21st Century Evangelism
In the emerging world, effective evangelism relies on long-term relationships and growth processes, not rallies, laws, or programs.
A Catholic Faith for A Postmodern World
Fr. Mirabile, a priest in the Charismatic Episcopal Church, discusses the possibility of a postmodern catholicism and offers suggestions as to how we proceed forward as "neo-catholics" in our postmodern era.
A Postmodern Story
We seem to be moving from a time in which many people had a dramatic Damascus experience of conversion into a time of a more step-by-step Emmaus type of experience. For them, salvation becomes less an event than a journey.
The Americanization of Protestantism
American-style Postmodernism has helped to “Americanize” Protestantism whose roots lie in the Europe of the Reformation. This Americanization includes revivalism, civic and public religion, transcendentalism, abolitionism, disenfranchisement, modernism, Pentecostalism, and new coalitions.
An American Prayer Movement: Postmodern Paradigm
There is a small part of a prayer movement that is moving many churches to a new awakening.
An Interview with Brian McLaren
In this interview with ForMinistry.com, Brian McLaren—author of A New Kind of Christian and Church on the Other Side—talks about our emerging culture and its implications for the emerging church.
Ancient Diagnosis for Today’s Congregation
These premodern principles correspond directly with postmodern sensitivity to addiction, health, service, and joy. These four lifestyle issues provide the real keys to exciting interest in Christian faith among unchurched people today.
Backyard Apologetics: Changing Culture From the Bottom Up
In this insightful interview from the editors of Touchstone magazine, author and activist Charles Colson speaks out on the church in postmodern times.
Brian McLaren Coaches Churches on How to Avoid Extinction
The way we’ve been “doing” church over the past century is increasingly irrelevant in our postmodern culture, says author and pastor Brian McLaren. It will be painful to shed our “modern” ideas of ministry, but those who don’t will eventually find their churches empty.
Can the Church Reach Our Postmodern Culture?
As an expert in what she calls “worship evangelism,” Sally Morganthaler has witnessed a profound shift in culture. Here she discusses how our mission as Christians should and must change to meet the challenges of a postmodern generation.
The Challenge of Our Age
If we want to communicate with the pagan world around us, Christians must once again refuse to worship the gods of their choice and once again exemplify radical faith.
Challenges Facing Today’s Church
In this wide-ranging interview, Brian McLaren discusses the challenges and changes facing the church, evangelism, and ministry in today’s world.
Christian Theologians and Thinkers Respond to the Challenges of Postmodernism
Christian theologians and thinkers responded to the challenges of postmodernism with a diverse and sometimes conflicting array of definitions, trend-setting initiatives, and theoretical models.
Church Planting in the 21st Century
According the church consultant William Easum, radical new methods of church planting are proving to be highly successful. Denominations following these methods find that the cost of starting new churches is no longer the primary obstacle. Now the primary obstacle is finding enough pastors with the right skills and gifts.
The Convergence of Spirit and Technology
Two of history’s greatest periods ot technological advancement were the Roman Empire and the era of the printing press. During both, Christianity lost ground. Now we’re in a third great period: the Internet. Will we lose ground a third time?
Cross-Cultural Ministry: The Submerged Reef on the Postmodern Journey
Do you know how to do Christian ministry in a multicultural world? This is the submerged reef, lying invisibly under the waves of the postmodern world, ready to sink the ship of even the most mission-driven church.
Definitions and Expressions of “Postmodernism”?
This article outlines the evolution of postmodernism from the 1950s to the present day, and explains how it reveals itself in contemporary thought and culture.
Dorothy on Leadership
How a movie from our childhood can help us understand the changing nature of leadership in the postmodern transition.
Eavesdropping on Emerging Conversations About “Leadership”
Too often Christians define spiritual leadership in terms of a hierarchical relationship: one person finds the way and tells someone else how to get there. In the church of the future, a leader will more resemble fellow travelers—someone who is “on the way,” journeying with us.
Eleven Trends of the 21st Century Church
Church renewal specialist William Easum points out 11 trends in the 21st century church you can’t afford to ignore.
The End of the Megachurch?
Something just doesn’t feel quite right about megachurches at this point in our postmodern journey. Postmodern pastors are more interested in planting new churches and building community rather than growing one huge church.
