Statistical evidence is clear, the Evangelical churches in North America are in decline. There are many reasons for this decline, not least of which is the reality that the North American Evangelical churches now exist in a post-Christendom milieu. A new ontology and and a new praxis are needed to address this new reality. However, the model is perhaps not new, but merely a return to the intended purpose for the church since its inception in Jerusalem over 2000 years ago. This article explores a fourfold missional model for the North American church moving from liminality, through communitas and emergence to mission.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Canadian Evangelical Churches in Decline
1.1 The Problem: The Evangelical Churches in Canada are in Decline
1.2 Research Methodology
1.3 Hypothesis: To be tested, developed and critiqued in the next three chapters
Chapter 2: The Lockean Delphi Survey
2.1 Introduction
2.2 The Delphi Method of Research
2.2.1 Introduction: Qualitative Research of a Large and Complex Issue
2.3 Movement from mechanical to holographic images
2.4 The History of the Delphi
2.5 Definition of Delphi
2.6 The Various Types of Delphi Survey
2.7 The use of the Delphi Method in this research paper
2.8 The Church as a Complex Adaptive System
2.9 First Delphi Iteration: The Formative Questionnaire
2.9.1 Vocational Profile
2.9.2 Academic Profile
2.9.3 Denominational Profile
2.9.4 Age Range Profile
2.9.5 Theological Profile
2.9.6 Length of Current Ministry Profile
2.10 Results of the First Iteration of the Delphi Survey
2.10.1 Question: I believe the Evangelical Church in Canada is facing the following challenges to its health at this time:
2.10.2 Question: The Evangelical Church needs to address the following areas of church life if it hopes to thrive and impact the Canadian population with the Gospel:
2.10.3 Question: I think that the Canadian Evangelical Church has been affected by the following cultural or macro-environmental trends:
2.10.4 Question: I believe that the type of leadership needed to bring health and growth to Evangelical Churches across Canada is leadership that is characterized by:
2.10.5 Analysis of the responses to the first iteration of the Delphi
2.11 The Second Iteration of Delphi
2.11.1 Declining Biblical Literacy:
2.11.2 Individualized Spirituality:
2.11.3 Lack of Strategic Planning:
2.11.4 Lack of Equipped Leaders
2.12 Summary, Synthesis and Analysis of the Responses to the Second Iteration of the Delphi
Chapter 3: Towards a Literature Review
3.1 Introduction: The Literature Review as a Part of the “Interpretive” Process
3.2 The Structure of this Literature Review
3.2.1 A Review of the Sociology Literature that relates to the current Canadian context with special reference to the Evangelical Church
3.2.2 A Review of Modern Ecclesiological Reflections together with Missional and Emergent Ecclesiological Literature
3.2.3 Literature that Relates Pneumatology and Missional Community
3.2.4 A Review of the Literature that Relates to Christology and North American Culture
3.2.5 A Review of the Literature Concerning Leadership and Church Leadership Styles within North America
3.2.6 A Review of the Literature Concerning Discipleship within the North American Church Context
3.2.7 Spirituality within the Canadian context
3.2.8 A Review of the Literature Concerning Systems Theory
Chapter 4: The Missional Community of God
4.1 Introduction: The Why and How of a Biblical Theological, Normative (Basis Theory), Approach
