canadianchristianity.com email interview with Cam Roxburgh, founder of Southside Community Church, Metro Vancouver

1. What are the main challenges and issues the Canadian church is facing? How are we doing at dealing with those challenges and issues?

Marginalization and Nominalism. The church no longer is in the centre of the culture (there is no centre any more) but has been forced to the margins. This is not necessarily bad, but actually provides us with an environment where many revivals actually occur. However, it is a new role for the church and the challenge will be to be able to adapt to this position. The potential for kingdom impact is exciting, but the challenge will be that it will be a position that is not comfortable for most believers. Nominalism is also a huge issue. We have reduced the gospel to an easy believism that preaches a cheap grace that Bonhoeffer talked about. We have been squeezed into the mold of culture as it relates to individualism and consumerism.

2. What are the bright spots, encouraging trends, new movements in Canadian Christianity? How will the Canadian church and Canadian society change in the future? What future trends and issues will we have to deal with?

Hard for me not to be biased about two things that I am involved in. First, the Church Planting Canada movement continues to grow. God is blessing this movement which reaches across most denominations and many generations. There is a real move of God in the country to plant more churches, but to be concerned that we are planting missional churches that seek to transform their neighbourhoods. Another thing I have been encouraged by is the realization that churches are uniting together to reach their neighbourhoods. Pastors are meeting together to strategize how they may represent the unity of the body in their local. Finally, I am encouraged by a move in the educational realm. There is an increasing sense that the best way to produce leaders is not in the seminaries, but rather in local churches. The seminaries can then partner with local churches. My own Missional Training Network (mtnetwork.ca) has just recently begun to work with local churches to help them become missional and produce leaders who are equipped to lead churches in this new context.

3. What is the character of the Canadian church? What distinguishing characteristics does it have? What are its strengths and weaknesses? Is this changing?

The evangelical church is changing in Canada. For that we must be grateful. For far to long the church has been attractional, but there is a move that is beginning to help local churches become incarnational. Local churches are recognizing that we have the privilege of living out the mission of God and seeing neighbourhoods transformed. Some of the weaknesses have been that we have been producing consumers in our local churches. We have a huge need to re-imagine what local churches look like in this day and age.

4. How is the church doing qualitatively? How committed are church members? Are churches generally optimistic, pessimistic, fearful, expectant, discouraged, energized, complacent, disinterested, etc.?

In a word - not well. But I do believe that the tide is turning and that brighter days are ahead. What we really need is a good dose of persecution, but that is hard to pray for. For far too long we have been producing consumers that are shaped far more by culture than by the kingdom. We read the text through cultural and individualistic lenses. We have reduced the gospel to a personal and private salvation which has contributed to the ineffective manner in which we live in local neighbourhoods.

5. What is the state of the church in Canada numerically, both in terms of the number of church members and the number of Christians? What branches of the church -- such as Catholic, mainline, charismatic, postmodern, evangelical -- are growing and shrinking? In what parts of the country -- provinces, urban areas, rural areas -- is the church growing or shrinking? Among what demographics is the church growing or shrinking?

In some ways, one might get excited about what seems to be an increase in numbers across the land. However, we need to re-evaluate how we define success. What we need to be encouraged by is the transformation of local neighbourhoods. In the maritime provinces, we still see a high percentage of church attendance on Sundays, but give this another few years and with an aging population we will see this drop. What I am excited about is that we are beginning to see God at work in Quebec. There are some wonderful things happening there.

6. What is the attitude of the larger Canadian society to Christianity? Is this changing? In what ways? What impact is secularism having? What is the character of Canadian society generally, how is it changing, and what impact is that having on the church?

As mentioned above the church has been marginalized. This is causing us to re-look at our approach and to investigate how we are perceived. Changes are happening. What we need to focus on is changing our approach without compromising and cheapening the gospel. It has been said before that people are not opposed to Jesus, just the church. With this, the church has begun to participate more in social issues and issues of justice. It is these kinds of approaches that will help us once again "to enjoy the favour of all the people." (Acts 2:47)

7. What is the ethnic makeup of the church in Canada and what impact is immigration having on Canada? What percentage of immigrants are already Christian? Are we converting immigrants to Christ? Are other religions gaining adherents? Are we winning our children or losing them? How multicultural is the church, how representative of the Canadian population?

This is one of our greatest needs in Canada. The large influx of people from other nations gives us a wonderful opportunity to reach people from other lands with the gospel. However, one of the tragedies is that we are planting churches that not only begin with a specific ethnicity, but seem bent on staying that way. It is true that we need to start somewhere, but we need to be planting churches that cross all kinds of barriers and demonstrate that as the people of God we have been given the gift of unity. Instead we are no different from the world around us. It is imperative that we plant and develop intercultural churches that reach all people.

8. What are the most important moral issues that the church will be wrestling with in the next few years? Are we still wrestling with issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage, or are those battles over? What can and should the church be doing in these areas?

Our approach should be to demonstrate an alternative way to live. As we demonstrate the positive approach of adoption over abortion and fidelity in a marriage between wife and husband, we will proclaim the kingdom of God.

There are a variety of views as to whether we as Christians actually demonstrate a different level of morals and values. Now, more than ever, we need to demonstrate a level of holiness that in the end will be attractive to others searching for answers. Social issues, justice issues are crucial. Issues of sexual purity will continue to be important, but so will issues of generosity, simplicity, community and the stewardship of creation.