THE FUTURE OF CHRISTIANITY (PART 2)

In spite of all this, there are "signs of the times", which signal the current religious awakening around the world. Although this religious revival extends beyond the Christian religion, it is most intensive and significant in terms of the spread of the Gospel of Christ. Ironically, while the West experiences economic and political difficulties and Christianity in Western countries struggles to define its social responsibilities, the Christian religion is also experiencing unprecedented growth in many areas where previously it has not been strong.

In context of these developments which in a way affects the course of Christianity in the next two or three generations, and in contrast to the destructive forces emerging among the peoples of the world, the Christian religion will continue to have a global impact in at least three ways. *The faith is being planted more widely today than it has ever been.

*Christianity is more deeply rooted among more peoples than it or any religion has ever been. This does not mean that nominalism or theological liberalism are dead. In reality, I am convinced that it means that today there is in most of the world more serious commitment to Christ on the part of the Christians than at any other time in history. *Christianity in both the Western and the non-Western worlds has developed fresh movements and techniques to meet the challenges of the times.

So, what is the future of Christianity?

Few have thought harder about that question than Brian McLaren - a former evangelical pastor and a prolific and popular author on the topic of Christianity's past, present and future. He observed that religion is not alone; the church is simply facing the same cultural realities that are reshaping longstanding institutions, from the post-office to big businesses to the media. Through an extraordinary journey from the fundamentalist faith of his childhood, McLaren continues to embrace Christianity, yet his faith today is, he has said, an approach to Christianity for the post-modern world in which globalization and technology have splintered cultural consensus and shattered traditional sources of authority. "I've been on a journey", McLaren's message isn't about the form of the church. It's not about welcoming people in jeans and t-shirts instead of the old notion of "Sunday best," or about serving coffees and teas before and after the service, or having a band playing pop-style praise music instead of the traditional hymns to the accompaniment of a full-throated organ. Rather, it's about responding to much deeper shifts and dislocations in society. The world economy built on rapidly depleting fossil fuels is confronting its own-term unsustainability. And the future of social organization itself is up for grabs.

"In the last couple of centuries we've gone from a world of monarchies to a world of democracies," McLaren said. "Now we're wondering if democracy is turning into 'corpocracy'? We're wondering if democracy can be reborn." People of faith often seem to assume that the religion they practice is as it's always been from its founding, he said. Yet, that is far from true, from the earliest days of Judaism through the history of Christianity that sprang from it. "This movement, which goes back to Abraham. Isaac and Jacob, has had many times when it seemed that it was collapsing, and it was reborn again." McLaren said. Those times of near collapse become opportunities for sweeping re-examination of the faith's history, doctrine, spirituality, mission, and approaches to worship. McLaren affirmed of the need for human connection. "Has there even been a time when we had a greater need?" he asked. "We're all connected. That is really great, good news. We're connected in God's love, and we're connected in God's creation." The 20th century has seen the world's major religion undergo traumas and transformation, but it has doggedly refused to comply with the predictions of those who declare it to be terminally ill, or the hopelessly vague ramblings of those who speak of a "new world order" in which some hitherto unknown religious ethos will emerge. I will vouch with the utmost certainty that it will continue to be the most vital spiritual force in the world. It will be the chief custodian of civilization as nations come and go. Moreover, just as the monasticism of the Middle Ages created communities which preserved a commitment to the full Christian life in the midst of a decadent world, so a new monasticism - this time more truly communal by its inclusion of the family - once again will preserve a commitment to the full Christian life in the midst of a decadent world. Furthermore, Christianity will provide the world with a link to its past, just as it has done since the collapse of Roman civilization. It will survive whatever difficulties engulf the world in the next fifty years, or definitely until the Lord comes (my prediction is in the very near future, the second coming of the Lord written in Apocalypse will take place) and, if history is a faithful guide, will emerge stronger than ever in any new order. It will give larger numbers of people a wholesome connection with their past and a hopeful outlook for the future.

Finally, the Christian faith will continue to give millions of people a sense of balance, stability and purpose in the midst of an increasing difficult and dangerous world. In addition to the innovations which will be introduced in order to meet new challenges, Christianity will continue to preserve those timeless values so necessary to civilization and life itself: love, peace, faith, sacrifice, discipline, responsibility and recognition of the dignity of all human beings. Long after the demise of the latest gimmicks and passing fancies or fashions, Christian believers all over the world will be found listening to the simple preaching of the Gospel and enjoying fellowship together and with God.

END

Consulting material:

* Alistair Mcgrath, The future of Christianity

* Ross Douthat, a New York Times Op-Ed columnist

* Brian McLaren, author, speaker, activist, and public theologian.

* Robert Linder, The future of Christianity