I met with Jeff Fountain last week. Jeff is someone I have know for a good number of years and for at least 20 years he has served as the European Director of YWAM. In addition to that function he has pioneered Hope for Europe – an attempt to rediscover the Christian roots of Europe at the level of culture and politics as well as in the areas of church life, mission, evangelism and church planting.
Jeff is standing down from his YWAM role and is going to take time to develop what he is calling the Schuman Centre – a European studies network. His thinking is twofold. First he makes the point that Robert Schuman (who, together with Jean Monnet, largely developed the thinking that led to the European Union) was a devout Christian and that to a large extent the vision behind the EU was also an attempt to rekindle the Christian roots of Europe. It is therefore ironic that the EU has increasingly become a vehicle for secularisation. Part of Schuman’s thinking was that the Christian nations of Europe needed to stop their incessant warfare with each other in order to return to a Christian vision of what Europe could be and so to contribute to the total family of nations from a Christian perspective.
Second, Jeff is very aware that whereas commerce, entertainment, sport, politics, trade unions and every other sphere of life operate on a European basis, Protestant Christians, stuck as they are in their national churches, seem unable to work in such a way. Of course the Roman Catholic Church does this easily and Protestants need to find a way of engaging on a European basis if we are not to be increasingly shut out from many of the important discussions and decisions that impact our communities, our churches and our personal lives. The Schuman Centre is an attempt to further the thinking of Protestant Christians in this important sphere. Jeff is never short of a few words of enthusiasm regarding his work and in that vein, I was able to catch a few words with him on video.
In the light of yet another attempt to blow up an airplane and therefore murder hundreds of passengers in cold blood, the more thoughtful members of the Islamic community are asking some hard questions. A particularly thoughtful piece appeared in a British newspaper on New Year’s Eve under the heading “The voice of Islamic tolerance is rarely heard on campus”. The author was Usama Hasan, a university lecturer and Iman. The basic picture that he painted in his article depicted the domination of the university Islamic scene by forms of fundamentalism that have “lost their moral bearings completely”. He notes that all the varieties of fundamentalist groupings agree “…on the objective of a single, worldwide caliphate governed by a strict interpretation of Islamic law, and most were opposed to democracy or secularism.”
He points out that this development is partly the result of the natural radical outlook of the young who are easily (and rightly) inflamed by perceived injustices but it is also the result of an inability to integrate within western societies which often present traditional Muslims with the alternatives of the rabid secularization of their own faith or withdrawal. The first alternative does not necessarily produce well rounded citizens so much as citizens who simple adopt the worst aspects of Western secular life which often features greed, consumerism and individualism. The second alternative – withdrawal from mainstream society, carries the potential to produce radicalization of the caliphate kind. It’s a long and thoughtful article although the solutions that he offers are not particularly convincing.
It seems to me that Christians have a particular responsibility to reach out to an Islam in crisis. We know what it is like to come under the pressure of secular world views and to face the same agonizing choice of accommodation or withdrawal. Gradually, and it is gradually, Christians from the thoughtful evangelical wing of the church have begun to work out what it might look like to be “in the world but not of the world”.
I don’t mean by this that Christians should target Muslims for evangelisation, that is not in the first place the issue. Some Muslims are becoming Christians and in increasing numbers in many parts of the world. In part this is because the idea of a worldwide caliphate under strict Islamic law has been experienced by many Muslims and, like the Puritan regime, of 17th century England found to be thoroughly objectionable. Others have not experienced such ideas first hand but have been able to observe them and are looking elsewhere.
We need to make significant efforts to build friendships. This is not easy to do, not the least because the gender segregated dimension of traditional Muslim life makes it very hard for Christians who operate more as integrated communities of men and women to connect. We do not have ready made opportunities for social engagement on a socially segregated basis. But difficult as it might be it is an important dimension of our call to reconciliation. I love the story of Pope John 23rd who made a first historic visit to Turkey. It was a huge occasion and every dignitary who could be present was present. In the midst of the various formal introductions, Pope John took the hand of the leading Muslim clergyman and said, “I am John, I am your brother.” With these simple words, centuries of hatred and mistrust were bridged.
The past few days have seen all kinds of speculation about the future of Christianity in Britain. One recent poll claimed that the number of people self describing themselves as Christians has fallen to around 50% from 66% a half century ago. Another television piece claimed that there are now around 100,000 worshipping pagans in Britain and went on to make the claim that there are groups of pagans in every town in Britain and that therefore paganism represents a future challenge to Christianity.
So what do we make of all such speculation? As always, the reality is complex. First, the number of people who self identify as Christians varies from 72% to 52% depending on what precise question is asked. For example if people are asked what religion they are and are offered the choices of Islam, Hinduism, etc. then they tend to choose Christian as a self descriptor in much higher numbers. If people are asked a very open question about religious practise which implies more active involvement then of course the percentages fall.
For me the surprise is that the percentages are as high as they are given that there is little social advantage in being Christian and clearly fewer people automatically think of themselves as C of E (Church of England) even if they never attend or believe. These high figures indicate potential not despair.
Second, the number of pagans cited is also a surprise. Interestingly the figures that used to be given in the 1980’s were around 400,000 so on that basis pagans have declined by 75% in the last 20 years. Strange that the headline was based on the idea of growth when the reality probably indicates decline.
As for paganism rivalling Christianity – I just think of the 5,000 people who gathered in my local community to sing carols in the open air for 45 minutes this Christmas Eve. One twentieth of the numbers of pagans from the whole of Britain worshipped the Christ child within a one mile walking distance of my home. Let’s get real, pagans probably have some way to go before they rival Christianity.
All this needs to be set against the growing number of commentators who are detecting a growth of interest in Christianity. How about this quote from George Pitcher writing in The Times, 17 December 2009:
“All in all, Britain is going through one of those periods of religious refreshment that crop up every few decades. Whenever this happens – as in 18th century Europe – there are plenty of people who say that it’s all over, that the Christian story will soon be finished and a brave new secular age has dawned. Don’t bet your house on it.”