Some thoughts are beginning to crystalize in my mind as to the starting place for evangelism in various cultural contexts. For a local church seeking to reach out and connect people to Christ through the church, that church must pray and assess the cultural norms and realities around it. I am starting to get a glimpse of the cultural starting places here in England which has therefore helped me to better understand the cultural starting place in Woodville, Texas when it comes to God, faith and church. By the way, my purpose in blogging thoughts like this, is to discipline myself first to reflect on this things and second to enter into a conversation with you that will sharpen my reflections, give you an opportunity to bounce back your own thoughts or push back on some of mine. Any and all comments are welcome.
In Woodville, it seems that the cultural starting place (among those not in the church)when it comes to faith is that faith is a good thing, the expected thing, the cultural norm. If a poll was taken, my guess is, most folks would profess a basic belief in the existence and power of God, generally speaking. Further, I think most folks would acknowledge a belief in Jesus (what they believe about him would no doubt vary). Even beyond that most folks would lay claim to a denominational loyalty (ie. I'm a Baptist, Methodist or Catholic...) Many would be on the membership role of a church (not often active members however).
With this cultural reality people don't need to be convinced about the existence of God, the power of God, or the importance of the work of the church. The challenge this cultural reality produces though is communicating to people that a professed faith in God and membership on a church roll doesn't constitute real discipleship. The challenge for evangelism is to convey the truth that a real, true, living, faith has to be lived out actively in community and our faith must shape how we spend our lives.
I am beginning to understand that the cultural context for evangelism in at least where we are in England starts in a different place. For a church here to connect with new people and bring them to Christ through the church, I think the church has to start by talking about why we need God to begin with. That a person you pass by on the street is a person of Christian faith is not a basic assumption here. It does not seem to carry with it any social favor (faith as a favorable social status indicator is not necessarily a good thing). So, I think with evangelism, its not a matter of savy advertising or mass mailers about Vacation Bible School. Evangelism has to first address the questions - why do we need God, what difference does it make, what is the church all about? The challenge of evangelism in England perhaps is to be in conversation about these questions, talk about radical commitment to Jesus and making a difference in the world for God.
Of course neither of these cultural realities are better or easier than the other, both require prayer, discernment and creativity. Bottom line is that deep evangelism seeks to address the core challenges in both of these contexts. We always need to testify to the need for God, whatever our context and we always need to call people to live out their faith in community.
We are living in a rapidly changing, dynamic, and interconnected world and our own commitment to Christ and community calls all of us to wrestle with all of these realities for ourselves.
The Methodist Church in the UK and the Church of England have joined together in an effort to think creatively about ways to "be and do church." Check out this link to find out more
www.freshexpressions.org.uk/
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4 comments:
Great reflection! The Alpha Course I am so fond of is based from the Church of England. It begins with the very basis "Who is God?" and grows from there because you basically cannot assume that being "Christian" is a cultural norm as it seems to be here in Southeast Texas. What I've discovered is not that we are to cultivate what our society defines to be "Christians." That label has become a cultural identity, but isn't define as an active relationship with the Lord through Jesus Christ. I've discovered that we are called to cultivate DISCIPLES. This isn't a name on a roll or even an identity with a church. It's about a passionate relationship with God and the work His Spirit inspires and equips you to do. The Methodist Church seems to really encourage this and I'm grateful we are challenged to reach out and encourage discipleship, not just membership.
I agree with all that Amanda said, what a good definitive comment.
The only thing I would add is that at this point it seems the United Methodist Churches (US) are more able to encourage discipleship ... because of the very cultural differences observed by Tommy.
The challenge in England, at least in Tommy's location, is different ... no less important, just starting at a different place.
I think what keeps many from true discipleship here in our culture is the fear of letting God be in control, of putting Him before everything and everyone, and of living our faith in EVERY aspect of our daily lives. That's a pretty scary concept for many of us. So, the challenge becomes one of communicating in a relevant way how doing just that can transform a life and come back one thousand fold. How giving up control means freedom, and living outside one self fulfills. For some, that understanding comes like a bolt of lightening. For others, it's inch by inch, step by step, givng it up to Jesus!
Perhaps the challenge for us in Woodville ("The challenge for evangelism is to convey the truth that a real, true, living, faith has to be lived out actively in community and our faith must shape how we spend our lives.") is defined in the last two challenges for the church in England ("Evangelism has to first address the questions - why do we need God, what difference does it make, what is the church all about?")
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