Urbanization and Urbanism are the two most widespread phenomena of the twentieth century.
Urbanization is the Absolute growth of cities, both in numbers and size, as masses of people move into the urban centers of the world. Every nation on earth is undergoing urbanization. Cities today are magnets both for the indigenous rural populations and for foreign immigrants, many of whom are political refugees.
Urbanism, the adoption of urban lifestyles and values, is a product of urbanization, but is not necessarily related to living in a large city. Rural inhabitants viewing a satellite broadcast absorb the same cultural influences as city dwellers.
There is no place for the church to hide from either of these phenomena; it must take it's place in the center of this new reality. The fundamental thrust in missions today is cultural rather than geographical. If one formerly had to cross oceans to reach the nations, one must now cross cultures to reach the neighborhood. The nations of the world are with us on our city streets.