Another English bishop is saying it out loud. The Rt Rev Philip North, Bishop of Blackburn, told his diocesan synod on October 10 that churches across Lancashire need to drop the decline story and get ready for people coming to faith.
What he’s seeing
- Churches report new families and young adults showing up after first exploring Christianity online.
- Adults are joining children at confirmation services to publicly affirm their faith.
- He pointed to France too, with big crowds and a rise in adult baptisms: “every two hundred years, the French crop up and remind us that the fire of the Gospel is inextinguishable.”
“For 150 years the story of Western Christianity has been one of decline and withdrawal. Even as Christians we have come to inhabit that narrative ourselves,” he said. “There is a rebirth.” The diocese launches a new vision next month called Joyful Followers of Jesus, focused on evangelism, discipleship and raising up new leaders.
My take
I love that a bishop is telling his churches to stop rehearsing decline. Isaiah 43:19: “Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it?” When the Spirit starts moving, the question is whether the church is ready to receive the people He sends.
