EVANGELICAL PROTESTANTS IN CANADA COMPARING NEW IMMIGRANT AND

EVANGELICAL PROTESTANTS IN CANADA: COMPARING ‘NEW’ IMMIGRANT AND NON-IMMIGRANT CONGREGATIONS Michael Wilkinson, Ph. D Trinity Western University Sam Reimer, Ph. D Crandall University

Introduction • Institutional forms of Christian religiosity continue to decline in Canada, with one exception: the evangelical or conservative Protestants. • Recent immigrants contribute significantly to this growing congregational base with the majority of new evangelical congregations servicing minority groups. • In this paper, we analyze the implications of a growing minority and immigrant presence in evangelical congregations. • Comparisons are made between new immigrant and nonimmigrant congregations.

Data • Data are from the Canadian Evangelical Churches project conducted by the authors and includes 50 face-to-face interviews, interviews with denominational leaders, and survey interview data from nearly 500 evangelical pastors across Canada. • The pastors are from 5 of the largest evangelical denominations and represent a range of theological viewpoints (e. g. Wesleyan, Reformed, Anabaptist, and Pentecostal). • They include: Baptist Conventions, Christian and Missionary Alliance, Christian Reformed Church, Mennonite Brethren, and Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada.

Argument • Evangelical Protestantism is a uniquely congregational style of Canadian religion, and its institutional form remains relatively strong. • New forms of Christianity from Africa, Asia, and Latin America are arriving in Canada leading to the de. Europeanization of evangelicalism. • Multicultural theory highlights the importance of recognizing a range of variables including ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality. Surprisingly, very little attention is given to religion in the literature. • We offer a demographic analysis of evangelical congregations noting a high degree of diversity

Evangelical Beliefs & Attendance

Evangelical Congregations & Attendance

Demographic Diversity

Ethnic/Racial Diversity

Evangelism, Mission, and Societal Engagement • General Observations • 1. There is a general trend among evangelical Protestants • • away from traditional methods of evangelism. 2. Evangelicals are emphasizing a “missional” approach, a theological movement that assumes Canada is a post-Christian society and that congregations need to rethink how they will engage Canadians. 3. Pastors are de-emphasizing traditional program based congregations and focusing on community based service. 4. The one exception is new immigrant pastors and congregations where traditional views of evangelism and mission are assumed to be appropriate. 5. New immigrant pastors talk about Canada as a mission field and speak of “reverse mission. ”

Conclusion • In conclusion, while Christianity institutionally continues to decline in Canada, the one exception is evangelical Protestantism. • The growth of evangelicals is largely, but not solely, related to global migration. • Multiculturalism in Canada is another factor that accounts for two observations: the ongoing de-Europeanization of Christianity and second, the increase in ethnically diverse congregations among evangelical Protestants. • Evangelicals are re-considering ways to engage society. • New immigrants see the decline in Christian denominations as an opportunity for mission.