Church decline and institutional anxiety: an authentic Christian response

What is the source of the decline in church attendance in western Europe? This article critiques contemporary narratives of decline from within church institutions, comparing them with models of secularization, particularly the work of Charles Taylor. This article argues that current narratives of decline, using the Church of England as an example, blame secularization on congregations failing to engage in mission. This narrative is shown to stem from twentieth-century missiology, much of which has been accepted wholesale, but is in need of critical reassessment. However, rather than a neutral paradigm, it will be shown how it creates unhealthy cultures of anxiety. The article instead asks what healthy and theologically informed models of mission and ministry might look like in a period of secularization and challenge, engaging the work of Andrew Root.