No, not those Marx and Engels (obviously they’re spelled differently) and why would I devote my column this week to the founders of Communism? I mean, I know we’re a broad church and all that, but not so broad that the rector is a Marxist.
The ‘marks’ I want to write about are the marks of personal growth in the Christian Faith. The ‘Engel’ is a guy (first name: James) who, 50 years ago, devised a scale to determine where people are in their progress to being deeply committed Christians.
First, the Surgeon General’s health warning. Fifty years is a long time in church growth theory. Heck, the world is a different place from what it was just ten years ago, before AI, Covid, and the changing social and political dynamics that are shaping the Western world. So, we can’t give Engel a free pass. Some of his thinking is deeply challenged by 50 years of dizzying social and technological change.
Having undermined Engel’s authority, let me now show you that, despite all of that, his work is still helpful. He sets out to show the well-proven fact that people don’t become Christians out of the blue. We all know this is true. Coming to faith in Christ is a process. Usually it takes years, often it involves crisis moments, when we take a big step forward. Nonetheless, no one goes from total unbelief to being a mature believer in a blinding, flashing Damascus Road experience. (Even Paul’s Damascus Road experience wasn’t a Damascus Road experience. He immediately retreated to Arabia to spend 3 years in isolation, study, prayer, and guidance before he could begin his ministry as an apostle.)
Engel’s point is that everyone is somewhere on a continuum, ranging from negative numbers (steps leading to faith) to zero (the moment of conversion) to positive numbers (post-conversion growth):
Spiritual Stages
-8: Awareness of a supreme being, but no knowledge of the Gospel
-7: Initial awareness of the Gospel
-6: Awareness of the fundamentals of the Gospel
-5: Grasping the implications of the Gospel
-4: Developing a positive attitude toward the Gospel
-3: Recognizing one’s spiritual need
-2: Decision to act
-1: Repentance and faith in Christ
0: New Birth / Conversion
+1: Post-decision evaluation
+2: Incorporation into a local church
+3: Conceptual and behavioral growth
+4: Deep Communion with God
+5: Stewardship and personal evangelism
I hope you’re nicely at the positive end of the spectrum. (If not please see me after church!)
This coming Sunday we celebrate members of St John’s who have moved nicely along the Engle’s scale and are eager to stand before the congregation and the bishop and have one of the crisis moments I mentioned.
We have eleven adults and four young people who on Sunday will be confirmed or received into the Episcopal Church, or who will reaffirm their faith. Please come out for the 10:30 service and support these sisters and brothers in this significant moment.
Sunday is also a great chance to meet our new Bishop, Richard Lawson. He will be preaching and celebrating and both services, eating breakfast and lunch with us, and talking to the parish at 9 a.m. to tell us all about his life and journey of faith. I now you’ll enjoy getting to meet him.
See you Sunday.