Where the Saints Have Trod

Occasionally I will highlight a recently read book that might be of benefit to others in our movement

I love shopping for books. While at the North American Convention in June I forced myself to browse through the disheveled stacks in the Reformation Publishers tent, just in case I could find a gem in the rough. I was pleasantly surprised to find a normally out-of-print book that I had read years earlier during research for my Master's thesis: WWhere the Saints Have Trod: A Social History of the Church of God Reformation Movement by Val Clear (Midwest Publications, 1977).

Val Clear was a professor of Sociology at what was Anderson College when he wrote this book. His intent was to examine our movement from a sociological perspective, and in comparison to other emerging religious movements. Clear starts with the assumption that "All social institutions arise out of their environments, but none is more closely related to the soil in which it grows than a Christian church" (p. 1). He then goes on to demonstrate how the Church of God transitioned itself over the years to become an organization much more closely resembling a denomination than a movement. This change occurred over many years, and can be summarized in the following stages:

1. Social unrest; milling about

2. A leader appears and defines the issues.

3. A self-conscious minority emerges and rallies around the leader.

4. The parent body rejects the idea of the new group and separation takes place.

5. The new group is isolated.

6. The new group is institutionalized.

7. Sophistication develops.

8. Unrest anew; milling about. (p. 10)

Writing from the vantage point of the 1970's Dr. Clear pegged our movement at stage seven, suggesting that there were "only undercurrents of dissension" (p. 180). We had reached the "quietude of middle age", but were trying to find our "raison d'etre ... in a world that has changed rapidly". (p. 180).

Almost thirty years have passed since the publication of this important book. The insights are valuable for anyone who wants to better understand our movement, and there are critical implications for us today. I, for one, believe that we have moved closer to stage eight, not only because of our own organizational dynamics, but also because of the shifting religious and secular environments around us. In light of this, what can we learn from Clear?

First, we must be honest about the social influences that have shaped us. We cannot continue to assume that we function as a true movement.

Second, it would be good for us to assess current movements through Clear's template. In particular, the Emergent movement has the potential to be one of the most significant Christian developments in over a century. A growing number from within the Church of God are resonating with this trend. Clear's insights can help us be better prepared for these movemental changes within and around us.

If you can find a copy of Where the Saints Have Trod, I urge you to read it.