Mega-Churches

So why are the mega-churches and the evangelical’s the only ones who are gaining members? I had a recent discussion about that with some fellow Elders from my Session, and it was fascinating how out of touch some supposed church leaders seemed to be on the matter.

I remain convinced that the growth of these organizations is attributable primarily to their willingness to give hard and fast answers to peoples questions on matters of theology.

When I look at how mainstream denominations have evolved in the way they “do” religion over the past 50 years especially, I see churches that reflect the increasing embracement of the multi-cultural psycho-babble that permeates public discourse in so many other areas. It is unfortunate that this has bled over into the theological sphere, because it is my firm belief that people in general are tired of the effort required to do self-analysis and reflection on matters of faith, and have come full circle to a point where they just want straight answers. Life is hard enough without having your faith become a constant source of intellectual drain. People want religion to be easy, and the evangelicals give them that.

The mega-churches do it also, but in a different way. They make religion easy by creating an organization where you determine how involved you become. If you want, you can come for an hour on Sunday, and then just write a check – commitment fulfilled! In a way, it’s the modern-day version of indulgences. However, they also make it easy for you to become involved in very specific causes that sometimes are even in conflict with other causes supported by the same church. They in effect become churches-within-churches for social justice purposes. Not only does that allow people with sometimes divergent views to be devout members of the same mega-church, but it also allows these mega-churches to make the clear distinction between duty to God, and duty to man.

In that regard, this architecture serves these churches well by allowing individuals to be moved by the Holy Spirit to action, but provides a wide array of avenues for carrying out that action without tacitly endorsing one form of action while tacitly (or even openly) condemning other forms. You need look no further than how the mainstream churches handle the issues of abortion, evolution or homosexuality to get a clear picture of their “my-way-or-the-highway” approach to social justice issues.

However; (and here is where I’m going to risk alienating some of my church friends) the problem for the mainstream churches is that unlike the mega-churches, they have failed to understand that the Holy Spirit is going to move each of us to action in our own time and in our own way, and they’re all “right” ways. Furthermore, most of these issues are moral matters that are driven by faith, but are separate and distinct from theology in its strictest sense. To “do” religion and to “live” religion really can be two different things! It’s one of the reasons I think that mainstream theologians have such a hard time with Buddhism. Is it a philosophy of life, or a religion? The real answer is – who cares! Let it be either one or both, but let the individual discern that for themselves.

All this having been said, there is still a problem here.

I once asked a minister friend of mine, “Is religion supposed to be hard, or easy?” His answer was a simple “…yes…”

Mega-churches and evangelicals make religion easy and convenient, which is why they’re growing, but the fundamental question here is: “Are they really nurturing spirituality, and fostering the development of a personal relationship with God?” It’s a critically important question that speaks to the whole purpose of a church. If you take that purpose out of the equation, then you’ve got to consider the logical extension of the mega-church architecture ad-absurdum and ask why not eliminate the building and parking lot entirely, get rid of the community aspect of church and make it a “virtual” experience? Just post a theological FAQ list and be done with it all!

We really do come to church because we want answers to life’s hard questions, but the ugly truth is that there are no easy answers. Life is something you’ve got to figure out for yourself, on-the-fly. There are no clear instruction manuals or on-line guides. There is no technical support line you can call and get a walk-through.

But, at the end of the day, there IS God.

He’s going to answer your questions in a still, small voice that you will often have to listen hard for, and that may often be hard to understand. He’s going to give you answers that you may not even recognize as answers, and that apply to you and you alone. He’s going to provide you resources that you may not recognize as resources. He’s going to be listening for you, and watching you, even when you don’t think He’s there. He’s going to be there always, ready to help, but sometimes His help will be in ways that you don’t expect. He has a plan for your life, but a plan that you may not understand, or may not even like very much at the time.

The problem is, all this requires that you develop and nurture a relationship that allows you to talk to your God, and your God to talk to you, without all the extraneous noise getting in the way.
And THAT, my friends, really does take work.