bush called for another round of violence against the Muslims when he said…
OK.
Like I said, TDW’s article is excellent. I hope to secure permission to republish it on one or more of my sites. I truly do expect them to grant me permission, even though I plan to chide them for the above reference to the President.
After all, how can I possibly believe that my self-profession is more accurate than anyone else’s?
And, still, I use self-professing on others, though less and less intentionally so.
And when I do, it’s less easy to overlook the importance — the urgent necessity — of making sure that my own self-profession is under-girded and made believable by the evidence blooming fragrantly from my own life.
PS: I understand that we adjective-ize someone with self-professing when we have reason to question the sincerity and depth of his commitment to Christ. But still…