Mission Implausible

Analyses sociologically the contemporary crisis of credibility faced by the churches in Europe, and sets out missiological strategies for restoring credibility to the Church. Mission Implausible sets out to address the crisis of Christianity in Europe using the tools of sociological analysis. It offers an accurate diagnosis of the dramatic shift in the fortunes of Christianity in Europe over the last two or three centuries. In most parts of the world, through most of history, people have been religious: secular Europe is an exception. The current crisis of European Christianity is therefore rather strange, and demands an explanation. Mission Implausible also surveys the religious landscape of Europe in search of those forms of religion that appear untouched by the crisis. Where is religion doing well, and what can the Church learn from these scenarios? Working from the premise that the current crisis is, in part a crisis of credibility, Duncan MacLaren sets out to try to understand the dynamics, or inner-workings, of credibility.
How is it that in modern societies certain beliefs are simply taken for granted, while others - perhaps perfectly reasonable beliefs - are abandoned to the scrapheap of implausibility and deviance? And, knowing how credibility is constructed in the modern world, how might these insights inform our missiological practice? How can sociological insights contribute to the mission of the Church? Written for church leaders, theologians, students of theology and sociology and all those concerned with Christian mission, Mission Implausible presents practical and realistic guidelines on how we can restore credibility to the church once again. - Accounts for the decline of the Church in Europe both in terms of the history of ideas and sociologically. - Shows how religious plausibility is constructed. - Identifies scenarios of desecularization in Europe.