Customer Reviews

Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"The Next Christendom" explores how the spread of Christianity finds new forms of expression around the globe. Jenkins' book provides an overview of the development of Christianity and the ways in which it has been adapted throughout the years, with a primary emphasis on current growth and interpretation of the faith in the Southern Hemisphere. Since predictions are made that one in five beleivers will be non-Latino and white by the year 2050, it behooves any person interested in Christianity and Religion to study the growing population of Southern Christians, and the impact their beliefs and praxis will have on the future shape Christianity may take as a result. Jenkins book provides a wealth of information and ideas towards this aim.

In "The Next Christendom" Jenkins examines previously held definitions of Christianity, most influenced by European and American perspectives, as assertions that will be challanged by the up and coming dominant cultures of the South and what has formerly been called the "Third World Churhes." After a methodical study of statistics, Jenkins reports the fastest population growth occuring in areas that are traditionally Islamic, Muslim, Indian, Asian and Latin American. Invariably the realities and ideology of these Southern cultures will have their impact on the world's religious strutures. Jenkins conclusion is that a Rise of A New Christianity is about to be birthed. This makes sense when American and European statistics reveal a decline in Christianity and population (although this may be a superficial way to measure actual dynamics of faith in these particular cultures.) In addition, the forces of immigration and the rising levels of poverty will usher in a very different message of Christian theology, shaped by the spirituality of suffering current in the consciousness of these People of God. Just how this difference in consciousness will assert itself is not clear, but specualtion is Jenkins' task -- a mission he defintely takes the leading edge in today.

Jenkins provides a speculative, but realistic glimpse into the flavor that will characterize the faith by the mid-twenty first century. Specifically,in his view, Christianity will be dominated by a concern with the immediate workings of the "supernatural," through such beliefs and practice as prophecy, vision, ecstatic utterances, and healing, since these are the practices of the indigenous culture that prevail in the areas of population and religious growth related to the Christian Movement. Christianity in the North will undergo "sweeping changes" that could make the faith alien to many with traditional Northern views. The controversial question raised is whether there exists a dangerous compromising of older religion through contextualization by the South, or if this is part of a broader divine plan to expand and deepen Christian tradition through the incorporation of ideas and praxis from various cultures? This leads to another question, that is, if Christianity is infinitely translatable and adaptable? In this sense Jenkins' seems to be asking if this new Christianity will remain Christian, or lose it's charachter if it takes on a "Southern cast." Jenkins appears to want to educate the modern West that Evangelical and Fundamentalist trends are on the rise, with Pentecostalism and independent churches of South America and Africa taking the lead. I do not think the questions and conerns Jenkins raises are to be taken as bigotry, but as a reflection of possible tension he considers having potential to develop into political and civil violence as certain nations and groups could resist efforts at harmonization. Jenkins devotes a significant portion of the book to theoretical predictions of where and why probable "battle fronts" may occur.

This book certainly has potential to elicit thoughtful dialog, but also ability to ignite reactionary feelings, especially as it may appear blatantly racist against Notherners and against those who proclaim a more third world kind of faith. Yet such a broad view of Christianity also plants hope that Christianity can survive such complexities. In the end the reader is raised to have more understanding for the spirituality that comes up from the South in attempts towards liberation from oppression and suffering. Perhaps, however, the real healing will come when efforts are stopped to sterotype and accuse any one group for the responsiblity of the perpetuation of this suffering, which sadly to say Jenkins' book seems to cast onto the shoulders of Western mind sets. Mission today and tomorrow certainly must be aimed at overcoming discrimination, but not by targeting only the naive and/or the successful, as so many who demonize the Northern mentality want to do. Jenkins book can be a useful tool if the world takes the right next step towards peace and reconciliation. Most of all Jenkins, intentionally or not, creates an awarenss of the deep need for compassion, education, reflection, tolerance and prayer: the essential ingredients of genuine faith and conversion. In this sense the book deserves to be considered authentic evangelism.

