Canadian Christianity is in a state of crisis
Calling for a moratorium on the study of denominational theology and history until priorities are straightened out
As you read this, all across the country professors on the faculties of Christian colleges are doing the things that they do during the summer months: speaking at church camps and retreats, researching in their areas of interest, helping in the recruitment of prospective students and writing new lectures for their courses which resume in the autumn. (I will not speak of those who have to take on outside paid work over the summer to supplement their criminally low college wages. That’s for another column.)
Many of these hard-working and grossly under-appreciated ladies and gentlemen will be preparing to teach courses on the theological “distinctives” of their particular branch of Christianity or on the history of their denomination. In fact, one of the main purposes of these colleges is to convey this history and these particular beliefs to the next generation of believers.
And so Mennonite institutions will teach about the Schleitheim Confession and Calvinist colleges about the Synod of Dort; Lutheran students will learn about the Augsburg Confession and Wesleyans about the events in Aldersgate. Student notebooks will be full of terms such as “hypostatic union,” “second blessing,” “limited atonement,” “consubstantiation” and “the double procession.” And I say that it’s all a waste of time.
Few take religion seriously
Canadian Christianity is in a state of crisis. Despite talk of a surge of interest in “spirituality,” the percentage of the population that takes religion seriously is declining. The faithful are an aging bunch. Denominations that used to embrace the majority of Canadian Protestants are rapidly shrinking and in many of their downtown churches it is possible on a Sunday to detonate a thermonuclear device without harming a soul.
While evangelical and pentecostal groups can show some gains in membership, there is no evidence that they have succeeded in any meaningful conversion of Canada. If you want to see real growth in membership, wait until results of the 2001 census are published and look at the columns tallying the number of Muslims, Wiccans and “no-religion” folk.
So what to do? I’m calling for a moratorium on the study of denominational theology and history until priorities are straightened out. I want Canadian Christian scholars to lay down their research projects and gather together for however long it takes and come up with answers to the few, but powerful, objections that most of my country-people have to organized religion and particularly Christianity. Let every college, Bible school and seminary send their brightest and best to this council and lock them in solemn conclave until they have answered these simple questions:
1. Aren’t all religions really the same?
2. Why are Christians so hung up on sexual matters when there is so much poverty and injustice in the world?
3. Why do Christians always want to impose their spiritual beliefs on others? Why can’t they be tolerant?
4. Why should I go to church when it’s so boring and irrelevant? I can find God in my own way.
5. Why should I consider Christianity when it has such a long history of oppression and sexism–the Crusades, the Inquisition, its treatment of natives?
It took the Council of Trent 20 years to set the course for Catholicism but their findings endured for four centuries. I don’t expect our gang to take as long as that, particularly if we keep them a little short on food and restrict the bathroom breaks. When they have finally answered those points they may burn their working drafts and we outside will see the smoke and commence to cheer. Because only then can the scholars get back to theirlectures and a conversion of our nation begin.
Gerry Bowler is a Winnipeg writer and historian. You can read his columns on the Christianweek Website. Contact him by email: gbowler@videon.wave.ca