One of my assignments for this semester’s Stone Campbell Theology class was to write a paper about the future of churches of Christ. Specifically, we were charged with making some well-informed estimations of what churches of Christ will look like in 50 years. I have some of my own ideas about this, but I’m curious to know what you think. Generally speaking, when you think about the future in churches of Christ, is the outlook positive or negative? And what do we mean by those terms? What will be the effect of postmodernity in our churches? We’re already seeing some of this, but what will a full-blown postmodern orthopraxy look like in churches of Christ?
What do you think the church of Christ will look like in 50 years? I’d like to know what you think.
already & not yet 
Assuming the West continues in a postmodern – even post-Christian direction – and Churches of Christ remain predominantly modern in our thinking for the next 50 years, I believe we will all but disappear. I know that sounds bleak, but the number of people leaving the Christian faith in general, and the Churches of Christ in particular is absolutely astounding right now. We might still exist in some capacity in 50 years, but will we be relevant to the Western Landscape?
This is a scary question. I’m hopeful and prayerful that the church will prevail. From the blogs I read, especially in the Texas area, it’s not a big deal to use instruments during worship. I simply cannot understand this idea. That is a part of what makes the church of Christ different. I’m fearful that too many try to be too much like everyone else.
I stopped by and wanted to say hello. Enjoyed finding your blog!
If this is going to come off flippant then I apologize. Frankly, I don’t care that much about where the COC is in 50 years. We’ve done enough naval-gazing that hasn’t produced enough positive fruit.Now, where the universal church is in reflecting the Kingdom, THAT I care about greatly. T.H. is right. Our isolationism is enough to assure that we become anachronistic at best and extinct at worst.
Personally, I’d like to see denominations disappear all together. Christ intended His church to be global on his basic fundamentals highlighted in the New Testamanent. Since I come from a varied church background, sometimes I feel we hold the church of Christ up on a pedestal as if it is the chosen Christian denomination. In the words of a Baptist friend of mine…”People in the church of Christ think they are right about everything.” This is disheartening because all Christians should be considered a part of the church Christ formed 2000 years ago. Forget periphial issues and focus on following Jesus, not dogma conceived by personal preferences. I know, I know…”Heresy!” Just my point of view. So I disagree…guess that means my husband can’t serve communion anymore;-) Yep, I’m a troublemaking wife! In all seriousness, I love God with all my heart and cannot imagine living without Him in my life…but sometimes you feel so close to him that to dance like David isn’t such a far out idea. I mean, who are we serving when we constrain ourselves and others to “rules” of worshipNow, do I think we should go out and handle snakes in the name of the Lord? No. God calls us to be faithful, not reckless or stupid.Jason, I’d love to hear your feedback…
Micah’s assignment for American History over Thanksgiving break was to do a report on the 2nd Great Awakening. This took place from 1800-1830’s and one of the by-products was the official “Church of Christ” as we know it. Jason, I am sure you know more about all that than we do. But I found it interesting that this awakening made members of ALL churches or denominations more aware of their political and social responsibilities. The rise of abolitionists was rooted in the 2nd Awakening. Prisons were reformed, Christian education was encouraged (formation of the American Bible Society), and churches also became sensitive to woman’s rights, and providing better care for the physically and mentally handicapped. So basically, the 2nd Great Awakening shaped America’s history in a very positive way.Micah ended his report by stating that he thinks America needs a 3rd Great Awakening very soon. He is wise beyond his years! I think the Church of Christ needs Great Awakening. If we don’t get real about who we are and what God expects… Satan will have his way and we will continue to shrink. But with God all things are possible 🙂
Putting aside the idea that we are supposed to be “one” church, and all the other comments about universalism and other ideas, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this question: The church of Christ as we know it today, how will it look in 50 years?Idea 1: All little country congregations, like the churches my father used to preach at, will in essence die off, because the membership will die. These congregations are not replacing their memberships.Idea 2: Some of the middle size congregations, such as the one I work for, will maintain the status quo. These churches will not grow nor decrease in number, due to the traditions that bind them. Idea 3: Mega churches, such as the one you work for, and others that the brotherhood know so well, will branch off when there is a mature group of people ready to go and spread the church. These newer churches will begin a new breath for the church.I for one don’t think the church is shrinking. I know in certain demographics and cultures, the church is booming. The church is not for us as Christians, as much as it is for those who do not know Christ at all. Say what you will, but the Lord is still the same, and offers hope to hopeless, rest for the weary, and salvation for the lost.I hate that those of you who think that the church in 50 years will be gone already are acting as if it is indeed gone. Complacency will kill the earthly church that man has been put in charge of, but the church will always be.