Review by Dr.Denise Durak

The main thesis that Philip Jenkins ably attempts to prove in his book, The Next Christendom, is that Christianity is shifting from a northern hemisphere-dominated religion to a southern-centered world religion. At the same time that the numerical force of Christianity has been essentially dying in Europe (and to a lesser extent the United States), "over the past century... the center of gravity in the Christian world has shifted inexorably southward, to Africa, Asia, and Latin America" (2). Also, while the church has become largely secularized in the north, the southern church is mainly conservative and traditional in its beliefs. Unfortunately, Jenkins takes a while to define his terms. He spends several pages explaining his understanding of the idea of Christendom very nearly like the medieval idea of "a true overarching unity and a focus of loyalty transcending mere kingdoms or empires" (10). But it is not until page 88 that he formulates a definition of a Christian as "someone who describes himself or herself as Christian, who believes that Jesus is not merely a prophet or an exalted moral teacher, but in some unique sense the Son of God, and the messiah" (88).

The early chapters are spent establishing his thesis through several lines of evidence. In chapter 2, Jenkins makes a broad historical survey of Christianity in order to demonstrate that it is not inherently Western. He shows that Christianity has been from the earliest of times a very strong force in both Africa and Asia. In addition, chapter 3 questions much of the missionary enterprise in its spreading of Christianity. Despite its faults, Jenkins concedes that the reason that cultures accepted the new faith was that they "found this the best means of explaining the world around them" (44). Finally, in chapter 4, in order to bolster his thesis Jenkins surveys the demographics of much of the world. He describes the dynamics of the interaction between the Pentecostal and Roman Catholic churches in Latin America. He also depicts the strength of the church in such countries as Mexico, Brazil, the Philippines, South Africa, China, and South Korea. Jenkins finally attempts to explain the cause of Christianity's current success as residing in its meeting social needs (75), its sense of community (76), and even its miracles (77).

In chapter 5, Jenkins shifts his focus from yesterday's and today's situation to the trends that are forming tomorrow's. He concedes the dangers of predicting what the world will look like in 50 years. However, no one can deny such trends as the decline of the populations of Europe and Japan (81-82) and the equally startling boom in the populations of the southern countries of Africa and Latin America (83-85). Population growth is relatively easy to observe, and assuming that the religious distribution remains roughly the same, Christianity will continue to grow in the coming years. "However, recent history suggests that [sub-Saharan] churches will expand by evangelization," making the Christian population grow at even a greater pace (90). The evidence Jenkins uses to support his claims comes not just from Africa but also from the Philippines, Europe and the United States.

Jenkins' most disappointing work is found in chapter 6. He attempts to combat what he calls the assumption "that what is traditionally done in Europe or North America is correct and authentic" (109). While this assumption is false if accepted blindly and wholesale, Jenkins' claim is that the European culture formed Christianity into what it is in the West. He seems to leave no place for Christianity actually forming a culture. Rather, he says, "Presumably if the course of Christian history had run differently, then other societies would have succeeded in spreading their distinctive cultural vision across the world" (110). Supposedly, practice determines beliefs, rather than vice versa (115). Jenkins does not seem to leave open the possibility of an objective, unchanging standard to which all cultures must conform. The shape of Christianity, purportedly, is relative to the culture in which it is found. On the other hand, chapter 7 explores how the beliefs of Christianity are being applied in today's world around the globe. Even here, however, he fails to recognize that the way a people lives or a government governs is an expression of what they believe. He makes no connection between the prosperity of the West with the fundamentally Christian principles upon which that prosperity is based.

