The Church Must Grow or Perish: Robert H. Schuller and the Business of American Christianity

To fully understand American Christianity, it’s essential to understand Robert Schuller.

The Church Must Grow or Perish: Robert H. Schuller and the Business of American Christianity examines Schuller’s indelible imprint on the American church, and how he developed a model of ministry—both lauded and critiqued—that transformed Christian life and community across this country. Schuller’s story is the starting point for powerful trends that continue to shape much of American religion today: televangelism, seeker-sensitive outreach, megachurches, the suburbanization of white Christianity, pastoral entrepreneurship, and market-oriented Christianity in pursuit of growth.

Authors Mark T. Mulder and Gerardo Martí explore Schuller’s drive to develop a theology, a persona, and a set of practices that he believed were necessary to keep Christianity vibrant long into the future. They trace Schuller’s career arc from his beginnings as an Iowa farm boy to his years as a charismatic Southern California preacher—one who believed that in order for the church to thrive, pastoral leaders needed to borrow from the best practices of big business, including the entertainment industry. This fascinating biography is essential reading for those who want to fully understand a transformative force in American Christianity.