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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2014 No: 6244
New statistics shows slowing rate of decline in church attendance
CHURCH STATISTICS continued to dance in the Church of England fell from in electoral rolls and in weekly and usual od the Episcopal Church of Scotland saw show decline between 2008 and 2013 1,094,500 in 2008 to 1,046,600 in 2012, a Sunday attendance between 2008 and a fall from 38,330 to 32,013 and the according to the latest UK Church Statis- decline of four per cent. In the same peri- 2012. In the same period Bristol and Church of Ireland in N Ireland saw a fall tics edited by Peter Brierley but the rate od total attendance at cathedrals Durham show an increase in average from 149,500 to 144,316. of decline had slowed and some church- increased from 32,300 to 35,900. es are reporting growth. Since 2000 attendance at cathedrals Coventry, Exeter, and Sheffield show an attendance in England has fallen from
- weekly and in usual Sunday attendance;
- In the Roman Catholic Church mass
Overall membership in England is has increased by 11 per cent. When C of increase in average weekly attendance 886,743 in 2008 to 801,478 in 2013. Given holding its own with increases offsetting E figures are analysed more closely it and Hereford had an increase in usual that the Catholic Church should have decrease but there is a steeper rate of can be seen that a fall of average Sunday Sunday attendance. decline in Scotland, Wales and N Ireland. attendance of 19 per cent since 2000 is The number of people attending Fresh Poland and elsewhere in this period, this benefitted from immigration from
For the UK as a whole the rate of matched by an increase of 18 per cent in Expressions (including Messy Church) represents a steep decline. There has decline was five per cent, which is less weekday attendance over the same peri- stood at 19,300 in 2008 but had grown to been heavy decline in the number of peothan the previous rate, partly because of od. Average Sunday attendance stood at 71,900 in 2013.It is predicted to rise to ple registered as Catholic in such tradithe impact of immigration and Fresh 859,100 in 2012 and average weekday 108,200 by 2020. The number of Angli- tional centres of Catholic strength in the Expressions. Huge growth in London, especially among Pentecostals and Catholics, is 1,395,300, down by 14 per cent on 2000 predicted to stand at 902 by next year. reflected in the statistics for England. and Christmas attendance stood at attendance at 187,500. In 2012 Easter attendance stood at from 256 in 2010 to 475 in 2012. This is and Hexham and Newcastle although the steepest decline appears to have
Research by George Lings of the been in Portsmouth. Westminster, East can Messy Church congregations grew North of England as Liverpool, Hallam
The Methodists are the fastest declining 2,530,800, a decline of 12 per cent on Church Army has indicated that fewer Anglia, Nottingham, and Brentwood all denomination in England showing a 2000. Figures for baptisms (down 14 per un-churched joined Fresh Expressions register growth. decline of 15 per cent but this was small- cent), confirmations (down 38 per cent), than was predicted (about 41 per cent er than the 29 per cent decline experi- marriages (down eight per cent), funer- un-churched as opposed to the 52 per deacons has grown, the decline in the enced by the Church of Scotland, 20 per als (down 18 per cent in church and cent expected). number of Catholic priests has declined,
Although the number of permanent cent decline in the Catholic Church in down 41 per cent in crematoria) have all Northern Ireland and 18 per cent decline declined since 2000.
Outside England there has been a despite new recruits from the Ordinaristeeper decline in Anglican numbers. In ate. Between 2000 and 2010 the number
- As far as the dioceses are concerned, Wales membership fell from 65,644 in of secular priests in England and Wales
- in the Catholic Church in Scotland.
Average Sunday and weekly atten- London and Leicester show an increase 2008 to 54,236 in 2013. In the same peri- declined by 12 per cent to 3,073 in 2010.
