Seeking a creative Christian response to a crumbling UK society

The Rising Tide of Anti-Christian Attacks in Europe

What will the ‘new normal’ be for churches?

We must face the truth about Islam.

How are Christians to understand the merciless slaughter of those who were celebrating the Risen Christ in churches last Sunday? Is there anything in the Bible that leads us to an understanding of what is happening in our world today? We will come to this in just a moment - but first look at how the events have been reported.

The terrible attacks on Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka are still very much in our minds, but it is notable how quickly they disappeared from the Western media or were relegated to personal stories of those who lost family members. It took a long time for major news agencies to report that those who were responsible for these terrorist attacks were Islamic fanatics – NTJ (National Thowheeth Jama’ath) - and our leaders and reporters have generally been reluctant to call the attacks what they were: Muslims attacking Christians.¹

Getting the Balance Right

By contrast, the Western media maintained focus for many days upon the Christchurch mosque murders carried out by a white Australian. He was heavily denounced as a white supremacist whose views were not representative of any mainstream Western institutions.

Photo: Alan Hamilton

The Prime Minister of New Zealand went to great lengths to identify herself with Muslims, declaring how she had abandoned her Mormon religion because of their narrow views.

Churches across the Western world also went out of their way to declare their love for their Muslim friends and neighbours. Churches in Luton still have posters such as that to the right in front of their buildings.

Our leaders and reporters have generally been reluctant to call the attacks what they were: Muslims attacking Christians.

Of course, it is right that we should love our neighbours, including those who hate us. The teaching of Jesus is unequivocal – “You have heard that it was said, ‘love your neighbour and hate your enemy’. But I tell you love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matt 5:43-44). But this does not mean that we should be unaware of the dangers that face us in the modern world as we try to live our lives in accordance with Kingdom values, rather than those values forced upon us by our secular humanist politicians.

The fact of the matter is this: despite the heavy focus in our media and culture on Islamophobia, Christians remain the most persecuted religious group² – and the vast majority of the persecution they face comes from the Muslim world.

Avoiding the Truth

Yet, Western political leaders will go to any lengths to avoid criticism of Islam. The British Government downplayed criticism of Saudi Arabia’s mass beheading of 37 members of the Shia minority this week, probably to protect oil interests. The Western mainstream media regularly portray Muslims as the victims rather than the aggressors.

They avoid the simple truth that suicide bombers who indiscriminately slaughter Christians and any others who may be around them are carrying out the commands of Muhammad in the Qur’an, who tells them in numerous places to kill ‘infidels’, especially Christians and Jews.

Young Muslims are brainwashed with this teaching by fanatical imams who quote passages in the Qur’an such as Surah 9:111 and tell them that they go straight to paradise if they lose their lives by killing Christians. Such a promise is attractive to young people growing up in poverty who see little prospect of improving their life chances, but the Sri Lanka bombers are reported to come from wealthy, middle-class families. Their hatred obviously goes much deeper.

Western political leaders will go to any lengths to avoid criticism of Islam.

Christians are facing danger in every part of the world, because these beliefs are fundamental to Islam. They are not just the beliefs of a small fanatical minority; they are the teaching of the founder of Islam and are inseparable from the religion and its texts.

It is, of course, a fact that most Muslims choose to ignore the jihad passages in the Qur’an and live their lives peacefully, accepting Jewish and Christian neighbours and business associates. But until the Muslim scholars and imams declare that the jihad teaching is no longer valid for today, all Muslim communities potentially present a risk.

Persecution Foretold

How should Christians understand what is happening in the world today? Regular readers of Prophecy Today UK will be familiar with the prophecy in Haggai 2 that speaks of God shaking all the nations and even the natural environment. We are certainly seeing evidence of that today.

The next book in the Bible is Zechariah, who was a contemporary of Haggai. He had a vision of four horses sent from Heaven and going throughout the earth. That vision was picked up by John in the revelation given to him when in exile on the island of Patmos.

John foresaw a time coming upon the earth when there would be great turmoil, warfare, famine, disease and death. The fourth horse of the Apocalypse was a pale horse that brought a spirit of death that would lead to a time of great persecution of Christians with an increase of martyrdom – many being killed for their faith in Jesus.

