The END of the Church of Scotland

[@marlene56-143]

When the "church" is no different in its beliefs, rituals, or requirements than anything else in society, why would anyone bother?

[@calebklingerman7902]

I read an article about why many young Christians show a preference for more traditional/historic branches of Christianity as opposed to the showy, non-denominational ones. There was a brilliant line in it that said (as accurately as I can recall), “You can get coffee and donuts or hang out with your friends wherever you want, but only at church will someone rub an ash cross into your forehead and remind you of your mortality.”

[@StephensCrazyHour]

Across history, the church drove culture. It would set the norms of society. Now that is done through TV and video games.

[@John-fk2ky]

@@StephensCrazyHour That's slightly missing the point. Those are just a medium through which messages (via storytelling and imagery) are spread.

[@dairallan]

That might have some validity if there weren't nuttier options. But the hardcore churches like the Wee Frees and other splinter denominations who still preach damnation services are dying just as fast as the mainstream Kirk.

[@StephensCrazyHour]

@John-fk2ky they're where attention goes. Attention is the currency of thought Nevada what you pay attention to is what drives your thinking. For a thousand years the church was what held the attention of the people. Now that is the internet, TV and video games. They give the normie their mythology.

[@calebklingerman7902]

For anyone wondering, that’s less than 1.2% of Scotland’s population which actually attends the church of Scotland.

[@MGJS71]

A meaningless statistic. Scotland is not a uniform society. E.g. the cities have virtually nothing in common with rural areas; East with West; North with South etc.

[@gordon1545]

@@MGJS71 That's utter nonsense. You're wildly exaggerating the differences. Most people in rural areas have the same kind of jobs, the same lifestyles and the same politics as those in urban areas.

[@MyPrideFlag]

What about the rest of population? Are there other churches or are they all non practicing/atheist/other religions? In Poland 25% attends catholic masses every week which is a sharp decline from 50% in 1990's anyway.

[@MGJS71]

@@gordon1545 How is the Strathclyde oil industry these days? Or the East Kilbride fishing fleet?

[@1corinthians15.1-4kjv]

@@MGJS71 That is a meaningless statement then: You could say the same thing about every nation in the world!

[@JohnWilson-hc5wq]

Agreed, from a purely practical (not a believing) viewpoint. Watering down Christianity to chase people won't work. Those who don't believe anymore won't come back, and those who still believe want to clearly differentiate themselves from secular society.

[@chibu3212]

Great point. Traditionalists or conservative religious practitioners will likely remain but become a minority, while liberal denominations “watering down” their religion to appeal to modern secular ethics will inevitably die out.

[@porkyfedwell]

"When you stand for nothing, you fall for everything."

[@Damon-p9u]

Nice one.

[@Mns_87]

I stand for human dignity, not some Iron Age fairy tale.

[@ltcajh]

@@Mns_87There’s a paucity of dignified humans.

[@johnbrown6189]

When you stand for religion you stand for anything they want you to. And it's not all good.

[@seandonahue8464]

I was raised Catholic. I was born into it. If faith is how you find truth, what can a person not claim to believe on faith alone? In America the KKK rose out of the Bible Belt. The KKK is Christian based, they have faith. While you likely are not in league with them, you may say they have incorrect faith. How do we see they have bad or wrong faith? Please don’t feel bad or feel offense. Consider the point. You are probably a good person, just because you are good.

[@fjhforever]

A Church that is wedded to this world will be widowed in the next.

[@gabrielesimion3074]

even conservative churches are in decline, many have a lag in decline because they receive conservative christians that escape from progressive denominations. LCMS and Sothern Baptist are in serious problem

[@DiamondKingStudios]

@@gabrielesimion3074Even we Catholics seem to be in decline in some areas; the Catholic center of population within the United States has gradually shifted southwards and westwards as immigration is the only thing making up the difference on a national scale. Not enough Americans are becoming priests to sustain most churches (understandably so, I must admit), so I’ve attended quite a few Masses where the presiding priest was from Nigeria, Poland, the Philippines, Togo, India, etc. There is that trend I hear about of young men being drawn to Catholicism or Orthodoxy, but I don’t know how much of that is sincere religious conviction or mere attraction to the aesthetic/general politics each group portrays here.

[@sufiameen6093]

The Church of England has died going WOKE. In the states, UMC conference has gone gay and is dying. Islam will take over without Jihad in area.

[@gabrielesimion3074]

@@DiamondKingStudios the meme 'progressive churches are declining, conservative/traditionalist churches are thriving' is not 100% untrue, but it is blinding us from the fact the decline has profound reasons and it will affect every denomination. I'm a catholic from Italy and i'm seeing the problems, lessened by the fact that the parish in many places is the center of community's life and provide a lot of events and services. The decline is not even uniform in every denomination: there are progressive communities that thrives and conservative congregations that decline. I attend two parishes and I'm seeing the diferences: one has problems to found new people and is somewhat elitary, resulting in problems with their activities, the other is ready to recruit people and has leaders that want to cooperate with everyone, resulting in a large impact in the community and a good attendance at worship

[@gabrielesimion3074]

@@sufiameen6093 the Southern Baptist Convention is the opposite of woke and has been in decline from 2006, losing now hundreds of thousands of members every year. Can we also speak about the numbers of the non-woke Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod?

[@JohnCouplandguitar]

Here in Torrance, just outside Glasgow, we have a very healthy all age Church of Scotland. We used to meet in a quaint little building which held 120 folk. Then one evening while we were singing, 'Spirit of the Living God fall afresh on me,' I heard this racket behind me and saw a dove trying to break in through the window. During the sermon, on the Holy Spirit, it did it again and it was perched above the door as we left. Some time later at a morning service people just kept on coming. We put out extra chairs and packed the vestry and the porch and eventually managed to shut the doors. The only, 'problem,' was that my fellow elder and I were now outside the church with no room to get in! So a new church was required so we asked the whole village if they would pledge money towards the project. They pledged exactly the right amount plus £100 which covered the cost of posting the begging letters. That was 25 years ago and we are still going strong. We are Conservative Evangelicals who stick to the Book. Perhaps that is the key, 'We stick to the Book.'

[@KCghdwevp]

Thank you for your positivity ❤️ love from Glasgow ✝️

[@RobertCooper1999]

Amazing story! love it. God bless you and your congregation.

[@andreamarino6010]

If you stick with who gave you the bookS it would be greatly appreciated

[@cruzgomes5660]

​@@andreamarino6010 real

[@aldoschiavone4167]

Which is Catholic!!! But your Church picks and chooses 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@drbill-r9f]

David Robertson is exactly right, IMHO. When the church no longer teaches and practices the Word of God but chooses to compromise that Word and those practices with the secular world it no longer serves its purpose.

[@soarel325]

Are you also a creationist?

[@drbill-r9f]

@@soarel325 I believe God created the universe from nothing but his will. However, I do not take the creation story as necessarily a literal narrative

[@pascalfriedmann1479]

Someone needs to invite him to a real church. It's not like those don't exist or aren't growing. He'd much rather belong there.

[@thomasdalton1508]

@@pascalfriedmann1479 Any denominations in Scotland that are growing are doing so from a very small base. Growing from five people to ten people isn't much to write home about.

[@thomasdalton1508]

The question there is what is the purpose? I don't think many people see moral teaching as the purpose of religion (moral teaching for other people, maybe, but not for themselves). Historically, the main purpose has been to answer questions that couldn't be answered any other way and that people weren't comfortable leaving unanswered. Now, we can answer a lot of those questions with science and get much more useful answers and people are getting more comfortable with just accepting that there are some things we don't know. Providing a feeling of control over things beyond our control (like the weather) also played a part, but now we have a much better understanding of those things and often can actually control them or can at least mitigate their effects. The only purpose left for most people is a feeling of community and that just isn't enough.

[@bradleygilmore5638]

Churches: You don’t really need to be here. Christians: [stop coming] Churches: [shocked pikachu face]

[@JesusLovesOfficial]

Dude , i laugh so hard xDDDD , thank you so much for posting this comment xDDDDD

[@smallfeet4581]

People have to work Sundays these days ,

[@deutschermichel5807]

In the UK? In Germany working on Sundays is mostly banned

[@danielthunder9876]

To be fair they are basically all declining overall. If the ship has a small hole or a large one, it is still sinking.

[@DeepDiveDiscipleship]

😂😂😂

[@redsusas00]

I was born and raised Eastern Orthodox, and I disagree with most of Protestant teachings and culture. Yet, I think that this event is very sad and a major blow to all of Christendom. I would much rather see a Scottish Protestant society then a full on liberal atheistic society. I hope the Scottish Church will make a comeback.

[@E.C.2]

This is a logical trajectory as our Blessed Lord will bring society to its knees,begging for mercy and forgiveness. Only then will a Restoration of the One True Faith begin.

