“It’s European!”

Purses for men. Smelly candles. Awful-tasting chewing gum. A bastard child of peanut butter and chocolate. Subtitled movies. Uncomfortable fiberboard furniture. Risque advertisements. Expensive dress-up loafers. No matter how odd, ugly, effeminate, debased or impractical a product may be, in the United States, the sales trump card is to claim that said object is “European.” For all its Francophobia, German stereotype and Spanish ignorance, it seems that Americans must have some sort of “fashion envy” when it comes to European style.

As we travel the country talking about missions in Europe, we’re often accused of advocating the post-Christian culture we describe in our presentations. Overlooking the fact that few of the people groups in Europe are living in God-honoring ways. Nevermind that cultures are broken human constructs that only serve to help us make sense of the world around us. As though we went to Europe, converted to “Europeanism,” and have now returned to evangelize unsuspecting Americans into going “Euro.” It’s all part of our evil plan.

Tracking the trends of influence and worldview, we believe that the European reality is the (near) future American reality. It’s as though our time in Europe were a trip into America’s cultural future. We’ve been there; we’ve seen what’s coming. And we have come to realize that you, church, are not ready for it.

So all of our talk about Europe and postmodernism and espresso drinks is not born of some deeply held belief in the promise of the European worldview. It’s to sound the alarm of pending changes, and to offer our help as you prepare to face the challenges of ministry in a culture that different from the one you grew up in.