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In the late 1950's and early 1960's mainline churches had reached their zenith of influence, growth, and power in this country. They were the dominant voice in America. They played a key role in politics. They helped elect Presidents and leaders of both houses of Congress. But their power and influence were not to last. Since 1964, mainline churches have declined precipitously.

The reasons for this decline are numerous. Among them was a loss of spiritual vitality as mainline churches increasingly focused on the social gospel without a concomitant effort to help parishioners grow in their personal relationship with God; an emphasis on the intellect in worship, while neglecting the emotion and the heart; a kind of "traditionalism" in worship which felt devoid of meaning and relevance for many; a shift to the cultural, political and theological left in the seminaries without adequately preparing graduates to minister in a culture in which the pendulum was swinging to the right; a time of social upheaval in the 1960's and early 1970's that left many in society yearning for absolutes and a clear, black and white faith; and (for all of these reasons and more) a failure to "connect" with younger generations.

I believe that in many ways conservative Christianity is today where the mainline churches were in 1964. It has reached its zenith of growth, power, and influence. The movement helped elect politicians, claimed to represent the values of America, and successfully welcomed millions of Americans into their churches. But I believe these churches are likely to see their growth stalled, and then to watch a period of decline, unless they recognize the changes happening in society that will leave them increasingly disconnected from emerging generations.

One of the most obvious signs of this impending change is what's happening in politics this election season. Conservatives are out, and centrists are in. The emergence of what is called the Emergent Church within Christianity is another sign of the winds of change. Many of the voices in the Emergent Church are former conservative Christians who no longer identify with fundamentalism's approach but still maintain an evangelical faith.

I see it anecdotally in a host of places. One of the leading conservative seminaries in America has students and professors questioning the doctrine of inerrancy (while the school continues to officially embrace the doctrine). I hear it in the reaction of my friends who pastor large Southern Baptist churches as they express their frustration over the infighting and the narrowness of some in leadership in their convention. Likewise I hear it from friends in large Pentecostal churches who note that in many places in America Pentecostalism has spent its energy, and is beginning to decline.

I see it in the evangelicals who are speaking out against global warming despite the fact that some leading conservatives dismiss this issue as a hoax. I hear it in the questions raised by some very thoughtful writers in the evangelical magazine, Christianity Today, concerning war, poverty, and AIDS. Many of these same articles could very well have been published in what has traditionally been the more left-leaning, Christian Century.

My point is that there is a significant shift toward the center that is happening among young people, and key thinkers and leaders in the evangelical world. I believe this shift is unstoppable despite the efforts of some conservatives to arrest it. Evangelicals are moving towards the center in large numbers.

But it is not only the right that is shifting towards the center. Changes are being experienced in the left as well.

Mainline churches are expressing a renewed passion for evangelism. They are embracing forms of worship that speak not only to the intellect, but also to the heart. There is a renewed emphasis on church planting. And there is recognition in mainline seminaries of the importance of spiritual formation and the spiritual disciplines in the Christian life. Many mainline seminaries have once again embraced the importance of the "apostolic core" of the gospel and are preparing students to do apologetics in a post-Christian culture. And a large number of mainline Christians are embracing both the evangelical and social gospels.

There will always be Christians on the right and on the left, but there are an increasing number of Christians who are drawn to the center-Christians who are learning to appreciate what the other brings to the table; humbly willing to learn from others; and able to say with the eighteenth century John Wesley: "Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike? May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion? Without all doubt, we may. Herein all the children of God may unite, notwithstanding these smaller differences" ("The Catholic Spirit").

The strength of Methodism has always been its ability to stand in the theological and sociological center, listening to and drawing from the best of various impulses and integrating them into a faith that is holistic and, I believe, more faithful to the gospel.

Various phrases are used to describe this place between the left and the right, which draws upon the best of both. Some have called it the "extreme center." I tend towards the idea of the "radical center."

The radical center within the Christian faith embraces the evangelical gospel that proclaims that human beings are wounded by sin and are in need of saving, and that Jesus Christ is God's antidote to our human condition. And it embraces the social gospel which seeks to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, and recognizes the Christian's responsibility for addressing the great problems of poverty, oppression, racism, the environment, and war. The evangelical gospel without the social gospel is spiritual narcissism. The social gospel without the evangelical gospel remains afflicted by sin and has, in the words of the apostle Paul, the "form of godliness while denying the power thereof" (II Timothy 3:5). The radical center holds that the gospel is incomplete without both its evangelical and social witness.

Christianity is in the midst of a new reformation. The fundamentalism of the last century is waning. And the liberalism of the last fifty years has jettisoned too much of the historic Christian gospel to take its place. Christianity's next reformation will strike a middle path between two poles. It will draw upon what is good in both fundamentalism and liberalism by holding together the evangelical and social gospels, grace and holiness, the intellect and the heart, a love for the Bible, and a willingness to study it critically, a passionate personal relationship with Christ and an equally passionate desire to serve as his hands and voice in healing our broken world.

This reformation will be led by people who are able to see the gray in a world of black and white. No church better captures this place in Christianity than the United Methodist Church. If we are able to reclaim our heritage, and articulate our message with passion and conviction, ours will be a future of hope.

Adam Hamilton is the founding pastor of The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas. This article is an excerpt from Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White, copyright © 2008 by Abingdon Press in March of 2008. Used by permission. Order at 1-800-672-1789 or www.cokesbury.com. The closing words, on Methodism, have been added by Hamilton for this article.

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Vision A future of hope By Adam Hamilton

Vision
A future of hope
By Adam Hamilton