grossg@patriot.rtp.dg.com (Gene Gross) (06/27/91)
The contents of this posting and the others that follow are not necessarily my personal opinions. This is a summary of the contents of a book written by someone else. I have attempted to summarize the contents of that book as impartially as I know how. My purpose in posting this is to try to stimulate discussion. This will be a multi-part posting. The contents are based on the book _The_Frog_In_The_Kettle_ by George Barna (Regal Books, (c) 1990). Barna looks at what things might well be like through the remainder of this decade and on into the next century. This is not merely another compilation of predictions about technological advances, economic fluctuations, and cultural shifts of the future. This is a book about present realities -- changes that are already occurring but so gradually that we are hardly aware of them. The title of the book comes from the fact that if you place a frog in a pot of boiling water the frog leaps out for its life. However, if you place the frog in a pot of lukewarm water and slowly raise the temperature to boiling, the frog will remain in the pot and die. Barna says that the church in America is much like a frog in a pot of lukewarm water and the the temperature is rising. For the last 20 years the church in America has been insensitive to the changes taking place in our society. Barna noted several key items as areas where major change is currently underway. The pace of change will accelerate during the 1990s. 1. People will become even more materialistic and self-centered. 2. As the typical American's schedule gets fuller, he will value time as more important than money. 3. Religion will become more individualistic as people seek self-fulfillment and shun anything that requires sacrifice or commitment. 4. The rising numbers of older Americans, minorities, and poor people will significantly reduce the white middle-class majority as an entirely new class emerges. 5. As technology is increasingly accepted, it will bring new perspectives and lifestyles. 6. Institutional loyalty will all but disappear as people support only those organizations that provide them the benefits they seek. The church must stop reacting to change and begin anticipating change. During this pivotal decade, the church will either blossom with new growth or continue to wilt and wither away. In the next posting, I'll summarize the changes in behavior and lifestyle that Barna notes in his book. One final note: I am summarizing the contents of Barna's book and not giving my opinions. In the discussion that hopefully will follow these postings, I will give my personal opinions. En Agape tou Iesou, Gene