Blessed Assurance

The 20^th Century was the bloodiest in the history of humankind, with more people dying in warfare and political upheavals than at any previous time. But what we are seeing in the 21^st Century is not so much open warfare as political, economic and social upheaval bringing enormous uncertainty, instability and fear for the future.

Cyber-attacks, terrorist bombs, vast changes in technology mixed with economic volatility, political corruption and social upheavals have created a climate of chaos and confusion. Changes in the weather and reports that the future of the earth is threatened by climate change add to the general sense of unease in the world.

On the island of Patmos, John foresaw a time of great persecution of Christians with an increase in martyrdom.

But God has sent us forewarning of these times, which will intensify as we get nearer to the return of the Lord Jesus. The message in the Book of Revelation is one of woe to the great city of Babylon with its wealth, power and corruption that human beings love. But for Christians there is the firm assurance that believers in Jesus will never be separated from him in life or death and that God’s good purposes will triumph over evil in the end, when there will be great rejoicing in Heaven as the multitude of believers join in singing ‘Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns!’

Yes, we can expect plenty of difficulties ahead for Christians: but the firm promise of God is that “nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 8:39).

References

1 E.g. see articles from Maajid Nawaz at LBC and Rod Liddle for The Spectator (£).

2 According to figures from the Pew Research Centre. Read more here. Open Doors estimates that violent attacks on Christians doubled between 2017 and 2018.

What’s the spiritual significance of the Notre Dame fire?

The newspapers have been full of accounts of the blaze that was within half an hour of destroying the whole structure, and several have even mentioned divine intervention to save the building. But has anyone asked the question, “Is God saying anything to France through this fire?”

The inferno at Notre Dame was horrible to watch on television. Certainly, my heart went out to the Parisian crowds standing in silent disbelief, some weeping in the streets, others too numb even to weep. Their iconic monument that symbolised the city and held hundreds of years of history was being destroyed and they were powerless to help. But I could not help wondering if the crowds were mourning the loss of a national place of prayer, or just an historic monument.

When any national disaster takes place, it is always right to seek if God is conveying something important to the nation, which in biblical terms is a ‘sign’. A good example is the way Jesus dealt with a tragedy that had shaken the whole of Jerusalem when the Tower of Siloam collapsed, killing 18 people (Luke 13:4).

I did not hear any of the clergy or political leaders in Paris speaking of the spiritual significance of the fire: if I missed some important statement I will gladly apologise. But the most outstanding comment I heard was President Macron’s determination to rebuild the burnt-out structure and restore the building to its former glory.

Of course this is laudable, but it surely misses the significance of this event which is clearly in the context of God shaking the nations. I believe God is sending a warning shot to France that they are in grave danger of losing the spiritual soul of the nation. They need to see this fire in the context of what is happening to churches all over France, where two church buildings a day are being attacked by various forms of vandalism or arson, reportedly carried out by Muslims who are attempting to wipe out Christianity in France.¹

When any national disaster takes place, it is always right to seek if God is conveying something important to the nation.

The Church Under Attack

Last month, the 800-year-old Basilica of Saint-Denis, a Paris suburb now mainly occupied by Muslim immigrants, was heavily vandalised with considerable damage to the organ and stained-glass windows. The alleged perpetrator, identified by his DNA left on the altar, is currently before the courts. He is said to be a Pakistani immigrant who speaks no French and has only been in the country two months.² This is reported to be his third offence.

A report from the Central Criminal Intelligence Service of the French police, according to Le Figaro, says that between 2016 and 2018 there have been thousands of cases of church vandalism in France, with 1,045 cases in 2017. In 2018, the Ministry of the Interior recorded 541 anti-Semitic acts, 100 anti-Muslim acts and 1,063 anti-Christian acts.³

France is said to have the greatest amount of anti-Semitic activity in Europe, with gangs desecrating Jewish cemeteries and synagogues: but the desecration of churches is outstripping other forms of vandalism. The Catholic hierarchy has kept silent about these episodes, not wishing to give publicity that might encourage copycat action. In any case, the Church has enough trouble on its hands dealing with the revelations of clergy sex abuse and a chronic shortage of priests.

The politicians also don’t want to speak about the anti-Christian attacks: they fear being dubbed Islamophobic by the left, or stirring more anti-immigrant sentiment on the right. They also have enough problems on their hands with the Yellow Vest protests and the rising level of street violence, as anti-establishment populist sentiment grows across France.

