Show church facing crisis in shift of population in the great cities by REV W W PICKETT congregate Con gregat onah st detroit the present day shift of the city population into the suburbs is a direct challenge to the christian church to go out and capture these areas if the church is not to be faced with a steady diminution of power in the city we are facing an emergency and a crisis so long as amer lean society was dominantly rural christianity was a dominant influence but with the movement of population to the large cities the church failed to maintain its civic and social influence and the city is pagan with spots of christianity now there is a movement equally as important toward the suburbs which will transform the entire feature of city life Is this generation of the church going to fail to capture the suburbs as the genera tion of OUT fathers failed to capture the millions are moving out to territory where there are no churches the problem that we must decide is whether these great sections of the metropolitan area shall grow up as christian or non Ohn stran the suburbs must have the help of the established institutions of the city and unless we take steps to win the suburban areas we will be faced with a steady diminution of the churche churchs power in the city |