28.04.2026
Fresh Interest in Christian Faith Fuels Inspiring Church Growth Conferences
People are seeking hope, guidance and meaning through increased engagement with the Bible and young people seeking community are attending church in growing numbers. These were among some of the research findings presented by Canon Alistair Graham in his keynote address to the Church of Ireland Commission on Ministry’s Growth Conference which took place in Belfast and Dublin.
This fresh interest in the Christian faith has come as a surprise to many, Canon Graham admitted. People had become resigned to the decline of the church as they knew it and the waning of its influence. However, young adults in particular, value the church’s role in creating community and enabling people to encounter God.
Over two inspiring and encouraging Saturdays (April 18 in the Stormont Hotel in Belfast and April 25 in the Radisson Blu Hotel in Dublin), more than 200 people gathered to hear stories of hope of how parishes throughout the Church of Ireland are responding to the call to share God’s word in different ways. Through stories of coffee and cooking to sport and ancient stones, one thread was highlighted – the importance of connecting with people where they are and of being the church outside the walls.
Both gatherings were hosted by Bishop David McClay, chair of the Commission on Ministry. He declared that decline is not inevitable. After an afternoon of engaging seminars, participants were commissioned to go out and continue to respond to God’s call.
In a special moment, singer, songwriter and Eurovision winner, Dana, movingly brought each day to a close with her hymn to St Patrick ‘Light the Fire’. She said it had been a privilege to share in both wonderful days and she had been touched by the opening prayers when participants sang out God’s praise. She said the Holy Spirit is moving in powerful ways and said the only way forward is together.
Canon Graham’s address, entitled ‘Growing God’s Church – Rooted in His Word, Responding to His Call’, began by highlighting the starting point for Christians. “As Christians we know our God reigns and Jesus is king. As disciples of Jesus we help in the building of Jesus’s kingdom by lavishly spreading the Good News and living our lives in the way God intended His world to be – a place of beauty and delight,” he said.
As with earlier generations, the secular and human world faces challenges and presents opportunities for spreading the Gospel. Geopolitical changes are causing turmoil and the international order has been wounded and ignored. Globalisation is under pressure with the rise of national protectionism and isolationism and international institutions are acting in uncertainty. Many parts of the globe are experiencing war and violent conflict, social media pervades many aspects of life, violence against women is a major problem, and climate change is impacting many. There are changes to ‘emerging adulthood’ with 18 to 29 year olds taking longer to find permanent jobs and personal relationships, and struggling to answer the question ‘who am I?’ Migration has come into focus. Social capital needs to be strengthened.
Against this stark backdrop, Canon Graham cited opinion that a new breed of secular thinkers is considering the value of Christianity and its social and community wellbeing benefits. “Those considering and enquiring about faith are both asking big questions around the meaning of life and Christian truth and seeking a community where they feel they truly belong. This fresh interest in the Christian faith has come as a surprise to many. They had become resigned to the fact that the Church as they knew it was declining and its influence waning,” he commented.
A number of recent reports in Ireland and elsewhere have shown that a cohort of young adults are actively seeking a life of faith, and attending church, in the search for meaning in their lives and membership of a community. Canon Graham highlighted the Praxis Report in 2024 which found that 99% of those interviewed saw the importance of creating community and 96% saw the importance of strengthening faith and enabling people to encounter God as essential activities in the Church. Almost 66% aged between 22 and 26 years had a good experience of church, 58% read their Bible daily and 63% prayed every day.
He also pointed to the increase in sales of bibles as a global trend of renewed engagement with Scripture driven by social uncertainty and personal spiritual exploration. There has also been an increase in people participating in Alpha courses. Youth workers in the Church of Ireland are encouraged by what they are seeing, he said, with over 6,000 young people being part in parish youth ministry and 3,200 young people and their leaders attended Summer Madness. Ireland remains one of the most religious countries in Europe, the Turning Tide report shows, revealing that 51% of Irish adults pray weekly and 27% of young adults praying weekly. The Church of Ireland National Director of Vocations noted recently that there is an increase in the numbers called to ministry. Every diocese in the Church of Ireland has initiatives creatively connecting with people, he added.
In responding to the call, Canon Graham said that God takes the long view and so should we. God has clearly annunciated His will in Scripture. “Spending energy appeasing and persuading earthly institutions and structures and ologies and isms doesn’t work. Through the Cross, Jesus disarmed these powers. The only thing that works and matters is accepting God’s will from heaven,” he explained.
We are called to be faith–bearers, he stated, and as such we are called to prioritise God and Jesus, prioritise the place of the Bible, ensure our churches are centres of grace where welcome and biblical hospitality are evident, be true worshippers, and embrace the Great Commission and make disciples of all nations.
“So, with new signs of hope all around to encourage us, rooted in God’s word and responding to God’s call, let us together grow His church. In the words of the hymn by Graham Kenedrick, let us work to see again the beauty of God’s love replacing the brokenness of humanity and the hope of Christ replacing the world’s despair,” he concluded.
You can read Canon Graham’s address in full here.
You can read the stories of hope from around the Church here.
