Critics of Transformationalism accuse it of overemphasizing eschatology, false dichotomies, unnecessary idealism and a tendency to be corrosive of individual church identities.
The idea is that all the congregations in a particular region, of whatever denomination, are really aspects of a single church family, and should actively think, plan, and work together under that common framework.
The concept of transformation was initiated as a result of claims regarding an apparent series of citywide revivals which took place in several South American locations in the 1990s.
This provided further impetus within the fundamentalist Christian world to Otis' teaching in both city reaching and marketplace ministry techniques.
Argentinian evangelist Ed Silvoso popularized the latter approach in his book Anointed for Business, which introduced the term Marketplace Transformation.
Transformation conferences in 2005 (Indonesia) and 2007 (Seoul, Korea) focused on five "streams": saturation church planting; revival; reaching cities; marketplace ministry and economic development for the poor.
Copies of the videos (and later DVDs) and other associated books and commercial merchandise generated huge personal and corporate profits for various Christian leaders and religious organizations through on-selling in churches.
The videos had a significant impact in the conservative Australian city of Toowoomba, where large numbers of fundamentalist and Pentecostal Christians became convinced of the power of strategic level spiritual warfare to bring about a revival and transformation there.
Astonishing claims were made, sometimes through so-called prophecies, that this action would lead to Toowoomba becoming a hub for the anticipated great Australian revival, as well as the achievement of reduced sinfulness, a lower crime rate, general prosperity among the population, greatly increased church attendance, the installation of men and women of God into government and a reduced commitment to cults.
Unlike the Christian Right, transformationalists emphasize that the way to achieve a renewed society is through personal testimony and servant-leadership towards those in power, rather than political maneuvering.
Most still tend to have an evangelical, or even fundamentalist, statement of faith; however, they are generally more concerned with being inclusive than exclusive, and often will attempt to accommodate individuals and churches with more liberal theological views if they share a compatible vision of the goals and means of transformation.