Wow. A lot of great comments, guys. I appreciate your thoughts here. Let’s keep this discussion going. There’s a lot to respond to, so I’m going to do so gradually. T.H.,I think the burgeoning postmodern perspective will be the single most influential factor in churches of Christ (and the church universal) over the next 50 years. We’ve always been a thoroughly modern Movement, but I think we’re already seeing that attitude begin to wane. In fact, I have great hope for the future of churches of Christ. I’ll have more to say about that in a later comment. Belinda,I think the instrument will divide us at some point in the future, just as it did in 1906. It’s interesting that although we have no formal creed or governing headquarters, there are always issues (like a capella worship, for instance) that have been distinctive features of churches of Christ. It makes one question if we’re really as congregational as we claim to be. Scott,I share the sentiment that we’ve historically been too content to withdraw from our culture and debate and argue and “write up”. We certainly have ugly parts of our past (and present). But I come at this from a deeply embedded position. For better or worse, the churches of Christ are my people. They’re my tribe. And I care deeply about where the CoC will be in the future. I’ll respond to the other comments later. Feel free to keep the discussion going.
Lane and Jason,I appreciate your corrective spirit to those of us who seem to forecast grayer days ahead. I intended to expand my comments yesterday, but never got around to it.Like you guys, I do care about who we are, and our ‘markings’ that make us unique. However, in recognizing our uniqueness, I affirm that each tradition within Christianity is unique and that my uniqueness does not trump another’s.With the disclaimers out of the way, my dark predictions only acknowledge what will happen if change doesn’t take place. I agree with Lane, that the church will always exist (universally), but the overall outlook isn’t good for the church specific or generic right now. We are shrinking, losing members, and in many ways become less relevant to the conversations happening in the rest of the world. Although I am not opposed to it, I don’t think adding instruments to our worship services will fix that. If that were the case, none of the churches among other traditions would be experiencing the hemispheric shrinkage currently taking place. It’s more about a mindset – a way of thinking about being church that has to change in my opinion.I join with you all in envisioning a better “church” for the future. I, like Jason, for better or worse have decided to remain committed to our heritage. I have no desire to exchange our baggage for another tradition’s. With that said, I hope that we can be a part of the conversation taking place that will help to shape a better church for the future. For me that just begins with acknowledging what will be if things don’t change.
I understand about them being “your tribe.” As they are mine. Yet, I wonder if we focus too much about how to fix or arrange church rather than being the church. And our exclusivistic attitude has greatly aided that.I’ve long held to the idea that these are my people so, better or worse, I’m stuck with them and I need to make it better. As a result, I lopped off a large number of my “family.” I now view the CoC, if I can use a lame metaphor, as more of an address within a larger neighborhood or community. The house may need to be razed to create a more attractive subdivision 😀
I know of several congregations that are having to build on to their buildings just to keep up with the increase in attendance. A church very dear to my heart is growing so fast that they can’t keep up with the amount of children that are attending classes.I hate to hear what sounds like some people who have just basically said “Whatever happens, happens” instead of what can we do to grow the church. This sort of apathy frightens me. If we are not passionate about what we have loved for all our life, or Jason mentioned, our tribe, then why would we have more energy to spend on a “New” religion. If one is apathetic toward the church of Christ now, more than likely they will tend to be apathetic towards any religion, in my opinion.
Rebecca,Your comment about wanting the church to be united is representative of the early leaders of the Stone-Campbell Movement, especially Barton W. Stone. He was convinced that Christ wouldn’t return until His church was united. As difficult as it is to believe sometimes, we do have roots as a unity movement. The comment your Baptist friend made is unfortunately a common accusation levied against us. And frankly, I think it’s spot on. Sadly, some in our Movement would even take pride in that! I guess we’ve never been known as a humble group. I sense a growing contingency in churches of Christ that is moving away from a “lowest common denominator” mentality with regard to unity. Instead of focusing on the least little point of doctrine and making it some arbitrary test of fellowship, there are those among us who seek to focus on what we share in common with other faith groups. “Christians only, not the only Christians.” That kind of mentality is true to the origins of the Stone-Campbell Movement.