The Church has been a stabilising influence in the country for many hundreds of years - until recently, when there has been a catastrophic fall in church attendance. The question now is: will the Notre Dame fire spark a resurgence of faith, a return to prayer and support for the Church, or will the issue quickly be forgotten and the protesters soon be back on the streets?

I believe God is sending a warning shot to France that they are in grave danger of losing the spiritual soul of the nation.

Revolution or Reformation?

France has had its fair share of political upheavals and revolutions, its Joans of Arc and its Napoleons, but it has never had the equivalent of Germany’s Martin Luther or Switzerland’s John Calvin. Perhaps what is most needed in France today is a Protestant Reformation breathe new life into the Church - a resurgence of the 16^th Century Huguenots (who were persecuted and eventually expelled), to bring a fresh Bible-based reformation to restore the soul of the nation.

References

1 Read more at the Gatestone Institute.

2 Pakistani Migrant Faces Trial for Smashing Historic Church Holding Tombs of French Kings. Breitbart, 16 April 2019.

3 Statistics as reported by The Times.

Philadelphian believers were weak but faithful.

“To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Although Philadelphia was the least distinguished of all the cities visited by John and reported in Revelation 3, the name is now better known as that of a leading city in the USA.

Philadelphia in the USA played a significant role in the American Revolution as a meeting place for the Founding Fathers of the United States, who signed the Declaration of Independence there in 1776 and the Constitution in 1787.

It served as the temporary capital of the United States (1790–1800) while the Federal City, Washington, was under construction in the District of Columbia. Its foundation had strong Quaker origins, having been built on land granted by Charles II in repayment of a debt to William Penn. Friendly negotiations with the Indian tribes living there gave rise to the name, which is Greek for brotherly love (from philos, ‘love’ or ‘friendship’, and adelphos, ‘brother’), which links it with its less spectacular biblical counterpart.

The ancient Philadelphia was established in 189 BC by King Eumenes II of Pergamon (197-160 BC) and was named in the love of his brother, who would be his successor, Attalus II (159-138 BC).

‘Philadelphia’ is Greek for brotherly love, from ‘philos’ (love or friendship) and ‘adelphos’ (brother).

Background: Philadelphia Then and Now

Ancient Philadelphia is now called Alesihir in modern-day Turkey. It was never to attain greatness in worldly terms as it was off the normal trade routes, although it was on a pass to the Eastern cities of Asia Minor. Thus it was often seen as an outpost of the Empire of the time - being dubbed a ‘missionary city’ with “open doors that would never be shut”.

At the time of the writing of the letters in Revelation there would have been around 500 Christian churches or fellowships in the whole area – but the Gospel had not spread far beyond Philadelphia so there was still great potential there.

The city was in the centre of an earthquake region and had suffered many quakes, including the great ones of AD 17 and AD 23 after which it was re-built with a grant from Rome. The main buildings were built to survive and the City Hall, with the remains of four of its great pillars, had become a centre of Christianity by the 4^th Century – in fact it still is intact; the city is a strong centre of Orthodox Christianity and remains a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church.

When we have been to this city on a tour of the ‘Seven Churches’, visitors could see the four massive pillars that remain on this site and experience the friendly nature of the current inhabitants. Children crowd around the tourist coaches eager to display their newly learned English from school, to share details of their lives and their desire to become penfriends. Even today there is an ‘open door’!

The Message!

The words from Jesus’ message to the Philadelphians can have great meaning for us today.

Some historians have tried to liken the seven different messages to the Revelation churches to seven eras in the Church’s overall development. They have equated the letter to Philadelphia with the great European missionary movements of the 18^th and 19^th Centuries, as they saw it as having a special message for those in this era who were fulfilling the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20:

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

The message, though, can have continuing significance today to ensure that the Church continues to have this Commission at the centre of its outreach.

Philadelphia, now modern Alesihir, was never to attain greatness in worldly terms – but was and remains a strong centre of Christianity.

The opening salutation in the letter differs from the others – as it does not come using words from John’s opening chapter of Revelation with its powerful description of God. It comes instead from 1 John 5:20 where Jesus is described as the One who is true and who also has the ‘key of David’ (Isa 22:22). Keys are symbolic in opening up hidden secrets in our understanding - whether they are mysteries of God (Job 11:7), or mysteries that have been entrusted to us as servants of Christ (1 Cor 4:1), or mysteries requiring further revelation, as in the deep truths of the Kingdom taught by Jesus.

