All ten might boil down to some mix of two things:
a) there is no new birth and so, no hunger to grow through all the means God has provided (the Spirit of God, the word of God, the people of God)
and/or
b) there is a lack of understanding of the centrality of the church (yes, institutional) in God’s plans for the age (I get the impression that that the often-excessive individualism of the modern West is a big factor in this… evangelicalism is very individualistic. We could expect it to yield some cases of “this is all about me and what works for me”-ism).
But maybe throw in one other factor, though…
c) there really isn’t a decent church anywhere around?
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
Aaron, I agree with you except for point #4. I have found that many who were hurt (really hurt) at church do leave; but amazingly, I have seen several of these come back and experience healing through the ministry of the Word. A God given reaction to pain is to withdraw.
….one reason my dad gave for walking away from the (Methodist) church of my youth was exactly that. it was a one man show; everything was decided by the pastor, hence men had little opportunity to interact and engage. Many years later, I’d phrase it as trying to use a factory model (plant manager ultimately calls the shots) for the Church. I’ve even been in one church where the “pastor” arranged the chairs in adult Sunday School so that people could really only interact with the leader—the pastor.
If you don’t ask, you won’t know why. It’s good to know.
It’s interesting. On the other thread about leaving a church well, several are of the opinion that there’s no reason for a member to give a reason or even talk to their elders before they leave the church.
Discussion
NewBoil down
All ten might boil down to some mix of two things:
a) there is no new birth and so, no hunger to grow through all the means God has provided (the Spirit of God, the word of God, the people of God)
and/or
b) there is a lack of understanding of the centrality of the church (yes, institutional) in God’s plans for the age (I get the impression that that the often-excessive individualism of the modern West is a big factor in this… evangelicalism is very individualistic. We could expect it to yield some cases of “this is all about me and what works for me”-ism).
But maybe throw in one other factor, though…
c) there really isn’t a decent church anywhere around?
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
NewAll but #4
Aaron, I agree with you except for point #4. I have found that many who were hurt (really hurt) at church do leave; but amazingly, I have seen several of these come back and experience healing through the ministry of the Word. A God given reaction to pain is to withdraw.
NewIf you don't ask, you won't know why
If you don’t ask, you won’t know why. It’s good to know.
Example: couple left our church. Husband emailed me - “it’s a one-man show”
Telling!
NewWith Dave....
….one reason my dad gave for walking away from the (Methodist) church of my youth was exactly that. it was a one man show; everything was decided by the pastor, hence men had little opportunity to interact and engage. Many years later, I’d phrase it as trying to use a factory model (plant manager ultimately calls the shots) for the Church. I’ve even been in one church where the “pastor” arranged the chairs in adult Sunday School so that people could really only interact with the leader—the pastor.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
NewDave White wrote:
It’s interesting. On the other thread about leaving a church well, several are of the opinion that there’s no reason for a member to give a reason or even talk to their elders before they leave the church.