Bringing Them In?

Last updated on: December 19, 2022 at 3:46 pm by C. Don Jones

Bringing Them In? 2022-12-19T15:46:39-06:00 C. Don Jones

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Will we be bringing liberal secular people back to church? During a discussion I had with a conservative religious pollster, I asked for his analysis of my denomination. He claimed our problem was that the congregations were mostly conservative while the agencies were run by liberals. The problem, he went on to explain, is that liberals do not go to church. If there has ever been a better explanation of “us v them” in the mainline church, I have yet to hear it. Progressive Christians often struggle to find a religious home. After a while, most give up trying. Two generations of culture wars have pushed liberal political believers toward secularism. Mainline denominations that tried to keep the peace, failed miserably in doing so. The denominations are panicky over what will happen in the future.

Bringing In Members

I belong to several organizations that openly have membership drives. Church leaders like to act as though we are above such vulgarities. But trying to keep membership up is what the church in America is all about. Norman Thomas, socialist leader and Presbyterian minister, argued that churches in America succeeded because they are independent of government control. There is no state church where the government supports it. While I do not believe that is the key to religious successes in America, many politically liberal friends see the separation of Church and State as the primary religious issue in America.

Churches have succeeded at different times in America because religious freedom allows for religious experimentation. Evangelical and Mainline Protestant congregations usually express disdain for the growth of cults, eastern religious syncretism, and new religions such as Mormonism and Scientology. Protestant leaders tend to oppose any experimentation in religious practice except for the periodic revival of ancient and medieval practices. They may find a few interested people within their congregations. But generally, they do not draw people from outside the congregations.

Getting Back

Evangelical leaders often see “getting back to the Bible” or “our roots” as the key to bringing people into the church. This is why evangelical groups in my denomination use names such as “Good News” and “Wesleyan Covenant Association.” The program being sold is valuable because it is not new.

Contemporary church does not make room for much experimentation either it seems. One person telling me about the time their family attended a well-known mega-church said they could never remember having a time of prayer in the worship service. If this is accurate, there could be no teaching about how to pray the many different forms of Christian prayer let alone develop new ways.

Going Out

Being an activist preacher has pitfalls. Churches fall into the trap of thinking going out to evangelize is about service projects. The service project is a means of getting attention for many congregations. Preachers who are activist, like me, are tempted to see the gospel in terms of social justice or in supporting “the cause.” Pastors who wish to open the churches to the marginalized in the community find many of the marginalized do not want to have anything to do with their churches.

I do not know how many times I have heard, “If there were more pastors like you, Don, I would attend church.” The obvious question to follow is, “Why not attend the church where I am pastor?” The answer may be “because your denomination or congregation is not like you.” Granted. This is true. And I do not believe everyone should think as I do. But how does a congregation or denomination learn to be accepting if the questioner does not try to engage with it? A colleague tried pleading with a local liberal group on social media to support and take part in inclusive ministries. There was no response.

Bringing Necessities

The teachings of Jesus are misunderstood by the general public. They are not meant to offer a comfortable goodness to everyone. If the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head, why do we believe a “car in every garage and a chicken in every pot” describes an ideal society? What churches should be doing is engaging in the dangerous act of bringing the necessities of life to those being denied them. That removes the church from any ideological position and culture wars. Doing what is necessary to give people a gift of grace and mercy, is the calling of churches. Church folk may be involved in political parties, organizations, and in community efforts. But the policies still will run counter to what we know to be right.

We are not in the business of “bringing people in” as attempts to win popularity contests. Jesus warns against having all people speak approvingly of us. The churches should stop trying to get the approval of any group.

Progressive Christianity

Previous Post

December 15, 2022

Losing Advent

Next Post

December 23, 2022 Christmas Ghosts Frightening The Poor

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Addiction Advent Afghanistan Anxiety Ascension Sunday Baptism Barack Obama Biblical Interpretation Bigotry Book Banning BSA Buddhism Choice Christmas Church Discipline Community Conscience Conspiracy theories COVID-19 Culture Wars death cults deconstruction Devotional Divine Judgment Donald Trump Earth Day Election Day empathy Environmentalism Evangelism Exploitation of the Poor Faith False Claims fascism Fear Forgiveness Genocide government Grace Gun Violence Halloween Hate Health Hillbilly Elegy Hindu Holy Communion Holy Week Homelessness Hope Identity Integrity Islam Joe Biden John Hagee Kamala Harris Labor Lent Liberation Theology Lies Love Love as action Neurological disorders Non-Christian Religions Online Worship Original Goodness Pandemic Peace Pentecost Philosophy Preaching Progressive Christianity Racism Redemptive Violence Myth Resentment Saint's Days Satire Sobriety social media Spiritual Self Care Spirituality Technology The Kingdom of God The United Methodist Church Theology Transfigurations Sunday Transgender persons Truth Uncategorized Violence Wesleyan Working Class

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 March 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 September 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 January 2025 October 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 October 2018 September 2018 July 2018 February 2018 January 2018 August 2017 May 2017 November 2016 July 2016 June 2016 November 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 January 2015 November 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 June 2013 March 2013 February 2013 December 2012 August 2012 July 2012 May 2012 February 2012 December 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does the Greek word "Agape" mean in the Bible?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Grace Unconditional Love Peace Eternal Life