The Reason Christianity is Dying in the West

[exnihilo]

One problem is often people raised in a faith don’t have the same passion for it that those who first converted to it. I think you can definitely see this with Protestantism, but it can be just as true for Catholics.

The early Protestants were insistent on particular beleifs. So some would insist only adults could be baptized. Others would say infants could be. Some would believe in the real presence. Others would insist that is vain superstition. These strong beleifs were the foundation of particular sects.

Generations later people know there is a wide range of opinion and they themselves aren’t committed to a particular view. For these people the solution to the divisions is that doctrine doesn’t matter. You end up with this vague notion of Jesus as a good moral teacher, because you can’t agree on much more. Unfortunately the Protestant ethos infects Catholics too since we encounter it in many countries.

 

[Athanasiy]

As it was mentioned in one thread, The Consumerism , as a consequence of a prosperous economy led to hedonism, and then to atheism. That is - atheism is a product of prosperity , not the cause. Also, you can’t erase a thousand/hundreds of years of Christian culture in one generation. Even if many churches are empty, “culturally” those people are still Christians, for now “nominal Christians” but there are people who consider themselves “Christians”.
Of course, spiritual awakening is necessary. There are youth meetings where there are attempts to awaken. There may be a necessity in modern John the Baptists, the prophets who denounce the sins of society, the structural sins.
Every Christian evangelizes at his level and in his place.

 

[1john418]

As it was mentioned in one thread, The Consumerism , as a consequence of a prosperous economy led to hedonism, and then to atheism. That is - atheism is a product of prosperity , not the cause.

Right. As our country developed, we adapted to a “better” quality of life. For example, look at our food supply. How much of the food we consume has been packaged, shelved, and set in our pantries, to be opened and consumed at a moment’s notice? My grandfather spent hours picking berries, be later cooked into a pie, then served at dinner. Now, we return home, slice open a packaged, processed, blueberry pie tart and receive instant gratification.

Once we lose the appreciation for the simple things, we start to lose our appreciation for the grander things. Personally, atheism doesn’t scare me so much as pick an de choose religions do. We craft our own ideas of who God is and that allows us ultimate freedom in applying the our religion to our lives.

 

[Athanasiy]

Many Western values and achievements today are a reference point for the devout Christian Eastern European countries.
People are ready to give(to sacrifice) their lives for these" Western " values.
Western achievements and successes are an example for many countries that seek to equal Western patterns and standards.
In Eastern countries, for example, many achievements in religiosity, but few achievements in science, in justice, in the improvement of society.
Not everything is so bad in fact, just from too good life people on the West began to forget about God.

 

[Athanasiy]

It seems to me that the competition of Christian denominations among themselves is not such a bad phenomenon.
Each denomination serves society in its own way, and activity and charisma as well as in business competition can go to the spiritual benefit.
In Eastern Europe, we have different denominations and each one succeeds in something.Someone knows how to denounce the “culture of death”(Catholic anti-abortionists) someone knows how to turn to Christ alcoholics and drug addicts, fallen people(pentecostal charismatic) someone does not preach, but give birth to many children and successful farmers(the evangelists of the old school)
I think there are many children of God, as in God’s consolation of a prophet who heard that there are many others who have not kneeled down before Baal.
But the fact that Christians should be mobilized in the" whole arms of God " is really a fact. There is a need of “spiritual awakening”!

 

[crenfro]

Hello.

I think Christianity is declining in the West because we practice no-fault divorce, contraception, abortion, fornication, and have lost a sense of sin about the sacredness of marriage. We want a spirituality that doesn’t interfere with what we want to do. I also think another reason is that people do not take the time to learn their faith. One of the biggest reasons is that we want to do what we want to do and do not ask and follow God’s will. We are all invested in our rationalizations to follow our self-will, and some of our lies to ourselves are quite elaborate. I also think many parents are poor examples to their children.

Just my opinion, since you asked …

 

[steve-b]

I think the reason Christianity is faltering in the West is because of its embrace of a modern, secular, amoral system:

It’s dropping one’s faith AND embracing erroneous thinking that is causing the faltering.

QContinuum:

capitalism. It, like communism, was the fruit of the Enlightenment. I base this on Matthew 6:21-24, and 1 Timothy 6:10.

Yet We don’t see people in socialist countries, breaking into another socialist country. They immigrate legally or illegally to free and capitalist countries. Socialism only works till they run outta money that those who have money no longer have it anymore.

