The Churches' Outreach Mission: Educational and Evangelical Dilemmas

During the past decade or so, this late-modern society in which we, in the West, live has frequently been called a learning society; it is also one which is materialistic with its pre-eminent knowledge base being scientific. Indeed, the humanities appear to be of less significance and theology is no longer the queen of the sciences, even the institutional practice of religion appears to be declining. Consequently, the churches are confronted with an outreach issue of quite major proportions and the question that I want to explore in this paper is whether the churches' mission should be educational or evangelical in this learning society. In order to do this, I want to explore in three parts the processes of human learning - which I will argue are existential, then the relationship between the churches and religious education, finally, I will focus on the nature of education and truth and I will then draw out the implications of my argument.