Chapter 8 describes the current and coming interaction between Christianity and Islam. His prognosis includes violence between the religions. But "in the world as a whole, there is no question that the threat of intolerance and persecution chiefly comes from the Islamic side of the equation" (170). Battles will be fought in countries like Sudan (171), Egypt (172), Nigeria (173-75), Pakistan (175), and Indonesia (176). He also briefly mentions Christianity's future relations with Hinduism and Buddhism. The remainder of the book (chapters 9-10) is left to shorter statements about the future of Christianity. He discusses the Roman Catholic church and such conservative statements within that body as Dominus Jesus (197). He addresses issues of gender roles, the south's evangelization of the north, the Bible, and poverty. All in all, Jenkins demonstrates a greater ability in observing demographic trends than he does in making general assertions about the dynamics of Christianity. His general thesis is undeniable based on his evidence. However, he lacks an eschatological vision based on the teaching of the Bible to lend any real authority to his claims. Indeed, Christians may assert with confident assurance that Christianity will grow until it covers the earth (Isaiah 11:9), even as Christ now reigns on His throne until He puts all His enemies under His feet (1 Corinthians 15:5).

The following is an analytical book review of Philip Jenkins, The Next Christendom.

Philip Jenkins, the author of 24 books, and 120 book chapters and refereed articles, has been on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University since 1980, and in 2007, he was appointed as the Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of History and Religious Studies. He completed his undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral work all at the University of Cambridge, but it is not his work in global Christianity that got him on the faculty of Penn State. He began as an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in 1980. In fact, his early work consists of history, criminology, and pedophilia. It was not until his publication of The Next Christendom that his reputation as an expert on global Christianity came to the forefront. Since then, he has spoken widely around this topic of global Christianity ([...]).

The thesis of this book is that the center of Christianity has shifted southward to Africa, Asia, and Latin America (Location 36). As a result, in spite of the seeming decline of Christianity in the western world, Christianity is actually growing and flourishing in most areas around the world (Location 992).

The Next Christendom begins with an elaboration of the thesis by challenging the myth that Christianity is actually declining and disappearing in the world. It may seem like that in the western world, but soon enough, the center of Christianity is going to be Africa and Latin America (Location 170). After elaborating on that point, Jenkins begins to paint a picture of the history of Christianity and how it has expanded across the world. He makes a point to paint a picture of how Christianity was closely tied with the western imperial expansion. He then moves to explain how Christianity is flourishing in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, using many illustrations and case studies to prove his point. Throughout the book, Jenkins is subtly asking the reader to consider how this shift of Christianity should affect how one lives out one's faith. Since 'Christianity is flourishing wonderfully among the poor and persecuted, while it [is] atroph[ying] among the rich and secure' (Location 3012), what needs to change in the western world for Christianity to once again flourish here? Will the global north change at all? That is the question that begs to be asked.

Although the center of Christianity is shifting south, the center of Christian thought seems to be staying in the same location - the western world. Perhaps this is because that is where the money and the publishers are. In either case, if Christianity is flourishing and growing abundantly in the south, whereas it is stagnant and declining in the western world, then would it not make sense to learn from the south?

What would happen if the western world began learning from their theologians, pastors, and Christians? Perhaps following the footsteps of southern Christianity with a deeper and more personal faith, more emphasis on 'communal orthodoxy, mysticism, and puritanism, all focused on clear scriptural authority' would cause Christianity to shift and transform in the western world (Location 120)? If, as Philip Yancey states, 'God goes where he's wanted' (Location 215), then should the western world not learn from the contexts that God is clearly blessing and moving in? It is precisely because of this that I love being a part of the M.A. in Global Leadership. I do pray that I would never lose sight of the fact that God is not tied to one land or one people, but that he is a God of all peoples and transcends any location. As a result, I pray that I would never be so prideful to think that I can only learn from the celebrity pastors and theologians of North America, while ignoring the work that anonymous Christians are doing in some place I have never heard of. God, please protect my heart and keep me humble, with my eyes continually focused on you.

In the end, I give this book 4 stars out of 5.

I used this book as one of my primary sources for studying religions in the global village; it was tremendously useful and is a rather fascinating introduction to what is a far more complex issue. Jenkins writes with a certain level of zeal for the diversification that is currently taking place within Christendom, particularly in the Global South; he also writes sympathetically - and some might even say supportively - of the spreading of the Christian faith. (My understanding is that Jenkins is Episcopalian.)

