by Michael Wakelin.
This year’s SPECTRUM Conference, What role for the Remnant Church? was held at Swanwick in mid-May and was led by Michael Wakelin and Elaine Lindridge, two speakers who have both written publicly of their growing conviction that some long-held beliefs and practices of Christians and the churches are in urgent need of close scrutiny and critique. Articles are in the form of discussion papers based on their session notes, with editing by Keith Albans – we will share them through the year on Theology Everywhere.
“I can’t stand your religious meetings.
I’m fed up with your conferences and conventions.
I want nothing to do with your religion projects,
your pretentious slogans and goals.
I’m sick of your fund-raising schemes,
your public relations and image making.
I’ve had all I can take of your noisy ego-music.
When was the last time you sang to me?
Do you know what I want?
I want justice—oceans of it.
I want fairness—rivers of it.
That’s what I want. That’s all I want.
Amos 5: 21-24 in The Message paraphrase
In the 2021 Census, 94% of respondents answered the voluntary religion question and, although it remained the most common answer, only 46.2% had described themselves as ‘Christian’, a 13.1 percentage point fall since 2011. In contrast, the second most common answer was ‘No religion’ – up from a quarter of respondents to around two-fifths.
Writing in The Times, Janice Turner responded by suggesting that Christianity ‘is blandly everywhere and therefore nowhere’ and young people prefer to identify as more interesting things.
The most visible representation of Christianity is not God or the Gospel but the Church, and while we may protest that its image has not been helped by ‘the media’, we have been shooting ourselves in the foot for decades with scandals, secularist attacks and a perceived obsession with sex! Sociologist and theologian, Prof. Linda Woodhead suggests that religious institutions such as the Church ‘have had their day … they have harmed, not healed … they have become a barrier and not a bridge’.
Society needs good Christianity, so how might we get back to what we should be?
Five areas of change
Get rid of Jesus! – or the picture of the blonde-haired Jesus that still hangs on the vestry wall! That image epitomises a bland easy-going figure, far removed from the edgy, rebellious Jesus in the Bible. We need to get back to the steely challenge of the real Jesus.
Get rid of the need to be popular – that was never a priority of Jesus! How is it that we have allowed church growth thinking to dominate, as if size matters most? John Hull wrote of the move away from Christendom towards Christlikeness – and a Church which is more of fringe movement than part of the establishment may be a better model.
Re-introduce Jesus to young people – Somehow the idea of Jesus, the very name ‘Jesus’ has become one of the most instant switch offs. And yet the Jesus of the gospels is a character typical of all that Gen X, Y and Z find interesting. He was on the fringes of society, with intriguing friends who enjoyed an edgy party. He mocked the establishment, poked fun at the pompous and spoke truth to power.
Get rid of the ‘Christian’ speak – we don’t seem to have twigged that the language we use amongst ourselves sounds odd and meaningless ‘out there.’ In his book Agent of Grace, Bonhoeffer wrote, ‘It is not for us to prophecy the day when people will ask God that the world be changed and renewed. But when that day arrives there will be a new language, perhaps quite non-religious’.
Movements such as Extinction Rebellion and other secular organisations have stolen the Church’s moral and ethical imperatives and have developed a new language to express Gospel ideas. We need to follow their example.
End the sexuality debate – it has played into the hands of those who want to marginalise us, and has got completely out of proportion. Amos 5 reminds us that there is much more in the Bible about justice, and we need to put things into perspective.
Conclusion: Society needs Christianity, but we need to get the relevant, dynamic, challenging, engaging Christian story out there. What kind of Church might make that possible?
For reflection:
‘Christianity is blandly everywhere and therefore nowhere’ – is that a fair critique? Examples?
What might you add to or remove from the list of five areas of change?
‘There will be a new language, perhaps quite non-religious’. What might we learn from secular organisations in how to express and embody the Gospel?
Theology Everywhere 
The determined march towards Communism continues.
‘Good Lord, deliver us ….’
John Wesley must be turning in his grave!
‘Father, forgive them ….’
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Thank you for this… there’s much that resonates….though the journey from where we are to where God calls us to be (wherever that is) is not going to be an easy transition and not one which everyone can take at once. I think we do desperately need a renewed focus on Christian apologetics which finds common language and metaphor with those for whom the lexicon of Christianity is now completely foreign. Just returned from leading an assembly in an incredibly diverse primary school in Wolverhampton….an excellent exercise in finding appropriate language to express the heart of the gospel.
