‘Jesus Has Left the Building’: Scotland’s Secular Slide — and Signs of Hope

Posted on October 5, 2022 
Filed under Encouragement, History, Scotland

“The Church of Scotland had it all — good theological heritage, good attendance, and good buildings. It also had the strong support — yet not the interference — of the government. …

Not long after, Scottish Christianity collapsed. In 60 years, the Church of Scotland plummeted from 1.3 million to 300,000 members. Meanwhile, the proportion of Scots who claim no religion has risen to nearly 60 percent.

Aberdeen is now the most secular city in Scotland, which is the most secular country in the United Kingdom. Her massive granite church buildings are restaurants and apartments and bars with names like Soul. A few years ago, a photographer documenting the shift called it ‘Jesus Has Left the Building.’ …

On Queen Street in downtown Aberdeen, near the police station, the city council offices, and the local newspaper, sits one of the largest church buildings in the city. Four years ago, it was sold — not to a nightclub or a retail store, but to a gospel-centered congregation.”

– At The Gospel Coalition, read this sobering, yet encouraging, account of what is happening in Scotland.

Also hear this interview with Sinclair Ferguson who has returned to Aberdeen.