The declining numbers of avowed Christians
A recent survey, carried out by a team from Lancaster University in England, showed that the number of people who consider themselves non-religious is rising with each generation. Among the over-60s of all races, there are nearly twice as many Christians as non-religious respondents (classified as ‘nones’). The numbers are equal for those aged between 40 and 59; and for the under-40s there are nearly twice as many ‘nones’ (56 per cent) as Christians (31 per cent). The survey of 1,500 people indicates a significant rise in the number of ‘nones’ since 2013, when they represented 37% per cent of respondents. These statistics are similar to those in the United States.
Given the decline in numbers of church goers, it is critical that we return to the mindset of the Ancient Church, and becoming evangelists for the Orthodox Faith. Complacency with our declining numbers will end in disaster, with churches closing for lack of people, and lack of funds to keep the doors open, and keep up with the needed repairs of our temples.
Our dedication to the faith, together with a willingness to give witness to our love for Christ, can have a huge impact on those around us. If our love of the Saviour translates into love of our neighbors, those around us will see that our God is real, and that our Orthodox faith is truly a way of life that actually transforms those who have joined themselves to the Church. When people see that we are filled with joyous living and not judging others, they in turn will want what we have. The Pearl of Great Price can be theirs as well, but they have to know about it.
We Orthodox Christians can be resigned to the declining statistics, and simply try to keep the repairs up and the doors to our temples open, or we can reach out with evangelical zeal, and share with the culture around us what the Church has to offer. The nihilism that rules as the philosophy of our time, where there is no hope, and where there is no meaning in all of this, must be replaced by those of us who have a relationship with Christ, and a knowledge that the Church, as a hospital of the soul, can dispel the darkness that has overtaken our Western World.
We cannot sit by as though our Orthodox Church is an ethnic club, where outsiders are to be kept at bay, but must reach out to the secular world, and usher in the Light of Christ, and dispel the darkness. The Church has the power to replace the atheism, nihilism, and materialism, that has overtaken our world, but this requires active outreach. The doors of our temples may be unlocked during the services, but the people walking by must be invited in.
All church intrigue, jealously, ladder climbing, church politicking, and power grabbing, must be replaced by the love of Christ. Our bishops and priests must be willing to become humble servants to the world at large, in imitation of the humble Saviour whom we serve. We must resist the formalism and aloof image of stiff clericalism, that harkens back to a Medievalist mindset. We must celebrate the various gifts we all bring to Christ’s Church, be we teachers, preachers, theologians, evangelists, authors, choir directors, or whatever, and celebrate the fact that we all desire to serve Christ with a sincerity of spirit, and a love of souls. If we do this, the world will see the love we Christians have to share. But if we continue to give ourselves over to pride, arrogance, power, and control, the world will turn away in ever greater numbers, and the Church will become but a memory.
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Photos: This beautiful tapestry was gifted to the monastery by Father Deacon James and Diakonissa Anna Bryant, of Saint Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church in Brier, WA., for our library. Our Norwegian Forest Cat, Hammi, loves the theme of books and the cat, that make up the design of the tapestry.
Monday January 18, 2016 / January 5, 2016
34th Week after Pentecost. Tone eight.
Fast. By Monastic Charter: Strict Fast (Bread, Vegetables, Fruits)
Eve of the Theophany (Kreshchenskyi Sochelnik).
Fast Day.
Martyrs Theopemptus, bishop of Nicomedia, and Theonas (303).
Venerable Syncletica of Alexandria (350).
New Hieromartyr Joseph and with him 37 Martyrs (1921).
Virgin-martyr Eugenia (1933).
New Hieromartyr Sergius priest (1934).
Martyr Matthew (1938).
Venerable Symeon of the Pskov Caves (1960).
Prophet Micah (9th c. B.C.).
Venerable Apollinaris of Egypt (470).
Sts. Phosterius the Hermit and Menas of Sinai (6th c.).
Venerable Gregory of Crete, monk (820).
Martyr Theoidus.
Martyr Sais.
St. Tatiana.
New Monk-martyr Romanus of Carpenision, who suffered at Constantinople(1694).
New Hieromartyr Romanus of Lacedaemonia (1695).
St. Menas of Sinai (6th c.).
Translation of the relicts of St. Rumon, bishop, to Tavistock.
Scripture Readings
1 Corinthians 9:19-27
Serving All Men
19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; 20 and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; 21 to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ, that I might win those who are without law; 22 to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23 Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you.
Striving for a Crown
24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
Luke 3:1-18
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
3 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests,[a] the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying:
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.
5 Every valley shall be filled
And every mountain and hill brought low;
The crooked places shall be made straight
And the rough ways smooth;
6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”
John Preaches to the People
7 Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 So the people asked him, saying, “What shall we do then?”
11 He answered and said to them, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.”
12 Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”
13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than what is appointed for you.”
14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?”
So he said to them, “Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.”
15 Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, 16 John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
18 And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.
We are blessed to have many young people in our Church, Saint Elias Orthodox Church in Austin, TX.
Glory to God!
The problem I see is the lack of concern for our children in the faith. Sure, we have them baptized and they come to Liturgy once in a while, but that’s not enough. Then parents just simply give up and decide to let their children work it out on their own. I cannot tell you how many parents at my parish have children who are either agnostic, atheist or nominal. All of them decided to let their kids decide whether or not they should come to church. And all of these parents are cradle Orthodox. I’m not saying this never happens with converts, but the cradles either assume that the faith will just some how naturally be nurtured into them and come to realization of that later in life or they don’t care one way or the other. I have a feeling it’s more the latter than the former. When we don’t value our faith enough that we just make it an “option” for our children then we have truly lost.
Greek churches in this country have created an trend of festivals that take a lot of energy from worship and missionary work. This is a trend borrowed by a lot of other ethnic churches too. People from the neighborhood, or town, do not see the Orthodox Church, and they perceive it just like a place to buy baklava, or have a good lunch to smack the lips. Because they pay for the food there is no need for a prayer before and after eating it. The tours in the church are sources of entertainment on a full stomach.
On the other hand, also the Greeks have created a trend of building the multi-million dollar cathedral in a given city instead of two or three smaller churches properly located to be the magnet of the surrounding areas. Then the maintenance if a problem. Unfortunately, many other churches, like ours, not even having that kind of money, would like to follow this example, going straight into a large debt. Then, all the gimmicks to raise money would come along and that it is not missionary work either.
I know a Greek church that, for a bad planning, it has a large kitchen finished for the festival activities and they struggle, a lot, to finish the church. It is like worshiping the refrigerators, while half of the hall is separated in what it may look like a catacomb church.
I am surprised how the hierachs do not see this sad derailment from our mission and do not lead the flock in the right direction.
No wonder that in many of our churches like ours, except Sundays, the attendance to other services is pitiful. Many Orthodox who are the nowadays parents, forget that, it is not about dying as much as, falling in oblivion immediately after they pass away, because there will be no grandchildren to light up a candle for them. As Heraclit put it so well in writing – One is bearing, one’s fate…
Much of the above rings true…but also, at least North Americans, are no longer “joiners”. One can even have ethnic or language connections with a church, attend services, and still not want to be concretely a part of it. In the 1990s there was a kind of communitarian rhetoric that sought to reverse this tendency, but as with many things that bear the stench of a mere “program”, this backfires making “joining” even more off-putting.