This message, along with the message to Smyrna, are the only two in which there are no rebukes and there does not seem to be anything that is not pleasing to God. But there are warnings: this small community would not be immune from the time of persecution coming on Christians throughout the Roman Empire. But members of this little fellowship were not to be fearful as they would be kept through these days – they would not be spared the trials and times of suffering and persecution, but would be given the strength to hold firm – no-one would be able to take the crown of life away from them.

Weak but Faithful

There are many other gems and words of encouragement in this letter that can help us in today’s world. Unusually, the words “I know your deeds” are followed by a list of commendable factors but which also includes the recognition that “you have little strength”. In fact, an understanding of our dependence on God’s strength and not on our own, could be an essential part of any strategy for real growth to take place.

The message is not promising untroubled times: obviously, just as the Philadelphians experienced unexpected (and unwarranted?) persecution from those who were nearest to them in beliefs (the Jews), so we too can expect opposition – but if we stay firm and endure patiently, our future is assured.

Though this little fellowship would not be spared trials and times of suffering, they would be given the strength to hold firm.

We are to hold on to the faith that we have, so that we will become pillars that survive the test of time and will be a support to others. We are told that “I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem…and I will also write on them my new name” (Rev 3:13). We will indeed become ‘Ambassadors’ for Christ!

Even those who have been against us will in the last days recognise the truth of God’s word. “They will acknowledge that I have loved you” – they will see God’s love for themselves.
The message to the ‘overcomers’ in each of the letters is significant. The Messiah is coming soon; if we hold onto our faith we will not lose the crown waiting for us and we will be established so firmly that we will be like pillars in the Kingdom of God.

Timeless Truths

The message to the church in Philadelphia is timeless. God has not changed. He is as powerful today as he was in the 1st Century AD and the mission he gave to his Church then is unchanged today. As we noted in our guidebook Ephesus to Laodicea, written with our prayer partners some 12 years ago: “It is still the Great Commission to take his Word to the world, to turn darkness into light, to release the captives, to set the prisoner free and to release his love into a war-torn world that believes it is only the might of human arms can solve the problems of our humanity" (p93).

The message to each one of us continues to be that God empowers the weak, and he takes the things that seem foolish in the eyes of the world and uses them to work out his purposes.

Even though we may be weak, may we be faithful – and live up to the Philadelphian slogan ‘Open All Hours - we are never closed’.

Click here to read the rest of the articles in this series.

Our third instalment on 'Changing Britain' looks at patterns of church openings and closures around the country. Following the statistics is a comment from Monica Hill.

Churches - Openings and Closures

Re-printed from Brierley Consultancy's FutureFirst, June 2014 issue, with kind permission.

As the map indicates there have been more openings of churches than closures in the 30 years since 1989 in the West Midlands and the South East of England, and the reverse elsewhere.

There have been almost 2,900 new churches started between 2010 and 2015 in England, or about 600 a year, three new churches every two days! It is also true that churches close. Over the last 5 years, 1,400 churches have closed altogether, or four every three days, leaving a net growth of some 1,500 churches in the 5 years to 2015.

Where are these extra newly-started churches? The number varies by region, but there are some in every part of the country:

170 in the North                                 170 in East Anglia
200 in the Yorkshires                         370 in South East North
270 in the North West                       410 in Greater London
250 in the East Midlands                   330 in South East South
370 in the West Midlands                  320 in the South West

These new churches are mostly one of three kinds:

• New congregations started by some of the New Church streams (such as Vineyard, Newfrontiers, Ground Level or Salt and Light).
• Fresh Expressions of churches, which are often Church of England (which has 900 across England) or Methodist (which has 800), but might also be Baptist or Salvation Army.
• Black Majority Churches, especially if they are in London where some 400 such churches started between 2005 and 2012. Catholic chaplaincy churches are also important in the capital.

Invariably these fresh congregations have good community links, which is where much of their support comes from. All three groups given above are beginning new church "plants", not trying to revive small or declining churches, or particularly trying to grow existing congregations. Nearly all are lay-led initially (although half of Fresh Expressions are led by an ordained person). Theological conviction is the main motivation for starting these churches; most of these new churches are evangelical. Different ethnicities are also involved.