And don’t worry…I’ve already removed Jeff’s name from the communion list. 🙂
It’s interesting that in the midst of this societal reformation there were no efforts to address slavery and the practice of treating blacks in ways that were less than human. Sadly, this is another part of our history that’s ugly, even in churches of Christ. This is just my opinion, but I think we’re still incredibly segregated. We work together, play ball together, shop together…but we don’t worship together. Most every other facet of our lives is integrated except for Sunday morning. So I’m with Micah. I think we need another Awakening, too.
My comments would be very close to Lane’s:a) I agree that most of the smaller, grayer, congregations will be gone in 50 years. A lot of the little congregations that I used to fill in preaching for when I was in undergraduate 20 years ago are *now* gone. So I only see that trend continuing.b) I think that most of the surviving Churches of Christ will be very large congregations in urban areas. The United States recently passed a bellweather point in demographics where there are now more people living in urban areas than in rural areas. So urban congregations should increase and rural congregations should decline just simply due to population shift.But I think Churches of Christ will experience these trends just as equally as other religious bodies. Perhaps the more interesting question is this: Is there anything unique to Churches of Christ that makes us more or less susceptible to general trends in our culture?Dudley Chancey once told me “issues tend to surface in the Churches of Christ about 10-15 years after other religious groups”. For instance, if we are wrestling with the woman’s role in the church now, then it’s likely that other religious groups have already dealt with that issue some years before. Exact timing aside, I have found that general statement to be true. We tend to be on the trailing edge where church meets culture.I’m less interested in *why* that is than in what we will do about it. Will we “cocoon” ourselves in an attempt to maintain moral and ideological purity, and risk further irrelevance? Will we attempt to make ourselves more relevant, and risk indistinguishability from the world?
Wow, this is all good stuff but it does make you think. I think we have to be careful with tradition vs bible. I think our congregation is growing because we are trying to look at our children because they are our future. Satan is always waiting to see what he can change and divide. I personally have lived through two splits in my younger years. The heartache was horrible. I was too young to know everything that went on but I think we have to watch everything. Oppions usually stir up a lot of trouble. I think we have to respect where we have come from and be aware of the future (technology and such). Our kids are living in a diff. world just as we were brought up in a diff. world. Not good not bad just diff. Change is good if done biblically and slowly. Just look at the songs we sing how they have changed over the last 50 years. I remember my granddad being upset about youth ministers (I am not going to hire someone to babysit our teens). He was an elder in the church. He changed his views after a few talks and seeing the good that was done. Timing is everything and you have to include older and younger on decision making. It is very hard and you just have to be on your knees and keep God in all of your decisions. I think you have to be careful in every aspect and not let Satan worm his way in. Where will the church be in 50 years, I hope as micah says we have a 3rd Great Awakening and everyone be concerned about each others soul and maybe the church would grow so big everyone will need a bigger building.
Again, great comments by everyone. Thanks for keeping the discussion civil. We’re talking about an issue that’s near to our hearts, so it’s important that we continue to be respectful as we express these different perspectives. One issue that we haven’t discussed is the increasing number of house churches and the missional / attractional models of church. I tend to agree with Lane and Eric, that many of our smaller congregations will eventually disband or disappear, but I’m not as confident about the growth of the mega-church. People today are seeking authenticity and intimacy and the small group interaction of a house church certainly meets those needs. I think a realistic vision of mega-church in the future is a Sunday morning corporate assembly with small house churches meeting at various times during the week. That’s where a lot of our churches are at already.
I’d answer this question by saying something like “I have no idea.” I can buy the prediction that the CofC will be all but extinct in 50 years but I’m not sure that’ll be a bad thing if it is a move toward a post-denominational unity. I could also buy the argument that our little movement will continue to grow. My generation may soon make a shift away from the “gentle” theological attitude of acceptance and relative truth brought about by the majority of the 60s generation (hippies and such). We may turn back to a more “harsh” style and immovable stance on truth that many of us saw from the teachings of the Churches of Christ our Grandparents attended. Who knows…By the by, good thoughts on the double touch at Mayfair this weekend. enjoyed it.
