The gift of a new paradigm
Is Europe's secular culture our future?
by Ann Graham Price

Belfast, Northern Ireland. Photo: Ryan Miller/Mennonite Mission Network

Within a generation or two, if some sociologists have it right, American Christians from mainline denominations may become exiles within their own society.

Those who have watched the religious trends on both sides of the Atlantic say the post Christendom culture that has pervaded much of Europe for decades could well overtake American culture in the not-too-distant future.

Most Christians living in Europe have long recognized that, for the foreseeable future, they will be living as marginalized and misunderstood communities, according to Jonathan Blakeborough. He is a long-standing member of the Anabaptist Network, a loose-knit network of individuals and churches in Britain and Ireland devoted to sharing the insights of the Anabaptist tradition.

Evangélique growth

Despite the decline of traditional European churches, new immigrant congregations like Assemblée Evangélique Le Rocher (Evangelical Church of the Rock), an African church in Paris, show that Christianity is alive and well in Europe. Some observers of the American religious landscape disagree with the thesis that the United States will follow the secularization of Europe. They point to the growth of evangelical churches and to the invigorating impact of Christian immigrants from Asia, Africa and Latin America. See for example, David Badillo’s "The New Latino Immigrant Church" and the forthcoming "Mexican American Religions" edited by Gaston Espinosa and Mario Garcia.

The Anabaptist Network has offered a particularly helpful approach in the European context because it works to revitalize every denomination from within, rather than seeking to promote one denomination over another.

Formed in 1992, the Anabaptist Network offers resources and forums for reflecting on Anabaptist discipleship from the distinct perspective of a post-Christendom culture where churches are now on the margins rather than at the center of society.

The loosely structured nature of the network allows people to remain within their own churches while still drawing where appropriate from Anabaptist resources.

"The Anabaptist Network is especially meaningful because we live in a country where the vast majority of people are disillusioned with Christianity, viewing it as irrelevant and lacking integrity,” said Vic Thiessen, who works through Mennonite Mission Network and Mennonite Church Canada as director of the London Mennonite Centre.

"The church is disappearing fast and needs to make serious changes if it is to survive," Thiessen said. "In such a setting, starting another church can be seen as fatal competition or a waste of time. By working to revitalize all the denominations from within, the network is seen as a catalyst rather than competition."

The network serves another important function within its distinctly post-Christendom culture. It provides support for what Blakeborough termed a new phenomenon in the present context: indigenous British Anabaptists.

"Given that Anabaptism was persecuted out of existence here during the Reformation and that most British Christians will have no real knowledge of this tradition," Blakeborough said, "it is important that the network exists both as a source of information for inquirers and as a source of support for those whose spiritual journey takes them further into a deeper engagement with Anabaptist
theology and spirituality."

Could a similar model to the Anabaptist Network be successful in North America? Noted Christian author Stuart Murray-Williams suggested that the present climate in Europe could serve as a laboratory for people to study ways to encounter post-Christendom as it emerges in North America.

"Christians in the United Kingdom are searching for fresh approaches to mission, church and discipleship as Christendom comes to an end," Murray-Williams said. "Some are searching in older traditions for fresh insights, including the Anabaptist tradition that has
had such limited historical influence. Anabaptism in the United Kingdom has been a source of inspiration for mission, evangelism and church planting in ways I have not encountered in North America very often."

Murray-Williams also recommended trans-Atlantic exchange visits as a way to share information and ideas. Other ways of sharing information — such as through periodicals, e-mails, and volunteering on both sides of the Atlantic — also have been successful between the two continents.

"This is something we as communities have to learn to deal with so we can profit from our time in the wilderness," Blakeborough said. "In practical terms, North Americans may wish to spend more time finding out about this reality and then apply what has been learned to your own situation, given that our present predicament may well be your future, given current trends."

Highlights

Viewpoints

Return to Beyond Ourselves—Summer 2007