In
contemporary Western society the church has been pushed to the margins, leading
experts to describe the current era as a time 'after Christendom'. Many
traditional churches and congregations are struggling, a condition worsened by
the COVID-19 pandemic regulations. As the practice of churchgoing wanes, the
performance of the sacrament is called into question. How can we bring the
traditional, communal experience of sacrament into the modern world?
In Sacraments
after Christendom, Andrew Francis and Janet Sutton tackle this
question head-on, exploring and discussing the enactment of the
sacrament in the context of church decline and an increasingly isolated world.
In doing so, they deconstruct traditional perceptions and broaden our
understanding of ritual and community in order to rediscover the truth of the
sacrament.