Friday, March 27, 2009
The Trajectory of Christian History
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I'm trying to read more authors and posts that I tend to disagree with, attempting to have an open mind and be willing to expand my opinion. So today I'm looking at Al Mohler's blog, and I read this post entitled "The Eclipse of Christian Memory."
This is a very off-the-cuff reflection, and one that won't be supported by any documentation. But it seems to me that as I think about the history of Christianity and it's spread throughout the world, there is a downward trajectory. The religion began in the Middle East, Northern Africa, spread to Europe, and then North East America and across the country. When we look at these parts of the world, after thousands of years of Christian influence, they are generally less religious than they were in the past.
So what does this say about Christianity as a religion? Does it fail in its own purposes? Are it's core values different than what conservatives today would have us believe? Why does Christianity only seem to be thriving in parts of the world where it hasn't been experience yet, and the areas that have a long history of the faith - and presumably a long time to develop a coherent, meaningful, "successful" faith - these are the areas that are returning to secularization?
I realize that this is a huge generalization, but I guess it just seems to me that on the surface, the parts of the world that have had the benefit of Christian influence the longest, should be the parts that are the most religious, the most faithful, or, to put it simply, the most "Christian." But according to most polls, experts, and citizens, these are the parts of the world that are leaving Christianity behind.
Possible conclusions? 1) Christianity as a religion has not been successful in the long-term across the world. - OR - 2) The recent trends and developments in these parts of the world are actually the core values of Christianity lived to the fullest point at this moment in history. - OR - 3) Something else? Something unseen, unpublicized, uncharted?
This is a very off-the-cuff reflection, and one that won't be supported by any documentation. But it seems to me that as I think about the history of Christianity and it's spread throughout the world, there is a downward trajectory. The religion began in the Middle East, Northern Africa, spread to Europe, and then North East America and across the country. When we look at these parts of the world, after thousands of years of Christian influence, they are generally less religious than they were in the past.
So what does this say about Christianity as a religion? Does it fail in its own purposes? Are it's core values different than what conservatives today would have us believe? Why does Christianity only seem to be thriving in parts of the world where it hasn't been experience yet, and the areas that have a long history of the faith - and presumably a long time to develop a coherent, meaningful, "successful" faith - these are the areas that are returning to secularization?
I realize that this is a huge generalization, but I guess it just seems to me that on the surface, the parts of the world that have had the benefit of Christian influence the longest, should be the parts that are the most religious, the most faithful, or, to put it simply, the most "Christian." But according to most polls, experts, and citizens, these are the parts of the world that are leaving Christianity behind.
Possible conclusions? 1) Christianity as a religion has not been successful in the long-term across the world. - OR - 2) The recent trends and developments in these parts of the world are actually the core values of Christianity lived to the fullest point at this moment in history. - OR - 3) Something else? Something unseen, unpublicized, uncharted?
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3 comments:
Good questions.
A few things to consider:
Christianity is by far not only the largest religion, but also (remarkable, given its size) possibly the fastest growing worldwide.
Perhaps I'm wrong, but I get the impression that the "core values" of which you speak have more to do with Western civilization than Christianity. In areas where Christianity is being actively rejected, it's not so much Jesus that is rejected as it is western doctrines.
Related to that, the perspective that Christianity has lost its foothold in those parts of the world where it has existed the longest can be interpreted as strictly a western perspective that ignores the ancient Christian traditions of Greek Orthodoxy, and Coptic Christianity as well as emerging expressions like the common ground movement (Middles East), the house church movement (China), and the non-church movement (Japan).
In every part of the world Christianity is on an incredibly steep incline - with the exception of the West (Europe, Australia, and the U.S.). And we both know what Phyllis Tickle thinks about the current situation in the West - just another periodic rummage sale.
Lastly, have you read The Next Christendom by Philip Jenkins? If not, you should. You'd love it.
Thanks for the comments Jason - I've been thinking about them throughout the weekend, and here's some responses (again, not researched, just my thoughts):
I would agree that western civilization and Christianity are very closely intertwined, but doesn't this go both ways? Is this the civilization that Christianity has created? And while it's true that many are rejecting the western doctrines, they are also simply rejecting the basic idea of any relational God or divine revelation, both of which are central to Christianity.
I'm not familiar with the common ground movement, but Greek Orthodox and Coptic are the smallest divisions of Christianity worldwide. While there is certainly exciting growth in China, my point is that this is new growth in an area where Christianity has not had a strong hold for much of it's history. So, Christianity is on the rise in areas where it has not had a significant place of influence for the past 2,000 years, whereas in Europe, Australia and the U.S., where it has been the primary religious influence, it is being rejected.
I'm sure I'm making some over-generalizations, but I can't help but wonder why 2,000 years of Christian influence has brought the West to this point? And so then I wonder, while Christianity is growing in the far East and the global south, what will those places look like in 500 or 1,000 years? Will they be even more atheistic than they are today?
This is an admittedly cynical view of history, and I know there are many exceptions and other ways to interpret the overall trajectory.
I'll check out "The Next Christendom" when I can - thanks for the recommendation, and for chiming in.
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