Beyond Christendom: New Maps

The result of the great century of Protestant expansion, the nineteenth, has not been the expansion of Christendom, but rather its end. This has not meant a retreat on of Christianity, which is rapidly growing in what used to be the "mission field." But it has resulted in a new state in which Christianity, beyond being merely universal, is rapidly becoming cath'holic in the original sense of being "according to the whole." Just as the Church has learned to live with a cath'holic canon of Scripture that includes a wide variety of perspectives, it will now have to learn how to be a Church that includes a wide variety of perspectives. This variety challenges and enriches the manner in which we read the canonical texts of Christianity, as well as its theology and history. Finally, some examples from the field of Church history are given.