Russell Moore asks “Where have all the Presbyterians gone?”

Dr. Moore, one of my favorite guys to read, asks that question in his essay of the same name in this morning’s Wall Street Journal, Where Have All the Presbyterians Gone? . As Dr. Moore points out, fewer Christians or at least church attenders are strongly affiliated with a particular denomination. You don’t have to look very hard to see that many churches are abandoning the denominational label in their church name in favor of something more vague.

I think this is a good thing. I used to be a staunch defender of denominations (at least Baptist ones) but as I have been working through the Biblical doctrines of the church, I see denominations as unhelpful, unbiblical and divisive to the Body. As I have written before, a person who is serious about their faith who moves into a new area can eliminate many church gatherings simply by their denomination. I have never been to a Methodist church service, or a Pentecostal or Anglican or Lutheran. I have been to lots of Baptist churches, a few Plymouth Brethren gatherings, a Presbyterian service or two and recently some Mennonite and Anabaptist groups. Denominations let me pick and choose only like minded believers to fellowship with and make it very easy to wear doctrinal blinders. That is unhealthy.

On the other hand, I don’t think that what is filling in the void is helpful and I think Dr. Moore is right when he says:

More and more Christians choose a church not on the basis of its denomination, but on the basis of more practical matters. Is the nursery easy to find? Do I like the music? Are there support groups for those grappling with addiction?

Church has become, for many people, a place to get your religious fix for the week and people want it is as smooth and quick as possible. Show me a church gathering where you are there for three hours, with your kids the whole time, and that sounds like a horror show to many church goers. We like plenty of seating, kids in the nursery or “children’s church”, an upbeat service and a good sermon. The last thing we want is someone to stray over the one hour mark, if he does he starts to see the exaggerated “look at my watch slowly after raising it above my head and loudly sighing” to indicate the service has gone on too long.

Dr. Moore closes with this…

If denominationalism simply denotes a "brand" vying for market share, then let denominationalism fall. But many of us believe denominations can represent fidelity to living traditions of local congregations that care about what Jesus cared about—personal conversion, discipleship, mission and community. Perhaps the denominational era has just begun.

I believe that is wishful thinking from the dean of a denominational seminary. As I look ahead to the future of Christianity in America, I see the church under siege and many nominal attenders deciding to stop attending in favor of some other activity. We will come to a point where denomination simply won’t matter and I for one look forward to that day!