Category: Church life

Church buildings close because churches die

It has been reported that 400 Church of England parish churches have closed in the last decade and 1000 in the last 30 years.  This has prompted concern, not just, or so much from practicing Christians but non-believers too.  See for example this by Michael Deacon in the Daily Telegraph. The primary concern of those… Continue reading Church buildings close because churches die

When people are trying to influence church direction with conspiracy theories

I’ve written previously about the challenges with responding to conspiracy theories in relation to COVID19. I was recently asked how I would encourage church leaders to respond when those conspiracy theories are being pushed by people within the church with a view to shaping the church agenda. My response is as follows. First of all… Continue reading When people are trying to influence church direction with conspiracy theories

COVID update for church risk management 05-01-2022

Here we are with our first Risk Management update of 2022. I’ve updated my model assessment as follows: As you can see, I’ve reduced the risk probabilities in most cases suggesting that we are past the point of highest risk. There are two reasons for that. First, because there was a strong indication from Boris… Continue reading COVID update for church risk management 05-01-2022

2022, COVID or a post COVID world and the church

I thought it might be helpful to say a little bit more about what we might expect to happen with COVID-19 over the next year or so and how this might affect our approach to church life.  I’ve seen a few people setting out some potentially scary scenarios recently. For example, in one very bleak… Continue reading 2022, COVID or a post COVID world and the church

The other effects of the pandemic

We know the horrendous cost of the pandemic through death, bereavement and serious sickness. However, there have been other consequences too. I recently ran a twitter poll in order to get us thinking about some of these things. First, I asked about how the pandemic has affected your relationship with God. I’m assuming that the… Continue reading The other effects of the pandemic

Leaving faithfully

So, what happens when it is necessary to leave your current church?  This may be because: You are having to move due to work or family reasons There’s a specific opportunity to serve God in a new context You disagree with the church over a significant issue in terms of doctrine, direction of travel etc.[1]… Continue reading Leaving faithfully

Sticking with church through tough times

It’s one thing to stick with a local church when everything is going well.  If the church is growing, there’s a great music group, you relate well to the pastor and there are so many encouragements. What happens when the church is struggling though? What happens when there’s been falling out, the praise isn’t great… Continue reading Sticking with church through tough times

COVID and church risk management update (31/12/2021)

We go into 2022 with COVID cases high primarily as a result of the new Omicron variant. Case numbers recorded daily have been at eye watering levels with records broken daily. Currently the expectation is that cases will peak sometime in January but at exactly what level we cannot be certain yet, although it does… Continue reading COVID and church risk management update (31/12/2021)