The future of many Church of England parishes is in doubt as they struggle with crumbling buildings, declining attendance, and a fall in clergy numbers.
Civitas' new report, Restoring the Value of Parishes, says that many parishes are "in crisis" and accuses the Church of England leadership of "neglecting" them.
It calls the decline of the parish church "a tragedy" and says that their survival is under threat unless action is taken to strengthen and support local clergy and congregations.
"Both spiritually and socially, parishes are an integral part of English life. Yet we are losing them at a rapid rate," it says.
The report argues that while some of the current crisis is due to cultural and religious changes in increasingly secular Britain, a "major role" has been played by the Church of England's own management decisions.
These include the creation of 'mega-parishes' in which large numbers of parishes are merged together under only a few clergy.
The report is critical of what it sees as a growing central bureaucracy, with the Church of England now employing one administrator for every three and a half priests, many of them in safeguarding, communications and human resources roles.
It questions whether all of the posts are necessary, especially what it calls "politicised roles", which include racial and social justice advisers, LGBTQI+ officers and NetZero officers.
"These have received pushback from parishioners, whose own donations go towards funding the diocese as part of the parish share," the report said.
"Some are even withholding from donating in protest of what they believe to be an ideological capture of the Church.
"In seeming to prioritise bureaucrats over shepherds, and politics over spirituality, a feeling of distrust towards dioceses has become widespread."
At a time when the Church of England is struggling to attract new ordinands, these factors may act as a further disincentive, Civitas said.
"Those who do feel called to the priesthood may be dissuaded by the unprecedented demands on clergy that have come with parish mergers, in addition to worsening work conditions and financial insecurity – all of which are consequences of the Church's increasingly managerial structure," the report reads.
"While it has long been the case that clergy receive a modest stipend rather than a salary, and are 'post-holders' rather than employees, parish ministry used to come with certain benefits which have since been revoked."
The report goes on to express scepticism towards millions of pounds being spent on experimental mission initiatives with mixed results, instead of saving local parishes.
"Both the expanding diocesan bureaucracies and new funding models are part of a managerial turn within the Church of England which has led ambitious new projects to be prioritised over support for existing congregations," it says.
It adds, "At the heart of the problem is the fact that parishes have become disempowered within the Church of England."