[@charlenejohnson6632]

Amen

[@ScienceNotFaith]

I'm so happy this is happening. It's time we threw off the ancient mythical and superstitious beliefs that arose from fear and ignorance. It's time we accept reality for what it is and live within it. Secular humanism is vastly superior to any religion that ever was or is.

[@mikdan8813]

"The one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great” (Luke 6:49).

[@jpix96]

I guess it's actually something else. In revelation there are 7 churches described of which only 2 remains. It could be we have arrived there now...

[@oldpossum57]

@@jpix96 you folks are more afraid of the dark than small children. BOO!

[@jerrybaird2059]

Amen to that! The foundation of modern society has disintegrated. Political liberalism has washed away society.

[@CzarLazar1389]

The final stage of the secular Enlightenment. Lord, have mercy.

[@UniDocs_Mahapushpa_Cyavana]

That's not the final stage. The final stage is when they lose the echoes of Christianity ✝️.

[@RonJohn63]

In the face of 400 years of scientific observation, "God magically impregnated Mary; Jesus turned water into wine and then rose from the dead" look pretty darned improbable. Moreover, "you'll go to an *eternal* (aka hundreds of trillions of years) pit of fire for 70 years of mild naughtiness" seems more than a bit disproportionate, ministers either have no conviction or haven't taken the mote from their own eyes, or are buggering boys. Thus, people stop going to church, and look for community somewhere else.

[@napoleonfeanor]

Not enlightenment, just replacing one religion with others

[@AstroMonkey88]

@@UniDocs_Mahapushpa_CyavanaThe good new? Then the harvest will be ripe.

[@tylermurnaghan]

Κύριε ελέησον, come to the One True Holy Catholic and Apostolic Orthodox Church. ☦️

[@tomk8729]

I'm a Scottish Catholic but I must say the collapse of the Kirk is a huge loss to Scottish society. The main reason for it though is how wishy-washy and compromised it has become. The old kirk was morally upstanding, bible-based and full of Christian charity. Nowadays, in thrall to every woke fad going, it's not a church any more. Kirk members that still attend are unfailingly lovely. But standing for nothing won't save it. A bit of the old presbyterian fire and brimstone and moral certitude wouldn't go amis.

[@pingupenguin2474]

A bit of old fire and brimstone maybe, but growing up in the old days I know the dour, swing park locked on Sunday, you are all " doomed" stuff put a lot of Scots off God entirely. No joy is unbiblical. It is true we could do with a bit more morality nowadays, but thats because most people are not followers of Christ. They don't believe in God and don't attend church.

[@Lauren-vd4qe]

1 Tim 2:5; John 3:3; John 3:16....check it out.

[@MGJS71]

More a demolition than a collapse, tbh.

[@Scipionic1941]

Absolutely correct, tom.

[@hughoxford8735]

Ditto.

[@zachtbh]

I‘m not a Presbyterian but this is very sad Edit: I’m charismatic btw

[@GenericYoutubeGuy]

I actually didn’t know the Church of Scotland was Calvinist I thought it was Anglican.

[@thomasc9036]

I am a Presbyterian. The Church of Scotland died a long time ago to Liberal Christianity just like the Church of England...probably before. As an institution, it hasn't been a "church" for at least 50+ years, but heretics. Free Church of Scotland (conservative) which split from the Church of Scotland is growing though...slowly. It's the same thing happening to Presbyterian Churches in the US.

[@copeandseethe9279]

we have an Episcopal Church too​@@GenericKZbinGuy

[@splinterbyrd]

​@@GenericKZbinGuy That’s the Episcopal Church of Scotland, which (I think) is seperate

[@larrymcclain8874]

Presbyterian USA is one of the fastest declining churches in America.

[@chris00nj]

When I live in Aberdeen in 2004, it was already bad. The Church of Scotland would have 15 people attending, all over 70. Meanwhile, St. Mary's (the Catholic church) was full - mostly of Irish, Poles and Africans.

[@javierwolfle3593]

I do't know if you realise, but if you were a scholar, you'd be onto something with that observation. One is called the Church of Scotland, pretty much like immigration churches in my country, which remained closed to other nationalities and are also dying.

[@michaelodonnell824]

That particular Church may have existed since the 12th Century, but for the first Three Hundred years of its existence, it was a (Roman) Catholic parish. The "Church of Scotland" forgot its roots...

[@neoturfmasterMVS]

Wouldn't matter if it remained Catholic. Turn from Scottland to France. Tell me how many Catholic churches are gone, have no attendance and might even be lucky enough to exist now, only as a museum for tourist? Its not a Protestant Churchs are falling in numbers in Europe. Its all Christian Churches are falling in Europe. Trust me I'm Presbyterian and would much prefer someone where Catholic than what is happen, that people have no idea who Christ is. We are on the same team: Christian and in Europe we, as numbers, are losing ground everywhere.

[@RevGary]

Romanist Popery is not and never has been biblical Christianity Our roots are in Christ Jesus and Him crucified and Risen. His Spirit fuelled the Reformation transforming the world for good. Popery is despotism.

[@weemac4645]

Can you imagine the horror, fear and nonsense that got spewed out over the centuries. 🎉.

[@Helperbot-2000]

@@weemac4645 i know right, im glad the world is smart enought to move away from religion nowadays

[@damionkeeling3103]

@@Helperbot-2000 Yes, but will it as the communities that move away from religion are dying out due to lack of children and immigrants tend to be religious.

[@annakimborahpa]

Ready to Harvest at 1:44 - 2:06: "In November of 2023, BBC reported that one of Scotland's oldest churches had its last Sunday service. Birnie Kirk, constructed in the year 1140, held its Thanksgiving service for nearly 900 years of worship, but those nearly 900 years came to a close in 2023, and the building itself is planned to be released from Church of Scotland ownership in 2027." Response: Birnie Kirk - (A) originally was a pre-Reformation Catholic Church, (B) its site the original location of the bishops of Moray, - and - (C) Simon de Tosnay, the fourth bishop of Moray, was buried in the church in 1184. According to Ordinariate UK: "While Kirk worship can no longer happen, in January 2024 the Ordinariate group in the Highlands stepped in to offer of an ecumenical service of Evening Prayer from the Ordinariate's Divine Worship Daily Office. This was welcomed by the new Kirk Session who also agreed to a monthly Ordinariate Mass being celebrated in Birnie Kirk." [Ordinariate Org /groups/birnie.php] Thus, Birnie Kirk has now reverted to its original function as a Catholic Church.

[@mnorth1351]

500 years since the Reformation, give or take: It's survived for a while, but ultimately, when an organ separates itself from the body of Christ, it will die. The Church remains.

[@whiteheatherclub]

Conratulations to the Church of Scotland for being big enough to allow another group of Christians to use the building when they had no further need for it. Some RC bishops would rather their redundant churches became pubs or mosques than sell them to groups of Traditionalist Catholics.

[@monolith94]

True religions go the distance. I guess this reformation thing was just a flash in the pan

[@annakimborahpa]

1. Protestantism has been around in ecclesial form for five hundred years and presently is thriving in many parts of the world. 2. I don't know what the future holds, but Paragraph 15 of Lumen Gentium, the Second Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church solemnly promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 21, 1964, acknowledges the divisions among Christians and closes with an appeal to unity. [Vatican VA /archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html]

[@gabrielesimion3074]

tradcath are a lousy minority, but a small minority

[@daveconnelly1397]

Top work on the pronunciation of the Scottish place names! I’m Catholic but I have also recently returned to the faith after nearly a decade away. The pull of a secular life offers too much temptation for some and they miss out on the joy that belief can offer them.

[@TheBillyDWilliams]

Fascinating video, thanks for this! When I lived in Glasgow for 2ish years, I participated in a small Orthodox mission parish that rented a basement room and parsonage facilities from a CoS church based out of a huge, gorgeous 19th century building. The Orthodox mission (literally housed in a 15x30 storage room) was packed to the gills with young families, grandparents, and university students. On a Sunday I decided to attend the Church of Scotland service to see what it was like. The huge sanctuary was basically empty, with more people in the choir than in the congregation. I’m in my 30’s and I was the youngest person there by probably twenty years. I’ve learned recently that the CoS church can’t afford to stay open much longer, and has offered to sell to the Orthodox parish. Due to their size and the cost of upkeep on such a large building, they can’t afford it either. It’ll be interesting to see what happens to that property.

[@saldol9862]

Reminds me of the small orthodox mission I attended in uni. I was (and still am) Catholic, but I attended their divine liturgies in addition to our masses. The Orthodox priest there was very passionate in his outreach, especially on campus, despite the fact his mission was housed in the back of a bookstore. And yet my Catholic parish, which had stood in the city for centuries, paid little attention to my little ancient college. Said parish was still very vibrant, as both it and the mission were filled with crying children, uni students, military academy guys, the middle aged, and the elderly. I still have no idea how that priest fit a whole iconostasis in that bookstore. But he did… somehow. Fast forward a couple years later, I had left uni, joined the service, and moved across the country. I ended up joining a Maronite Catholic mission after the base I was assigned to stopped doing Catholic masses at its chapel, and it basically blew up to twice its original size, with much of its old Lebanese core being supplanted by non-lebanese like myself. The catholic side of the base chapel kind of struggled I will say, as its members were significantly older or more transient.

