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Reaching the 99 in our local schools
A few years ago, Scripture Union released some challenging research that indicated over 95 per cent of young people in the UK were not connected to a local church. We also know that 99 per cent of young people in the UK engage in mainstream education in some form. I believe that if we truly want to…
Pete Baker
Have we forgotten the secret weapon of scripture?
Let’s consider the evidence. We know from the 2015 Talking Jesus research that engagement with the Bible is one of the main ways in which people come to faith. Yet around 60% of the population never read the Bible at all. Those non-churchgoers who might be interested in reading it don’t know where…
Paul Williams
Public Leader Scotland: Back for our fifth year
Our vision for Public Leadership here at the Evangelical Alliance is to transform our four nations of the UK over the next 30 years through having a generation of Christians leaders living out their public faith by being true salt and light in their work across all sectors. We believe these…
Chris Ringland
Show and tell
This past year, to pass time during recurring coronavirus lockdowns, I’ve been reading the Complete Works of William Shakespeare. I must confess that despite having been assigned a lot of Shakespeare in school, I never actually read a full play of his until recently. Sure, we supposedly read Romeo…
Ryan Shelton
Are we caring for what God so lovingly created?
It’s clear right from the second chapter of the Bible that God cares deeply about the earth He created and humanity’s duty of care for it: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (Genesis 2:15) From the beginning, God generously gave us dominion…
Caroline Boda
Changing Church: autumn 2021 report
Our third survey of the UK church during the Covid-19 pandemic suggests that the pandemic is impacting people’s habits in relation to church attendance, yet despite these fluctuations churches continue to share the good news of Jesus and serve their local communities. The survey was open between 14…
Violence against women and girls: A cry for hope
I find myself, along with the women around me, feeling discouraged. What has changed? What concrete solutions to the problem have really been offered? There must be a better offer than suggesting that women wave down a bus or become 'streetwise' when concerned about her safety. There are questions…
Jo Evans
COP26: Helping churches in Scotland to become net zero
As our policy position on the environment states: “We believe it is part of our commission as Christians to be good stewards of God’s creation. In Genesis, after God created the earth and everything in it, He declared it very good. He invited the people He had created to have ‘dominion’ over it;…
Chris Ringland
Being Human: Vulnerability and our need for connection
Before I know it I’m stood there holding two tiny, precious babies. My wife had already held both babies, and I’d marvelled at watching her with these two new humans. But now I’m stood holding one in each arm, looking down into these new faces I’d never seen before. It was a moment so full of…
Richard Powney
It’s time to be salt and light and encourage our MPs
Speaking in the House of Commons Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “When he died, he was doing what he firmly believed was the most important part of any MP's job – offering help to those in need". Johnson went on to add that Sir David was "dedicated, passionate, firm in his beliefs but never…
Danny Webster
Briefing: Nationality and Borders Bill
There has been no better time for policymakers to examine our asylum system and to implement much-needed changes that uphold the dignity of those in need of refuge. Perhaps then it should be celebrated that there is a bill currently going through parliament which, in the words of our home…
Nicola Martin
Being Human: Does nature even exist?
My immediate thought: what a stupid question, closely followed by: how do I get my tuition fee back? I wasn’t spending three years of my life, burying myself textbooks, racking up debt, trying to answer pretentious yet seemingly obvious questions like this. Trees, grass, flowers, rivers… of course…
Emma Sowden
Government plans to ban conversion therapy need scrutiny to protect human rights
Since the government first pledged a ban in 2018, the Evangelical Alliance has consistently pressed for detail about what this would involve and clarity as to the definition, to ensure that human rights are kept central and religious freedom is protected. More recently, the Evangelical Alliance…
Danny Webster
The Evangelical Alliance then, now… and tomorrow
I’m the kind of person who likes to understand the big picture. I need to know where I’m coming from in order to plot where I’m going. So just a few weeks into my new job, still learning names and faces, I picked up a dusty copy of One Body in Christ: The History and Significance of the Evangelical…
David Smyth
NOW CLOSED: Have your say on the government’s consultation to ban conversion therapy
The government has published their policy proposals for how they intend to ban conversion therapy. The proposals were open to consultation between October and early February, the government will now review responses and we expect draft legislation to be presented to parliament later this year.