4.2 Biblical Theology: Definitions and Methodologies
4.2.1 Definitions
4.2.1.1 Mead
4.2.1.2 Childs
4.2.1.3 Alexander, Rosner, Carson & Goldsworthy
4.3 Biblical Theological Methodologies
4.3.1 A Brief Overview
4.3.2 Approaches to Biblical Theology
4.3.2.1 Content Approaches
4.3.2.1.1 Content Approaches - Doctrinal
4.3.2.1.2 Content Approaches – Cross Section, Central Theme, Multiple Topics
4.3.2.1.3 The Cross Section Approach:
4.3.2.1.4 The Central Theme Approach
4.3.2.1.5 The Multiple Topics Approach
4.3.2.1.6 Content Approaches – Narrative & Story
4.3.2.2 Shape Approaches
4.3.2.2.1 Shape Approaches - Tradition History
4.3.2.2.2 Shape Approaches – Authoritative Canon
4.3.3 The Diachronic and Synchronic Approaches to Biblical Theology
4.3.3.1 The Synchronic Approach to Biblical Theology (Goldsworthy, 2010)
4.3.3.2 The Diachronic Approach to Biblical Theology (Goldsworthy, 2010)
4.4 The Missional Community of God in the Old Testament: A Diachronic Biblical Theology
4.4.1 Genesis: The Origins of the Missional Community
4.4.1.1 Genesis 1-11 and the Creation/Fall/ Blessing Motif
4.4.1.2 Genesis 12-50 God’s Missional Community Emerges
4.4.1.2.1 The “prototypical” story in Genesis 32:22-32 (Alexander, Rosner, Carson & Goldsworthy, 2000: 581-586)
4.4.1.2.2 The Joseph Narrative (Genesis 30:22-50:26)
4.4.1.3 Summary of Missional Community within the Genesis Material
4.4.1.4 The Contribution of Genesis to the Diachronic Development of Missional Community
4.4.2 Exodus: The Missional Community forged into a Holy Priesthood
4.4.2.1 The Missional Community as a Holy Priesthood
4.4.2.2 The Contribution of Exodus to the Diachronic Development of Missional Community
4.4.3 Leviticus: Living as a Holy People for the Sake of Mission
4.4.3.1 Leviticus Contribution to the Concept of Missional Community
4.4.4 Numbers: The Missional Community Must Move Forward by Faith
4.4.4.1 The Promises to Abraham and the Book of Numbers
4.4.4.2 Kadesh Barnea and the Internal Threat of Faithlessness to the Missional Community (Numbers 13-14)
4.4.4.3 Balak and Balaam: External Threats to the Missional Community
4.4.4.4 Numbers Contribution to the Concept of Missional Community
4.4.5 Deuteronomy: The Missional Community Called to Loving Obedience, but Destined to Fail!
4.4.5.1 Deuteronomy and the Predicted Failure of the Missional Community
4.4.5.2 The Contribution of Deuteronomy to the Diachronic Development of Missional Community
4.4.6 Post-Pentateuch Diachronic Development of the Missional Community
4.4.7 Israel’s Effectiveness as Missional Community in the Old Testament
4.4.7.1 The Contribution of the post-Pentateuch Material to the Diachronic Development of Missional Community
4.5 The Missional Community of God in the New Testament: The Culmination of the Diachronic Biblical Theological Approach
4.5.1 The Missional Community in the Gospels
4.5.1.1 The Missional Community in Matthew
4.5.1.1.1 The Structure and Contents of Matthew
4.5.1.1.1.1 The Contribution of Matthew to the Diachronic Development of the Missional Community
4.5.1.2 The Missional Community in the Gospel of Mark
4.5.1.2.1 The Kingdom of God and Conflict with Satan in the Gospel of Mark
4.5.1.2.2 Faith and Salvation in the Gospel of Mark
4.5.1.2.3 The Jewish Law in the Gospel of Mark
4.5.1.2.4 The Twelve and Discipleship
4.5.1.2.4.1 The Contribution of Mark to the Diachronic Development of the Missional Community
4.5.1.3 The Missional Community in Luke’s Gospel
4.5.1.4 The Missional Community in John’s Gospel
