Old Church and New Evangelism, cont.

In the most recent edition of the journal Missiology, Kenneth Ross from the Church of Scotland vividly describes the problems facing Scottish Christianity. The numerical decline of Christianity in Europe has been well documented by all kinds of scholars and writers. Canadian churches are experiencing a similar crisis. The US seems to be in a stronger position by comparison, but numbers in the US show a similar decline of church attendance. Even though Christianity seems to still play a prominent role in our society, many wonder if we aren't trending toward a crisis similar to the one in Europe in Canada where Christian church attendance is typically between 5 & 10%.

Ross describes the crisis facing the "old church," but he then goes on to express some optimism for a "new evangelism." Warning: His voice is one of MULTIPLE voices who express optimism over new ways of doing things without being able to point at many concrete results of what that actually looks like. I share his hope and optimism, along with his pessimism about doing "business as usual." I agree that the church in the West is on shaky ground, unless we reinvent ways of being church and reemphasize discipleship outside of the worship assembly.

So, I share Ross' thoughts about "new evangelism" needed to help reinvent the church. But I also confess that many are still struggling to figure what this will look like.

First, he wisely suggests that we continue to leverage the church's remaining influence within society. The Europeans have struggled with composing a joint constitution, a process that has been controversial and unsatisfying to all but a few bureaucrats. From a Christian perspective it seems crazy that the European constitution makes no mention of God or Christianity, since Christianity has drastically shaped modern Europe. This suggests that Christians are irrelevant and unwanted. But in opposition to this notion, Ross suggests that Christians not shy from debates about the issues of the day. Just because Christians aren't in the Constitution should not prevent them from speaking about issues of social justice, immigration, welfare and the like. Some in the church need to continue as part of the public discourse.

Second and most importantly, he realizes that the church needs to start to identify more with those "who are excluded from power and prosperity." Acquiring "a view from below," as Bonhoeffer states, means that many Christian leaders attempt to discover what it feels like at the lowest rungs of society. He describes one of the most impoverished sections of Glasgow. The church is experimenting with new ways of doing church there among these folks. They are discovering an amazing lack of hostility toward God; these folks are genuinely open to a relationship with God. They are suspicious, however, of traditional forms of Christianity because they view these religious structures as part of the oppressing system.

There is a gulf between church and the parts of our society most open to Jesus. Churches of Christ have an advantage (ideally speaking) that we are not burdened with denominational structures that prohibit flexibility and quick transformation. We have plenty of our own inertia to deal with, but some of our churches could actually make a quick turn to the "new evangelism."

The "old church" is far from dead. But the symptoms of disease are increasingly evident. Many are fearful about the future.

I thank God for a church like College C of C here in Fresno where the possibilities are great. We need model churches to rise up through the power of God's Spirit to point the way toward this "new evangelism." Am I crazy to think that this church could be just such a place?