I have spoken with one or two people who were actually present in the revival meetings that began in 1904 and swept across Wales. I have spoken to many who remember full churches and chapels, especially for events like Sunday School Anniversaries, and I have witnessed the empty churches of today.
Many have described Wales as a spiritual desert and have wondered how the revival could have left such little fruit. As is usually the case, these situations are complex and take some understanding. Elfed Godding, is a church leader from Wales who is able to offer some helpful perspective amidst the complexity. The following video clip features Elfed’s awareness of what is actually happening on the ground in Wales.
Pastor Roselen Faccio has a dream. As the senior minister of one of Italy’s largest Protestant churches she is concerned to minister not only to individuals but to seek a change in the culture of both Italy and indeed Europe. Her church is located in Milan and she is aware that as well as fashion and industry, Milan was the location for the Edict of Milan, a declaration by the Emperor Constantine who declared that Christians would no longer be persecuted throughout the Roman Empire. They would be granted freedom of faith and worship.
The year 2013 is the 1700th anniversary of that original Edict and she believes that this is the time to write a new declaration asking again for freedom of worship and faith in every country of the world. Europe as well as many other lands needs a new commitment to freedom of faith.
Her desire is to invite the world to Milan in 2013 to help construct a new Edict of Milan. She describes her remarkable vision is this video clip.
How could a Roman Catholic woman, working with the Franciscan movement move from life in a convent to become the founder and leader of one of the largest and most influential Protestant churches in Italy? Pastor Roselen Faccio tells something of her remarkable story in this video clip.
Some one sent me some words from John Ortberg which I thought were food for thought:
THE MOST POPULAR RELIGION IN AMERICA
What do you think is the number one most popular religion in America? I’ll give you a hint: its not Christianity. Its also not Islam, Judiasm, Buddhism, Taoism, or the Home Shopping Network. According to Christian Smith, a sociologist at Notre Dame, the primary expression of faith in our day–at least for young adults–is what he calls “Moral Therapeutic Deism.” This religion is characterized by five beliefs: –There is a God who created earth and watches over it –God wants people to be nice, fair and good (as it taught in the Bible and most other religions) –The central goal of life is to be happy and feel good about yourself –God doesn’t need to be involved in your life except when there’s a problem that needs Celestial Performance Enhancement –Good people go to heaven when they die.
This is a religion that is far more about comfort, individualism and conformity that it is about meaning, calling, and sacrifice. What makes it particularly challenging is that it is not offered through a new MTD movement or denomination. It is actually catching on and being practiced in churches where we leaders think of ourselves as historically Christian. It cannot sustain a life. It cannot build a community. It cannot call people to take up a cross. We want something more.
One other piece of bad news has to do with where young adults learn MTD. I’ll give you a hint. Its mostly from older adults. These are themes that have captured our culture in such deep ways that we’re hardly aware of them.
The good news is that God is much bigger than Moral Therapeutic Deism. He has a way of showing us what we idolize.
–when someone goes through a crisis or pain; –when someone is inspired to devote their life to a cause greater than themselves; –when someone is called to sacrifice their own comfort or success for a hurting world; –when someone engages in the intense study of the God revealed by the writers of the Scriptures; –when someone grows bored with a faith that is nice and comfortable and distant–
then God is once more breaking through. MTD is just one more on a long list of idols. But, somewhere deep down, the human heart keeps hungering for the real deal