Mainline Decline - Problem and Solution?

A graph I created for a class.
Data from US Gallup Poll- .http://www.gallup.com/poll/1690/Religion.aspx
Being at an ecumenical seminary, we talk about the mainline decline.  As bodies, the Lutherans, Methodists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, UCCers, Unitarians, Baptists, and others have a certain amount of anxiety about what's happening to them.  No one can argue with the numbers, the mainline decline is real.  Some see it as a problem in need of a solution.

I'm one of those people who believe that the trend is irreversible.  The ship has sailed.   Yet I still choose to stay in my denomination, knowing that God continues to work in these churches.  We still have lots of people to minister to and the finances to do it.  However, I refuse to live in fear of the inevitable collapse--I've given up on worrying about it.  Frankly, I've even stopped worrying about whether all of North American Christianity is going to collapse.  Fear is a bad motivator for anything, especially ministry.  That's not to say we should just go about doing the same-old-same-old.  We shouldn't.  But the new stuff we do should be motivated by love, not anxiety.

A lot of people in ministry have opinions about what the future holds.  In some cases, these opinions are framed as 'solutions to the problem.' In other cases, the opinions are merely observations about where the Church is headed.  Here are some I've heard recently:
  • Dr. C., UTS professor - We need to have pastors who can teach the Gospel.
  • Nadia Bolz-Weber, Author and Lutheran Pastor - The church will always have Word and Sacrament and that will keep it alive.
  • Doug Pagitt, Author and Independent Pastor - Churches in the inventive age are moving toward community-oriented bodies, where relationship is primary.
  • United Methodist Conferences - We need to be planting/building dynamic churches which are in our connectional system.  
  • Biblically conservative friends - We need to believe the Bible is literally true, and then God will grow our churches.

But here's the deal.... Looking deeply into these solutions or observations, I notice they totally reflect the values of the person making the statement.  Their solution/observation is totally rooted in what they personally value, the things that matter to them... 

Dr. C. values education.  Nadia values liturgy.  Doug values relationships.  Denominational conferences value church organization.  Conservatives value the theology of literalism. 

I'm not criticizing any of these opinions--I have my own.  Suprise, suprise.  And they are, of course, rooted in my own personal values.  But I wonder, just wonder... Might we be trapped by our own values?  Are we so self-centered that we think the answer lies in the thing that matters most to us?  What if we stopped caring so much about that which we hold near and dear and try on someone else's values for a bit?  Don't know... just wondering... 

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