Church
Those Erratic Church Attendances: What’s Going On?
No, it’s not just happening at your place. Wherever you look attendances at morning worship services are in a state of high fluctuation. While it may vary from church to church, the best guess is that up to one third of a congregation may be missing from your average Sunday service. The reasons for this […]
Those Church Splits: We Need a Better Way
It is every pastor’s nightmare. Much worse than losing the plot in the middle of the sermon, or forgetting the Christian name of the blushing bride who wonders why you have pulled up in the middle of the vows, or dropping someone mid plunge in the baptistry. It makes the debate over who should have […]
He’s Not Here; He’s on Long Service Leave
Yes, there’s no doubt about it. The Lord is out of town. On leave. It must be another seventh day for Him. Taking a well earned package in some celestial resort. It comes as no surprise. He has had His hands full lately: troubled people, communities, nations. Why do you think He is on LSL, […]
Did You See Jesus at Church Last Sunday?
What do you mean, did I see Him? You know, was He there? Well, of course, He was. That’s what worship is all about. We come together to worship Him, to be in His presence. How do we know we are in His Presence? Because there’s a real feeling of love, you know acceptance, of […]
HOLY HUMOUR
A father was approached by his small son who told him proudly, ‘I know what the Bible means!’ His father smiled and replied, ‘What do you mean, you ‘know’ what the Bible means? The son replied, ‘I do know!’ ‘Okay,’ said his father. ‘What does the Bible mean?’ ‘That’s easy, Daddy…’ the young boy replied […]
Beyond the ‘God Gap’ – shattering stereotypes
*Sightings* 7/12/10 Reporting on the God Gap — Martin E. Marty ¢â‚¬Å“A New Roadmap for Reaching Religious Americans on Public Policy Issues ¢â‚¬ is the subtitle for *Beyond the God Gap, *a 49-page report and chart for those who are trying to find their way among religious groups as they show up in politics and culture. […]
The Subtle Signs of Impending Conflict
One of the amazing phenomena in the life of the local congregation is the apparent ease with which conflict seems to sneak up out of the blue and catch everybody by surprise. It is all the more remarkable when it is realised that the signals of impending trauma will have been around for a while […]
Christianity Going South
— Martin E. Marty July 6, 2010 *Sightings* authors often comment on religion in the United States rather than “the rest of the world,” but through the years have shown regularly how artificial or at least permeable such geographical distinctions are when it comes to religion. Philip Jenkins, Mark Noll, Lamin Sanneh, and others reveal […]
Decline in the Megachurches
Sightings 6/7/10 Decline in the Megachurches — Martin E. Marty Schadenfreude, or rejoicing in others ¢â‚¬â„¢ misfortunes, is abundantly evident in responses, blogged and otherwise, to the bad/sad news about the decline of the famed Crystal Cathedral, a megachurch founded in the mid-1950s in California. Publicity has been constant, for over a year, concerning the church ¢â‚¬â„¢s […]
THE DECLINE OF MAINLINE CHURCHES
Mainline Decline and the “So What” Question I’ve cited Walter Russell Mead’s critical perspective on the Episcopal Church (and mainline churches more generally) in earlier postings. In a recent essay, Mead addresses the complex question, “Where Did the Mainline Go Wrong?” “As a whole,” Mead writes, “the mainline churches are now making the transition from […]
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