Following up on The Failure of Success, I’d like to add five more reasons why movements turn success into failure:
6. Prosperity
John Wesley was an astute observer and practitioner of movement dynamics. He witnessed first hand the impact of prosperity on a religious movement.
“Wherever riches have increased, the essence of religion has decreased in the same proportion. Therefore, I do not see how it is possible, in the nature of things, for any revival of religion to continue long. For religion must necessarily produce both industry and frugality and these cannot but produce riches. But as riches increase, so will pride, anger and love of the world in all its branches….Is there no way to prevent this – this continual decay of pure religion?”
7. Peace at any price
Plateaued movements are more harmonious. Success has reduced the sense of urgency regarding the mission. There are no more passionate debates about how we’re going to get the job done. It’s more important to agree with each other than to be effective in our mission. Compromising the mission is the price paid for peace.
8. This worldly faith
The movement’s official theology may still acknowledge the supernatural but in practice, only approves of sedate spirituality. The spiritual experiences which birthed the movement are carefully tamed as the movement seeks to become more aligned and acceptable to the surrounding secular culture. This drift is supported and encouraged by an increasingly well-educated professional clergy. More “reasonable” demands are made on members. A plateaued movement remains increasingly connected but less distinct from its surrounding culture.
9. Respectability
A plateauted movement seeks peace with its surrounding culture rather than the conflict that is required for transformation. In this stage, conflict with the outside world is reduced as a movement begins to conform with the surrounding culture even on issues that are clearly in conflict with its beliefs. Membership standards are relaxed in order to attract more socially respectable people. As a result, there is increased diversity of levels of commitment and of beliefs. Membership becomes more passive as ministry is placed in the hands of the professionals. Increasingly the churches within the movement become cultural and community centres more concerned with social issues than with sin and salvation.
10. Closed and loose networks
Plateaued movements are far less likely to be made up of recently converted followers. Dynamic movements grow through social networks. Plateaued movements find it difficult to maintain connections with fresh relationship networks of unreached people. In this sense they are more closed. In addition, dynamic movements have ‘tight’ relationships internally. They have a clear sense of identity while maintaining relational contact with those outside. Plateauted and declining movements have looser relationships internally and thus are weaker organisationally.
Conclusion
Decline is inevitable. It’s the second law of thermodynamics — the universe is winding down. It’s the law of sin and death working its way even into Christian movements. There are no exceptions.
We’ve finished on a sad note. I’m doing some thinking about how movements turn decline around. There aren’t a lot of case studies out there.
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