[@TheBillyDWilliams]

@@saldol9862 yeah the bookstore iconostasis sounds difficult to build lol. Maybe he built it out of books and hung icons on the outside? 🤔

[@MGJS71]

Govan?

[@TheBillyDWilliams]

@@MGJS71 oddly enough, no, and I hadn't even made the connection of how similar those situations are... common thing in Glasgow apparently lol

[@frasernangle3605]

St Gabriel's, underneath the Wellington Church?

[@inarcadia3296]

Je ne suis pas protestant, mais je trouve cela vraiment triste.

[@whitebeans7292]

bon alors, t'es Catho?

[@damionkeeling3103]

Churches are being pulled down in France because they're too expensive to look after and have no congregation anymore.

[@simonb5561]

J’ai tellement peur pour que l’église en France se trouvera bientôt dans la même situation

[@inarcadia3296]

Je suis catholique (Maureen aussi)​@@whitebeans7292

[@ChurchyStuff-wo3gy]

@@simonb5561 J'ai entendu que ils sont plus des musulmanes en France que des Chrétiens.

[@BirdieSenpai]

As a descendant of Anglo-Protestants from Lowland Scotland, this saddens me deeply; it feels like a part of my heritage has faded from this world.

[@bucketd5799]

Only the heritage is lamentable, as a Scottish Baptist...i can only look on with horror as we see the liberal shell she (The CoF) has become.

[@20quid]

@@bucketd5799 Wasn't Jesus a liberal?

[@stephencrompton4352]

​@@20quid Jesus Christ is the Son of God. The second person of the Holy Trinity.

[@dman7668]

Protestantisms dominoes are falling coming down.

[@dman7668]

​@bucketd5799 what you missed is that the entire protestant reformation was actually a liberal movement. As such the Baptist church will one day follow suit.

[@BenThorp]

Probably a lot of things that I could mention, but one minor thing worth noting is that every humanist wedding in Scotland includes, as part of its cost, a two-year membership to the Humanist Society of Scotland. So every wedding they perform also increases their membership by 2. A fairly cunning way to increase their numbers....

[@brianhagan3290]

Clever, not cunning. Cunning would be counting as members those who never darken the door of a church except for a wedding or a funeral.

[@IamGrimalkin]

@@brianhagan3290 Isn't that the same thing? The Humanist Society of Scotland is counting as members those never darken the door of a Humanist Society meeting house except for a wedding. Although I am quite baffled about how the CoS counts members. In most denominations, church membership is lower than the number of regular worshippers, because many regular worshippers can't be bothered filling out a church membership form.

[@cruzgomes5660]

​@@IamGrimalkin not that if they would their numbers would be helped that much

[@trystwithchrist]

"For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you." Lord, help us to acknowledge our guilt and return to you that you may heal our faithlessness.

[@michaelahunanya7289]

Romans 9. This scripture scares me to my bone. God have mercy on us and help us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

[@MrJLM2001]

yuck

[@ДАРТАНЬЯН-з2щ]

Even if God is real that doesn't mean he must be worshipped.

[@Constantineopulos]

The Midnight Service at my Greek Orthodox Church last night was PACKED. Pews full, walls fully lined, people were watching the service from the lobby! More births and baptisms than funerals! I find no joy in the collapse of Western Christianity, but it has been coming. I find hope in the growth of Orthodoxy.

[@cantrait7311]

Not mine in Canada totally empty I noticed the only way an Orthodox Church grows is when a certain ethnic group arrives in a city Orthodox are not strong missionaries

[@MGJS71]

Unfortunately Orthodoxy is Scotland is deeply compromised. The priests have often been embittered converts from Anglicanism with warped conceptions of Scottish culture & religion.

[@TheAnagnostis]

Mine too.

[@HellenicLegend7]

@@MGJS71What’s your proof of that, do you know them personally? I know most of them personally and they’re not embittered at all! Compromised in what way?

[@larrymcclain8874]

Orthodoxy in America is only an urban thing. Smaller towns and rural areas do not exist.

[@pj_ytmt-123]

Pope Benedict XVI prophesized that the Roman Catholic Church - which numbers 1.2B - will become small again. He was speaking of a church 1000x the Presbyterian Church, mind. If the ministers themselves do not truly believe in the message, then what of the flock? A little leaven leavens the whole loaf! Faith or the lack thereof are equally contagious.

[@pixelprincess9]

You hardly need a prophet to look at a graph.

[@dundeemink3847]

The Pope being a Nazi that swore an oath to Hitler was a turn off to the people of Scotland.

[@ronlanter6906]

The Roman Catholic Church has been a heretical church for many centuries.

[@happymradrian]

Catholics are probably worse than Presbyterians when it comes to what people report on a census vs actual attendance. The numbers coming out of Africa, Asia and South America are probably inaccurate too, I'd be surprised if there was 100 million regular attendees globally.

[@pj_ytmt-123]

@@pixelprincess9 Not so. Iirc he made the prophesy while still Cardinal, and that was some years after Vatican II when they actually thought the liturgical 'reforms' will revitalize the Church.

[@mcgregorpiper]

Christianity throughout the U.K. is in steep decline and short of a miracle, I doubt the decline can be reversed. I also believe that the decline has been a result of Church trying to adapt to the moral changes instead of adhering to the traditions of the past. As the Church has tried to be more relevant it has become more irrelevant

[@UniDocs_Mahapushpa_Cyavana]

The church's traditional morals and UK's ☕ pop-morals seem alien 👽 to each other. They disagree about everything. I can't think about a single issue where they are in agreement.

[@BulletRain100]

The Church of Scotland adapted it's morals after the church was in a tailspin, and it hasn't made things better. The problem is much larger as Catholic countries are seeing the same problem.

[@UniDocs_Mahapushpa_Cyavana]

The church's ⛪ traditional morals and UK's ☕ pop-morals seem alien 👽 to each other. They disagree about everything. I can't think about a single issue where they are in agreement.

[@jeffreyrodrigoecheverria2613]

The reformation killed Christendom in the UK

[@cerebrummaximus3762]

To an extent, it is human error a lot. The most churches there do is give young children colouring sheets and that's it. Very few have any grasp on theology, with realistically only Noah's ark and the Christmas story being the only two Biblical events that are well known - though knowing how easily people mock the Bible and how I've meant some Brits who can't point their country on map, instantly trying to solve the lack of knowledge on theology before solving greater problems which would aid theology education is a question on priorities. Apart from older churches (that are now falling to progressivism and "inclusivity"), a problem is that churches are very basic too. I get this appeal of various Protestant churches, that everything should be low-key, however in this modern world, these low-key churches are doing more harm. Church is Heaven's embassy on Earth. When you enter a church, you should know that this is a place of God. It should look glorious and divine. At the very low-key, an old style Anglican or Presbyterian church. Otherwise, think Roman Catholic. But the ideal is Eastern Orthodox church, when you enter one, you Know these are Christians. Another problem with many churches in the west, is they are unaware of their values. Clergy in the Eastern Churches have to go into deep education to enter their position. They are usually older, wiser. They know their theology. Sadly we are loosing some in some regions, but hopefully they carry on growing. I have more to say, and have not even begun on "progressive" values of society, but I don't have the time right now.

[@tmsods2874]

Mainstream culture has made a strawman out of Christianity, every problem blamed on it. A lot of young people simply do not understand what it is about, how it works, the difference between a Baptist preacher and a Catholic priest. That is why this is happening.

[@RobertGrif]

Preach!!!!!

[@dancahill9585]

Well, I understand why people would confuse the too. They both abuse Children in the US, while their churches stand by and protect their people.

[@MidwestArtMan]

Yeah. The modern way of thinking is rooted in the belief that societies always get better, rather than being cyclical, and that all change is progress. Progress is equated to good, and thus tradition is rejected. Christianity is the tradition of the West, so it's rejected as being something we must progress from. Now, people lack the soul and spirit of God, leading to an epidemic of loneliness, depression, and self-interest.

[@dancahill9585]

@@MidwestArtMan That's funny, when some of the most obviously self interested people in America are Prosperity preachers and other big public Evangelists like Joel Osteen.

[@tmsods2874]

@@dancahill9585 that's why it's important to know the difference and not lump those people together with the real churches.

[@TheMrSomecheesyname]

Reminds me of my parish I Glasgow. The doors are always closed despite it being on University Avenue, thousands passing it a day. The building hosts performances and other denominations but actual services are infrequent and attendees dwindling. I belong to one such denomination, the Eastern Orthodox which pull more to the cramped basement than the massive hall above. Follow the gospel and you will flourish.

