It is easy to blame church attendance on the unprecedented times our world has endured, it is easy to blame a lack of interest in the gospel on the negative portrayal of Christianity in secular media, or blame the moral failures of highly influential Christian ministers and public figures for perpetuating mistrust amongst the community.
Perhaps our society is so deeply entrenched in individualism and the cult of self that the mere concept of corporate fellowship is simply too far removed from the reality of people’s daily lives. The height of the pandemic is in the past, but many churches have been left with the question, “Why haven’t things gone back to the way they were?” and the offence of being rejected by the communities in which they once thrived.
We could ponder the contributing factors to declining influence until the end of time, I have spent more than a few hours in discussion of this very topic, but in the end, I’ve concluded that not only are our assumptions no more than educated guesses, we’ve been asking entirely the wrong question.
If for a moment, we set aside the numbers, percentages and programs, and instead investigate the heart of the issue, we find that it is not a problem of “why haven’t they?” but “why haven’t we?” Churches have taken on a sort of false offence. We’ve perceived an attack and resistance to Christianity that doesn’t exist.
If you have children, know children, or turned on your car radio in the last six months, you’ll have heard the hit song, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” about Disney’s children’s film, Encanto. The premise of the film is that the house in which the main characters live bestows powers on each of them so that they might help each other and the community.
With the best of intentions of serving their community and keeping the peace, the family finds itself neglecting to confront its own insecurities, and false assumptions, and in doing so, alienates and ostracizes Bruno; the well-meaning but misunderstood uncle.
The house begins to crumble, the family start to crumble, and their powers begin to fade. We look at the state of our world outside our doors, we serve the practical needs of our community with the best intentions, but we are afraid of the rejection we may face when serving the spiritual needs of those looking in from the outside.
A mentor of mine from a few years ago told the story of her first encounter with church. Having been raised in a family that hadn’t seen the inside of a church building for generations, she was beyond excited to receive an invitation to a local youth group.
Good impression
She was eager to set a good impression, so sought advice from her family on what one wears to attend church. Having never stepped foot in a church, no one could say what the culture would be, but they remembered hearing a verse;
…Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”
Matthew chapter 21, verse 31b
“All we know is, Jesus was a friend to the sinners and prostitutes…”
“Sinner” was quite non-descript, but “prostitute” was something she could work with. With child-like enthusiasm, she set out to youth group in an outfit that a friend of Jesus would wear. Not one person spoke to her. She spent the evening under the glare of the pastors, other kids avoiding her like an infectious disease.
If ever anyone was ready to make friends with their saviour, she was; but they took one look at her and said, “we don’t talk about Bruno”. Because of the false offence taken by the church, the “perceived threat” to the peace that never actually existed, one precious teenager did not meet Jesus that night, and wouldn’t meet Him until many years later.
We’ve been led to believe that the world, particularly younger generations, has rejected God and neglected to go to church, but our perception is entirely flawed. Upon investigating public opinion regarding the Christian Church, McCrindle Research, an Australian data analysis company, concluded that more people in the last year have been thinking about God, the meaning of life, and their mortality than ever before.
Survey
When surveyed, 35% to 45% of Australians would attend church if they were invited, yet regular church attendance has dropped by 6% over the last few years. We should be seeing more and more Australians in church every week; the desire to know God is there, the willingness to seek him is there, but these people are still standing at the door; waiting and hoping to be invited, accepted.
Another pastor I know tells the story of a man who, straight out of prison, recognised that only God could transform his broken life. He was welcomed into the church and met with his Saviour.
Only weeks later, the man tragically died in a road accident. This man’s funeral was attended by over a thousand people; friends from all walks, rough around the edges, carrying in eskies of booze to soothe the grief that this man left. When the family asked the pastor to share a word, they hoped he would share the same word shared the day this man was saved.
Many responded Jack Daniels in hand, tears in their eyes. As the night went on, the Pastor prayed over hundreds as they met with him to say, in coarse words, that they were lost, broken and in need of God.
All too often we expect the break to leave their brokenness at the door, we expect the misunderstood to suspend their hurt. We expect the lost to behave as if they’re found, to live a Christian life before they can meet Christ. We need to talk about Bruno.
Laura Wardrop has undertaken further study in the areas of Linguistics, Art, and Ministry. She currently works a graphic artist and painter, and takes a keen interest in exploring all areas of human creativity as a reflection of God’s character. She lives with her husband Stephen and two children in Brisbane.