TIL The Changing Face of Denominationalism - (PDF) Class Use Edition

The Changing Face of Denominationalism is an adult study guide for discussion of how Christian denominations in America have changed and are changing in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Churches that once were committed to following the Scriptures now barely mention the Scriptures in their preaching, denominations that formerly followed carefully worded creeds and manuals now have very few core beliefs that all of its members hold, almost any moral lifestyle is tolerated within its membership, worship is more directed toward entertaining the visitors and members than following Biblical directions in how to praise God, women hold leadership roles in most denominations, etc. Some have become so disheartened with what is going on in the churches that they have decided to practice their religion outside the structures of organized religion. Those churches who have striven the hardest to be relevant are becoming the most irrelevant as judged by the diminishing membership of the mainline denominations. What is happening? Is it still possible to be "simply Christians" in twenty-first century Western culture? The Changing Face of Denominationalism helps one to make sense of what is happening and calls us back to the Bible, to first-century Christianity. Complete with questions to facilitate class discussions.

Contents:

1. It's a Different World - Kyle Pope
2. The "Non-Denominational" Denomination - Shawn Chancellor
3. The "Church of Christ" Denomination - Andrew Dow
4. The "Mega-Church" Mentality--What Can the Church Do for Me? - Curtis Carwile
5. "Let Your Women Not Be Silent in the Churches"--The Rise of Gender-Inclusion in the Mainstream - Jason Garcia
6. The Moral Fog of Modern Religion - Bruce Reeves
7. "Nones" and "Dones"-- The Rise of Non-Religious Religion - Brian Haines
8. From Sola Scriptura to Nulla Scriptura - Melvin Curry
9. Empty Pews and Geographical Shifts: The Decline of Mainline Protestant Denominations - Ryan Boyer
10. Is an Impending Catholic-Protestant Convergence Coming? - Curtis Pope
11. "No One Comes to the Father Except through Whom? - Norman E. Sewell
12. Consercvative Thinking within the Denominational World - Jeff Wilson
13. Is It Still Possible to be Simply Christians? - Kyle Pope
14. Appendix: Faith in Faith vs. Faith in God - Mike Willis