"How Great Thou Art": A Swedish Perspective on L4
There are many aspects to reflect on from a large gathering. Public addresses, documents, conversations, and table discussions all contribute to and start thought processes.
Heritage and the future
Singing the hymn ‘How Great Thou Art’ was a significant moment for me at the opening of Lausanne 4 in Seoul. In one way, it is sentimental because it was written by Carl Boberg, a free church pastor in the small town in Sweden where I grew up. I have seen the lightning over the bay and heard the birds and the thunder the same way as he did. But hearing a song close to my heart sung twice on the opening night by more than 5000 people from nearly every country in the world was very special for me because this song is a part of our national history and legacy concerning revival, culture, and mission. That a small population at the northern end of Europe still has a contribution to make to a large gathering of representatives of the global church is humbling and interesting. It speaks of our history and legacy but will we sing its message with a loud voice in the future?
The Church in our region is steadily declining, and the age distribution of its members gives little hope of growth as the church population as a whole is getting older and older. (1) The church and revivals have formed important aspects of Swedish society. Some say that it permeates our secularised society and still guides and affects our values and ideas creating a cultural paradox.(2) Only 23% of Swedes believe there is a God and most of them have a sceptical view of organised religion.(3) Christian witness is seen as something so obscure that a positive depiction of faith in the biggest Swedish TV series makes the news and debate pages of the largest daily newspaper.(4) The influence of the state church and the revivals of the late 19th and 20th centuries has been largely lost.
Generation Z
“How Great Thou Art” says something about our history and legacy, but what about our future?
In preparation for the congress, the Lausanne movement made a great effort to listen to leaders from around the world which resulted in the State of the Great Commission Report. The report gives many valuable insights and one of the issues raised there and addressed too in plenary at the Seoul Congress was the coming generations: Generation Z.
This issue is crucial for the future of the Swedish church. The older Christian community has to cross cultural and social borders to be able to reach out to the young generations who are struggling with psychological illness and anxiety, have different value systems, and are brought up in a society embedded in a secular worldview.
Denise-Margaret Thompson's excellent plenary(5) during the Seoul Congress stirred several thoughts in me. What do we as an older generation have to do? Can we be authentic and vulnerable enough for a hurt generation searching for authenticity? Are we grounded and healed enough not to transfer our issues and hurts to a new generation? Are we mature enough to give space for them to lead and minister, to foster a generation that wants to go beyond consumer Christianity? Are we secure enough to allow for their mistakes and stand beside them even if we do not understand their expressions?
“how do we work and how do we form our future together with a new generation? ”
Denise-Margaret Thompson did not give many answers but showed us the reality of the new generations and directed us to ask questions: how do we work and how do we form our future together with a new generation?
Collaboration and discussion
Thompsons’ advice interacts with several other major themes in the Congress. Michael Oh’s opening plenary spoke of our need for each other as the body of Christ. To give opportunity and tools to the 99 % that don’t have a full-time ministry in church, including Generation Z, gives a clear message that we need them to fulfil the task we have been given as a church.
As we address Generation Z in a secular society, we also need to realise that we live in a new world. To me, Anne Zakis’s message(6) was prophetic as she urged us to revive the art of church discussions with reference to the apostolic meeting in Jerusalem. How do we handle the changing issues that arise in society and where can the church meet people with little or no understanding of the gospel? What traditions do we have to discuss, and which positions do we have to reconsider, as we seek God's way in our time without losing the integrity of the gospel? This art has to be mastered in a time of polarisation and change and in relation to the global church.
“In her call to repentance Sarah Bruel offered words of hope. “Europe, you are not post-Christian but pre-revival.” ”
A clear message from the Congress is that we have several issues on our doorstep to deal with as a church in Sweden. The next generation is just one of them. To reach them we must work seriously with issues that matter to them like creation care, justice, gender, sexuality, and integrity. Here is the larger scope of the mission commission and the limit is not our borders but the end of the earth.
So which way should we go to be able to sing with a loud voice “How great thou art” in awe of what God has done in society and people's life? In my opinion, the Fourth Lausanne Congress points us to look in two directions. We need to repent and look at ourselves and the Church in the light of Lord Jesus. The other direction is that we have to look outward and work together as one Global Church. In her call to repentance Sarah Bruel offered words of hope. “Europe, you are not post-Christian but pre-revival.” For that to be a reality we need to stand together as the Global Church and collaborate as we formulate again the gospel in our time.
Daniel Råsberg
Mission strategist with Interact (Sweden)
Endnotes
Statistics from” Frikyrkoundersökningen – en rapport om frikyrkans utveckling 2000-2020” shows the development in the Swedish free church over 20 years and shows both these movements. vidare.nu/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/frikyrkoundersokningen-2021.pdf
This thesis is well presented in the book “The world’s most protestant country” by Katarina Barrling. Barrling, Katarina 2024 Världens mest Protestantiska land: Det Extrema landet lagom
https://www.forskning.se/2017/04/12/svenskarna-tror-men-inte-pa-gud/ se also https://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/WVSNewsShow.jsp?ID=467
The last episode of the “Den tuna blåa linjen” ( The thin blue line) depicted the faith of the police officer in a very positive way. The religion sociologist David Thurfjell described it as larger shift in the view of Christian faith in Sweden especially among younger generations.
Lausanne Movement, Denise-Margaret Thompson - Equipping Gen Z for Missional Living, https://lausanne.org/video/equipping-gen-z-for-missional-living, Accessed 13/12/24
Lausanne Movement, Anne Zaki - Confronting Division: Pursuing Unity Through the Spirit, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6vTZNJ9sFY, Accessed 13/12/24