church Archives | Philip Yancey

The Future of the Church

Philip Yancey — Mon, 27 May 2024 06:14:27 +0000

The statistics tell an alarming story. Mainline churches have shrunk dramatically. The number of Catholics who attend mass on a regular basis has declined by half. Southern Baptist membership has hit a 47-year low. The “Nones”–a group comprising atheists, agnostics, and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular”–is now the largest cohort in ... Read more

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Why Go Back?

Philip Yancey — Thu, 26 May 2022 07:47:41 +0000

An Associated Press poll last year reported that three-quarters of churchgoers in the U.S. plan to resume regular in-person attendance as the pandemic subsides. The pastors I know, looking out at the empty seats, still have their fingers crossed, hoping that prediction will eventually come true. I confess that during the lockdown I rather enjoyed ... Read more

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My Untold Story

Philip Yancey — Wed, 14 Apr 2021 06:21:28 +0000

For as long as I’ve been writing, I have wanted to produce a memoir. I’ve read great memoirs on other religious groups: Frank McCourt’s account of Irish Catholics in Angela’s Ashes, Chaim Potok’s memoir-like novels on Orthodox Judaism, Tara Westover’s bestseller Educated about fundamentalist Mormons. Yet my own tribe of evangelical/fundamentalists, hardly a fringe group, ... Read more

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On the Road Again

Philip Yancey — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 06:51:55 +0000

I travel to other countries about four times a year, usually at the invitation of an international publisher of my books. This year, for example, I’ve flown to Japan, Brazil, and Argentina, and have trips planned to Ireland and Eastern Europe (Hungary, Belarus, and Ukraine). The trips are exhausting and expensive, and on return I ... Read more

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Small is Large

Philip Yancey — Thu, 30 Apr 2015 19:13:51 +0000

I visited a local megachurch recently. My friend described it as, “You know, one of those big-box churches with one-word names, super-loud music, huge video screens, and long sermons.” Currently, 1300 U.S. congregations qualify as megachurches, averaging more than 2000 in weekly attendance. The one I visited has more parking-lot volunteers than my church has members. ... Read more

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