wfn.org | Title: Church plea to target "Missing Friends Generation"

[press@eauk.org (EAUK Press Office)]

For Immediate Release:  24th April 1998

Churches were today urged to make special efforts to attract
21-40-year-olds, who are rapidly becoming the 'missing generation'
from the nation's pews. 

In a report, the Evangelical Alliance UK and the Evangelical
Missionary Alliance warned that the growing absence of the Friends
generation which is so influential in establishing values and norms in
today's culture, could lead to "the church of tomorrow becoming even
less accessible to those outside it."

The first annual report of the Alliance's Commission on Strategic
Evangelism (COSE) contains survey results showing that churches which
are succeeding in attracting 21-40-year-olds often present the
Christian message through social events, meals, marriage preparation
courses and small group meetings in people's homes. Sunday evening
services and midweek prayer meetings were least attractive to
21-40-year-olds, churches reported.

The Evangelical Alliance, which seeks to reflect the views of more
than a million church-goers from 30 denominations, calls for churches
and agencies to research and seek to better understand the varied
needs of the age group.

Says the report: "The 21-40-year-olds are unlikely to give up
pressured time unless there is a clear relevance or 'added value'.
This could range from a short, highly focused seminar series, to
opportunity to cope with the stress of life through recreation or
alternative approaches to worship."

The report notes a number of future issues, including the integrity of
Christians.  It says: "In an age dominated by visual communication,
the lifestyle of believers - and especially their life together - is
the potent witness; truth has to be seen and experienced.  Hype is
everywhere.  But what impresses is genuine commitment; when claim and
practice are in harmony."

It also notices a move away from what it calls crisis evangelism,
where people are invited to become Christians at large rallies or
altar-calls towards process evangelism, where would-be converts are
encouraged in their pilgrimage of faith and commitment to Christ.

To prepare the report, COSE conducted a number of surveys over the
last year.  These show, amongst other findings, that the Alpha course,
developed by Holy Trinity Brompton, is one of the most powerful tools
for evangelism in use in the UK.

Three quarters of churches surveyed had used Alpha and they reported
an average of 140 new contacts and 15 conversions per church.  Good
News Down Your Street, used by nearly one in 10 churches, resulted in
69 contacts and just over 5 converts per church.

In terms of brand awareness, nine in 10 church leadership teams are
very aware of Alpha and only one per cent were unaware.  Fifty per
cent were unaware of Good News Down Your Street (Lynx Communications),
Just Looking (Bible Society/Youth For Christ) and Person to Person
(Agape).

In his foreword to the report, Rev Ian Coffey states: "New ways of
telling the old story appears to be a special skill, at times sadly
neglected within the history of the Christian Church.  It is the
Commission's hope that our work will go some way to stimulating that
skill as we face the challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century.

John Earwicker, church life director at the Evangelical Alliance,
commented: "I am very encouraged by the levels of action many churches
are engaged in and we want to encourage more churches to develop
relational approaches to evangelism.  Alpha is clearly giving
tremendous service to the churches and there are lessons to be learnt
from this by other evangelistic agencies."

The Commission is comprised of the Rev Joe Aldred of the Centre for
Black and White Christian Partnership (Birmingham); Fran Beckett of
the Shaftesbury Society (London); Martin Cavender of the Church of
England Springboard initiative (Oxford); Rev Ben Curl of the Baptist
Union of Wales (Bridgend); Dr John Gallagher of Glenwood Church
(Cardiff); Rev Alexander Gunn of the Aberfeldy Church of Scotland
(Perthshire); Rev John Hansford of the Milltown Baptist Church
(Belfast); Rev Howard Lewis of Evangelical Ministries (Co Antrim); Rev
Howard Mellor of Cliff College (Calver); Lawrence Singlehurst of Youth
With A Mission (Harpenden); Rev Paul Weaver of the Assemblies of God
(Sunderland) and Jim Woodrow from There is Hope (Edinburgh).

ENDS