Gosh, come on and smile you people, or is church THAT bad?
Ok, so Tod Bolsinger has summarized for us what people want from the perfect church. I love the ideas people mentioned and those things not mentioned. What a nice gaggle of Christian folk. However, this whole topic has me wondering, what about people that don't usually, or do seldom, or won't ever -- go to church. What do THEY want? This question lead me here, where there are some rather scary thoughts on "unchurched" folk.
Try on for size:
- There has been a 92% increase in the number of unchurched Americans in the
last thirteen years. In 1991 there were 39 million unchurched Americans compared with 75 million currently. (2004) 92%!! - Men are one-third more likely than women to be unchurched (38% of men and 28% of women are unchurched). (2000)
- More than half (54%) of unchurched adults consider themselves to be Christian. (2004)
So, what should us church folk DO about this? Pretend like these people don't exist? Work hard to understand what their needs are, and why church is completely irrelevant to them? Care for them, start conversations with them about what they really want from life? Is their indifference about church our problem, do we "own" this one?
Or do we attribute their lack of attendance or interest in church to, well, their sinfulness? Their laziness? I mean heck, they can't get out of bed for a couple hours on Sunday? What is wrong with these people? Why would they want to go hear a potentially irrelevant sermon delivered in a place that looks like 1970 occurred yesterday and mingle with a group of indifferent Christian folk who like like they would also rather be at home, in bed, reading the Sunday paper?
"Its Over"
I had lunch yesterday with a pastor friend. He has always been known as a bit of a nonconformist, not really fitting in well with the crowd. He said to me, over sandwiches, "you know, the church as we know it, is a dying breed. Its over."
The more I have thought about this, the more encouraged I become. Perhaps God is doing a new thing? And perhaps those of us who Believe will be called to something really new, and different, much more like the First Century Church, or Revelations calls us to be. Who knows?
Thoughts, comments, questions?
3 comments:
Great insight. The church, as I knew it when I was growing up, had become insular and was interested in doing the work of God in Africa, but not in the neighborhood across the street. Why did the community abandon the church? Because the church abandoned the community.
Change is to be embraced, not feared. So the church is changing - why should it not? If we are failing, then we should be rushing to change, not clinging to the failed ways of the 1930s.
God bless. Keep it up.
"Why would they want to go hear a potentially irrelevant sermon delivered in a place that looks like 1970 occurred yesterday and mingle with a group of indifferent Christian folk who like like they would also rather be at home, in bed, reading the Sunday paper?"BINGO!
Steve:
Yes, you do post scary thoughts on "unchurched" folk:
92% increase in the number of unchurched Americans in the last thirteen years.
(54%) of unchurched adults consider themselves to be Christian. (2004)
And you ask a couple of great questions: Is their indifference about church our problem, do we "own" this one?
What should us church folk DO about this? Pretend like these people don't exist? Work hard to understand what their needs are, and why church is completely irrelevant to them?
Let me tackle the 54% who think they are Christians and know they are unchurched. My guess is that they have been led to think they are Christians not by studying Scripture and praying on their own, but because somewhere in their youth or childhood they must have done something good-- like having said the "Sinners prayer" or being born children of other "nominal Christians."
Where on (this part of) earth (known as America) did 54% of self-professing Christians get the idea that church is an unnecessary part of being a Christian? I suspect the answer is this:
We in American evangelicalism have separated church from Christianity; we did this by spreading the belief--or acquiescing in the belief-- that all we need is Christ as Our Savior;Christ Our Lord is an optional extra.
To the extent that is a church created division then we in the church "own" it.
To the extent that it is a slothful view of what Salvation entails after you have once accepted the finished work of Christ on your behalf, then it is "them", not us.
As to the 92% increase in the number of unchurched Americans, I'll guess the answer lies in the same place. When the unchurched see Christians living their lives no differently than non-Christians[ and Barna's evidence for this fact is unrefutable] then why not sleep in on Sunday? Do we own that one? Again, yes to the extent that we in the Church who profess belief in Christ bear no fruit visible to our unbelieving neighbors. And to the extent--and only to this extent--that we bear Godly fruit that holds no allure for our ungodly neighbors, the problem is eternally theirs.
You know, remnants aren't unheard of.
Your Brother in Christ,
Derek
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