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Thank you for this, one of my favourite prayers in Iona’s Wee Worship Book prays that people can let go of the God they don’t believe in and meet the God who believes in them. I think much of that is echoed here, yes me need to engage with the edgy Jesus who we find working at the margins of our society, Jesus never claimed the center ground, nor imposed a hierarchical system upon the people, in fact he challenged it, we need to allow that challenge to challenge us afresh.
Yes we need to rethink our gatherings, as you and Rachel have said we need to rethink our language, who are we communicating with, though it discomforted him greatly I think we have a great mentor in Wesley here, what language would he borrow for our day?
Yes please an end to the sexuality debate, but remember those who still feel oppressed by it, those who bear wounds of being told again and again they are not enough, or just plain wrong and so unwelcome. It is a matter of justice… we cannot simply be silent!
The Christian story is fabulous, nuanced, challenging, deeply political and engaging, we need to tell our story properly!
This will require change, and change is hard.
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I’m wondering why my earlier comment has been deleted? Doesn’t justice and fairness mean everyone has a voice and a right to be heard? Was it a bit too ‘edgy’ and uncomfortable? Think of it as a little practice run for when you abandon your traditionalists and take to the streets. The secular world does not believe in God, so they are under no obligation to ‘love one another’ as we Christians are. Sarcasm and cynicism are all part of the banter. Forewarned is forearmed. Be careful out there!
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Thank you! What a relief to read substantive comments regarding matters I and many friends have struggled with for the past twenty years. Some friends, despite the difficulties have managed to remain on the fringes of church, but many have chosen to abandon Christianity because they were unable to relate the experiences of church with the reality of their every day lives and I fully appreciate the reasons for their choice. One aspect of faith that I feel may be overlooked is the question of ’to whom are we answerable?’ To God? To the ‘authority’ of the church? To the expectations of our own Christian fellowship? I believe we need to grow up, learn to take greater responsibility for our individual journeys with God, while continuing to have the humility to recognise our personal need to learn from other Jesus followers when that is appropriate.
As fallible human beings we learn as children of the importance of pleasing parents and other adults and it can be difficult to set aside the tendency to look for others to lead and guide us. In the political world we see repeated pattens of apparently powerful leaders, chosen because it is hoped they will over come problems and help to make the world a better place yet who repeatedly limit individual freedoms. There are no ‘one-size-fits-all’ political solutions. The only real change will come when we learn to contribute our informed personhood to honouring Jesus and promoting the well-being of others.
I will use the material ‘Remnant Church’ as a resource for personal prayer.
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With all due respect, I would like to express my concern at the antagonistic and highly offensive tone of this week’s article.
Anyone who publishes the words ‘Get rid of Jesus!’ on a church website is out to cause offence and stir up a reaction. Yes, you explained that you meant the blond-haired, blue-eyed image of Christ favoured by long dead artists, but to suggest that any of us believe in that image is an insult to our intelligence. In this day and age, no-one is in any doubt what a person born in Bethlehem might look like. We left the blue-eyed blond behind in primary school.
You say you want to get back to the ‘steely challenge of the real Jesus’. Is that the Jesus who said “go and sell all you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in Heaven.” So, what’s stopping you?
If you are really so sick and tired of traditional church, its worshippers, its religious language, and all it stands for, might I suggest my own five point plan for change:
For decades now, preachers have been telling us to step out of our comfort zones; maybe the time has come to heed your own words and step out of the very comfortable lives and livelihoods which the church that you despise so much has afforded you.
I hope this comment will be allowed to be published. It is grossly unfair to provoke such strong emotions in someone and not give them a chance to respond.
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Today at Mass our priest gave us a moment of silent prayer to think about what we would like the Lord to do for us.
I asked the Lord to take away my antagonistic spirit.
I am by nature a quiet, gentle, caring soul. When my soul is untroubled and my feathers unruffled, I can be my best self. But when provoked, I bite back.
We do not all need to be ‘challenged’ (which, when you think about it, can be a polite way of saying ‘manipulated’ or even ‘bullied’.)
The progressives in the church should take note. You don’t need to kill off your grandparents in order to encourage your youngsters.
In the Kingdom of God, there is a place for everyone.
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