Dauner News Update, January 2010
THE FRENCH DIS-CONNECTION
In 498 A.D., with the conversion of the Frankish king Clovis, France won the title of the “eldest daughter of the Church”. A recent survey shows just how much French Catholicism has declined. Among the findings:
• 81% of the French described themselves as Catholics in 1965. In 2009, the number is less than 64%.
• Whereas 27% of French Catholics attended mass once a week in 1965, in 2009, no more than 4.5% of French Catholics do so.
• 63% of practicing Catholics in France believe that all religions are the same.
Observers are saying that while none of this is new, the results are even more dramatic than was expected. But all is not lost for the Christian faith. One glimmer of hope is that the demise of “sociological Catholicism” has been accompanied by a dramatic increase in the number of adult converts (in the Catholic church): almost 9000 for the year 2009, many of whom were baptized by immersion. It is heartening to report these green shoots of faith sprouting in the crevices of this ancient Christian nation; they make our own work of evangelism that much easier.
THE SCOTTISH CONNECTION
At the invitation of local evangelist Alastair Ferrie, Prisca and I enjoyed attending the congregational spiritual retreat of the Dundee Church of Christ in Scotland, January 29-31. We were virtually bathed in Christian love and fellowship during the whole weekend. The theme of the retreat—discipleship—provided me the opportunity to present publicly for the first time three sessions (out of eight) of the Purpose of God in its English version.
The leadership of the Dundee church is well aware of the challenge faced by the church in its mission to the post christian culture of the Western world. In fact, Alastair has published a very readable and practical book entitled Evangelism in a Post Christian Culture that I am sure you would find useful. Google it.
THE CHURCH CONNECTION:
OUR LOCAL CONGREGATION HOSTS PRAYER MEETING FOR UNITY
You cannot pray together and expect to come away unscathed. You cannot enter into God’s presence humbly asking Him to change you and come out of it exactly the same. That was the hope of the 120 people who packed into our chapel on January 20 for an evening of prayer, Scripture reading and singing in the context of the worldwide Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The service was centered around the reading of Luke 24 and the Master’s call for His people to be witnesses with one voice to God’s purpose for the world.
This is the third year that the Fuveau Chapel Church has helped organize a prayer meeting jointly with neighboring Catholic parishes and Protestant churches. It would be hard to exaggerate the positive impact that these meetings have had not only on our relations with other believers but also on the receptivity to the Gospel by the unchurched or unbelieving visitors in attendance! Probably no other single event has been such a boost to our evangelistic efforts in the local community.
THE GYM CLASS CONNECTION
For the Marseilles mission church, everything is an opportunity for mission. The youngest member of the congregation, Esther Young, a high school gymnast, has organized a gym and exercise class for about a dozen younger neighborhood girls. Since most of the parents stay during the hour, we decided to invite them to follow the Purpose of God. That is the origin of this first class. So far, one class member has been baptized, and two more people have insisted on joining the series half way through rather than wait for the beginning of a new one.
Now the class includes: a Muslim mother of three whose husband is a Christian, an extremely devoted practicing Catholic mother of five, a Muslim father of four whose wife is a Christian, and a school psychologist.
THE WEB CONNECTION
Those of you who have followed our mission over the years are familiar with our ongoing “core” ministries that continue to function month after month but that are not always featured in my updates. My son Philippe has prepared a newsletter overview of the progress of these ministries during the year 2009. You can download the file from the DOWNLOADS page of this site.
May God bless you in the coming year and grant that you love the Lord Jesus Christ more each day.
Max and Prisca Dauner