QContinuum:

Until people see that Christians care more about God’s mission than defending their bank accounts, they will be seen as the fool who stored up his barn only to lose his life. And they will be summarily dismissed as fools.

I can’t understand how any Christian defends such a monstrous system It has led to Christians putting profit before God, and the result of that poor witness has been that society now also looks and depends upon material wealth as the answer to life’s problems.

Wealth is not evil. It’s love of wealth that is evil.

 

[Belina]

I just wanted to bring up the fact that Christianity is not dying EVERYWHERE in the West. There are major regional differences. For instance, I’ve read some news articles on both Catholic and non-Catholic sites that Catholicism is growing a lot in the Southern US states and in some parts of California. This is partly due to immigration from Catholic countries and migration from formerly Catholic regions of the US to the South, but there are also many conversions that take place. I have also seen anecdotal reports of some Catholics in the US who report that their parishes have standing room capacity at multiple Sunday Masses each weekend. They say that their church buildings are actually too small; there are plans to build bigger churches; they keep adding more Masses to accommodate the huge crowds, etc. Most of the Catholic parishes and schools you see in the USA closing are located in the Northeast and Midwest. Connecticut has it really bad, I hear.

As for other Christian denominations in the USA, the Evangelical, Pentecostal, and non-denominational Christians are experiencing growth, while the most of the mainline Protestants are experiencing declines in membership. The Eastern Orthodox Church appears to also be reporting a good number of conversions in many US locations.

Things are much worse in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and most of Europe, but even within these places, there is great variation. If I’m not mistaken, the Catholic Church is doing well in Poland, Lithuania, Croatia, and Slovakia. France has largely distanced itself from Catholicism, but from what I hear, the small number of practicing Catholics are actually very faithful and enthusiastic towards the faith. This is also somewhat true for Spain.

Ironically, in some of the least Catholic countries of Europe, I hear the Catholic populations in these countries are more faithful than some countries with large Catholic populations. For example, I read that Catholics in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Czech Republic, and small pockets in the UK and Netherlands are actually more likely to practice and care about the faith than the Catholics in some predominant Catholic countries. I think there will always be faithful Catholics (and other Christians) in most parts of the West; they will just be a small minority. So I don’t think Christianity is going to actually die or stop existing.

Even in the most secularized countries of Europe, many people will still marry in churches, have their children receive the sacraments (or at least baptism), and hold church funerals. For instance, I think 70-80% of the populations in Sweden, Finland, and Norway still do these things, even though they are known for being very irreligious countries. Another thing to keep in mind is that 50-90% of the populations in most Western countries still self-identify as Christian. So this shows that a large number of people still at least value Christianity as part of their cultural heritage, even if it’s not an important part of their daily lives. These percentages will drop in the future, of course, but I don’t think it would reach 0%.

 

[Belina]

In terms of actual Christians believing, practicing, and living the faith, I think those have always been in the minority. And I think the percentages will continue dropping. But remember, quality over quantity. We don’t just want a a bunch of people who are Christian in name only. We want more people who are genuinely converted and who truly want to live Christian lives. If it’s any consolation, the faithful families also tend to have more children, so it’s possible these children could go on to shape the future for the better. I’m trying to be realistic rather than overly optimistic or pessimistic. Whatever happens, let’s just trust God and pray harder. We need to a better job catechizing, evangelizing, witnessing, praying, and co-operating with God’s graces. Only then can we hope for a bright future for Christianity in the West.

 

[QContinuum]

Your simplistic view and disdain for capitalism is sorely misplaced. Capitalism has done more good in the world than any other economical or political form of governance.

It’s done as much evil. It is the logical outgrowth of secular materialism, an atheistic system.

The CC has a moral alternative, distributionism. You should stop defending the single most devastating weapon against your Church - fomenting the love of money via capitalism - and promote what the CC teaches.

I agree God has allowed the CC to be reduced, probably as chastisement for her choice of Mammon over God, himself. The CC isn’t alone - all Western Christianity is losing to the materialistic gospel.

 

[QContinuum]

You denying yourself the fullness of truth based on some political or economic point is only harming yourself.

I’m not denying myself anything. When the Church starts teaching against usury, and its handmaiden, capitalism, something no one else is teaching in Western Christianity, I will swim over.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Once again, you are denying yourself the reception of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, over some political/ economic issue you have with the Church. The fact that you cannot see this, and obviously think you are making some big stand for justice here, is quite sad. I will pray for you.