Britain sends help to Iraq
THE RAF helped deliver much-needed military equipment to Iraq to assist those in the north of the country combating ISIL extremists, as British faith leaders held a vigil of unity outside Westminster Abbey. Earlier this week the RAF delivered 11 tonnes of equipment, including ammunition provided by other nations and body armour, helmets and sleeping bags provided by the UK. RAF C-17 aircraft have also transported a range of non-lethal support, to be gifted by the UK to Iraq, to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, which will be transported on to the Kurdish forces. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said: “The RAF continues to deliver badly needed equipment and supplies to the region. This equipment will assist the Peshmerga forces battling the insurgents in Northern Iraq and we will continue to support the Iraqis in their fight against the barbaric ISIL terrorists.” On Wednesday, UK religious leaders held a vigil of unity outside Westminster Abbey. Joining Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby were Imam Ibrahim Mogra of the Muslim Council of Britain, Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner of the Movement for Reform Judaism and Ayatollah Dr Sayyid Fadhil H Al-Milani. Meanwhile, the Vicar of Baghdad, the Rev Andrew White, revealed that he was cancelling immediate appointments after he had been diagnosed with active Hepatitis.
© UK Crown copyright 2014
He has already been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. In a statement he wrote: “I am sorry if I have let anyone down.”
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Friday September 5, 2014 News
2
THE
Diocese of London
Diocese of Derby
Frances Whitehead may not be well-known, but she was the A young graduate’s
CHURCHIN ENGLAND
rock upon whom John Stott depended. Serving at his side throughout his long ministry, her story is now being told in a new book. And although she is now 89, All Souls Church in exhibition in Derby photography is to feature in a new
Langham Place is hoping that she will be able to attend the launch on 21 September at the morning service.
Her own story is remarkable in its own right. The chapter on Frances’s
Cathedral. Jean Chapman, who graduated in 2013 as a history opens with her ancestor foiling an attempt to assassinate George lll. mature student from It’s full of colour, with entrances from London litterati. Whiteheads Grove, Chelsea, is named after the family. Stott hoped that Frances’s story would one day be told, and now it has. The book is being published by Piquant Editions.
Derby University, says her evocative images are not intended so much to record a scene as to stimulate meditation. Influenced by painters such as James McNeil Whistler and Atkinson Grimshaw she seeks to achieve painterly
Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham
Hilary Wheat is hoping her remarkable restoration work on a Nottinghamshire church will be recognized at Andrew Lloyd Webber’s heritage awards. She is one of a group of volunteers at St Martin of Tours in Bilborough who are playing a vital role in preserving the almost 700-year-old building. As a child in the 1970s, she used to attend every Sunday with her family to worship but when she returned after a long absence in 2008 for her mother’s funeral, she was horrified by the condition of the church. qualities within the photographs. Her exhibition opened on Monday and runs until 30 September (9am5pm, Mondays to Saturdays).
She said: “The nave was curtained off because it was too expensive to heat. The plaster was peeling and the drains were blocked. There was a tree growing in the parapet wall of the tower and the roof leaked.
“St Martin’s had once been in a village, but was surrounded by post-war housing estates that had endured a lot of vandalism and crime in the late 1990s and early 2000s. So the church had grilles up, covering the windows. It was like a fortress.” Hilary had other plans apart from restoring the church to a lively place of worship and centre of the community. “What I really wanted to happen was for it to become, once more, a vehicle where the community could work together to tackle its own problems, such as poor education and health, and high levels of unemployment.”
Diocese of Gloucester
Over 100 sculptures have been placed throughout the cathedral and its grounds, as part of the Crucible 2 exhibition. Hundreds of thousands of people visited the first Crucible in 2010 and this event is set to be even bigger and better. That event is thought to have
Photo: Hilary (above left) with the Rev Amanda Cartwright and Pauline Lucas, the author of Evelyn Gibb’s biography;
So far £800,000 has been raised in a remarkable community effort to restore the fabric of St Martin’s (including lost wall paintings by the highly rated mid20th century artist Evelyn Gibbs that were discovered by electricians) and to put in place a programme of activities, called Hidden Treasures, that will see it directly addressing the needs of the area. Now the work has been shortlisted for the English Heritage Angels Awards, which will be unveiled at a glittering ceremony in November, where the judges include the TV historian Bettany Hughes, the ceramics manufacturer Emma Bridgewater, Channel 4’s “Restoration Man” George Clarke, and the Bishop of London, Dr Richard Chartres.