[@smccarthymi]

The idea that the church has always changed with the times is bunk, but it’s what the religious secularists tell themselves.

[@Steelblaidd]

Too many confuse the wrapper for the gift.

[@soarel325]

It objectively has though, if you deny this you know nothing of history

[@MGJS71]

Indeed! Only heretics allow electric lighting or heating in churches!

[@tomasrocha6139]

Churches used to support slavery just as scripture does.

[@ve8168]

Depends on the change. The form of the building, the structure of the worship, rituals, house rules, etc. may change, but the moment they change their essential statements of faith to accommodate worldly wisdom and ideas, it's no longer the church.

[@CueStudent]

My take away from this video is as follows: Christ is still king, he is still our faithful shepherd. Church buildings will crumble, men will fall away but, darkness is still cold and desolate. However, faithful men still exist, the fire in the sacred heart of Christ still burns, brothers still gather together and welcome others in from the darkness. Take heart a renewal that will shock the world is on coming.

[@andrewsanford2020]

I like that.

[@oldpossum57]

How sad.There has never been a better time to shake off religious superstition than the present.

[@baruchasriel1948]

I am ex Muslim, my LORD JESUS prophesied in the end times many of HIS FOLLOWERS many godless.But I became land and remained with HIM.

[@tallasamuhammad4117]

😂😂😂

[@EasternCatholicLusophone]

That is fairly painful to hear, not gonna lie. While i am Catholic (Switching Rites to Byzantine soon) and disagree with Protestant beliefs, it is not great to hear a Christian Church to die out, but as the United Kingdom marched to the future, people knew the end was likely clear. But on a happier note, today is Easter to the Orthodox faith! Christós Anésti to all Orthodox people! Edit : Why guys? WHY? If my reply went through, please, read it.

[@delightfulBeverage]

as a Catholic, you should not believe that the Church of Scotland is a Christian Church

[@dewd9327]

Alithos Anesti ☦

[@violinda.]

Christos anesti!

[@AsiandOOd]

switch rites to byzantine means youre still a catholic though. you still believe in papal infallibility and 2nd vatican. if you believe all that then why not continue to follow the roman rite?

[@dewd9327]

@@AsiandOOd does it matter? Do you have to be a Latin Rite Catholic to be a "real" one.

[@rumrunner8019]

I'm a Buddhist, but even I think seeing the death of Christianity in Europe is depressing.

[@bobertjones2300]

The church is not immune from the impermanence of all that exists.,

[@Lauren-vd4qe]

John 3:3 Except ye become born again (christian) ye shall not see the Kingdom of God (you shall not enter Heaven), and as theres only 1 other destination after life, its highly advisable to chose God.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

@@bobertjones2300 The Church will be Eternal, that is the promise of Christ, whether it will exist in strenght in europe, that we do not know.

[@cameronforester8413]

I am too and I think it's brilliant

[@joehouston2833]

Native Europeans numbers are dying too.. Without Christ, you have no life.

[@constantinoskostakis7876]

So, let me get this straight. This Reverend Cameron turned a church into an escape room and when the kids came to the escape room and didn't know what a church is, he was about to weep. Well, here's a ground breaking thought. How about keeping the churches as the centres of worship and catechism and stop treating them as entertainment vanues.

[@SaltyCalvinist]

Heartbreaking, even more so for those of us of Presbyterian and Scottish descent.

[@viewer.123]

I've got to say as a Scotsman I'm completely comfortable with the decline of the kirk.

[@xuvetynpygmalion3955]

I came to faith just three or four years ago, mostly through the catholic church whilst living in France, Sweden and Australia. Just for context, I am 28 myself. While I am a strong believer, I have encountered some problems. Sometimes it has to do with the lack of real theology, that addresses existential problems that we face today. Often priests or fellow Christians are too distanced from the problems that we endure, and can only address it in a way that makes us feel othered and not seeking understanding (which is, to be honest, a common problem in general). That leads on to the next problem, which basically is about how we treat the other. I wish we could have more empathy and understanding towards our next of kin - trying to actually walk amongst them even when they are sinner. That's the whole point, and that is really one thing I admire about Christianity, and want to see more of. There can sometimes be a lot of rejection and self-righteousness within the community. In many congregations and denominations we see how they become an in-group that tries to isolate themselves, that's at least one good reason why churches are struggling in the secular world.

[@nunagoras]

You've hit the nail on the head on this one, congrats!... Fortunately we have now a longer average life expectancy, an higher average educational level and instant access to an ever growing amount of information like no one in the Human history to date, and we're just in the beginning of the evolutionary world! How is it possible that such a part of the society would think we'd just to stop here to pray elsewhere? That won't happen no matter what some might to think about! Meanwhile be welcome to Christianity, possibly to my own Roman Catholic Church if that is what you really want. The future will be made of those ones like you whom are able to accept while to pose good questions! Have a nice day!...

[@chibu3212]

Comments like this that are able to decipher legit shortcomings within churches to address day by day problems while also being strong believers are awesome

[@billmartin3561]

Divided we fall. I’m convinced that the more comfortable life gets, the more people get lukewarm and don’t feel the need to structure their life around the Gospel. Kids soccer games and NFL football take the place of Christ. The gate is narrow…

[@mikelawlor1533]

i agree with you 💯. do you have a scripture that comes to mind about it ? i have one or two but don’t have the time to paste right now

[@michaelahunanya7289]

Matthew 7:13-14

[@ocudagledam]

If people only turn to religion when life is "uncomfortable", were they ever truly religious, or merely desperate? (and thus in need of something that provides hope, at least in some form)

[@AlexanderShamov]

​@@ocudagledam Same thing. Religion thrives on desperation and dies without it as its functions are overtaken by better institutions. Good riddance.

[@SanctusPaulus1962]

​@@AlexanderShamov What "functions" of religion have now been overtaken by "better institutions"? What institutions? Disney?

[@ubmuhkehcubol]

This isn't a recent trend. I live in Dundee, Angus and during my drinking heyday of the 1980s, every other church had been sold off and converted (pardon pun) into a pub. Now it's a Mosque.

[@GibusWearingMann]

I'm noticing almost everyone in the comments agrees that the church being too worldly and refusing to take a stand for the Gospel is what is killing it, but a lot of disagreement about whether that description applies to the church's stubborn commitment to the social values of a century ago or its last-minute swerve to more modern values as an attempt to recover from its freefall. Food for thought.

[@MGJS71]

Neither of those accurately describes what has happened to the Church of Scotland in recent decades. Evangelicals & Liberals alike have false narratives about what has happened. The fact is the CofS is under attack from within and without by those opposed to the continued existence of the UK. This will be incomprehensible to Americans who have not known an Established Church since 1776.

[@AmericanDiscord]

This is really caused by demographic decline, spread of the scientific world view, and the community churn baked into western lifestyles.

[@IamGrimalkin]

It's not about a "last minute swerve to modern values": this issue is a symptom, not the cause. The thing that causes both the decline and the "swerve to modern values" is an issue with recognising the authority of the bible, which preceded the "swerve to modern values". It also, of course, in the past led to the adoption of the 'modern values' of decades or a century ago, e.g. liberal Christianity had much do with the Nazi "Positive Christianity" movement.

[@acksawblack]

@@IamGrimalkinExcept Christian church’s have been rejecting the authority of the Bible in their own interests since 300 AD. If we went by original values of the Bible much of Christianity would look closer to paganism or classical judaism. Also find it interesting that most of those against these “modern values” are conservative Americans. Almost like the puritanical culture that saw them kicked from Britain in the first place is what drives their views not actual theology.

[@rickleeo970]

The gate is small; the path narrow . Few find the way

[@stephenvanwoert2447]

If true, then most Christians have never found the way. Besides, Jesus was preaching to Jews, in the first place, not Christians.

[@7bag7]

I bet you don’t even know the context of that verse. Obviously not.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

@@stephenvanwoert2447 The jews became the synagogue of Satan, a new people inherits the vineyard after the renters kept killing the Lord's messengers.

[@tomroyal6167]

@@stephenvanwoert2447-You are in error. Paul preached to the Gentiles. Ever heard of him? 😀

[@stephenvanwoert2447]

@@tomroyal6167 Ever hear of Jesus? These are his words.

[@chasingtheLord96]

As a Protestant Christian deeply moved by the Scottish confessions and catechisms this is heart breaking.

[@ArtoriusGiangus]

I am not a calvinist, Scottish or a Presbyterian, but still worry about and pray for the church of Scotland as a Christian.

