I had a great trip with the Youth Service Project and am ready to get back to blogging!
One thing that often popped into my head while I drove was an article by David Fitch. He is an Anabaptist and had just come back from an event with Phyllis Tickle. The part of his post that kept coming to mind was this:
Phyllis sees a Christianity that comes together (eventually) through conversations. I see a Christianity that is splintering. As a result Christians look antagonistic to the world. Consequently, I don’t see a Great Emergence in our future. I see something that looks more like a Grand Disappearance exacerbated by this unappealing internal Divergence.
As an Anabaptist, David has an automatic assumption – a built in critique. Anabaptism is , by its very nature, a critique of the State Churches and the orphan (bastard) offspring that mutated in America after the Reformation in Europe. Phyllis is a Episcopal (Anglican-Church of England). You can see where the might disagree on some pretty foundational stuff.
There were several points of connection for me:
- I was editing an interview with David Fitch for Homebrewed Christianity
- I love the Great Emergence and reference it all the time
- I had just posted a blog about my expectations for the next 50 years.
Fitch goes on to talk about his comfort with being a minority – it is the Anabaptist way after all. On this point, I don’t think that Phyllis would disagree with him too much. I had said in my earlier post that I think there will be 50 percent fewer Christians in America in 50 years than there is now. On that point, I don’t think that David would disagree with me too much.
The only place then that there seems to be genuine disagreement is found in what we think the smaller remnant will look like. I am hoping for an irenic emergence with a few ornery fundamentalist still using their megaphones (but commanding less attention). My hope is that once we settle into the reality of being a minority religion that we will adjust our expectations which will in turn transform our expressions.
What are your expectations? What do you think it will look like? Is that a good or a bad thing?
Bo Sanders: Public Theology 
July 7, 2011 at 3:54 pm
In order to gain a perspective on what the church in America might look like in the next 50 years, do you think it would be helpful to look at the church in Europe? The difference between the church’s relationship to the state in America and Europe might sully this comparison, but it still might be helpful. What do you think?
July 8, 2011 at 6:30 pm
Jimmy this is the big quesiton: is the past a good way to judge the future? I know that the past will not be totally UNlike the past – but I am more and more suspicious that something has really shifted, really changed, even about change itself.
I do NOT think that we can use Europe as a guide or indicator in ANY way… they are just TOO different. That’s my 2 cents.
July 8, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Next question: 🙂
What do you think these “transformed expressions”, which you refer to at the end of your post, look like? Who or what would you point to as examples of “irenic emerging” in Christianity today? Are there any?
Also, I don’t want your 2 cents, I want your whole dollar.
July 8, 2011 at 10:46 am
I don’t see the fundamentalists dissappearing. I tend to agree with Fitch, but as I’m neoanabaptist too that’s hardly surprising is it.
July 8, 2011 at 6:35 pm
It pains me to say, but I actually think that in an overwhelming world that is increasingly chaotic, people find great comfort in having all the rules outlined for them and all the answers provided for them.
The preferred delivery system continues to be charismatic spokesmen on a stage or screen 😉 This is the cult of personality that we are all prone to in an electronic world of microphones and TV cameras.
If you look at the famous Preachers these days, you will see a definite trend in WHAT they focus on… although there are a few exceptions (like Rob Bell) who embrace complexity and acknowledge mystery.
July 8, 2011 at 7:46 pm
I agree with your statement “I had said in my earlier post that I think there will be 50 percent fewer Christians in America in 50 years than there is now.” It’s sad that the amount of people in church on any given Sunday is dropping every decade. So, here is my question: what are we doing to increase that number? or what can we do to increase that number?
July 8, 2011 at 9:07 pm
Or do we even WANT to increase/maintain that number? Is a large-group environment still the way that people want to connect with each other in a faith-centered way? I, and I know many others, strongly prefer interacting in small, intimate, non-“churchy” environments. Unfortunately for the traditional church structure, they probably can’t support themselves (i. e. pay rent etcetera) very long on this model. If it’s going away/changing form naturally, to me that is an indicator that it’s course has been run.
July 9, 2011 at 2:07 pm
Jeremy, I think you missed what I was saying. I wasn’t focusing the actual people going to church. I am like you, I would much rather go to a smaller church. However I was using that guideline to make the point that we have people straying away from God and we need to focus on that. Jesus Christ ministry was about saving the lost people. I believe we need to follow in his foot steps. After his Death and resurrection his disciples focus was spreading the good news. I really think today Christians are more focus on the person they sit next to on Sunday rather than the person that is not even at church. My point is this Christian today need to share the good news more then we do.
July 9, 2011 at 5:17 pm
Let me see if I can take this in a little different direction (for the sake of fun and interest)
Todd, let me ask you two questions and see how they sit with you:
1) I hear often that Christians in the West have lost the right / capacity to do evangelism or speak to the culture. People want to see life change in us and to hear us challenge the unjust and oppressive “systems” of this world – not tell them how to live and then reinforce the status quo.
2) what if Jeremy is not talking about smaller churches – but smaller communities that are NOT churches. Would that change your answer?
looking forward to it – Bo
July 9, 2011 at 7:02 pm
Bo,
In response to question #1. I agree with your statement. The last line you said is so true. People always accuse christian for judging yet in return there are the ones who judge. That’s something that I am trying to learn is how to react to them.
#2 – If small churches equals small communities then I agree that is where we need to grow. The disciples after Christs death went out to the small communities to spread the word of God and I believe that we need to fall in their footsteps.
Now when we talk about larger churches or small churches, does it matter if it is small or big? Shouldn’t we be spreading the word of god everywhere without limitations?
Todd
July 8, 2011 at 9:56 pm
Todd, I get what you are saying but is it really about how many or “how to increase that number?” I mean traditional understanding has been that Christianity is essentially a general religion of salvation, which makes the primary task of the church the salvation of the lost, with the ultimate goal of ensuring that as many people as possible “get in”, escape the punishment of “hell” and gain eternal life with God in heaven. In this construction neither ecclesiology nor missiology authentically develops, but who cares, because it’s about how many.
So maybe an alternative approach can be seen in the calling of Abraham, where against a background of persistent and escalating human rebellion, he will be the progenitor of a people called to be “blessed” in order to “be a a blessing” to the nations of the earth, visible in history simply as a people whose God is faithful. In the O.T. this is worked out NOT by the global expansion of Israel but by the recognition of the nations of God’s faithfulness and love for Israel via their restoration and visible witness (eg. Is. 66:18-21).
Bo, you said “my hope is once we settle into the reality of being a minority religion we will all adjust our expectations which will in turn transform our expressions.” Hopefully that will happen. To my mind, the Bible has different expectations about the nature of the impact of the people of God on the world around it than we may sometimes think, especially now in this time of marginalization (and increasingly here in New England where our community is located). Maybe the expansion/numbers idea is NOT the all in all. The point is that our calling is not simply to save the world, not to try and assimilate all cultures and peoples into the kingdom of God via new methodologies, but to be an authentic new creation, both actually and prophetically, in the midst of things.
Yeah, many WILL hear and believe; they will become part of the Spirit-filled collective. But they will believe, in weakness and humility, for the sake of the many who cannot or will not believe.