The Last Christian Generation – A Book Review tagged: , ,

The Last Christian Generation – A Book Review

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student_group.jpgBecause I am an adjunct instructor, it’s hard for my students to talk with me outside of class about their progress: no office means no office hours. To make up for this I “hold court” at a coffee shop every Thursday evening for an hour.

Last week I was enjoying my coffee and reading The Last Christian Generation by Josh McDowell (Green Key Books, 2006) when the first of my students appeared.

Student: “Whatcha reading?” ( I show her the book.)

Student: “Oh. A church book.” She sounds disappointed.

Me: “It’s more of an “anti-church” book.”

Student: “Well in that case”, she said as she grabbed the book out of my hand, “let me see it”. (I try not to say anything about personal boundaries or asking first.)

Student: “You’re kinda cool for a Christian.”

Wow. A jeans-clad, tattooed 20-something thinks I’m “kinda cool”. I’m either doing something very right or very wrong.

We continued to talk about what she meant. It turns out “kinda cool” means she doesn’t perceive me as being self-righteous, interested only in what people shouldn’t do, or using my classroom as a bully pulpit for all that is wrong with our culture.

I tried pointing out to her (and the other students who had joined us) that I really am all those things they consider negative: conservative theologically, convinced there are moral absolutes, believing there is only one way to heaven (and his name is Jesus Christ). What then, I wanted to know, makes me “kinda cool”?

I’ll spare you the twists and turns of a rather lengthy and convoluted discussion. It turns out the answer is: I listen to them. I let them explain their position before I begin challenging their logic.

It really is that simple.

I am reminded again that many of my students have never been involved in a church beyond attending one or two youth group meetings when they were in junior high. There is an entire generation of unchurched people right in our own back yard. They look like us, speak the same language, and live in the same neighborhoods. But we are not of the same culture. Josh McDowell makes the argument that if we don’t change our approach to reaching 20-somethings, we may be the last (American) Christian generation.

The Last Christian Generation is an okay book; worth finishing once you’ve started, but not a great read. It strikes me as the book form of a series of seminar notes. In fact, the co-author is Dave Bellis, a “ministry consultant” who has worked with Josh McDowell for nearly 30 years. My guess is Dave took a transcript of Josh’s seminars/lectures and edited it all into a book. Endnotes are sparse and statistics quoted are barely referenced. Most of the endnotes cite either Josh’s other books or George Barna studies – I think it detracts from the book’s credibility.

On the plus side, The Last Christian Generation is thought provoking. Josh’s argument is that we have a post-modern generation of young adults who have a distorted view of the church, a casual view of truth, and a belief that participating in a tolerant community is essential to achieving self actualization. The problem I have with that generalization is that it’s not exactly news: others have said it earlier and better.

Josh McDowell’s advice to the church in America is to focus on Process Driven Ministry. Take all of the relational aspects of building a community of believers and attempt to develop a strategy for implementation. Not helpful. The problem, McDowell seems to be saying, is that we have institutionalized programs in our churches; the solution, he hints, is to come up with a program to combat that approach. Like I said, not helpful.

I would recommend this book to lay people who don’t understand why some are lamenting the absence of young adults in our churches. But those of us who already acknowledge the problem will want to look elsewhere for more depth.