Current Times/Culture Work Against Both Conservative and Liberal Branches of Christianity



A wonderful, but long, post today on a site that carries some intellectual content about Christianity nicely summarized why both liberal and conservative churches are seeing falling membership. I'd encourage anyone with an interest in current trends in Christianity to read it. 

It can be summarized in this way: The overarching tenets of liberal Protestantism, freedom to believe, tolerance, inclusiveness, individualism, etc., have become incorporated and firmly established in our society. This has hurt conservative Christianity with its personal relationship with God and literal application of the Bible. It has also hurt liberal branches of the faith. The tenets of this faith, those above, are already here and, mostly, unmoving. Why bother with church?

With conservatives attacking values such as tolerance and inclusiveness and liberals defending them, is there one side that has an advantage built into the future? We don't know, of course, but I have always thought the liberal side had a better chance of survival than the conservative. Yet, the link points out the winning side, liberals, will have a problem persuading people to stay with the church when its goals have already been achieved.

Both of these dilemmas, of course, address only one aspect of belonging to a church. Churches are part of social life as well as religion. Perhaps the social part is actually more important. Watching it all unfold is free and wonderful entertainment.

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