Church Vitality and Faithful Discipleship in Difficult Times

Church Vitality and Faithful Discipleship in Difficult Times David Schoen Evangelism Ministry Team Local Church Ministries United Church of Christ Including material used with permission from Rick Morse, V. P. New Church Ministry, Christian Church (DOC) Church Extension © 2007 All rights reserved

IT‘S A WHOLE NEW WORLD t. Taxes done in India t. Mc. Donalds order taken 2 states away t. Hundreds of marketing choices in any area t. Instant communication t 44% of Christians change traditions/denominations

So how much have things changed? Result of Karl Fisch’s, Colorado high school teacher, study on this rapid change

What does it all mean to the Church? Churches are stressed today: n n Sustainability levels Generational Challenges Birth rates Numerous cultural factors

Sustainability Levels n n 1930: 30 AWA 2000: 130 AWA ¡ Factors leading to growing sustainability factor: n n n Health Insurance & other benefits Higher cost of construction Utility costs Lack of volunteers BASICALLY EVERYTHING

More generations today than ever… n n n Gen Z (0 -6) Millennials (7 -26) Survivors (27 -43) Boomers (44 -62) Silents (63 -80) Builders (81+) Each generation has unique events that formed it, and a different view of life.

Dominant values and behaviors of older boomers and older groups n n n n Whatever is right for the group is right for me Appreciate sameness (i. e. Traditional liturgy) Committee structures that are tried and true Deferred pleasure until you have what you need to make the purchase Spirituality of place Organize as a group to form a block (tenacious about position) Circle the wagons; get people on your team to protect what’s important 35% of the US Get it done! Population

Dominant behaviors of young boomers and younger groups: n n n n Ask first, what is good for the individual Individualized style and differentiation Appreciate Difference/multiple choices Trained to look for segments of population so that one size never fits all See themselves as the correctors of the previous generations Spirituality of journey…find spiritual insight wherever they are and in relationship, not primarily place 65% of the US Population Tribal

Churches didn’t use to worry about generations… A few transplants Founders Their children Grandchildren & families Stephen Compton

Many Churches have Lost a generation or 2: n n Churches do not anticipate loosing youth…(even though that has been the pattern for 40 years) Young adults report: ¡ ¡ Relocation after college or school Difficulty in assimilation because church style IF they visit—little generational affinity Most mainline youth become unchurched Roof and Mc. Kinney

Another part of the issue is “membership orientation” n n n Pay dues…sign line EXPECT care, access, privilege, control, service by staff…etc. Loses vision for a mission that can be characterized by God’s love in Christ for the world. It is Exclusive The post-modern world has little interest in membership organizations POWER SURGE, Michael Foss

The result is aging congregations n While the younger cohort equals 65% of the population, they are only on average about 30% of existing congregations Growing Gaps in understanding

Age of Protestant Populations 18 -29 30– 49 50 -64 Total Population 20 39 25 Total Protestants 17 38 26 Nondenom Charismatic Churches 18 54 22 Nondenom Evangelical Churches 19 51 22 Church of God in Christ 29 33 28 Assemblies of God 14 41 33 American Baptist Churches 18 36 23 Southern Baptist Convention 13 37 27 African Methodist Episcopal 14 31 30 United Methodist Church 11 34 29 Ev. Lutheran Church of America 8 36 29 Disciples of Christ 10 33 21 Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod 11 32 31 Presbyterian Church in America 12 29 32 Episcopal Church in the USA 11 29 34 Presbyterian Church USA 8 31 30 United Church of Christ 11 27 34 Anglican Church 7 26 33 65+ 16 20 6 8 10 12 23 22 25 26 27 35 26 27 25 32 28 35

Birth Rates: n Since “the pill” Anglo birth rates dropping ¡ 1960 24/1000 ¡ 2000 13/1000 ¡ 2002 11. 7 Mainline Anglos have a very low birth-rate due to aging populations VERY Little Biological Growth!

There has been significant change in our racial-ethnic population n n Racial ethnic composition of most neighborhoods has changed since 1960 Many congregations have little or no affinity with their neighbors

Racial ethnic growth must be recognized n Ethnic growth: ¡ ¡ ¡ In the next 50 years the US Pop. Will grow by 50%. 90% of that growth will be people of color In 2000, Hispanics became the largest racial ethnic minority The US has the 3 rd largest Spanish speaking population By 2050 there will be no majority racial group By 2100 Hispanics will be the largest group

Did you know? n n n More people of African descent live in America than any country except Nigeria More Cubans live in Miami except than in Havana In the 90’s the Asian population grew by 107%, Hispanics by 38%, Native Americans by 38% while the general population grew by just 6%!