[@mikenogozones]

Same here, Scotland will lose part of its identity if this church dies

[@viewer.123]

I've got to say as a Scotsman unlike most of the people in this comment section, I'm fairly happy to witness the decline of the Christian faith here Although it's true that the kirk was once at the heart of many communities, many people not from here may be unaware that many in Scotland have justified their violence and bigotry in the name of their Christian faith using it as excuse to hate others (so much for love thy neighbour). There have also been many scandals with have damaged the reputation of the kirk as well as that of the Scottish Catholic Church The truth is that many people don't want to be associated with religion here and are more interested nowadays in other aspects of life other than religion

[@davidsousaRJ]

This video makes me so sad. We need to pray for a revival in Europe.

[@bibleenglish.]

There will be no revival, unless it is among immigrant groups. Immigrants are keeping the European churches afloat at this point. The US is next. The time of the Gentiles is coming to an end.

[@Fern_Thaddeus]

Yes

[@akirahojo2]

Taize would be another ecumenical practice between Protestant and Catholic churches. We need to stand together to surf the tide.

[@colvinator1611]

It's not going to happen, David. Who says so ? The King James Bible says so.

[@andrewmcgee382]

Yep, you get down on your knees and pray. It will of course achiee absolutely nothing, and the long-overdue demise of religious belief will be hastened. I cam hardly wait.

[@jperez7893]

“He who is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me, scatters”

[@matthew4712]

The Catholic Church is coming back to relative prominence in Scotland, Alleluia. I converted last year at 23 from atheism.

[@Ggdivhjkjl]

Welcome home brother.

[@theanomaly2587]

Alleluia!

[@richmondroadtv6527]

AMEN

[@isaiah3872]

Alleluia! Welcome home brother, may God guide your steps each day & may the saints pray for you always

[@Bluesruse]

Converted from atheism. And all the people rejoiced. *facepalm*

[@johanvandersandt8904]

This is rather sad... God be with the people of Scotland.

[@nlytnlyt6644]

Thank you, we appreciate your prayers

[@jonathanlong6987]

The Kirk is a mission field of non-Christians.

[@savioblanc]

The part that pisses me off the most is the Church of Scotland having the audacity of selling Church buildings from prior to their existence. A church building from the 1100s is NOT a Church of Scotland building, it's a building they took from the Catholic Church. If their congregations are dying, they don't have the right to sell property they stole from the Catholic Church, with backing from the then King

[@RevGary]

Balderdash The buildings are owned by the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob not a sinful pontiff from the synagogue of Satan 🤮

[@MGJS71]

@savioblanc fir your information, the main figure behind parish closures in the Church if Scotland has been awarded a Papal Knighthood! However, these Church buildings have been maintained & rebuilt by Presbyterians for centuries. Indeed many only came under the direct jurisdiction of Rome in the 12th or even 13th century - hundreds of years after they were founded. Roman jurisdiction was often just a passing phase of a few centuries :)

[@oldpossum57]

@@RevGary I love christians calling each other Satan! Like little boys: My father could beat up your father” Except none of you has a Father…because he was made up.

[@cruzgomes5660]

​@@RevGaryif that's the case why do Catholic Church's keep their property but the properties must now be sold off? Is the CoF not God's church?

[@cruzgomes5660]

​@@MGJS71who is this main figure that you speak of

[@bobmcbob9856]

The Protestant to Atheist pipeline seems to be real

[@astutik8909]

It pales in comparison to the catholic abyss.

[@Mic1904]

Those are big rocks to be throwing from that very ornate glass cathedral

[@sapphicselene8269]

"No where makes you an Atheist quicker than Catholic school" is a common refrain I heard growing up lol

[@astutik8909]

@@sapphicselene8269 catholic hierarchy and their schools actively promote evolution and many claim Genesis is a myth.

[@bobmcbob9856]

@@astutik8909 1) Look at the religious demographics in Protestant majority countries compared to Catholic ones. The only real outlier to that is Czechia & it’s mainly because of Communism. 2) I’m Orthodox lol why did you automatically assume I’m Catholic?

[@DM_Andy]

Scotland have announced the census figures from 2022: Church of Scotland 20.4% Roman Catholic 13.3% Other Christian 5.1% Muslim 2.2% Other Religion 1.7% No Religion 51.1% Did not answer 6.2%

[@ReadyToHarvest]

Thanks for sharing. For those reading, here's the BBC reporting on this: www.bbc.com/news/articles/czddp0j488qo

[@midknightfenerir]

Many of these Protestant churches are closing. While Christian Denomination that are highly religious, conservative and with rituals are able to some what stem the tide and some even gained members.

[@ronlanter6906]

*Not highly religious, but Bible teaching, Gospel preaching, Christ-centered, and God glorifying*

[@Hayden-fc1rb]

@@ronlanter6906 so… religious?

[@ronlanter6906]

@@Hayden-fc1rb God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) loving ✝ The Creator of all things and giver of life deserves nothing less than total worship, praise, and gratitude.

[@joehouston2833]

Catholic/Orthodoxy is growing Protestantism is dying..

[@isaiah3872]

​@@Hayden-fc1rb There's a weird tendency among some Protestant Christians to say that Christianity is not a religion, and that Christians aren't called to be religious, just "followers of Christ". It's strange that they keep the definitions but reject the label that was created for each

[@BirdDogey1]

The Church is England isn't too far off from becoming a mosque.

[@larrymcclain8874]

What will NT Wright do?

[@graham6774]

Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. We in Scotland need more Jesus. I grew up in this church, and this article well articulates something I've known for many years.

[@kuafer3687]

Lord have mercy. I can't imagine how heartbreaking it is for those still faithful to this church.

[@report-all-potholes-and-ro2712]

Truly heartbreaking

[@weemac4645]

There doomed,doomed, I tell ye. 🎉.

[@MelThorburn]

@@weemac4645Don’t tell him your name , Pike 😂

[@ronlanter6906]

For anyone who knows *RC Sproul (1939-2017), one of his ancestors (Robert Campbell Sproul) was the very first minister ordained in the Church of Scotland by John Knox* *R. C. Sproul - A life* by Stephen Nichols (page 23)

[@derekkelly5281]

Good news. Religious worship continues at Birnie Kirk just outside Elgin. Birnie, built as Moray’s first Cathedral in 1140 (and dedicated to St Brendan the Navigator) has been home over the centuries to first Catholic, then Episcopalian and latterly Presbyterian congregations. Today all traditions that have called Birnie home gather on Wednesday evenings for Evening Prayers (Evensong) continuing unbroken worship. This venture honours the St Margaret Agreement between the Church of Scotland and Catholic Church in Scotland. Mass is also held once a month (Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham).

[@daveandellenbartlett8725]

We have evangelical friends starting new churches! Do not despair God is not finished with Scotland!

[@RevGary]

I'm keen to reopen my home church on Ayrshire coast but sound biblical evangelical not woke unbiblical progressive apostasy🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿✝️

[@fortress5278]

I’m an atheist, but this seems pretty interesting to me. This could be the canary in the coal mine for faith in the US, as rates of religiosity are diminishing, and of the many folks I know, only 2 or 3 go to church regularly. I don’t care much how the Church of Scotland goes, but hope there is an avenue for folks that still believe to have an outlet to do their thing.

[@tkdmike9345]

Its more a sign for Main Line denominations, which are seeing rapid decline. Evangelical Denominations are growing. As seen with PCUSA’s decline and PCA’s rise as an example

[@gabrielesimion3074]

@@tkdmike9345 evangelicals are also declining in US, and stopping attending

[@soarel325]

@@tkdmike9345 Mainline denominations SAW rapid decline decades ago, the collapses already happened. Evangelicals are next.

[@tkdmike9345]

@@gabrielesimion3074 Yes, thats why in the video its shown that the PCA is gaining membership

[@TheDeadPirateBob]

@@tkdmike9345 The rate of growth of the PCA is largely from PCUSA members converting, even then, it's nowhere near equal to the number of people leaving PCUSA for no religion. It may be growing, but it will likely plateau soon.

[@kenithandry5093]

As a Presbyterian, this is what theological liberalism does. Why go to a church that doesn’t believe in the God of Scripture.

[@bookshelf5759]

Jews have the same problem. The only denominations growing are the Orthodox. When I was around 17 I regularly attended a conservative synagogue and I was the only regular under 70 and the only person under 40 who wasn’t dragged there. I eventually left and became Orthodox because the conservatives’ practical rejection of basic tenets of Judaism (namely the oral law) struck me as indefensibly inconsistent. Young people searching for authentic Judaism almost invariably end up Orthodox. The liberal denominations are plagued by an adapt-or-die attitude that results in them abandoning everything that makes Judaism interesting and valuable.

[@cruzgomes5660]

Did you not live in a particularly Jewish area?

[@jimbobjones5972]

I would be interested in a similar video about the Episcopal Church of Scotland.

[@andre0baskin]

People are quick to blame theology for the decline of churches, but it's far more likely to be demographics. Most Christians are born into the faith. When families stop attending a church, it ages and declines and as society becomes more secular less families attend churches. Established churches are not the best at attracting new adult members.

