Empty pews not the end of the world, says Church of England’s newest bishop
Declining numbers at services should not necessarily be a cause of despair for churches because people will still “encounter God” without ever taking their place in a pew, the Church of England’s newest bishop designate has insisted in this article. Dame Sarah Mullally, the former NHS Chief Nurse for England who has been named as the next Bishop of Crediton, said clerics must recognise that young people are as likely to hear the Christian message through social media sites such as Facebook or in cafés as in a church. According to Cathedral Statistics, around 10 million people visit a Church of England cathedral each year and each week approximately 38,000 people take part in a service within these buildings. All of this opens up a dialogue about the future of the Church in society. NB: We came across ‘messy church’ courtesy of Simon Martin at the Arthur Rank Centre http://www.messychurch.org.uk/