“That to me is a wonderful thing, when you have people – some pastors, but many lay people, too – to whom it matters so much that they want to spend two days just talking theology.”

Some critics believe that those involved in the conversation are saying that traditional denominations are outdated or irrelevant. Mr. McLaren himself does not subscribe to that.

“What we need is not to dismantle all the denominations and go and start new things. I wish we could have a both-and approach, because there are great things conserved in each of these denominations.

“And I think there are great treasures the denominations can share with each other – they don’t have to be proprietary of their strengths.

“For example, Anglicans have a great strength in their liturgy. There’s no reason why the Baptists couldn’t borrow from that. The Baptists have a great strength in mission and courageous innovation, and calling people to commitment and conversion. That’s a strength a lot of Anglicans would admit they do not have.

“You get to the point where there’s the possibility of a really constructive sharing. That’s what a lot of us are hopeful about.”

Whether denominations become irrelevant will depend on the denominational leaders.

“I’m very impressed. I meet a lot of denominational leaders around the world and there are a lot of wonderful and wise people leading our denominations. These people understand the problems and challenges, they understand the obstacles to addressing those challenges, and many I have met are deeply godly people who are trying to move forward with wisdom, faith and courage. I think if our denominations respond wisely, they have a great future.

“But I also think that some get into a ‘circle the wagons’ or defeatist mentality, where they are held hostage by certain segments of their constituency, and often the worst cases are where the entrenched and cautious people frighten away the more innovative and creative people.

“That’s a great loss, when a community scares away its creative and adventurous people. For those groups, I think there will be problems.

“But one of the great blessings is that God can do anything, and even though you might drive away one generation of creative people, if you can hang on long enough another generation might grow up, and the second time round we might be ready to listen.”

Mr. McLaren says the move to relate to post-modern culture might be more advanced in the West, but it will be only a matter of time before it spreads.

“I have spent a good bit of time in Latin America and Africa, and I will be in Asia a good bit in the next year, and I am told by a lot of people in these places that they see similar problems brewing in their world.

“There is a certain sense that the diseases of modernity and post-modernity have a way of spreading to the global south.”