Hilary inspects part of the lost mural. (Picture: Brian Pickering) benefitted the local economy by £4 million. Margaret Austen of Willans solicitors, who are sponsoring the event, said: “One of the highlights of this year’s exhibition is the Lynn Chadwick sculpture of two cloaked figures standing outside the Cathedral to welcome visitors. It is the headline piece, which Willans is sponsoring in particular.”
The three other nominations for the Best Rescue or Repair of a Historic Place of Worship are: All Saints’
- Church, Rugby; The Poulett Chapel, Somerset; and St Mary the Virgin’s Church, Shropshire.
- Ms Willans, who is
also a trustee of the Friends of Gloucester Cathedral, added: “This is an important year as it marks the centenary of the birth of Chadwick, who was an internationallyrenowned sculptor from Gloucestershire.” Crucible2 runs until
31 October is jointly organised by Gloucester Cathedral and Gallery Pangolin and is free of charge.
- Diocese of Manchester
- Dioceses of Hereford and Worcester
two weeks and three weekends, include a Big Sing, a Big Bible Read, parish parties and several events linked to the anniversary of the start of the First World War. This year’s event has been extended following the success of last year’s Festival. “We listened to what people were saying last year and so have extended it this year so churches can support each other’s events as well as staff their own,” said Jenny Beard, one of the organisers.
A headless lady will be a star attraction at this month’s Festival of Churches, which is taking place across the three counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire. The headless lady will be a feature of events in Worcestershire, where visitors will be given 10 keys to unlock St Faith’s Church at Berrow. Church tours on the half hour will give 10 different aspects of this medieval church - with a headless lady.
A priest re-named children offered for baptism with ridiculous names, married people in mass ceremonies – sometimes to the wrong person – and popped out for bags of sweets during funeral services. That was the record of the Rev Joshua Brookes who lived during the Industrial Revolution and now his colourful life has been marked with an afternoon of monologues in Manchester Cathedral.
Full details of all the events can be found at
- www.festivalofchurches.org.
- Other events at the Festival, taking place over
In 19th century Manchester he is credited with baptising, marrying and burying more people than any other clergyman in the country. And last Saturday’s drama brought to life one of the city’s great eccentrics.
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Friday September 5, 2014 News
3
New charity encourages Christians to adopt
IF ONE FAMILY in every evangelical church adopted a child, the country’s adoption crisis could be averted. That is the call from the Evangelical Alliance, which this week launched its own adoption network. On Monday they established their Home for Good campaign as a full charity, hoping to bring stability to ‘tens of thousands of vulnerable children’. The Alliance estimates that one child is taken into care every 20 minutes, with another 6,000 waiting for adoption. They believe that Christians have a role to play in bringing a resolution to the situation. General director of the Alliance, Steve Clifford, said: “In the same way that Tearfund was incubated and birthed out of the Evangelical Alliance nearly 50 years ago, so it is a delight and privilege to now be releasing Home for Good as an independent charity.” The Home for Good campaign has been running over the last two years, and aims to change the culture in local churches throughout the UK, to make adopting and fostering a significant part of their life and ministry.
Archbishop joins Ride+Stride visitors
THE ARCHBISHOP of Canterbury discovering beautiful churches, will over £1m, it is only a step towards is preparing to greet cyclists and also raise money for their repair the estimated repair backlog of £60 walkers next Saturday as the and preservation. Ride+Stride open day takes place. “Wherever you million for English churches.
- The Archbishop of York, John
- go,
- your
The nationwide event invites peo- Ride+Stride adventure will help Sentamu, is backing Ride+Stride in ple into churches, with many stag- ensure that historic churches Yorkshire, which following the sucing special events, and the remain at the heart of our national cess of the Yorkshire leg of the fundraising initiative aims to raise heritage and local communities for Tour de France has been re-named £1.5m to help safeguard historic generations to come.” churches, chapels and meeting houses up and down England. the ‘Tour d’Eglises’ (Tour of
Archbishop Justin Welby will be Churches).
