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After the EU referendum, many who opted to leave admitted that they didn ' t actually expect to win; they just wanted to send a message to Westminster. To borrow a line from Romeo and Juliet,‘ a plague on both your houses.’ Shakespeare might as well have been talking about the Commons and the Lords, or the Senate and the House of Representatives.
According to popular view, professionals in general and political in particular cannot be trusted.
Preaching in an age of cynicism is no easy matter. Yet while the establishment class often appears bemused by the hostility towards it from the general public, those of us who front it out most weeks as speakers and preachers are less surprised.
Older clergy and ministers can just about remember the time when to be a pastor, priest or vicar was to be respected in the community. Not anymore. For the most part, those are dim and distant memories.
As preachers we spotted years ago how disaffected people have become with experts, authority figures and professionals who claim to know best. In fact it ' s become so commonplace in our ministry that we hardly notice it ' s happening. This is the new normal for those called to share the Gospel in our generation.
According to research by Bible Society, two out of ten people in the UK are critical of the church, and seven out of ten are unconvinced at best. Yet rather than wallow in a slough of despond, preachers have learnt how to minister against this unfavourable backdrop. Ironically, perhaps politicians could learn a thing or two from us.
Harder to combat today is the disregard many Western believers have for the place of the theologian. Try quoting scholars in a sermon and the choice nugget we offer to back up our exegetical thought can very often fall on deaf ears. People are losing confidence in all forms of authority.
Ours is undoubtedly the age of the Bible expert. Vastly more commentaries and daily Bible reading aids are freely available in print and online today than at any other time in history. Yet we are perhaps the most biblically illiterate generation for two hundred years.
Why is this? Why do believers have so little time for serious reading and so little respect for the scholar in our midst? Most likely( and unfairly in my view) it ' s the same reason why the wider world is so suspicious of the career politician. We ' ve fallen out of love with insiders.
While the public don ' t care for journalists, economic gurus and professional politicians, church members are more wary of the expert expositor and the professional preacher. How often does a speaker leave the pulpit wondering if the congregation really get what they have been saying?
So how do we speak effectively in an age of mistrust? For an answer I would look outside the UK.
Having travelled extensively in Asia and Africa I ' ve noticed that growing churches across the globe share some important characteristics. Perhaps unsurprisingly they share a common concern to care for the poor, the sick and the marginalised. They also almost always warm the heart and bring about substantial character change; often in observable and verifiable ways. And they share a profound devotion to Christ that borders on the pietistic. All of these I have found to be very moving.
Yet an additional feature of impactful churches speaks directly to the popularity of Donald Trump and Brexit. Still largely ignored in the West, growing global churches stand out as liberating alternatives to arbitrary power.
In some specific contexts the best way to contextualise the Gospel is to speak very publicly about the social issues of injustice in society. Quite simply the call upon the preacher is to speak truth unto power, often at a very high price personally as a result.
WE SPEAK TO THE FINE TEXTURE OF A RICHER LIFE WITH GOD THAT IS COMPELLING, COMPASSIONATE AND DEEPLY PERSONAL
Yet more widely I have observed the patient witness of the church that individuals really do matter and that overbearing government and corporate culture is not the whole story. We speak to the fine texture of a richer life with God that is compelling, compassionate and deeply personal.
From the slums of Nairobi to the skyscrapers of Singapore, churches are showing in very practical ways that ordinary lives matter. Building community toilets that help with waste management through to local Bible studies where everyone ' s voice is heard, the church offers a robust alternative to the faceless anonymity of so many.
This is no passing fad. For a generation with more education and yet less power than ever before, this is the prevailing environment for our witness today. So what would our response look like?
Done well we would converse with a generation dispossessed of its value and identity. We would recognise that what ' s fuelling the anger of today is a profound sense of disempowerment. And we would preach freedom to the captive who feel they are slaves to the machine.
Surely this is the time to say with Paul‘ it is for freedom that we have been set free’?
James Catford
James Catford is a former UCCF staff worker, publishing director at Hodder Headline and HarperCollins, and group chief executive of Bible Society. He is chair of Renovaré, deputy chair of Amity Printing Company in Nanjing, and serves on the board of SPCK, Renovaré US and African Enterprise. He is a currently a mentor, coach and consultant. Follow him on Twitter or email him at james @ catfords. com.