Fifty years ago, churches of Christ were gripped by debate and division over whether to fund man-made institutions such as colleges out of the churches’ contributions.A century ago, churches of Christ had just emerged from division with Christian Churches over instrumental music and missionary societies.150 years ago, IM was first introduced in a RM church, missionary societies were built, and there came to be different ways of viewing the Bible based largely on geography.200 years ago, Cane Ridge had just begun to immerse, Thomas Campbell had just come to America, and RM ideals had just begun to emerge. Oh, and the Episcopal Church was considered theologically conservative. :oIn each case, I doubt most of the people of that time could even begin to guess what would be happening five decades afterward. I suspect the same is true today, and speculation about 50 years from now will probably reveal more about the one doing the speculating than any real direction. Without divine revelation, man has a horrid track record of predicting the future.Or, in other words, where’s my rocket car, jet pack, and robot maid? 😉
I guess setting the slaves free was good enough for many Christians following the revival of the 1800’s. Little else was done to embrace the freed slaves and treat them as true brothers in Christ. It’s a shame we aren’t more integrated in worship and our Christian fellowship… each group misses out on so much at the expense of exclusion of the other.
Jason,I don’t pretend to know anything about the CoC movements history, so I’m not sure my comments contribute, but it is interesting to note that “historically” there isn’t one denomination that has come out unscathed when it comes to doctrinal concerns. There will always be controversy over the traditional and modern styles. In a fallen world, I think the best we can hope for is more understanding of other opinions when it comes to personal preference. I have only gone through one CoC split and was horrified at why they were argueing…it seemed silly to me. Controversy is best handled in the morning “after”, rather than in the heat of the moment. I think we can all agree that emotions get the best of us and because our emotions are so strong and individual, we can’t understand why anyone would disagree. Having said all of that, I feel that as the “youth” of the Church, we should try to focus less on our individuality as a movement, and more on what is is to be an emisarry of Christ. I always go back to the adage, “what would Jesus do?” And what does he think of our pettiness? Despite our “enlightened” world, we are nothing more than modern day Pharisees. But, in a fallen world, I don’t supposes we can change much. All we can hope for is to recognize our shortcomings and make strides to reform and allow Christ to continue his refining of our souls.Although my previous post portrays a scalding viewpoint of the CoC, I have embraced it as my church family. Do we have issues? Oh yes. Do I see us around in 50 years? Maybe. It’s difficult to say. I see dangers in both smaller and larger church dynamics. The smaller you are, the more risk there is in becoming too comfortable with the proverbial four walls. The same can be said of bigger congregations…they become a city unto themselves. It’s easy to get lost in a bigger church. It’s also easy to get too involved. Don’t get me wrong, church growth is great, but are numbers really that important? Pushing for numbers is one thing, pushing for quality numbers is another. Jason, when you write your paper, I expect to see quotes from all of us..:)
T.H., you’re right. My comments are rooted in the assumption that changes will take place. As several others have pointed out here, our movement has experienced great change over the past 150 years or so. Needless to say, the next 50 years are sure to follow that same inevitable pattern. The real question is what those changes will be.And I think Scott’s point is a salient one, too. We’ve historically been so focused on the marks of the church or the organization of the church that we’ve tended to do a poor job of being the church.
Laura, I think we must always take seriously anything that would cause division. I’ve never lived through a church split, but I can imagine that would be quite painful. I think the whole question is a pretty difficult one to try and answer, as a few have already pointed out. A more realistic discussion might be where the church will be in 15-20 years, rather than 50. Thanks again for all the great comments guys. Too bad I had to turn in my paper last night!
Rebecca, from all my conversations with others, I believe the majority of churches believe they’re “it.” We have a friend that was raised in the Methodist faith; daddy is a preacher and he was planning to attend the seminary and also become a preacher. When he started attending the CoC with us, his mother accused him of being in a cult! It may be stated differently, but to some extent, all churches believe theirs is the right one. Why would you chose to attend a particular church if you believed it to be in the wrong?
Belinda,You are absolutely right! It’s just so frustrating when people can’t see beyond a denomination. I mean, why must we always have to know? Isn’t being a Christian – a follower of Christ enough? And when I say Christian, I mean it in the biblical sense, not as a buzz word that merely defines common decency. Funny (I suppose) story…When I was dating my husband a few years ago, his grandmother, who I believe to be a saint, was very concerned about my salvation because I was not a member of the CoC. I found this both humorous and disturbing.Anyway, sorry Jason, we have totally gone off the subject here. Guess I’ll read your most current post now.
No problem…