Evangelizing in a Postmodern World
What does evangelism look like among those for whom absolute truth claims are anathema?
Experiential Storytelling: Rediscovering Narrative in the Age of Experience
Today’s emerging generation doesn’t want just knowledge; they want interaction, discovery, and the power of a full-bodied personal experience. The church is in the communication business. How can we successfully communicate to an entirely new group of young people?
Follow Me: Jesus' Call to Service in Postmodern Times
Why is it so important that Christians regain their legacy of service to the poor? With the advent of postmodernism, where truth is relative to your subjective experience, most people don't care to debate, "Is it true?" but rather, "Is it authentic? Does it make a difference?"
Friendships Count
In this interview, Brian McLaren discusses how evangelism and building friendships with non-Christians has changed in the new emerging culture.
From Modernism to Postmodernism
Of all the shifts and changes taking place under the rubric of Postmodernism, these five shifts stand out: 1) shifts from universal truths to mini-truths; 2) from the supremacy of the subject to the supremacy of language; 3) from the supremacy of the author to the supremacy of the reader; 4) from early capitalism to late capitalism; and 5) from an emphasis on the new to an emphasis on the old.
Future Proof Your Ministry
Until Christian leaders start thinking about what the 21st century will actually bring, the church and its mission could be “left behind.” Jay Gary, director of the Christian Futures Network, offers five steps to help you develop a forward view of ministry.
The Future: Will the Church Respond Creatively to the Challenges?
The world is changing at the speed of light but the church often seems stuck 20 years in the past. Because the church has failed to make sense of all this global change, it’s missing opportunities to be a part of what God is doing in the world.
Generating Hope: A Strategy for Reaching the Postmodern Generation
Reaching Generation X is more than youth evangelism. It’s a downright cross-cultural experience! In Generating Hope: A Strategy for Reaching the Postmodern Generation, Jimmy Long explains how the postmodern mindset has affected today’s youth and how we must adjust for it in our outreach efforts.
Generation X: Slackers or Searchers?
Disconnected from the church yet deeply spiritual, Generation Xers resemble past generations in few ways. Learn what drives Generation Xers and how their outlook can transform you and your church.
How Evangelism is Evolving for a New Generation
In this interview with postmodern pastor and author Brian McLaren, he talks about his book More Ready Than You Realize and the changing understanding of evangelism in the 21st century.
Icons in the Postmodern Church
Where do icons fit into the church of the 21st century and what is their meaning?
The Impact of Postmodernism on American Religious Practices
Elements of postmodernism such as plurality, fragmentation, embodiment, and late capitalism have been among the strongest influences affecting religious beliefs and practices. Recent surveys show clear shifts in how “spirituality” is being defined in popular usage.
Is He Our Lord?
Would Jesus be a Christian? If he were to come to earth today in 2004, would he want to join ranks with the millions of us who call ourselves Christians? Get a sneak peek inside Brian McLaren’s new book, A Generous Orthodoxy, as he answers some tough questions.
Making Sense of Church: Eavesdropping on Emerging Conversations about Spiritual Growth
Today’s postmodern generation doesn’t have a lot of patience for fakes. They are crying out for authenticity—even if it’s not always pretty. Rather than viewing pastors as hero figures without any visible flaws, they want to see humans who are open and honest about their struggles.
Ministering in a Postmodern World: Gen X Parents & Their Children
“Millennial Kids” are the first generation to be parented by a purely postmodern generation. This carries significant implications for the 21st century church as it seeks to minister to children.
More Thoughts on the 21st Century Church
What will the church in the 21st century look like? Different. Very Different.
Networking in the 21st Century
Church consultant Bill Easum talks about whether it’s easier to start a new church or transition an old one; whether it’s better for churches to grow quickly or slow and steady; and the challenging role of pastoring a church in the 21st century.
New Images for Ministry
Only when pastors share their hunches about what new forms of ministry will thrive in the emerging world will we begin to learn the sort of church God is calling us to be.
Pastoring Postmodern People
In this interview, Pastor David Fisher, author of The 21st Century Pastor, explains how “popular postmodernism creates wonderful opportunities for witness and especially for living a community life that authentically displays the character of the Christian faith.”
