Megapolitans
If Robert E. Lang and Arthur C. Nelson are right, there is a birth of a new geography: “megapolitans,” regions that encompass counties and cities linked through man-made and natural connections sharing common economic, landscape, social, and cultural characteristics.
Their new book details this urban geography. It predicts that by 2040, there will be 10 distinct clusters composed of 23 megapolitan areas in the contiguous 48 states of the USA.
The rise of megapolitan areas points out the differing pockets of social and cultural characteristics growing within the USA. The old divisions like East/West, North/South, and inland/coast continue to need reexamination.
So I’m wondering how the authors premise might help develop our understanding, practice, and communication of what it means to be a Jesus follower within this new geographical framework.
No answers yet, but certainly worth some time to contemplate.
This seems to be the trend in our globalized age. In Brazil the population went from 85% rural/15% urban to 15% rural/85% urban during the 20th century. Shocking population shift, if you think about it. Ministry in Brazil is almost inevitably going to be “urban.”
In the States it’s just so much simpler to live in an urban center. The farm I grew up on in Missouri can only be reached after a 3 or 4 hour drive from any major airport. Where I live in NJ we’re only 25 minutes (due to traffic) from the Newark International Airport. My commute to and from NYC costs less than $5 per day via PATH train. We have plenty of major universities, good access to health care facilities and no lack of events to attract us.
Why live anywhere else?
Still, sometimes I really do miss the peace and quiet of the farm.
I agree Adam. It is so much simpler to live in an urban area. I love that I can walk to so many places: my favorite coffee shop, restaurants, shops, my church campus, and the local pubs. I really enjoy having good neighbors around also.
Having grown up on a rural farm, I too miss some aspects. But even in our urban Portland environment, we have open fields and wetlands on two sides so we get a little taste of the rural.
It would seem that if the authors are correct, then it would be wise to focus church planting on the 23 megapolitan areas.
The cultural context that Jesus followers find themselves and hence how they interpret the gospel for that context will be very different in each megapolitan area (nothing new, but maybe reinforces what we already knew).
Shift to urban ministry will continue to be critical to the furtherance of the kingdom.
Concern for urban issues of justice, urban poverty, race, ethnicity, and immigration should be at the forefront.
Many more issues I can think of, but what do others think?
Contextualization and a new focus on these urban areas, yes, fine. This all sounds good on the surface, and it is totally reasonable in terms of Kingdom work and expansion.
However, I’d suggest … *Not so fast!* The urban centers may not be the only places where “urban” issues like justice, poverty, etc., abound in plausible megapolitan futures.
Just because these megapolitan areas form, they are still in for some megalopsided issues unless they find ways to be self-sustaining systems in three core resources: Food, water, and sources of power. I doubt they’ll be able to do so with fully local/regional resources. Many of these mega-regions will have to rely on some outsourcing. Thus, whoever (and so, wherever) controls the production of these three essentials for maintaining urban life will exert social-economic-political power over megapolitans.
So, there could well be new or continuing forms of ex-urban injustice imported and imposed on the people who produce food for the urbanites. And there will be new awareness of issues of injustice over “water rights” (although this has been going on for years). And what happens with trucking and rail shipments if/when gasoline and diesel goes way up? [Also, if we expect technology to provide all the answers for food, water, and power sources, won't we be right back into the modernist dilemma of "progress"?] Wouldn’t necessarily take a huge disaster to up-end or hamstring a megapolitan area - and that does not portend well over issues of the abuse of power.
Sustaining ex-urban/non-urban ministry and discipleship and church planting outside these megalopolis centers could be just as crucial to the Kingdom; we may find the new underclass of slaves-for-sustaining-the-city out there in the megahinterlands … and I suspect if Jesus were here now, He wouldn’t be concerned only about where the most people live, but where injustice is being inflicted on people.
Agreed Brad. Wasn’t implying that justice issues are the sole domain of the urban context, just that concern for urban issues of justice, urban poverty, race, ethnicity, and immigration should be evident when you are in the urban context.
A shift to urban ministry doesn’t exclude a continuing and “sustaining ex-urban/non-urban ministry and discipleship and church planting outside these megalopolis centers.” It’s not an either/or suggestion.
Sorry if I sounded like I was on a mega-rant. Though it was a mini-rant, I guess, plus I know you to be one of the most balanced missional doods around.
Anyway, there’s just this weird thing in the American church that whenever there’s a new focus, seems like some others get a hocus-pocus and they disappear. When the big push was 10/40 Window, there were missionary-minded people who were castigated for going somewhere like South America - even if they were working with displaced 10/40 Window people groups. Now it’s urban ministry and I’m seeing where the urbs change the systems, but we still need to address the whole system - - and still go wherever it is that the Spirit leads us, whether 10/40 or urbs or ex-urbs.
Thanks for your balance, Rick.
Brad, Your point reminded me of a pastor friend who had just graduated from seminary. It was in the 80’s during the church growth movement. He wanted to pastor a small town church, and was criticized for it. “Every one knew” that real impacting ministry happened in middle-class suburban church plants that used good growth principles, not in sleepy small town faith communities. He moved to a small church in Nebraska where he knew God was at work also.
Wishing you the VERY best and blessed holy season.