Jenkins' proposal, now several years old, is that Christianity is growing fastest in the Global South - Africa, Latin America, and South Asia - in such a way that the strongholds of Christian orthodoxy are likely to be found in the Global South by the middle of the 21st century, rather than in the West. (Whether or not this means ecclesial power - "power" being a reductive Western idea - is not touched upon.) While the United States is something of an anomaly for the secularization thesis to try and explain, in Europe it seems to hold true that the more educated a culture becomes, the less religious it becomes.

Of course, it is tremendously Eurocentric to assume that the growing religiosity in the Global South is directly related to their sub-Western standards of educational and economic development. Rather, what Jenkins points to is the perception of demonic forces and the fact that a separation of the "natural" from the "super natural" has not taken place in those regions. In light of a world that very much believes in spiritual forces of evil, the spiritual forces of good - embodied in Jesus Christ - become a necessity for combatting that evil. And, more importantly, the fact that exorcism of the demonic seems to work further demonstrates the truth of Christianity.

Hence, one of the more interesting features of Christianity in the Global South is that both Pentecostals and Roman Catholics - the two fastest growing groups in the Global South - will believe in the supernatural, which creates a common ground between the two groups in the area of praxis, rather than theoria. Yet, Jenkins proposes that when it comes to theology (as well as morality), both groups will be more conservative in relation to what constitutes orthodoxy for their particular group.

The only major problem with this work - and this is a difference that has only come to be seen in recent months, I think - is that Jenkins paints the Global South with a broad brush. The Global South appears almost monolithic in terms of morality and theology, yet in light of the recent crisis in the Anglican Communion over gay bishop Gene Robinson, it is worth noting that several of the Primates in Africa were for ending the ban on homosexuals in the priesthood - a total affront to the seeming "conservativism" that is supposed to be so characteristic of the Global South. While such bishops do not seem to represent any type of majority opinion found there, it does show that a certain level of differance does exist which should be accounted for.

Of course, Christianity in the Global South is a topic that people are just beginning to study. In light of that, it is easy to understand why that which seems to be "other" - or at least "new" - in some way can be painted more simplistically than it really is. Yet, Jenkins seeks to understand his subject and does not portray Christianity in the Global South as an utterly foreign object (unlike some postcolonialists or liberals in the United States such as John Shelby Spong). Jenkins' book is an excellent place to start for anyone interested in learning more about crucial developments in Christianity today - especially those that will likely shape the future.

Buy it. Read it. Believe it. Otherwise, just go back to sleep.

Jenkins, a professor of history and religious studies at Penn State University, amasses an impressive set of statistics in support of his thesis that Christianity is growing explosively in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. According to Jenkins, "Christianity is flourishing wonderfully among the poor and persecuted, while it atrophies among the rich and secure." By 2050, he estimates, only one Christian in five will be a non-Latino white. Jenkins shows that these new Third World Christians are more traditional, morally conservative, evangelical, and apocalyptic. He speculates that religion succeeds best when it takes seriously the New Testament's profound pessimism about the secular world. While his arguments seem generally persuasive, the statistics and abundant factual descriptions may cause many readers' eyes to glaze over.

The title of this review comes from a chapter in Jenkins' book that outlines the global conflict between Christianity and Islam that is taking place and emerging in the Third World due to religious persecution by Moslem authorities. Contrary to conventional liberal thinking in the West, traditional and theologically conservative Christianity is booming in the Third World, while Islam is also growing. Jenkins points out that the assumption that Islam will overtake Christianity in the Third World is baseless. He rightly urges Westerners to drop their parochialism and recognize that one of the most powerful forces on the world stage is booming and expanding Third World Christianity. Jenkins' book is an excellent guide to a future in which religious conflict will become more important on the world stage as Third World Christians challenge Moslem persecution. While this is a troubling scenario, the book also presents good news for those in the West who defend traditional Christianity. Their best allies are in the Third World.

In this fascinating book, professor Philip Jenkins proclaims that there is coming, within this 21st century, a new Christendom. The first chapter looks at the Christian Church of the past, and shows that the popular conception of a Christian West surrounded by a purely non-Christian world is fallacious; that Christianity took root in other parts of the world than Europe, and survived there all the way to the present. After that, the book looks at the spread of Christianity in the so-called "Third World," the same parts of the globe that are experiencing the fastest population growth.