Racial Ethnic Birth Rates: n n n African Am. 16. 1 Native Am. 13. 8 Asian Pac. I. 16. 5 Hispanic 22. 6 (Anglo 11. 7) n n Per 1000 Most future growth will be in Racial Ethnic congregations

There is also a shifting attitude towards “organized” religion n 65% of the US population cannot remember a time when clergy were respected. Denominational loyalty means nothing to most people. The average person believes that no particular religion has claim to truth.

Shifting attitudes towards faith

Unchurched USA • Since 1991 adult population in the US grew by 15%. • During that same period the unchurched population grew by 92%! 75 million US adults do not attend church 'Unchurched' Americans say church is 'full of hypocrites' consider Christianity to be more about organized religion than about loving God and people, …“unchristian”.

Mr. Bean Goes to Church

New Generations – Outsiders to Christian Faith n Age n 61+ 42 -60 18 -41 16 -29 n n n % Outsiders to Christianity Population 23% 27% 37% 40% 12 Million 21 Million 34 Million 24 Million

44 percent -- agreed that "Christians get on my nerves. “ Vast majority of young non-Christians view Christianity as anti-gay, judgmental hypocritical, unwelcoming, too political, out of touch. But 78 percent said they would be willing to listen to someone who wanted to tell them about his or her Christian beliefs. Almost three-quarters -- 72 percent -- agreed that God "actually exists“ and an even larger percentage -- 86 percent -- said they believed they could have a good relationship with God without church involvement.

It’s a Whole New World UCCvitality. org

21 st Century Culture and Church n Post-Modern - Modern World is crumbling n Reason ¡ n Optimism ¡ n Where moderns wanted their preachers to explain mystery, post-moderns want to experience mystery. Post-moderns are not so sure that salvation is around the corner or that science and technology are our saviors. Universality ¡ Post-moderns revel in the local and the particular.

21 st Century Culture and Church n Post-Modern - Modern World is crumbling n Objectivity ¡ n “Everybody is coming from somewhere, ” say postmoderns. “What you call ‘objective truth, ’ we call the interests of the powerful and privileged. ” “the grand story” ¡ Post-moderns tend to be skeptics about this big story. Small stories, particular stories, and different versions of reality appeal to the post-modern mind.

21 st Century Culture and Church n While modernity was liberating and powerful in many ways, it was also and especially for Christianity, reductive. ¡ ¡ ¡ highly moral, but not especially spiritual modern Christianity explained miracle and mystery (away) and proposed moral values and lessons as universal truth. What was missing was spiritual connection and experience, the experience of a sacred, numinous, transcendent Other.

Postmodern Culture and Church n Christianity in North America has moved (or been moved) away from its position of dominance ¡ loss not only of numbers ¡ but of power and influence within society. n Rather than occupying a central and influential place, North American Christian churches are increasingly marginalized, ¡ in our urban areas they represent a minority movement ¡ It is now a truism to speak of North America as a mission field. n Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America, Edited by Darrell Guder, the Gospel and Our Culture Network

What does it all mean to the Church? We are all at a threshold, a ‘kairos’ moment: Where will we be in 2020?

It means CHANGE!

It means CHANGE! PHYLLIS TICKLE’S basis thesis is that every 500 years, the Church goes through a rummage sale, and cleans out the old forms of spirituality and replaces it with new ones. Play Video

Change = Opportunity

n n Exodus 3: 13 - 15 Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, `The God of your fathers has sent me to you, ' and they ask me, `What is his name? ' what shall I say to them? " God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. "

YAHWEH I Will Be What Tomorrow Requires

The Future Question n God will be what the future demands, but, ……. Will we be the churches and disciples that tomorrow requires?

Vital churches and faithful disciples are missional minded n Missional in purpose n “The Church exists to serve God’s Mission” Mission as Missio Dei, UCC Committee on Structure, 1992

Vital churches in the 21 st Century Missional, Relational & Conversational n Missional in purpose n Relational in outreach n Conversational in witness

Resources for Missional Congregations n Vitality Resources on www. ucc. org/vitality ¡ “It’s a Whole New World” Anthony Robertson ¡ Vitality Interviews ¡ Vitality Powerpoint - Retreat Resources www. ucc. org/vitality/retreat-resources/ ¡ Web ministry resources n ¡ www. ucc. org/vitality/web-university/free-resources -for-internet-ministry. html Mission. Insite demographics n www. missioninsite. com

In these tough times…. n n God has a future for the church The stillspeaking God calls us to be ¡ Churches that the future requires Churches that tough times demand ¡ Missional in purpose ¡