[@javierwolfle3593]

This

[@nehrigen]

Most of those people quoted were clearly humanists, even some of the clergy. The Church needs to get serious: to go back to the Bible and root out the sin and disbelief inside itself.

[@NoKingFreeRadical]

I was in that boat. It sailed many years ago. Today I am in a vibrant growing church in the USA. Four Baptisms today. Teach the Gospel, 100% Gospel and Scripture. You can feel the Joy. The church of Scotland abandoned Scripture and God abandoned them.

[@JB-yb4wn]

Yeah, right. The clock is ticking buddy, people don't believe in BS anymore.

[@chrismdb5686]

​@@JB-yb4wnYou really believe that? There are people that truly believe Joe Biden is a functioning member of society (as opposed to an old man with dwindling mental capacity that should be retired at home with his family), people absolutely believe BS nowadays.

[@gordon1545]

Here's a thing: in the developed world, the countries with lowest level of religious belief and observance have the highest standard of living for their poorest people. Conversely, the USA, which has by far the highest levels of religious belief in the developed world, has by far the worst care for its poorest people. The most social segregation, the least welfare, the worst health services, the worst access to the benefits of society. The thing about people who call themselves Christian is that they don't act in any way that could be described as Christian. And that's what killed the religions in Europe.

[@chrismdb5686]

@@gordon1545 Does the Middle East not exist, or is it too backwater to fit your definition? Arabia is definitely developed, as is the Levant, Caucasia, Anatolia, Iran and Iraq (although the last two have been torn apart by wars for the past four decades). Islamic nations are surely more religious than the US, in part because they enforce it. Now on to your "segregation" comment; the US is multicultural as opposed to most of Europe which at this point is mostly an ethnostate with migrants coming in from Africa and the Middle East. You can't segregate the population of any Nordic counties because they're 99.9% the same peoples. Others like France, England, Italy, etc. are still majority population of their own peoples. Sure you have people crossing the borders for work and millions of tourists, but it's not at all comparable to the US where everyone is different. There's more diversity in one US city than an entire European country, and naturally people tend to stick to their own. As to your last point about the US having the lowest standards of living for the poor, I'd point to the ongoing illegal immigrant crisis in New York City. These people illegally enter the country and are given everything: free food, clothes, shelter/homes (while kicking US citizens out of schools to live there), and they're trying to give them citizenship and voting rights. Certainly sounds like they have it pretty good despite actually having nothing when they got here.

[@thunderbird1921]

It truly is astonishing as an American, to see the difference in tone and in health of the churches. I live in a small town in Virginia and attend a Baptist church that has only 24 pews in it (and a sanctuary about the size of my family's small 1 floor, 2 bedroom house). But in that little church, there's been four baptisms in the last 12 months, at least 4-5 new regular attendees and only one passing (a 93 year old woman whose son and granddaughter still attend). Meanwhile, many "liberal" churches in the area are having significant problems, the Episcopal church is selling off its building in the next community over (which has been there since the 19th Century), to save on costs and likely because of declining attendance numbers. The one here in town is staying open for now, but numbers look pretty far down, VERY few younger people attend from what I've seen driving past it on Sundays, and they're having great difficulty keeping it staffed, usually rotating clergy with another of their churches in another nearby community (and virtually all of them look like 65 or older). And this is in a more conservative region, the liberal cities from what I've heard are often much worse (the Disciples of Christ mainline Protestant denomination, once the sixth largest in the US from a source I read, is on the verge of a complete national collapse due to loss of membership, despite trying to be politically correct as possible and embracing woke agendas all over). The difference? The church I attend thankfully still preaches the Gospel faithfully and actually applies the Scriptures, those who don't are on the fast track to self-destruction and irrelevance, as they're virtually no different than any secular club or social gathering. It's VERY sad to see what's going on in Scotland and other places, but it's a warning to all churches in the western world. If we do not stay true to the faith and live differently than the culture around us, we will completely cease to be a societal influence and rapidly fade away.

[@Nigel.123]

This is a far cry from the days of the Covenanters and Puritans. Even a land that has seen many revivals can have its candlestick removed. We need to pray that God raises up a praying people again, led by faithful ministers full of the Holy Spirit.

[@charmainelamont2020]

Birnie Kirk is now used for Catholic worship.

[@John-qd5of]

At least it is a church. Not a bad outcome.

[@RV-fr2wf]

That's Catholic church before reformation, maybe it's time to return to it's original owner

[@parrotconservative]

still better lol

[@olekcholewa8171]

Based 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿✝️🇻🇦❤‍🔥

[@WaylonElstad]

As an Orthodox christian, good.

[@CaribouDataScience]

I remember seeing a video where one of the Church of Scotland pastors was an atheist!!

[@zarach9459]

Would you be so kind as to tell the whole story?, failed to understand how such a thing is possible unless the atheist aims to destroy the church from within.

[@MelThorburn]

@@zarach9459The bloke needed a job. Spouting nonsense about talking trees and donkeys every week is a decent wheeze for the boy.

[@mariekatherine5238]

When there’s no difference in doctrine and morals between the church and the world, the world does the world much better than the church. Who wants to get out of bed early on Sunday for that? On the other hand, look at Traditional branches of Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy. They stick to and the pastors have the guts to preach the truth and the people to live it. These churches are packed to overflowing, especially since the pandemic, attempts by Francis to shut them down notwithstanding. In the USA, underground Mass in private homes and other venues is mushrooming.

[@a2falcone]

The "imagine" speech at 13:00 has no mention of anything that could be considered religious (except for the word "church"). It's a secular motivational speech. What do they expect?

[@microcolonel]

The people who ran the church into the ground with progressivism and dilution, still believing that the haven't yet done enough of it... It is truly amazing.

[@santi2683]

Sounds sad but also expected, if a church addopts messages and practices you'll hear and see literally anywhere else, why bother going to church at all

[@Gingerbreadley]

These stats videos are always the best. Always fun and informative

[@BrendaBoykin-qz5dj]

Thank you, Joshua 🌹⭐🌹

[@timothyblack3322]

On a trip a number of years ago I went with my Mother, Aunt, and Uncle we went on a two week drive around Scotland. I was quite stunned of the lack of active Churches. There were 3 churches that I took note of with signs of life & vitality. All three were Catholic Churches of the Latin Rite aka Roman Catholic Church. One Church sat in the middle of a small town with a sign on the times for Mass, and an invitation saying, “Visitors are Welcome”. 🎚

[@joywebster2678]

The Lutheran churches here in Canada, at least in my province used to have a church every corner in many cities. The congregations need to merge and have fewer healthy churches. But seniors have held on to trying to keep a barely attended churches going as the communities flood with muslims and those from India. Sad to see the loss of the focus on God.

[@BobSmith-lb9nc]

There will be no turnaround. Money down the drain.

[@az126zad]

I find it interesting that as the CoS declines that the various breakaways (Free Church, Free Presbyterian etc.) haven't grown either.

[@SchottischeSchotte]

The Free Church of Scotland is actually growing.

[@tarkadal5563]

Free Church of Scotland in Burghead in Scotland is a growing church, with young families and teachings true to the Gospel.

[@katamattyon]

Denominations need to recognise that appeasing secular trends does not increase attendances, people who hate Christianity don't change their mind when a denomination capitulates to them

[@GSimpsonOAM]

Opposing secular trends has the same result.

[@paulharvey9149]

