Retired Anglican bishop Michael Marshall has turn out to be the most recent Christian leader to say that there are signs of revival within the country, adding that the Church must seize the chance to bring more people to Christ.
Earlier this 12 months the Bible Society published a research paper called The Quiet Revival, that suggested increasing numbers of individuals in Britain are attending church. Young people, particularly men, look like making up significant numbers of the brand new churchgoers.
Anecdotal evidence from up and down the nation appears to back up the research, with many churches reporting record numbers of attendees at Easter. Nicky Gumbel, of Holy Trinity Brompton and Alpha Course fame, said that HTB had recently experienced much larger turnouts than would normally be expected right now of 12 months.
“Something is occurring”, Gumbel told the Evangelical 360° podcast.
Similar tales were told after the assassination of conservative Christian activist Charlie Kirk within the US, with reports of many young people being inspired to go to church.
Reflecting on this and on his 50 years as an Anglican bishop, Marshall said the evidence does appear to support the claims of a Quiet Revival.
Pondering the possible aspects for this apparent renewed interest in Christianity, he wrote in Anglican Ink, “What drives this quiet return just isn’t nostalgia for a fading tradition but disillusionment with false guarantees.
“The ‘tin gods’ of consumerism, careerism and technology have failed to supply lasting meaning.”
He said that history shows that moments of apparent weakness within the Church often precede astonishing renewal.
“In 1833 the historian Thomas Arnold declared: ‘The Church of England because it now stands no human power can save.’ Yet that very same 12 months John Keble’s Assize Sermon in Oxford launched what became often known as the Oxford Movement,” he said.
He added, “Out of crisis got here growth.”
Marshall called on the Church to recollect its apostolic identity and mission, warning that these were often forgotten in a preoccupation to preserve institutions.
Quoting St Catherine of Siena, Marshall said the church should “turn out to be again what it was created to be”. Only then, he argued, could it “model hope and purpose in a world desperately wanting each”.
 Retired Anglican bishop Michael Marshall has turn out to be the most recent Christian leader to say that there are signs of...){kind=link}