The following bullet points where written to express the common hindrances to preaching in this age.  Your assignment is to tell me what year this came from and you get 3 bonus points if you can tell me who said it.  Some of the language has been changed to veil the time period.

  • The expansion of media access…which minimizes dependence on the local preacher and enables less attention to be paid to the preacher’s authority in the community.
  • Skepticism, suspicion and doubt…higher critical skepticism challenging the claims of the Bible…human reasoning becoming more of a trusted authority.
  • Shorter attention spans due to the frenetic pace of culture…
  • A renewed attention to rhetoric, eloquence, and scholarship for respectability in society
  • An increased preference for artistry over sermons…as other forms of art are sought to counteract the decline in church attendance
  • Time demands hindering sermon preparation and communion with God.  Pastors felt that they were spending their time doing everything other than prayer, preaching, and care for the people. 
  • The plagiarizing of sermons arising as a needed relief from the demanding pace of ministry.

I will cite these as soon as someone guesses the correct answer. 

These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
  • Digg
  • Sphinn
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Mixx
  • Google
  • Furl
  • Reddit
  • Spurl
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati