The first was David Wilkerson's latest prophecy of doom for America, which has gotten quite a bit of play in the media. I really don't want to spend much time or energy on this, because David's been making similar predictions for over 30 years. Could he be right? Of course he could. Just as many secular "prophets" are predicting some pretty nasty stuff, and let's face it--anything can happen. But I think this prophecy is only getting more attention than his previous ones because of the economic collapse happening around us. The current crisis has primed the culture for something even worse, and predictions like this feed that fear. Me? I'm not hungry.
Next came this AP story on the Drudge Report that tells the story of yet another religion poll in America, this one claiming that the number of people who identify as having "no faith" is up from seven years ago. Again, I don't want to spend much time or energy on this. Why? Because I could think of any number of alternate titles for this story. Here are a few:
- More Americans Choose Not to Lie in Religion Survey
- More Americans Understand that Faith is Not a Cultural Inheritance
- More Americans Embarrassed by Christian Excesses Than Ever
- Mainline Denominations Shed Excess Weight
Then, finally, came the coup d' état--this powerfully affecting editorial by self-proclaimed "Internet Monk" Michael Spencer which was linked, also, on Drudge. It's the end of the evangelical world as we know it, and yet...I feel fine. But I guess I shouldn't, given dramatic and dire statements like this one:
"Millions of Evangelicals will quit. Thousands of ministries will end. Christian media will be reduced, if not eliminated. Many Christian schools will go into rapid decline. I’m convinced the grace and mission of God will reach to the ends of the earth. But the end of evangelicalism as we know it is close."
He forgot: "Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!" But I jest...
Anyone reading these words needs to remember, first of all, that Spencer is not writing without an agenda. He already self-identifies as a "post-evangelical," proclaiming that evangelicalism "is a mess," which gives you a strong indication what his starting point is in all of this. This isn't the depressing assessment from a proponent of evangelicalism who is declaring an unfortunate, unstoppable future: this is the voice of a rebel, who does not rejoice in what he writes, but supports its ultimate conclusion.
Don't read what I'm not writing--I empathize with may of Spencer's "rebellious" views. But I think one of the things that happened with this article is what I call "Headlinitis." It's a malady caused by the fact that many people today read only the headline and first couple of lines of a news story, then jump to a conclusion of what it's really about. So we had tons of evangelicals reading a smackerel of this (and no doubt mixing in a little Wilkerson and the aforementioned AP story), and running off like Chicken Little to their friends and pastors.*
But a careful reading of Spencer's stuff clearly indicates the strong editorial nature of his words. I wonder how many folks made it to this paragraph:
"Will the coming collapse get Evangelicals past the pragmatism and shallowness that has brought about the loss of substance and power? Probably not. The purveyors of the evangelical circus will be in fine form, selling their wares as the promised solution to every church's problems. I expect the landscape of megachurch vacuity to be around for a very long time."
Them's strong words, Mike. And words with which I don't necessarily disagree. But the problem is, those who never managed to get this far in the article missed the real point of what Spencer was saying. They took what was really meant as a damning critique of evangelicalism and turned it into a pity party.
But then again, Christians are pretty good at that.
I'll wrap up by saying this: doom and gloom is nothing new. And the junk we're dealing with is nothing new. In fact, we're dealing with less junk than a lot of generations of Christians. But for me, I just can't get worked up by prophecies of catastrophe, snapshots of the culture's spiritual pulse, or one man's personal portrait of evangelicalism's future. I'm too busy being amazed by watching God at work in the lives of my friends, my church, and heck--even me. Cynical, sarcastic me. And if I'm not beyond hope...then nothing is.
*Personal note to friends who sent me the article--I do not include you in the "Chicken Little" email-forwarding crowd. I know you know that I love this kind of stuff, and I appreciate you calling it to my attention.
