Where the church has come from - Final Paper Part 1

I labored my way through a directed study course last semester to consider where the church is in contemporary society and what the role of Christian Education is going to be moving forward.  This was an important step in sensing my vocational way forward and I am so pleased that this course came together as it did so that I could read and learn what I did.  I have decided to share my final paper here.  Part of me finds this all so interesting that I can't not share it.  I do not expect it to be of great interest to many, but I am hopeful that it provides encouragement and food for thought for those who are in ministry or interested in the future of the church.  I am dividing the final paper into three posts, each of which will address one of the three questions that I sought to answer through my reading.  I would welcome anyone's responses and thoughts!

Learning objective #1: Consider the history of the church, how does the historical church help us understand the place of the church in the world today?

In January 2016, a new voice started playing on American country music radio.  Maren Morris, singing “My Church,” begins with these lines:

“I’ve cussed on a Sunday

I’ve cheated and I’ve lied

I’ve fallen down from grace

A few too many times

But I find holy redemption

When I put this car in drive

Roll the windows down and turn up the dial”

    As the song continues, it paints a picture of a woman who finds spiritual peace, “my soul revival,” and “sins washed away,” when listening to music and driving down an open road.  This is her “church.”  The songwriter conveys no need or desire for a traditional church, yet repeated calls for “hallelujah” and “amen,” demonstrate her roots in a traditional church.  This song represents a major challenge facing the church in contemporary American society.  People have stopped attending church in droves in recent years, yet studies also show that spirituality has not disappeared.  People have turned away from the faith they were raised in and are finding different ways to engage the spiritual or religious parts of themselves.  The question and challenge is how churches are going to respond.

    I and many other people within the church have tried to understand how we got to this place and how to orient ourselves in the midst of this dramatic change.  There are long range and shorter range lenses to help us answer these questions.  By Phyllis Tickle’s account, Western societies go through an upheaval every 500 years that bring about great changes.  1,500 years ago saw the fall of the Roman Empire, which led to the Dark Ages.  1,000 years ago saw a schism arise between the East and the West, which led to the Middle Ages.  The Great Reformation began 500 years ago, which led to changes in governments, the rise of the middle class, the birth of capitalism, and greater literacy, among many other things.  By this timeline, we can understand our current state as part of a new upheaval, which Tickle terms the, “Great Emergence,”.  

Diana Butler Bass also recognizes that we are living in a time of change, which she terms an “awakening,”.  She places our current state within the context of three awakenings that have happened during United States history.  The first occurred during the mid-18th century, which saw end of European styles of church organization and the start of more democratic, experiential evangelicalism within the US.  The second occurred in the early 19th century, when Calvinist theological dominance decreased, leaving room for a new understanding of free will that led to voluntary church membership and good works.  The third awakening occurred in the late 19th to early 20th century.  This period saw the rise of the social gospel movement (progressive politics) and the Pentecostal movement.  These changes moved the focus of churches from individual sin to the collective changing of the social order.  Our current awakening, a fourth, originated in the 1960s, which was a great time of change for American society, change which included the exploration of new religious practices, communities, and theologies.  Dr. Bass asserts that the path of this current awakening stalled in the 1980’s with the election of Ronald Reagan, which reflected the country’s desire to return to more traditional values.  This cause was carried forward by the rise of the Moral Majority all the way through to the present decade and the rise of the Tea Party.  Dr. Bass acknowledges that awakenings often inspire counter-movements like these.  The question remains, however, as to whether leaders will rise up to carry this awakening forward and help bring about a new age of American religion.  

    A final historical lens by which to understand the contemporary church comes from Dr. Bass’ understanding of the “Business of Religion”.  Beginning in the late 19th century, denominations began to organize themselves in a manner similar to corporations.  There were hierarchies of leaders, headquarters, divisions, marketing strategies, and training centers.  While this model was appropriate for much of the 20th century, both for corporations and churches, many believe it is no longer effective.  Many church members began to see how bureaucratic red tape, difficult finances, and out of touch leadership got in the way of accomplishing the mission of the church.  Some now argue that an organizational structure that once brought life no longer seems sustainable or desirable.  All of these historical perspectives affirm our perception that we are living through a time of great change.  These perspectives validate the uncertainty we feel in the face of these changes.  At best, they also direct us to not cling to what has passed but instead to focus on how we respond to the changes and forge a new way forward, as the church and societies have done in the past.

In this section of the paper, I used references from:

Phyllis Tickle, Emergence Christianity: What It Is, Where It Is Going, and Why It Matters 

Diana Butler Bass, Christianity After Religion: the End of Church and the Birth of a New Spiritual Awakening