Having (to my satisfaction, anyway) shown that soon many times more Christians will be living in other parts of the globe than Europe *and* North America combined, the author then goes on to suggest that this new phenomenon will potentially change the very face of Christianity. Prepare to see a new Christianity, one as different from the modern, Western Church as the Medieval Church was from the Church of the Roman Empire.

I must say that this is one of the most fascinating books that I have read in a long time! The author punctures many comfortable ideas about the Church, and prepares the reader for the coming of a new world, a world that will not look like the one we have now. If you are interested in Christianity, or even just in trends that are bound to affect the world you live in, then you must get this book!

Jenkins' book projects a variant of the "population explosion" argument with a positive twist: Christians are the population that is exploding, all over the Third World. As the nominal Christians of the West and Russia fail to have enough live births to maintain, yet alone increase present population levels, the poor of the Earth are finding the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and they take to it, Jenkins argues, because their lives - with hard labor, hunger, poverty, and death as much a reality under opressive regeimes - is much like the New Testament world of the early Church.
And what kind of Church will it be? Jenkins thinks that your run of the mill, secularized, Christmas-and-Easter churchgoing Episcopalean or cafeteria Catholic will be shocked to find their coreligionists, even within their denominations, believing in and practicing a kind of primative, liturgical, Catholicism-(pre-Vatican II)cum-pentecostalism. This is the world that Spengeler foresaw: he called the first, Catholic millenium of Church history the Age of Peter; the Reformation to his time the Age of Paul; the next millenium, the Age of John, of ecstatic, primitive, mystic faith, a resurgence of Eastern, "Magian" civilization following the Suicide of the West (as he titled his book).
Conflict with Islam may bring on a "clash of civilizations," as Huntington and others have predicted, but the protagonist will be Southern Christendom, coalescing around the twin heartlands of Africa and Latin America, and not the West, as has been imagined. This makes intuitive sense, because be they saints, martyrs or suicide bombers, some will dare to die for their faith, but who will die for consumerism, secularism, or the morgasbord of causes that drive what passes for intellectual and cultural thought in our society? Even the Communists (really the greatest of heretics, according to Igor Scharevich) had a transending vision that could motivate a Felix Derzinsky to choose death in its' support.
Where the book loses me is in the optimistic population projections, carried out, it would seem, on some kind of least-squares baseline, with steady rates of growth to the mid-century. As Buchannan did ("Death of the West"), Jenkins assumes that the present trend is the future trend. At some point, diminishing returns will kick in, if for no other reason that because, to name an example, Yemen is short of water today: to become the 10th most populous nation on Earth by 2050, with over 90 million souls, they will need water, which they do not have and are unlikely to find. AIDS, famine, and war will further erode the projected out-year gains, as will continuing migration to the west, for as long as that lasts. War, in the age of WMD, is another limiting factor. Not that I do not wish for Jenkins' prediction to come true: I would rather share the planet with fellow Christians of any race that with the alternative.
A final word: It is heartening to se the Churches of the East get their due. Ethiopia, predicted to be a leading Christian nation of the next half-century, has been Christian officially since 341, 10 generations before Clovis. With the late Halie Selessie claiming descent from Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and their continuous Christan tradition dating back to the fourth century, they, not France, have the best claim to being called "the Eldest Daughter of the Church"(along with Armenia, Christian since ca. 304).
A Christmas bit of good news, well worth the read, and a more positive vision of the future than Rapsail's "Camp of the Saints" or Buchannan give us.
-Lloyd A. Conway

Regarding the reviewer who claims Jenkins' book is about the growth of "primitive Christianity and Pentecostalism," readers should be aware that "The Next Christendom" spends the bulk of its pages describing the growth of Catholicism. One wonders why a reviewer would fail to mention it.

Jenkins' main thrust is that conservative and orthodox Christian faiths are growing faster in the Southern Hemisphere than they are declining in the North.