All Church articles
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ArticleFour reasons why a traditional Eucharist can be an all-age service
We can all to easily write off formal or traditional models of church as boring, inaccessible or tired. And I admit there is potentially a little fire to the smoke of this – I know of parents who have struggled under the withering stares of congregation members as their infant wriggles, squirms and screeches in their lap. But this is not the only story of families in traditional church services.
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ArticleIs Christian youth work disappearing?
Tim Gough puts our youth work in a historical context and asks: “What’s next?”
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ArticleAll together now
When Jesus looks at your village, town or city he sees just one church. You may be a different expression of that from the one down the road. But Jesus sees you as one. Claire Farley unpacks what this might look like for you in your community
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ArticleTo baptise or not baptise – is that the question?
Do you believe in infant baptism or believers’ baptism? Do you even know the language and why it matters? If you are part of a local church which practises one or the other, or indeed neither, then knowing where the church stands and what you think about it will be important, especially if you are a youth or children’s worker who grew up in a different tradition. Gareth Crispin knows both worlds well and draws out what it’s about, why it matters and asks some significant questions.
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BlogHow far would you go to attract families to church?
Rochester Cathedral have installed a crazy golf course in their nave this summer. But should we be using places of worship for activities like this in order to welcome children and families into church?
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BlogBishops urge church leaders to prioritise young people
The Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, recently said that he hopes whoever takes over as the new Archbishop when he retires will “see that work with young people is the top priority”. The Bishop of Kensington, Graham Tomlin, seems to agree
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BlogHow to be a family friendly church? It might involve nappies...
Annie Wilmott asks, who has your back when your toddler poos through their clothes? The answer, she discovered, was her community. And that has a lot to teach us about being a family-friendly church.
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BlogYoung people are sewing to raise awareness of the persecuted church
With the popularity of the Great British Sewing Bee and the rise of craftivism, Open Doors Youth are encouraging young people to contribute to their Handmade Petition. Could your children and young people get involved?
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BlogDoes the Church get it wrong when it focuses on young people?
Rachel Turner, parenting for faith pioneer with the Bible Reading Fellowship, responds to a recent blog by Sarah Hall. Sarah argues that the Church’s focus on youth work is misguided. Rachel thinks otherwise…
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IssuesIs this church?
Ladywood, on the western edge of Birmingham city centre, has suffered with a reputation of crime and poverty. We spoke to Peter and Isaac who run a football project there every Friday.
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BlogA football-based Bible study to revamp your ministry
The World Cup is upon us, so here’s a football-themed Bible study. Have a read of Matthew 25:14-30 then find out what Paul Martin has to say about football (and youth and children’s work)
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BlogIs the Church failing to tackle London’s violent crime epidemic?
As two more young people were killed in London on the same night, Ben Lindsay speaks out about what the Church should be doing to stop the rising tide of violence.
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BlogChildren dropping out of church?
Ali Campbell from The Resource takes a look at recent Church of England statistics to see what it means for our children and young people
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BlogWhy the Church is failing to reach young people
Did you know that 44.9bn tracks were streamed online in the UK in 2016? Young people will have a soundtrack to their life for almost every minute of it. If Christians don’t speak into this and through this then the Church is missing out on the chance to reach young people where they are at.
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IssuesAdaptable meeting guide: Reimagining Church 1: What is Church?
We all have different understandings of what it means to be Church depending on our culture, context, background, upbringing and tradition,
but what is the essence of Church? What are the key components of Church? -
IssuesHow to Bring Church into the 21st Century
The Church may have just about discovered the internet, and hey – some of us even have Myspace pages – but historically speaking we’re still a wee bit behind the times. We asked our resident internet expert, Dr I. Tweettoomuch, for some tips on moving church services into the 21st Century
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IssuesYouth Work in Black Majority Churches
Youth Work Award nominee and author of On your marks, Luke Whyte, reflects on his experience of youth ministry in black majority churches.
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IssuesFrom the horse’s mouth: “We need young people leading church so it isn’t boring”
Liz Skudder is the youth outreach worker at Christchurch, Billericay. She spoke to Eleanor and Rebecca about young people leading in their church. This conversation highlights the need for young people’s voices to be prominent among church leadership conversations. Liz is doing a great job empowering the young people, but this discussion shows that it’s not easy or a short-term task. It is wonderful, in the trickiness of it all, to hear Eleanor and Rebecca’s enthusiasm for their church, demonstrating the vitality that young people bring to the mix. Eleanor is 13 and plays in the church youth band. Her hobbies are musical theatre and dance. Rebecca is also 13. She swims and is obsessed with Harry Potter. She plays the flute in the church youth band.
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IssuesXY Boys: How to keep boys in Church
The gender gap in the UK Church continues to grow, with more women than men filling our pews. How can we redress this gender imbalance in our youth groups and ultimately the Church of the future ? Christian Vision for Men ’s Carl Beech believes we need a fundamental shift in the values underpinning our youth ministry
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IssuesNew paradigm: Are we training the children's workers the Church needs?
You graduate from a hugely enjoyable children’s work course, head for the dream job and… it’s nothing like you expected it to be. Your remit is swiftly expanded and you feel ill-equipped to respond to the ever-changing and ever-challenging job description. Sound familiar? This begs the question: are we training children’s workers for the roles they will be doing? Further still: are we actually training the children’s workers the Church needs? Cliff College’s Ian White offers some thoughts