4.5.2 The Missional Community in Acts
4.5.3 The Missional Community in the Pauline Epistles
4.5.4 The Missional Community in Hebrews
4.5.5 The Missional Community in James
4.5.6 The Missional Community in the Catholic Epistles
4.5.7 The Missional Community in the Johanine Epistles
4.5.8 The Missional Community in the Book of Revelation
4.5.9 Concluding Remarks on the Diachronic Biblical Theology of Missional Community
Chapter 5: Towards a Model for the Growth of the Evangelical Church in Canada
5.1 An Explanation of the Model
5.1.1 The Church as Complex Adaptive System
5.1.1.1 Liminality and the Missional Church as a Complex Adaptive System
5.1.1.2 Communitas and the Missional Church as a Complex Adaptive System
5.1.1.3 Emergence and the Canadian Evangelical Church as a Complex Adaptive System
5.1.1.4 Mission and the Canadian Evangelical Church as a Complex Adaptive System
5.2 An Application of the Model
Chapter 6: Areas for Further Research
6.1 The Spiritual Landscape of Canada
6.2 Effective Evangelistic Methods and Effective Evangelistic Churches
6.3 Worship Philosophy and Worship Styles
6.4 The Place of Small Groups
6.5 The Effectiveness of Preaching and the Need for Preaching
6.6 Peacemaking and Peace within the Local Churches
6.7 Governance Models within Canadian Evangelical Churches
6.8 Time Usage and Time Strain within the Modern Canadian Landscape
6.9 Strategic Disciple-making within the Evangelical churches in Canada
6.10 Developing Systems Sensitive Leadership
6.11 Planting Missional Churches within Canada
Chapter 7: APPENDIX 1: A BRIEF REVIEW OF THE WORD “CHURCH”
7.1 The Word “Church”
7.2 The Church in the Gospels
7.3 The Church in the Acts of the Apostles
7.3.1 The Three Dimensional Purpose of the Church – The Glory of God through Exaltation (worship), Evangelism (outreach) & Edification (discipleship and biblical teaching)
7.3.1.1 The Purpose of Evangelism (outreach)
7.3.1.2 The Purpose of Exaltation (worship)
7.3.1.3 The Purpose of Edification (strengthening believers in their faith)
7.4 The Church in the Pauline and General Epistles
7.4.1 The Church is Local and Universal
7.4.2 Metaphors for the Church
Chapter 8: Appendix 2: Full Results from Lockean Delphi Survey
8.1 First Iteration
8.2 Second Iteration
Chapter 9: Appendix 3: Results for Teen Interest in Church in Canada
Chapter 10: Appendix 4 Unchurched Perspectives on Church in Canada
Chapter 11: Appendix 5 Survey of Canadian Church Pastors
Chapter 12: BIBLIOGRAPHY
Research Objectives and Themes
The primary research objective of this thesis is to identify a viable and biblically-contextual model for the Evangelical church in Canada to restore its health and missional effectiveness in the 21st century. Faced with the reality of rapid decline, the work explores how shifting from a "Christendom" to a "missional" mode of operation—viewing the church as a complex adaptive system sent on mission—can address the malaise currently affecting Canadian Evangelicalism.
- The decline of Evangelical churches in Canada and the underlying sociological factors.
- The use of the Lockean Delphi method to gather expert consensus on the reasons for church decline.
- A diachronic biblical theology tracing the motif of "missional community" from Genesis through Revelation.
- Development of a pragmatic, circular model centered on "Liminality," "Communitas," "Emergence," and "Mission."
- The application of systems theory to understand the organic, adaptive nature of the church.
