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Mission Drift
by Steve Bussey
I'm reading an interesting book
published by Routledge on the topic of the history of church
and state relations. This book is used by secular universities
as a textbook for political science. It is entitled "Religion
and Politics in America: Faith, Culture and Strategic
Choices".
As I was working through it, I couldn't
help but pause and reflect on a profound and prophetic insight
that speaks to our present American church. In discussing
evangelical churches specifically, one of the unique
indicators of growth or decline the authors identify is the
importance of a religious institution having "clarity of
conviction" - and how this is critically needed for
individuals to find a sense of meaning and refuge in that
church.
The quote (shared below) caused me to
reflect on Peter Greer and Chris Horst's research on "mission
drift". They emphasize the need for "clarity" and
"intentionality" as being the two key indicators to help check
whether a church is remaining "mission true" or is in a state
of "mission drift" or in the deadly state of being "mission
untrue". This book is an unlikely source that confirms how
critical this is for strategic mission alignment.
Here is the quote shared about
evangelical influence in American history:
"...Religious faiths thrive or decline
based on how well they serve the needs of its existing members
and manage to grow by evangelizing new members and "fallen
away" former members...
Sometimes the intensity of the
religious experience offered by a particular faith tradition
wanes over time; members become comfortable and do not look
outward.
Clergy can contribute to this decline
if they become complacent and accommodating. When a religious
message becomes watered down, it loses its power to convey any
authoritative message about the meaning of life.
People yearning for such meaning may
therefore leave fading religious traditions for other
religious, spiritual, or secular settings.
Evangelical
faiths of all kinds seek to reach potential adherents with
their distinctive messages about meaning. Religious
institutions that do not convey clarity of conviction cannot
expect to flourish in the long run."
(p.10)
The quote continues:
"We observe this pattern in rising
sects and the decline of once-dominant churches throughout
American history.
For example, Puritans of the
seventeenth century, who were otherworldly and severe, saw
their churches transformed into the comfortable liberal
Congregational Church born in the eighteenth century. In
general, when colonial churches became too comfortable, they
lost substantial shares of their members to the new, primarily
evangelical congregations that were emerging from revivals.
Upstart Methodist and Baptist congregations, which had grown
dramatically after the founding era, eclipsed them.
The cycle
continues: As Methodism became the home of an increasingly
settled membership and its ministers grew less strict about
enforcing traditional rules in the late nineteenth century, a
fervent holiness religious movement drew away a significant
portion of its membership"
(pp.10-11).
So, as a part of the Holiness movement,
those of us who are in The Salvation Army are wise to pay
attention to the patterns of the past (hindsight) and
cross-reference these with the conditions of the present
(insight) as they can help indicate the potential realities of
the future (foresight) which can help us mitigate a
detrimental future and reorient towards a bright one.
A movement does not have to die. It can
revive and renew, but it requires addressing complacency and
compromise, as well as repentance and realignment - seeking a
revival of the Spirit who can take the dry bones of any
church, and bring them to life, forging afresh a mighty army.
Oh, Lord - do this for your church of
2024!
Breathe on us breath of God!
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