Sit down, breathe deeply - I have some shocking news to give you. The church in Britain is growing. Yes, I know this sounds mad. The TV and the newspapers routinely depict churches ashalf-empty and populated by geriatrics. Nota few church leaders and congregation members walk around like Fraser from Dad's Army, declaring 'You're all Doomed..' But there is something else going on.
An international team of leading researchers, based at Cranmer Hall, Durham, have just published a study entitled Church Growth in Britain from 1980 to the Present. Here are just a few of the extraordinary statistics that have been unearthed:
* There are 500,000 Christians in black majority churches in Britain. Sixty years ago there were hardly any
* At least 5,000 new churches have been started in Britain since 1980 - and this is an undercount. The true figure is probably higher
* There are one million Christians in Britain from black, Asian and other minority ethnic communities
* The adult membership of the Anglican Diocese of London has risen by over 70 per cent since 1990. Read more
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