If you are a pastor or member of a Mainline Protestant denomination, then you have heard about decline forever. You’ve also heard about denial of decline. There will be talk about how the loss of members is just proof of our faithfulness to justice or something along those lines. Maybe the worst line I’ve more times than I can count is “God is doing a new thing!” It’s the belief that the loss of members is an opportunity for something new. What that new thing is, we are never told.
But the diminishment of the Mainline is important. I can remember religious sociologist and pastor Ryan Burge commenting that the loss of such churches can close off the faith to women interested in ministry. I would add it also closes off the faith to LGBT folk like me.
Which is why I find Ben Crosby fascinating. This young Episcopal priest studying in Canada has been willing to speak out about mainline decline not in denial, but honestly in the hopes we can find ways revive this tradition, especially in the times we live in. Crosby is not a conservative longing for the good old days, but a faithful Christian that wants to see his denomination and others that make up mainline Protestantism become a vital force in the world again.
I was honored to interview Ben two years ago, I have him back on the podcast to talk about his recent article on the Anglican Church in Canada.
One of the things he said in his article is profoundly apt for the times we find ourselves in. If churches should be mobilized for social action, you kind of need to have people:
But, frankly, even if instead you view the church’s mission as about seeking progressive change in the world than about such a suspiciously evangelical notion as fostering relationships with Jesus Christ (more on that shortly), these numbers are still disastrous. Simply put, you can’t mobilize your people to fight for justice if you don’t actually have any people. What good is an Anglican church taking bold stands for justice if such stands are immediately ignored because the church doesn’t really represent anyone? In my years in the labor movement, the union leaders I knew were always crystal clear that staying the same size (to say nothing of shrinking!) simply was not an option for us. It is precisely because we believed that the work of social change was so urgent that we were always concerned with numbers – because more people meant more power, which meant a greater capacity to win good wages and working conditions.
In this new episode, Ben and I talk about the toll that decline can have on church leaders, but we also talk about a hopeful vision for revitalization, balancing faith and social action.