Excerpt from the Book
1.1 The Problem: The Evangelical Churches in Canada are in Decline
Alain de Botton made the following incisive observation: “In writing a problem down or airing it in conversation we let its essential aspects emerge. And by knowing its character, we remove, if not the problem itself, then its secondary, aggravating characteristics: confusion, displacement, surprise.” (Dunleavy 2003: 1) The most eminent sociology researcher concerning the church in Canada, Reginald Bibby, asserts (Bibby, 2004:32) that the church in Canada is in decline. Since the 1960’s, the evangelical church in Canada has been in decline (Grenville, A. & Posterski, D. 2004). The New York Times (Krauss, 2003) in a front page article, December 2003, highlights the difference between Canada and America by highlighting the fact that 80% of Canadians agree that “you don’t need to go to church in order to be a good Christian” whereas only roughly 50% of Americans would agree with that statement. Even more recent data (Bricker, D. & Wright, J. 2005:80) highlights this concept that Canadian faith has become privatized, and states that whilst 84 % of Canadians believe in God, 81% of Canadians agree that you do not need to go to church to be a good Christian. In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 16 and verse 18, Jesus declares, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Bible 1984). Also, in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 28 verses 19 and 20 there occurs the Great Commission, in which the risen Christ commands His disciples to go into the entire world and to make disciples from among all the nations (Bible 1984). The implementation and consequent outcome of these verses does not seem to be a visible reality in the 21st century Canadian context. From the preceding material it would appear that the Evangelical church in Canada is in decline. This decline is a problem that warrants careful research with a view to possible models or choices that can assist the Canadian Evangelical church to fulfill the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Canadian Evangelical Churches in Decline: This chapter establishes the current sociological and statistical reality of the decline within the Canadian Evangelical church and introduces the research question and hypothesis.
Chapter 2: The Lockean Delphi Survey: This chapter utilizes a qualitative Delphi method involving experts to identify systemic reasons for the decline of the church, emphasizing the church as a complex adaptive system.
Chapter 3: Towards a Literature Review: This section surveys diverse fields—Sociology, Ecclesiology, Pneumatology, and Systems Theory—to ground the research in current academic literature.
Chapter 4: The Missional Community of God: This chapter develops a diachronic biblical theology, tracing the development of the missional community motif from the Old Testament through the New Testament to provide a normative basis for the research.
Chapter 5: Towards a Model for the Growth of the Evangelical Church in Canada: This chapter synthesizes previous findings to present a pragmatic, circular model of growth involving Liminality, Communitas, Emergence, and Mission.
Chapter 6: Areas for Further Research: This concluding chapter identifies specific domains, such as worship styles and systems-sensitive leadership, that require further investigation following this study.
Keywords
Evangelical Church, Canada, Church Decline, Missional Community, Complex Adaptive System, Delphi Method, Practical Theology, Ecclesiology, Church Growth, Church Health, Biblical Theology, Liminality, Communitas, Discipleship, Post-Christendom
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core problem addressed in this thesis?
The thesis addresses the significant decline of Evangelical churches in Canada, noting a shift where faith has become privatized and traditional metrics for church growth have proven ineffective in the current post-Christian, pluralistic context.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
The work centers on the nature of the church as an organic, complex adaptive system, the importance of transitioning from "Christendom" models to "missional" models, and the need for a renewed focus on incarnational living and authentic discipleship.
What is the primary goal of the research?
The primary goal is to develop a sustainable, biblically grounded model that enables the Canadian Evangelical church to move toward missional health rather than mere numerical expansion.
Which scientific methodology does the author employ?
The author employs a Practical Theological methodology utilizing Osmer’s hermeneutical spiral, complemented by a Lockean Delphi method for gathering expert practitioner data and a diachronic biblical theological analysis.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body covers a statistical diagnosis of church decline, a thematic literature review, an extensive diachronic biblical study of the "missional community" motif, and the proposition of a circular model for church renewal.
Which keywords characterize the research?
Key terms include Evangelicalism, Church Growth, Missional Community, Complex Adaptive Systems, Liminality, Communitas, and Practical Theology.
How does the author define "missional community"?
A missional community is defined as a people called out by God from the world, not for segregation, but for the specific purpose of remaining in the world as a witness to the Gospel through transformed, holy lives and servant-led interaction.
What role does the "complex adaptive system" concept play in the model?
It acts as the core of the proposed model, illustrating that the church is an evolving, living organism where the mutual interaction of its parts—guided by the Holy Spirit—is essential for vitality and growth, rather than relying on top-down, linear management.
- Quote paper
- Robert Elkington (Author), 2010, A Model for the Growth of the Evangelical Churches in Canada, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/186935
