The Disappearing Church

One of the subjects that has attracted my notoriously fickle attention lately is the history of the church in the Syrian city of Edessa. I was first piqued by the legends of the correspondence of Jesus and King Abgar, and then by the earlier Acts of Martyrs of Edessa (which, alas but rather obviously, are not true, although some scholars believe they may reflect a genuine core around which the details were built).That led me to some brief articles on the city of Edessa and the church in that city. The church arose rather early, and went through a number of controversies and dabs at heresy. It remained a fairly strong witness for quite some time, even after the Muslim conquest. What I have found makes me curious to know more.

Yet the Edessene church is no more. Despite a history of strong figures, vigorous theological debate, and steadfastness under persecution, the church eventually gave way to forms of Christianity that would become marginalized, and then to the fate of most of the churches that came under Muslim domination. To borrow a phrase from Revelation, their lamp has gone out.

This phenomenon is not a relic of the past. We have only to look at the once-powerful churches of Europe to see that decline and destruction still happen today. True, the church has not fully succumbed yet, but the trends are not good. This didn't happen from military conquest by another religion, either; it happened by the gradual erosion of faith and doctrine, in some cases carried out within the churches.

The good news is that Christianity has spread throughout the world, and is growing and vibrant in may places. The bad news is that what we have seen happen in European countries could spread to the United States and elsewhere if we are not careful and willing to stand for the truth. Could it be that future generations will look back at Germany, France, and even the US as the Edessas of our era- churches once strong and alive, become nothing but distant memories of a tiny minority? We cannot allow the church to disappear from anywhere she stands, and we should pray and act to see the church of Jesus Christ grow even further in lands where once the church was strong as well as in the frontiers of mission.