Church History in Plain Language

by Bruce L. Shelley

Toynbee’s theory, however, is only partly right. People in the West seem to rightly understand the twentieth century in terms of this secularizing process; the emerging ideologies of nationalism, communism, and individualism largely displaced or tamed the great religions, making them appear marginally important. Many predicted that this process would continue. Reason and science would explain more and more about the world and its people. As people became more educated, they would not need religion, at least not in the same way. Voices of secularization forecasted that fewer people would believe in God, and the God they believed in would be less of a God. Although many Westerners continue to embrace the secularization model, the theory is ridiculously inaccurate when the entire world is considered. The world is more religious than ever, even hyper-religious. Believers in the West may still believe that Christianity is in retreat and be unaware of its unparalleled expansions. Before the century was finished, theorists reversed much of Toynbee’s theory; we will understand the future better by paying attention to religious and cultural issues rather than to the political and economic ones.