I was raised in the traditions of the Church of Scotland: Baptised at the age of seven weeks, attended Sunday School from the age of four and - even after a few years walking along a different path, I returned as a troubled teenager, and was confirmed by the age of 19. Then, I moved to a part of England that didn't have a C of S anywhere near and, after attending services at a few others, I was adopted into the care of the Church of England... I'd always felt called to ministry you see - though it was take the best part of another 20 years before I'd worked out that's not the same thing as being called to be a minister - or whatever title we might all wish to afford those who lead us in our spiritual lives. And even then, another ten or twelve would pass before the penny dropped and it finally dawned on me that I was already ministering, in the very everyday life that I had. What I'm learning now, is that my ministry - while deeply entrenched in the principles of Christianity - which I will name and reference if and when it feels appropriate - is a personal one, that doesn't have to be defined by any church, or registered, or recognised, validated or afilliated to anyone other than me! I rarely preach nor even pray by conventional means: I just do what I do with the people I encounter in my life, who seem to be in the kinds of needs that I can relate to from other parts of my life, and share my wisdom with those that'll listen. I am, in other words, doing what we're told by the Gospels, Jesus did, in his human life! And I try not to discriminate. For if there is one thing that is made abundantly clear by John 3: 16, it is that all that Christ offers is available to absolutely all believers! This is confirmed in the Great Commission too, when we're told to go and share the good news with everybody - there are no exceptions attached! And if you need any more proof of Jesus' totally inclusive ministry, then it really is high time you revisited those Gospels! But not only them, of course. There's that wee slim book near the back of our bibles, written by James, whom some say was the brother of the human, Jesus; and others suggest he was "the disciple that Jesus loved," and others still, prefer to relegate into some less significant role. But it doesn't really matter who he was as he had some amazing words to say: "Don't just read the word and so deceive yourselves," it says, "Do what it says!" Or, as we might paraphrase, "Don't just look at the trees, 'cos they are many, and you might just miss the wood! For that's where the treasures lie." If I may suggest, most of the churches that now struggle, do so because of the attention they pay those trees. It's not about how fancy or plain we make our worship spaces, or how we present ourselves, or behave. It's not even about who we offer shelter, and sanctuary to - so you can forget all that stuff about same sex marriage etc. It's not about who is or is not there, or welcome: its' not about how fancy the language and presentation is, either! Its about whether or not we're deceiving ourselves, and whethere we're doing what it says! It's about the quality of our offerings - yes, OUR offerings. So never mind who else is doing or not doing this or that - to do so is to study only those trees, again!! I don't know why you're singling out the Church of Scotland when it is one of many churches experiencing the very same issues at this time. Selling the buildings it hides itself away within is the best thing it could possibly do! That's not a sign of decline - it's a declaration of intent to do things differently! Yes, maybe for a while it'll be with the relative few; but what we wear doesn't matter - remember? Might be time to look at the birds in those trees, huh? That sounds like a good starting place, to me! You see, people aren't rejecting faith - on the contrary, they're exploring faith and faiths like they never did before; and if they up rejecting "Christianity" for a while; we need to take the longer view and realise that it is not "being like Christ," they're rejecting - it is the institutional brand of Christianity that has been their only option for many decades, that they're rejecting. And, perhaps most importantly of all we need to stop making it personal: IT IS NOT ABOUT US, people! Jesus' disciples travelled light. Maybe it's time we did the same, yeah? Have faith that your needs will be supplied, and just do it, eh?

[@gruncletim]

Sadly, the same is happening to many churches in the USA. They abandon teaching the Gospel as it is revealed to us in the Bible, adopt the latest social fad, and become entertainment centers instead of worship centers.

[@decaffeinatedcolombian]

I wept over this. We must turn to the Lord rather than to appeasing a world that is lost. We are in a dark season, but the Gospel will prevail.

[@downenout8705]

When you have zero empirical evidence that the event in 1 Corinthians 15: 14 is true, the gospel will absolutely not prevail.

[@decaffeinatedcolombian]

@@downenout8705 I’m sorry you feel that way

[@downenout8705]

@@decaffeinatedcolombian It's not a "feeling" it's a "fact". Telling don't you think that you didn't put this Psalm fourteen atheist in their rightful place with just a single sentence containing a mustard seed's worth of empirical evidence? So much for 1 Peter 3: 15. If your reply is the pinnacle of Christian apologetics it's little surprise that Christianity is heading towards extinction.

[@TheBillyDWilliams]

@@downenout8705very cool, thanks for sharing.

[@decaffeinatedcolombian]

@@downenout8705 I wasn’t putting you in your rightful place. My response was not antagonistic, however I got the feeling you were acting in bad faith. All your comments support that intuition. We could have a legitimate discussion about our disagreements, but you came onto a Christian channel to communicate anger at someone who’s never done anything to you. I repeat what I said before, I’m sorry you’re angry and think Christians and Christianity are bad/dumb/not true. Please bring that energy to countless other places that line up with how you feel

[@Jsmith2024]

I've never been to Scotland, but I was in Wales a few years ago and noted with sadness how many beautiful, classical old churches were now bars. Seems no one in the UK goes to church any more.

[@viewer.123]

Why go somewhere that preaches nonsense yet expects to have its self taken seriously?

[@codypeck9736]

There should be a fund set up to enable the Free church of scotland to buy those properties.

[@louisehogg8472]

The FC has bought 2 I think. But mostly decide on buildings based on fitness for purpose, eg location and state of repair.

[@JimboJoeAH]

I think the internet is also to blame. People can now research like never before and just as much as it brought atheism to the forefront it also challenges the validity and authenticity of a denomination. Many places are having a hard time holding up to scrutiny

[@soaringparakeet]

Why would I spend hours at a church for them to tell me I'm right? I can do that at home.

[@caroldonaldson5936]

The Church of Scotland, where I grew up and was married, has long been in decline and have closed at an alarming rate in recent years. Many congregations are now so depleted that the overheads outstrip income and so many were sold off and converted into blocks of flats or are just lying derelict.😥 Gone are the days when the CofS was a burgeoning witness for Christ in my home town of Glasgow - it's long been too afraid of upsetting anyone to preach the Gospel of Christ - God have mercy!🙏

[@viewer.123]

I don't think those preaching the gospel in Glasgow city centre are doing the Christian faith any favours

[@acksawblack]

It’s all mo Johnstons fault. Now lads can play for rangers no point pretending be a prod

[@caroldonaldson5936]

@@acksawblackYour religious sectarianism has absolutely nothing to do with this conversation, which clearly went straight over your head like a 747!✈️✈️✈️ 🙄

[@revinhatol]

Unfortunately, the same could be true for the philippine Independent Church/Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI), if not watched constantly.

[@NicoleWilliams-pk9jr]

I am an American who lived in Scotland for 5 years. The situation for active Christianity is DIRE in Scotland, and its not much better in England or Wales. Whilst I Am attending an ACNA church in the US that is well attended, I did attend a Church of Scotland church and a typical Sunday meant that there was nary 10 people in a church that was built for 200-300. The Scottish Episcopal Church isn't faring any better.

[@godisreality7014]

If we learned the Truth in "church", the situation would be different.

[@viewer.123]

Scots don't need to read fairytales on a Sunday anymore

[@NicoleWilliams-pk9jr]

@@viewer.123 I guess not. Half the country is drunk off its ass, the other are blue haired, nose ringed people worshipping at the church of woke socialism.

[@blair2798]

Humanist?? I find their views a bit self-righteous and superior like most religions. Not for me.

[@chibu3212]

That’s what’s being positioned to “replace” religion though whether you like their self righteousness or not 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@MelThorburn]

When I was at school in the early 1980s here in Central Scotland, we were forced to attend Christian ceremonies at the end of the school year. At the “let us pray” part , we knew the hall was supposed to go silent. A couple of the guys put money on what one of them could pass wind the loudest at this part. A boy called Tony McGregor won with an absolute ripper. The whole place was in hysterics. The Christian guy talking , the reverend or whatever, closed his bible thing and walked off . I don’t think he returned to our school. 😅😂😅

[@kevinkent6351]

On the bright side, what a great place to be a missionary.

[@ideologybot4592]

I'm not a Christian, even though I was born into a religious family and have nothing but respect for the institutions. But it's a historical respect. Church was the local and regional organization that helped people before it became a responsibility for government or even corporations to take care of. Church was the gathering place for individuals to become a community, and now we live in a global society where discussions of what's right have to be going on everywhere, all at once. It's outmoded. The metaphysics are unbelievable, but probably have been for a while, so I don't think that's the issue although it doesn't help. Today, the church is another backwards institution that provides grist for a social reform mill that makes people feel good for creating compassionate progress. Churches no longer drive society's ethics, they are the targets of society's reforms. When the reforms are done, people move on. Religion serves no function and holds no sanctity. It's horrifying to watch. But I'm not a Christian. I've tried to be one, and I can't buy in. I doubt there's anything they can do.

[@nicolad8822]

Spot on.

[@FrancescoZanichelli]