- in Somerset where he will greet
- Fitness expert Rosemary Conley
The event has been hailed by cyclists and walkers departing from said: “Ride+Stride is a brilliant conBear Grylls, who said: “Many his- St Mary’s Church in Lydiard Coun- cept. I love the idea of thousands of toric churches and chapels are bat- try Park in Swindon. people of all ages walking or cycling tling to survive. Roofs leak, ancient There are special events taking and raising funds to maintain our timbers stonework crumbles.
- rot
- and
- medieval place in hundreds of churches, world-class heritage of church and
apart from London, which will stage chapel buildings. As an active
A spokesman said: “A government survey has shown that religious people were reluctant to step forward in the belief that the authorities would not allow them to foster or adopt but that myth has now been dispelled.”
“By joining the Ride+Stride the event the following week, to Christian with a strong belief also in adventure on Saturday 13 Septem- coincide with Open House London. the value of exercise and fitness, I
- ber, a sponsored bike ride or walk
- Although the event hopes to raise really do hope people will join in.”
When the first-ever Adoption Sunday was observed, 200 churches took part, and in Southampton alone 70 churchgoers applied to be foster carers.
King’s College cutbacks attacked
programmes in theology at King’s College, London, department refocus activities ‘to develop a more cohe-
- PROPOSALS TO CLOSE postgraduate and ministry
- The strategic review had recommended that the
have attracted criticism. Nine taught doctorate or MA courses involving 120 post-graduate students are due to be axed to save Department of Theology at Religious Studies (TRS), money. They include MAs in Christian Education, con- which the spokesman claimed had ‘a vibrant research temporary ministry, youth ministry and doctorates in culture and has made over 20 new academic appointsive and specialised identity’. Theology courses will now be taught solely by the
- iled for the
- New identity unve
Children’s Society
The Children’s Society including crucially with has unveiled a new brand over 100 children it identity, as research works with directly. theology and ministry. The move follows the departure of two scholars from ments since 2008.’ Among those who studied theology at King’s are revealed that general awareness of the chari- be rolled out over the ty’s work has fallen over next year to keep costs
- The new identity will
- King’s, Dr Anna Rowlands who has moved to Durham, Desmond Tutu and Lord Carey. Photographs of both
and Professor Alister McGrath, who has returned to men appear outside the college in the Strand in London Oxford as the Andreos Idreos Professor of Science and in a display of distinguished alumni.
- the last few years.
- down, and one of the first
- Religion.
- King’s was founded by the Duke of Wellington
The Children’s Soci- campaigns to benefit will ety’s Chief Executive be their annual ChristinMatthew Reed said: “A gle event.
Professor McGrath described the closure of the pro- among others as an Anglican response to the founding grammes as ‘deeply regrettable’. “I believe it was of the of University College, London, by Jeremy Bentham and best in the land,” he said. He added that it had ‘con- others, which was known as ‘the godless institute on
- tributed very significantly to the intellectual and pas- Gower Street’.
- brand
- is
about more than a visual identity and a
- toral well-being of the churches’.
- Professor Paul Joyce, head of the Department of TRS
Dr Rowlands said the courses had attracted ‘a very told the press he was positive about the change and significant constituency of younger Christians who that it would help his Department to broaden its horiwere actively involved in politics and social justice zons to take over supervision of the students formerly work’.
A spokesman for King’s told The Times Higher Edu-
logo. informs everything
It taught in DEPS.
“While seeing forward the students will involve some we do as an organisation: our vision, our mission and our valcation Supplement that the changes followed a strategic additional supervision, we are positive about the opporreview carried out last autumn and that the aim was to tunities this will offer, both to broaden the horizon of make the Department of Education and Professional the TRS Department in terms of practical and pastoral Studies (DEPS), where the programmes had been theology and also to learn from the good practice in
- taught, ‘more viable’.
- teaching.”
ues and behaviours. It reflects the history of our charity and will determine our future.” The new brand identity, the charity’s first in 16 years, places a strong emphasis on storytelling and the revealing of ‘hard truths’. The black and white emphasises the serious nature of the charity’s work, while allowing great flexibility to work with photography, bolder colours and designs for different audiences. The Society consulted extensively ahead of coming up with a new vision, mission, values and new look and feel -
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