George Barna is a popular Christian sociologist who has spent a
professional lifetime tracking and predicating trends in American religion. He
has many books to his credit and is widely quoted in both the religious and
secular media.
His small book, Revolution, was published a couple of years ago, but I just
finished reading it after an acquaintance quoted Barna's prediction about the
future of the church.
By 2025, he says, church attendance in American will be roughly half what
it is today, and almost as many people as church goers will find their religious identity and connections through media, culture, and cyberspace.
Another dominant form of spirituality will be the house church, which has
been Barna's home for a number of years.
This explains, perhaps, the fact that preaching is mentioned only twice in
this book and only as a description of the way things used to be.
If Barna is right, preaching is neither a wise career choice nor a path
to social significance for young people.
But Barna may not be right: in fact, I don't think he is. He may have a
certain read on statistics to back him up, but those of us who practice the art
of preaching have a long history of human culture to reference.
The human voice is the most powerful sound in the planet. In our lifetime that sound, when used to articulate a moral vision of human life on the planet,
has been of supreme influence. From Martin Luther King, Jr. to Jerry Falwell, to
Pope John Paul II, to the Ayatollah Khomeini, the preacher is a person
of great influence.
In cathedrals and storefronts, at crossroads and street corners everywhere
in these United States, preachers continue to be transformational
people, speaking into congregations and culture words of faith, hope, and
love. Demagogues in politics, religion, and culture get most of the hype, but
the real work, real gospel work, real preaching work, is being done by thousands
of men and women animated by the gospel of Jesus Christ and energized by gifts
of voice and reason.
I don't think this is going to change. In fact, long after sociologists
and pollsters have faded from the occupational options, God will still be anointing preachers of the good news to help shape this life and the next.