GK Chesterton, a quarter Scot himself; I suggest his writings related to Scotland: “Edward VII and Scotland” (in “All things considered”), “The sentimental Scot” (in “A miscellany of men”), “The idols of Scotland” (in “The thing: why I am a catholic”), “Robert Bruce and his age” (in “The glass walking-stick”), “If Don John of Austria had married Mary Queen of Scots” (in “The common man”), “The don and the cavalier” (in “The well and the shallows”) and “The ball and the cross” (novel). Some very current quotes: What's wrong with the world, 1910: "In the quarrel earlier alluded to between the energetic Progressive and the obstinate Conservative (or, to talk a tenderer language, between Hudge and Gudge), the state of cross-purposes is at the present moment acute. The Tory says he wants to preserve family life in Cindertown; the Socialist very reasonably points out to him that in Cindertown at present there isn't any family life to preserve. But Hudge, the Socialist, in his turn, is highly vague and mysterious about whether he would preserve the family life if there were any; or whether he will try to restore it where it has disappeared. It is all very confusing. The Tory sometimes talks as if he wanted to tighten the domestic bonds that do not exist; the Socialist as if he wanted to loosen the bonds that do not bind anybody. The question we all want to ask of both of them is the original ideal question, "Do you want to keep the family at all?" If Hudge, the Socialist, does want the family he must be prepared for the natural restraints, distinctions and divisions of labor in the family. He must brace himself up to bear the idea of the woman having a preference for the private house and a man for the public house. He must manage to endure somehow the idea of a woman being womanly, which does not mean soft and yielding, but handy, thrifty, rather hard, and very humorous. He must confront without a quiver the notion of a child who shall be childish, that is, full of energy, but without an idea of independence; fundamentally as eager for authority as for information and butter-scotch. If a man, a woman and a child live together any more in free and sovereign households, these ancient relations will recur; and Hudge must put up with it. He can only avoid it by destroying the family, driving both sexes into sexless hives and hordes, and bringing up all children as the children of the state--like Oliver Twist. But if these stern words must be addressed to Hudge, neither shall Gudge escape a somewhat severe admonition. For the plain truth to be told pretty sharply to the Tory is this, that if he wants the family to remain, if he wants to be strong enough to resist the rending forces of our essentially savage commerce, he must make some very big sacrifices and try to equalize property. The overwhelming mass of the English people at this particular instant are simply too poor to be domestic. They are as domestic as they can manage; they are much more domestic than the governing class; but they cannot get what good there was originally meant to be in this institution, simply because they have not got enough money. The man ought to stand for a certain magnanimity, quite lawfully expressed in throwing money away: but if under given circumstances he can only do it by throwing the week's food away, then he is not magnanimous, but mean. The woman ought to stand for a certain wisdom which is well expressed in valuing things rightly and guarding money sensibly; but how is she to guard money if there is no money to guard? The child ought to look on his mother as a fountain of natural fun and poetry; but how can he unless the fountain, like other fountains, is allowed to play? What chance have any of these ancient arts and functions in a house so hideously topsy-turvy; a house where the woman is out working and the man isn't; and the child is forced by law to think his schoolmaster's requirements more important than his mother's? No, Gudge and his friends in the House of Lords and the Carlton Club must make up their minds on this matter, and that very quickly. If they are content to have England turned into a beehive and an ant-hill, decorated here and there with a few faded butterflies playing at an old game called domesticity in the intervals of the divorce court, then let them have their empire of insects; they will find plenty of Socialists who will give it to them. But if they want a domestic England, they must "shell out," as the phrase goes, to a vastly greater extent than any Radical politician has yet dared to suggest; they must endure burdens much heavier than the Budget and strokes much deadlier than the death duties; for the thing to be done is nothing more nor less than the distribution of the great fortunes and the great estates. We can now only avoid Socialism by a change as vast as Socialism. If we are to save property, we must distribute property, almost as sternly and sweepingly as did the French Revolution. If we are to preserve the family we must revolutionize the nation. ... The superstition of divorce, 1920: "It is exceedingly characteristic of the dreary decades before the War that the forms of freedom in which they seemed to specialise were suicide and divorce. I am not at the moment pronouncing on the moral problem of either; I am merely noting, as signs of those times, those two true or false counsels of despair; the end of life and the end of love. Other forms of freedom were being increasingly curtailed. Freedom indeed was the one thing that progressives and conservatives alike contemned. Socialists were largely concerned to prevent strikes, by State arbitration; that is, by adding another rich man to give the casting vote between rich and poor. Even in claiming what they called the right to work they tacitly surrendered the right to leave off working. Tories were preaching conscription, not so much to defend the independence of England as to destroy the independence of Englishmen. Liberals, of course, were chiefly interested in eliminating liberty, especially touching beer and betting. It was wicked to fight, and unsafe even to argue; for citing any certain and contemporary fact might land one in a libel action. As all these doors were successfully shut in our faces along the chilly and cheerless corridor of progress (with its glazed tiles) the doors of death and divorce alone stood open, or rather opened wider and wider. ... As we have already seen papers and public men to-day make a vast parade of the necessity of setting the poor man free to get a divorce. Now why are they so mortally anxious that he should be free to get a divorce, and not in the least anxious that he should be free to get anything else? ... The answer is, I regret to say, that this social campaign, in most though by no means all of its most prominent campaigners, relies in this matter on a very smug and pestilent piece of chalk. There are some advocates of democratic divorce who are really advocates of general democratic freedom; but they are the exceptions; I might say, with all respect, that they are the dupes. The omnipresence of the thing in the press and in political society is due to a motive precisely opposite to the motive professed. The modern rulers, who are simply the rich men, are really quite consistent in their attitude to the poor man. It is the same spirit which takes away his children under the pretence of order, which takes away his wife under the pretence of liberty. That which wishes, in the words of the comic song, to break up the happy home, is primarily anxious not to break up the much more unhappy factory. Capitalism, of course, is at war with the family, for the same reason which has led to its being at war with the Trade Union. This indeed is the only sense in which it is true that capitalism is connected with individualism. Capitalism believes in collectivism for itself and individualism for its enemies. It desires its victims to be individuals, or (in other words) to be atoms. For the word atom, in its clearest meaning (which is none too clear) might be translated as "individual." If there be any bond, if there be any brotherhood, if there be any class loyalty or domestic discipline, by which the poor can help the poor, these emancipators will certainly strive to loosen that bond or lift that discipline in the most liberal fashion. If there be such a brotherhood, these individualists will redistribute it in the form of individuals; or in other words smash it to atoms. The masters of modern plutocracy know what they are about. They are making no mistake; they can be cleared of the slander of inconsistency. A very profound and precise instinct has let them to single out the human household as the chief obstacle to their inhuman progress. Without the family we are helpless before the State, which in our modern case is the Servile State. To use a military metaphor, the family is the only formation in which the charge of the rich can be repulsed. It is a force that forms twos as soldiers form fours; and, in every peasant country, has stood in the square house or the square plot of land as infantry have stood in squares against cavalry. How this force operates this, and why, I will try to explain in the last of these articles. But it is when it is most nearly ridden down by the horsemen of pride and privilege, as in Poland or Ireland, when the battle grows most desperate and the hope most dark, that men begin to understand why that wild oath in its beginnings was flung beyond the bonds of the world; and what would seem as passing as a vision is made permanent as a vow."

[@cutebeanie]

kyrie eleison

[@jdotoz]

9:51 Maybe her church. But Jesus Christ is the same; yesterday, today, and forever.

[@jamesritter5078]

I am hoping that you will do a video on what happened in the United Methodist Church this past weekend. Your videos are straightforward and matter of fact.

[@ReadyToHarvest]

Here you go, James: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJPaeqt4gpZgZrM

[@jamesritter5078]

@@ReadyToHarvest Many Thanks!

[@FidesEtRatio777]

Protestantism is leading to condemnation so fall it's fall is blessing for us.

[@argolawu6338]

It is so different condition in Indonesia as Asian country. Indonesia need more churches since the Christianity followers on there are growing rapidly. I give one example, The Saint Mary Cathedral of Jakarta in weekly mass are conducting 7 times (from early morning until evening) of mass yet the church still not enough for the people. And the fun fact, all the big churches in big cities in Indonesia are facing the same problem. We need more churches to accomodate the blooming Christianity follower in Indonesia that now about 31++ mio

[@prometheusjones6580]

Which faiths are growing in Scotland?

[@impalaman9707]

Muslims, I would imagine---as is the case in all of Northern Europe. I heard of one church being converted into a Mosque!

[@HellenicLegend7]

Eastern Orthodoxy.

[@Lorrainecats]

This is a sad state of affairs

[@weemac4645]

The sheep are waking up. Baaa.

[@SanctusPaulus1962]

​@@weemac4645 Waking up to what? The pitfalls of progressive ideology?

[@FidesEtRatio777]

Not sad. Protestantism is leading people to hell.

[@maxdecimus13]

Videos like this never address the real problem IMO - people just dont buy the message any more. In the UK, it has been a couple of generations since everybody believed and therefore people didn't question the truth of it. Now, you are facing people who have never grown up with it and tbh it sounds like any other ancient myths.

[@report-all-potholes-and-ro2712]

You miss some key points. Christianity has been under attack since 1968 by media and government, with removal of morning assembly at schools, and the promotion of sporting fixtures on Sunday liunchtime - like top-tier live Scottish football matches. We have also allowed retail outlets, like supermarkets and pubs to be open and most Christian based radio and TV religious programmes to be entirely removed from airing in the past 20 years. The Church of Scotland has helped millions of people the world over with generous payments from its funds, financially bankrupting the church, as no assistance from government. The misconception that it is the Church's ruling body that it is at fault, is not strictly true and most decisions are made at local prestbury level, including recent votes to close many 700 churches across Scotland and amalgamate others to save money. We also have declines in baptisms and weddings, and ministers who refuse to conduct funerals for those who had not attented or contributed to their local church. There is also the political rhetoric that many ministers preach in service, one of the most off-putting aspects of any church service, if your personal opinion differs from that of the minister or other members of the congregation. There is also the notion of modernisation of the church, which for many was not acceptable, and they left. In my experience few Church of Scotland members have ever experienced the true work and nature of the Holy Spirit,