Tim Chester begins this book with a startling and real story of the change of the place of church in our society. He talks about his grandmother who lived all her life in the same house. When she was young the life of the surrounding community revolved around the church. Church concerts, teas and outings were the working-class alternatives to the pub. There were 100 in the congregation, 50 in the Sunday school and 20 in the choir. Fast-forward 90 years, and his grandmother is still playing the piano for the Sunday service, because there is no-one else. There are only 12 in the congregation, none of whom are under 50. The church is now seen as irrelevant to the community.
This introduces the theme of the book, that Christians live in a post-Christian culture, and that changing what we do in church will not attract those in our community, rather what we need to do is meet people in the context of their everyday lives. Read more
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