Church Responses to Culture since 1985

Abstract

The church has been in the grips of deep cultural change over the past twenty years. The long-term decline of older denominations has continued but the churches have made a series of responses. In the 1980s the Church Growth movement generated optimism. In the 1990s Church Health and the dynamic megachurch movement dominated the scene. The Emerging Church movement is stirring interest in the 2000s. The contrasts between the British and American versions of the Emerging Church are instructive. In all of this it remains clear that the West is one of the most significance missionary challenges the church has ever faced.