Questions: Are the established forms of churches now becoming outmoded? Should scarce resources be mainly allocated to these new models?

Source: UK Church Statistics, No 2, 2010-2010, ADBC Publishers, Tonbridge, Kent, 2014.

Topical Comment

Monica Hill

This research finding on the planting of new churches may initially seem to be good news, at a time when we hear of so many of the traditional denominations closing down churches and meeting places where numbers have declined below an economic level.

The number of churches in England (40,300) remains the same in 2015 as it was in 1979. But the shape and location of them has changed somewhat. Many of the new church plants have not re-used traditional buildings but created or hired new ones often more suited to the task. There are also many which have started again as the early church did and are meeting in houses.

Redundant Church Buildings

Selling older redundant buildings to fund fresh outreach in other areas has often seemed a natural and valid outcome and a good idea showing good stewardship. There was a time when the closure of church buildings was rationalised as using the money 'to plant churches where the people are'. There was almost a blind spot to the need for continued mission to meet the needs of newcomers to the area (or perhaps a lack of people with a vision). So those areas which already had plenty of churches often received more – not quite the intended interpretation of the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25!

Where is the Growth?

Not all areas of the country are benefiting from these closures and sales. Both the North and the South West have been closing between 300 and 400 more churches than are being opened in those areas in this time period.

Neither has growth been consistent over time. There was specific growth bursts between 1995 and 2000 and between 2010 and 2015, but there were also periods of decline between 2000 and 2005 and further decline is expected in the period between 2015 and 2020 unless this can be averted in some way.

But there are three kinds of growth identified:

1. Immigrant churches, particularly those from Africa, sparked off the earlier growth wave. The Redeemed Christian Church of God started as a 'reverse mission' movement, and it now has some of the largest churches in the country and is gradually moving beyond its Nigerian base. Prior to this, there had also been national churches created following World War II – for instance when there were sufficient Poles in Britain to warrant a church presence, or after the influx of West Indian economic refugees in the 60s and 70s. But these churches were each created from a very different base – and the latter are no longer growing at the rate of their initial expansion in the 1960s and '70s.
2. The traditional denominational churches have been experimenting with Fresh Expressions in the last ten years. Anglicans and Methodists have been particularly successful and these have increased six-fold in the last 5 years. 41% attend from outside the church with a further 35% coming back to church – overall 95,000 were attending these kinds of church in 2015. Attendance at 'Messy Church' showed the greatest increase with its emphasis upon fun, fellowship, food and families in a welcoming, worshipful environment. Although many of these are within existing churches an increasing number are in different venues and are led by lay people.
3. The new independent church streams (known as the 'New Churches') commenced in the 70s, grew eight-fold in the 80s and then doubled in the 90s with an increasing number of newer streams continuing to be created. They have concentrated upon neighbourhood, community and family concepts and many of the fully independent churches eventually link with others to form a stronger base.

The Bad News

Overall churches are getting smaller as the size of most congregations is reducing (on average by 37%), with a number of regions losing more than half the number of Christians attending places of worship. Death (or 'passing on into glory') without replacement by younger people accounts for much of this membership reduction as the attendees get older. But there are also an increasing number of older people who are becoming disillusioned or leaving, although a number do continue to practise their faith in small groups.

In 1989, UK Church Statistics estimated total church attendance in England as 4,186,000. By 2012 this number had dropped to 3,018,600 and is likely to drop to 2,708,700 by 2020.

Methodists have seen more than half (48%) of their churches close during this period, but they are still expected to have more than 3,500 churches in 2020. The Anglicans have closed over 1,000 churches (that is one in every ten days), but church building closures are more difficult because of their links with the state, so they will still have over 16,000. The URC are closing nearly two a week and the Catholics one a week.

So what of the future?

• Can we learn anything from this information on the future shape of Christianity in this country?
• When you pray about the situation do you get any answers you can share with others?
• Is God answering the prayers of his people by giving them a challenge?
• Are the remnant listening and responding in the right way by becoming mobilised and taking action before anno domini takes over?

Please add your comments.

Previous instalments:

The Rise of Secularism: YES, I have NO religion!

Transmitting the Faith