In the light of declining participation levels in European Christianity, the church can learn from other institutions in European life who have experienced similar decline. As we try to imagine the shape of the church in the future, an example from England suggests that we should envisage not one simple template for the church of the future, but a multi-faceted and diverse approach, that allows many ways into church life for a complex culture. The church will continue to require a diverse and mutually supportive ecology of expressions, as it evolves to meet the needs of a fast-changing continent.
The Rt Revd Dr Graham Tomlin is Bishop of Kensington and President of St Mellitus College in London. For several years he taught within the Theology Faculty of Oxford University. He was the first Dean of St Mellitus College, London, which is now one of the largest Anglican theological colleges in the Anglican Communion. He is the author of many books and articles, including The Provocative Church, Looking through the Cross (the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent Book 2014), The Widening Circle – Priesthood as God’s Way of Blessing the World, and most recently, Bound to be Free: The Paradox of Freedom.
Moderation: Professor Dr. Michael Herbst