The Postmodern Funeral Society
The funeral industry has become big business, and the pagan world has influenced and undermined the Christian funeral in four ways. Here’s how authentic Christian communities can reclaim a sense of ministry to the bereaved.
Postmodernism
Maria I. Martinez explores the thickly wooded terrain of postmodernism, setting the stage by focusing on where we have been—the beliefs and systems of modernism, and by asking "What forces are driving the changes away from modernism and toward postmodernism?"
Postmodernism: An Evangelical Blind Spot?
It is always difficult to appreciate cross-cultural change when you don’t anticipate it. Perhaps that is why the American evangelical struggles to understand postmodernism. Despite witnessing it on a daily basis, few even recognize its existence.
Postmodernism: Impact on Selected Fields of Endeavor
Postmodernism has affected most, if not all, fields of human endeavor. To illustrate this point, we look at five different fields that have in varying ways adapted and adopted a postmodern point of view: architecture, the arts, politics, social sciences, and history.
Postmoderns Value Authenticity, Not Authority, Pastor Says
According to many pastors trying to reaching our emerging generation of youth, contemporary preaching is “broken,” because the church has failed to take the cultural shifts of postmodernity seriously. In today's culture, they explain, people are increasingly distrustful of authority figures, especially preachers, with overarching explanations of how the world works. If this is true, what’s the solution?
Principled Leaders
The postmodern age presents new challenges to believers who are called to lead.
Reaching Real People With a Real Message
Too often the church is caught answering questions that people in our culture simply aren’t asking. Robert Duffett’s book A Relevant Word: Communicating the Gospel to Seekers shows how we can better reach postmodern people.
Reaching the Post-Christian
They're today's non-seekers, who've seen Christianity and think they have reasons for rejecting it.
Ten Surprises About the Unchurched
For three years. Church Central studied the hearts and minds of unchurched, non-Christian people throughout the United States and Canada. The information you are about to read defies the conventional wisdom about them.
They Say It’s Just a Phase
So is this talk about a “postmodern transition” just a phase, a media event, and no big deal? According to Brian McLaren, if you ignore this transition and treat it like a phase you'll miss one of the most exciting times in anyone's memory.
The Three Postmodernisms: A Short Explanation
Brian McLaren describes current interpretations of postmodernism, then goes on to say he’s less interested in articulating the ideal definition of this movement than he is in helping contribute to what the postmodern world becomes in reality.
The Transformational Journey: Past and Future
Churches that want to be relevent in our postmodern world must first learn how the new “seeker’s” spiritual journey has changed.
Twentysomethings for the Lord
Ministries try to channel the next generation's idealism.
Understanding A New Generation of Seekers
How one seeker found grace—in the questions, rather than in the answers.
Virtual Faith: The Irreverent Spiritual Quest of Generation X
Author Tom Beaudoin shares his profound understanding of the spiritual longings of America’s youth, and he pleas for creative engagement between Generation X and religious institutions. Beaudoin shows that Gen Xers operate according to a spirituality that is equally valid though radically different from the one that shaped their parents.
What’s All This About “Seekers”?
Many churches are grappling today with how to cater to “seekers.” But we are witnessing the dying days of Modernity. So maybe a different question fits the true situation: After Modernity, does any of this talk about “seekers” mean anything?”
Who Will Bridge the Gap: Story-Telling and Community-Building
Because of the rapid advances in communication and transportation technologies, the world is shrinking into a small, global city. Pastor and leadership consultant Dann Pantoja shares how churches can learn to minister cross-culturally—both across the ocean and across the street.
Why I Still Use the Word “Postmodern”
A lot of people are sick of the term “postmodern,” and I’m one of them. But I still think the the best term we have so far—and even helpful.
Worship Evangelism: Finding a New Cultural Language
How can the church create a sacred space for unchurched people in our culture? Sally Morgenthaler, author of Worship Evangelism, explains how church worship must coincide with the language people speak, and create an experience where people have the opporunity to both think and feel.
Worship in the 21st Century
Sally Morganthaler, authority on worship in postmodern culture, talks about the secrets of sacred music, worship, and the arts.
X Marks the Spot: One Generation’s Quest for the Truth
Generation Xer Gene David Monterastelli argues that the most effective way to reach past the skepticism of his cohorts is through a lifestyle witness of Christ’s love and truth.
