Comment from Understand the Times:
The emerging church has hit the mainstream in Africa too. Whatever it takes to get a crowd and pay the bills. The emerging church was invented by Peter Drucker and others who understood marketing. Now that we are in the post modern era, the demand for sensual and sexual attractions to make church more acceptable is flourishing.
But is this Christianity? You decide.
June 6 - 'Cry mightily unto God' - as churches scramble for 'lost souls'
Article: Emerging Church
SOME churches use live musical bands and modern stage decorations during worship, apparently in a bid to woo members. The competition for "lost souls" is hotting up among churches in Zimbabwe, with modern methods being employed to lure new believers.
In fact, charismatic and "born again" churches, are springing up almost everywhere in the country and spreading like veld fire. They use a type of worship which, to outsiders, appears hysterical and a departure from the quiet, supplication which inspires meditation. Such worship, which includes dancing, not only to traditional Zimbabwean drumbeats but also to bands well equipped with Western music instruments, attracts a wider audience.
Youthful pastors howl their lungs out in the new churches, cry on the podium and speak in tongues. Observers say many are attracted to such churches by promises of miracles. Most of the new churches claim to heal the sick and disabled and provide solutions to financial, marital and social problems.
The contest for the lost souls has even been taken to cyberspace. The churches are using the Internet and social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter and Skype to advertise their "wares". Some are using the latest information communication technology gadgets and accessories like CDs, DVDs, memory cards, flash disks and laptops to disseminate information to would-be followers.
But the scramble to attract people to churches continues unabated. Some are using unorthodox and scary methods in a bid to ensure that as many people as possible join them. It shows that some organisations are doing "whatever it takes" to make their congregations grow bigger.
"Most of the organisations we are calling churches are making money and acquiring riches at the expense of the poor," he said.
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