The Surprising Revival of the Church in the West
Former "New Atheists" and many Deconstructed are fueling adaptations in the Church to address the challenges of Modernity and Beyond
I've been doing "thief in the night" livestreams lately. I call them that because I come unannounced into the Discord server and see what mix of randos I can find and what kind of conversation we can generate.
One guy who I spoke with a couple of years ago who used to be an angry atheist shared how he was joining the Coptic church in the UK and wanted to talk about all the interest in Orthodoxy. Hence the meme I made.
He also had some strong opinions about music. He felt that he had used music pornographically in the past and appreciated the restraint shown in the Eastern churches he was in the process of joining.
The conversation that ensued about music was quite profound. @PaulAnleitner once quipped to me that music WAS the sacrament in some of his former churches. I noted that I think in many megachurches music functions as sort of a psychedelic. Sam noted a number of Protestant traditions where instead of visual arts music is the predominant art form and its boundaries are guarded.
Discussion shifted back to the main topic. One commenter wondered if in some ways the embrace of Orthodoxy was sociologically parallel to the attempts to embrace ancient paganisms. @PageauJonathan comment on that is important.
I do wonder if the current infatuation with Orthodoxy will be a passing phase for many or if it will lead to a lasting commitment. I suspect some of both. I also wonder how these new converts will change the Orthodox churches in the West.
I wonder if we're going to see a major sea change for churches in the West possibly into some ancient/new amalgams of various traditions with unique adaptations to address the challenges the church faces today. I hope so.
I am encouraged by what I see happening all around me. I think we are in the cusp of seeing an exciting new revival of the church in the West in many unexpected ways and places. The Orthodox are certainly playing their part.
Looking through the bifurcation of religious affiliation is a problem I would argue. Christianity has a long tradition of incorporating truth wherever they find it. Unfortunately in today's world there is probably is no way around it... Orthodoxy is perhaps the only Christianity that has the history and tradition of incorporating new ideas without losing itself to modernity... We will see if our other brothers and sisters have the capacity. Regardless it's not a quick process and only time will tell...
I think nearly all institutions are moving towards an integration rather than bifurcation of embodied practice and propositional truth. I think orthodoxy has traditionally been very good at the former which accounts for its attractiveness to jaded rationalists, both Christian and non-Christian. In the spirit of integration however, the Orthodox tradition will I believe become more propositionally oriented over time. Not to the exclusion of its rich tradition, but including it. Both/And style.
By contrast I think western traditions that have been more propositionally oriented will begin to integrate embodied practice more deliberately. We will see enriched liturgy and a return to mysticism in protestant and Roman Catholic churches.
I think all of these movements are VERY GOOD THINGS. I'm excited to see where God is taking us.