The Future of Christianity

ISBN-13: 9780631228158 / Angielski / Miękka / 2002 / 192 str.

Alister E. McGrath

Opis

Christianity is the world's largest religious grouping. It has undergone massive change in the twentieth century, and seems poised to undergo major transformations in the next. In this important and timely book, one of Christianity's most prolific and respected writers examines these changes, and their implications for the future.

Recenzje

"This is a stimulating book...there is fuel here, especially for those few Anglicans left who are interested in managing more than their own demise." Third Way <!––end––>

"[A] stimulating overview of its [Christianity′s] global potential at the dawn of the twenty–first century. With a critical yet sympathetic eye, McGrath explores questions confronting world Christianity entering its third millenium. McGrath is provocative and substantive." Christian Week

"McGrath′s easy writing style...makes this reader a useful tool to the interested layman in thinking through future issues. Neither rosy–eyed nor pessimistic, it does, however, provide food for thought. Another excellent title from one of the Church′s leading thinkers and academics." Church of England Newspaper

"Readable and accessible, this significant book should be included in libraries with collections in religion and Christianity." Choice

"Alister McGrath brings scholarship to the pews in digestible bites...This is a book that needs to be read and talked about." The Gospel and Our Culture

"[T]his is an important and serious study, which addresses a very large number of the most crucial developments in Christianity today." Theology

"Simply–written, yet nuanced; well–informed and global, yet highly engaging." Future Survey

"[T]his succinct, accessible assessment by Alister E. McGrath...examines "trends that can be discerned within global Christianity"." Overseas Ministries Study Centre

"When a thinker of such note decides to speak on the "future of Christianity" it is wise for anyone interested in the Christian tradition to give a listen." Journal of Religion

"It addresses the right issues, and does so in an interesting and stimulating manner." Colloquium

"The book gives a good overview of this crisis and should be read by all who are interested in the future of Christianity." Izak Spangenberg, University of South Africa, Religion and Theology

Spis treści

Preface.

1. The Twentieth Century: Challenges and Failures in the West.

Catastrophe: The Armenian Genocide.

Stalinism: The Enforcement of Atheism.

The Nazi Crisis: The Failure of "Culture Protestantism".

The 1960s: A Crisis of Confidence.

2. The Transformation of Religion: The Reshaping of Christianity.

Globalization of Christianity.

Decline in Western Europe.

The Remarkable Case of Korea.

Resurgence in Africa.

Transformation in Latin America.

3. New Ways of Being Church: Trends for the Future in the West.

The Death of the Western Denomination?.

The Marketing of Christianity.

The McDonaldization of Christianity.

The Community Church.

Willow Creek.

The Cell Church.

A Community in Exile.

4. Challenges: Some Future Issues.

The Threat of Fundamentalism.

The New Faultlines: Islam and Christianity.

The Future of Ecumenism.

The Language of the Faith.

5. The Christianity of the Future: A Tentative Overview.

Is there a future for Protestant denominations in the west?.

Roman Catholicism.

Pentecostalism.

Evangelicalism.

Eastern Orthodoxy.

6. The Two Nations: The Disillusionment with Academic Theology.

A Case in Point: Biblical Studies.

The Marginalization of Theology.

The Longing for Spiritual Authenticity.

"Academic" Theology is Western Theology.

A Strategy for Recovery: The Organic Intellectual.

Web Sites relating to this work

O autorze

Alister E. McGrath is Professor of Historical Theology, University of Oxford, and Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Among his many Blackwell textbooks are Christian Theology: An Introduction (third edition), The Christian Theology Reader (second edition), An Introduction to Christianity, Historical Theology, and Reformation Thought (third edition).

Blurb

Christianity is the world′s largest religious grouping. It underwent massive change in the twentieth century, and seems poised to undergo major transformations in the next. In this important and timely book, one of Christianity′s most prolific and respected writers examines these changes, and their implications for the future. Will Christianity survive? And if so, in what forms? And what might its impact be upon culture? How does its past affect its future? What does the future hold for the various types of Christianity?

This witty yet highly informed book deals with issues such as the crisis in confidence within western Christianity, the impact of postmodernity on Christianity, and the shift in numerical strength from the west to Africa and Asia. It questions whether traditional Protestant denominations are likely to survive in their present form, and charts the rise of various forms of post–denominational Christianity. It explores the impact of a consumer culture on western Christianity, and the changes this has brought about in approaches to evangelism and church growth. Finally, the work documents the gulf that has opened up between academic theology and the life of the church, and offers a penetration Gramscian analysis of how this situation has arisen, and what can be done to remedy it.

Accessibly written, this book will be essential reading for students, academics and general readers interested in religion, Christianity, postmodern theology, and the key controversies in current Christian thinking.