 

[QContinuum]

Once again, you are denying yourself the reception of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, over some political/ economic issue you have with the Church. The fact that you cannot see this, and obviously think you are making some big stand for justice here, is quite sad. I will pray for you.

No, I am not. I hold that I receive the Eucharist validly already in my church. You have your opinion, and I have mine. There is no “big stand of justice.” Only some Catholics who apparently don’t like when I called out the inconsistency of voting for a depraved person just to protect myself and my bank account.

I make no apologies for voting my conscience.

Thank you for the prayers though, I do appreciate those.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

No, I am not. I hold that I receive the Eucharist validly already in my church. You have your opinion, and I have mine. There is no “big stand of justice.” Only some Catholics who apparently don’t like when I called out the inconsistency of voting for a depraved person just to protect myself and my bank account.

There is no requirement as a Catholic to vote for any particular person. If you were told otherwise, you were misinformed.

Just curious, does your current church oppose capitalism or whatever, and what church might that be?

 

[QContinuum]

Just curious, does your current church oppose capitalism or whatever, and what church might that be?

I’m aware there’s no requirement to vote for a particular party or person. Are all Catholics aware of that?

My church is right there in my profile. Episcopal Church.

No, it does not oppose capitalism, anymore than any other Western church does. That lack is why I would favor the CC if she used her authority to condemn it with the same fervor she does communism.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

I’m really confused. You left the Catholic Church because it doesn’t oppose capitalism, to attend a different church that also doesn’t oppose capitalism?

I am having trouble following the logic of this choice.

 

[Damian]

People also don’t value mythology over demonstrated models of reality when asking about reality. They still value mythology, the same way we value other fiction novels. They help us have conversations about topics we are struggling with for becoming the person we want to become. Religion is dying out ever since we started sharing ideas that solve the same problems that religion attempted to address. Once we were able to read the holy texts for ourselves, to find meaning in other fictional books that address issues we are struggling with, sharing the conversation of the universal struggle of humanity, religion is just turning into another comic book series with all the other comic books out there. You can have your own specific geeks that love to dissect their favorite comic book story and see how far down the rabbit hole they can go and read about the adventures of their powerful super hero. That is religions and it’s followers are now just a weekly comicon in your Sunday best and a choir.

 

[ATraveller]

evangelical Anglican church too - the gradual fuzzing up of the clarity and breadth of Christian belief, like a load of limescale in a kettle, so that people can just barely articulate what it means to be a Christian beyond ‘Loving people’.

Pretty much something I as an Evangelical among others am not pleased with. This piece of satire from an Evangelical site appeared on one of my social media feeds and reads more like a real article than satire:

Armed With Just His Personal Relationship With Jesus, Man Invents Several New Heresies

Armed With Just His Personal Relationship With Jesus, Man Invents Several New Heresies

PORTLAND, OR—Local lone-ranger Christian Bill Pershing, proud of his individualistic approach to faith unrestrained by creeds or orthodoxy, proudly announced today that he came up with at least a half-dozen new ways of thinking about Jesus, all of which constitute grievous heresies.

babylonbee.com

 

[ATraveller]

As for other Christian denominations in the USA, the Evangelical, Pentecostal, and non-denominational Christians are experiencing growth

Same in Canada.

 

[Norseman82]

Although a lot of good points have been mentioned, However, I think that these may be symptoms of the “root cause”, which is “why be Catholic now?”. And if we do take the “marketing approach”, we need to be able to answer “why should I choose Catholicism when there are so many other churches/denominations/religions out there?”. The ultimate answer lies in discussing the “final things”; however, that often leads to hysterics from people saying “you can’t threaten people with Hell”. Well, you know what?

1. There are more to the final things than hell. It is about eternity, that there is something after death. Sure, there is hell, but there is also heaven. Do people want to go there?
2. When there was an emphasis on the final things, were not pews fuller?
3. We may encounter the “final things” sooner than we expect.

As St. Paul said, if there is no resurrection, then we have believed in vain.

Then we have to answer “Why the Catholic Church”. This may cause some people discomfort because the answer to “Why the Catholic Church” simultaneously implies “why not another denomination”, which may be interpreted by some as anti-ecumenical. In fact, I think that the whole notion of “don’t try to convert others” is one of the most damaging things ever preached, since it guts the motivation to be Catholic and leads to religious indifferentism.