Churches and the Crisis of Decline

Saying that the Church in the West is on the decline is nothing new. The Church at large is in a crisis. Even before the pandemic, many churches are already in dire straits. Older people are decreasing with attrition. Young people are leaving because of disillusion. The majority of the rest in between is basically too busy with their own concerns to be worried about Church! Yet, what exactly is causing this? What are the roots behind this decline? Is there hope for the Church? What can we do about it? The problem: No pulse. That means the heart had stopped and the demise is declared. In a stark and shocking picture of the state of the Church, Author Andrew Root shows how a formerly thriving church had turned into a pub! This fictional story of a gentrified neighborhood commercial pub is called "Church Brewhouse" once it has taken over an old church building. How does a Church survive the secular onslaught? What is behind the disillusionment?

He eases theological discussion with a story of people struggling to keep the faith. From John the Baptist to Karl Barth, sacred places to secular influences, Root poses several observations about life, faith, and what it means to be Church. He notes that a small number with a vibrant community is more beautiful than a large congregation that hardly interacted. He critiques how some pastors have exchanged dependence on the living God for reliance on resources and human programs. He helps us distinguish between thin and thick culture formation. Of particular interest is his critique of churches that hire new pastors not on the basis of their ability to speak the Word, but on their appeal to young people. Theological concerns become mere theory while practical matters occupy center stage. Why the chasm that comes between transcendence and earthly Church? That is because many churches have gravitated to worldly practices like marketing, business management strategies, budgets, and aesthetics to draw in the crowd. Root shows us the way forward to lead the Church back from program-based mediocrity to biblical spirituality. Using the examples of Karl Barth and Willie James Jennings, Root combines Barth's theological vision with Jennings's ecclesiology to provide us with an alternative ending. Root does this with a style that is "part time travel saga, part contemporary musical update" using historical figures to showcase the story of the Church's decline and a vision of hope. Some of the historical challenges for faith include:

- Loss of connection/pulse
- Manipulation of religion in support of wars
- Replacing God with Moralistic themes
- Incoherence with "God is God"
- The problem with "Institutionalized religion" and "Individualized spiritualities"
- Failure to find or experience God
- Ecclesiological disagreements over the need for Church
- Crisis of Relevance
- Allowing busyness to crowd out faith matters

Thankfully, after listing out the problems that lead to the decline of the Church, Root starts a process of re-envisioning the future of the church. He reminds us to have a proper perspective of the place of the Church, that the Church is not to fight for "market share" of the world as if she has the right to own the world but to learn to co-exist and to remain in the world. Distinguish it from apathy which is a form of negativity that arises out of a failure to possess something. However, active waiting is to learn to keep in step with the cultural changes without compromising or diluting the Christian witness. Learn to be relevant without losing our identity in Christ. Root calls it "resonance" and continues to help us distinguish between "having" vs "being." Possessiveness and the desire for control via human wisdom are some of the key impediments to the spiritual vitality of any Church. Impatience is the antithesis of learning to wait upon the Lord. Root explains resonance not emotively but active and constructive critique; openness; affection.

My Thoughts
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Root does an excellent job of breaking down some of the most critical reasons for the Church's demise. While this might seem too general for comfort, it should make church leaders sit up and take note of any similar symptoms in their respective churches. While Root might not be speaking for all churches, even those of us who are leading "healthy" churches need to remember that every human organization is vulnerable. Churches that thrive are those that are alive and know the importance of waiting upon God. Root warns us not to repeat the mistakes of the past, such as substituting spiritual work with human activities. For instance, one could have many activities but participants might still feel disconnected and distant. He is also well aware of the discontent among those who take this path of waiting in the world and with the world. Beware of the individual who bends toward being the initiator of making things happen. In fact, this strong sense of individualism undergirds both expressions of pietism and liberalism. Of interest is Root's observation of how some of the most liberal people are children from conservative and pietist pastors. Is it simply about a reaction against predecessor generations? No. It is due more to this individualistic tendency. This is indeed worth some pondering. If it is true, then we will not see the conservative-liberal exchanges as mere doctrinal stances but two siblings expressing their underlying individualism albeit in different ways. Both are lifeless, which is a warning to any one of us trying to anchor ourselves in any one position. I think this is worth further study.

Discontent, disillusionment, and disappointment may very well be some possible reasons for the decline of the church. The solution: A Dialectic relationship of mutual respect and healthy distancing. We can learn to disagree without cutting off links totally. We can also learn to distinguish when to come together and when to keep a distance. Whatever it is, it is life that ultimately keeps any church alive. This life is to be sought in Jesus. We can organize all kinds of programs but without the life to put them together, these will all stutter. We need to understand more about lived ecclesiology. We need to be real people with God and with one another. Put it simply, once churches are devoid of real relationships, they die. However, the converse is equally true. Inject life and just like how the author has resurrected John the Baptist, Karl Barth, Erich Fromm, Harmut Rosa, Blumhardt the Younger, and others into modern life, even dead buildings will be resurrected!

Andrew Root (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is the author of numerous books, including Faith Formation in a Secular Age, The Pastor in a Secular Age, The Congregation in a Secular Age, and The End of Youth Ministry? Root is also the coauthor (with Kenda Creasy Dean) of The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry.

Rating: 4.25 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Baker Academic and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

An engaging interlaced series of stories, biographies, and theology attempting to address how congregations might thrive in the present day.

The author began by lamenting how he was eating at a restaurant bar which had formerly been a church. He told a story of how the church had attempted to reach out to its community but fell apart. He then reimagines the story of the church if they could have found a way to succeed.

This reimagination is done in terms of Barthian theology. The author goes into great detail regarding regarding Barth's intellectual and theological development with great emphasis on his engagement with the Blumhardts.

The author also will discuss Helmut Rosa's sociology in turn.

The author thus encourages Christians to consider how they bear witness and to see themselves as maintaining a level of energy. Effort might expend that energy, but to what end? It may be better to stand and wait for God to move, to seek to perceive how God will prove to be God and work in their midst. God may then work powerfully in their midst and empower effective witness through His Spirit.

This is a really compelling book and a very needed antidote to the consumeristic church model of our day. Consider it well.

Very thought provoking read. While I don’t agree with every aspect that the author believes is contributing to church decline, there still was a lot to think about and reflect on. I’m always looking for books like this, but they don’t often fit our context as well being in a very rural church setting in a dying area of Appalachia. But there was still a lot to thing about in this.