Nicky Gumbel: 'The Catholic Church is leading the way in evangelisation'

 HTB

Influential evangelical and Alpha pastor Rev Nicky Gumbel yesterday sang the praises of the Catholic Church for being at the fore in bringing new Christians to faith in Jesus.

Gumbel, of Holy Trinity Brompton, the heart of Anglican church growth in the diocese of London and the nation, told a gathering of nearly 900 Catholic bishops, priests and laity: "I love the Catholic Church - she is leading the way in evangelisation."

He spelled out his Alpha recipe for success, but said key to his current thinking was the 2013 encyclical of Pope Francis on evangelisation and the joy of the gospel, Evangelii Gaudium.

Everyone, not just Catholics, should read the encyclical and put it into practice. He said he was reading and re-reading it. "If every Christian in England put Evangelii Gaudium into practice the nation would be transformed," Gumbel said, adding that the Church would also be revitalised and transformed.

"We need to reach the lapsed, and help them to understand what Christian faith is really about at its heart."

He said that in 25 years of Alpha, they had learned six jokes and they tell them over and over again.

Friendship was one key to successful evangelism. "I love seeing the friendships develop in Alpha groups, with Christ and with each other," he told the Proclaim 15 conference in Birmingham.

Another was personal experience of the Holy Spirit.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols launched his plans to turn 5,000 churches into "missionary parishes" at the conference Reuters

"Once you see a person encounter Jesus you want to see it again and again," he said. Key to this was people coming to faith on the Holy Spirit weekends which are the culmination of each Alpha Course "as they experience God's love."

Nobody joins Alpha, he added. "They join the local parish, Alpha is just the beginning, there's the rest of the alphabet to get through."

Many Catholic churches around the world use an adapted version of the Alpha programme for evangelisation.

Alpha as a parish based tool makes a lot of sense for Roman Catholic Church, said Gumbel. "If the parish system didn't exist, we'd have to invent it."

He said it was important for Church leaders to be close to people outside as well as inside the Church. He loves meeting people, hearing where they are and what their questions are.

"Evangelise according to your gifting, whether your gift is pastoring or something else. Involve everyone," he said, advocating the "small" approach. "I love the small group. I love smelling of the sheep, as the Pope would say."

Small teaching inputs about Jesus and a warm welcome were the keys to reaching the unchurched and lapsed. Evangelisation was always disappointing because lots of people drop out, but equally it was exciting because of those who stay.

The #proclaim15 hashtag reached the number three position in the UK trending chart.

The Archbishop of Westminster, who has recently joined Twitter @cardinalnichols, tweeted:

Cardinal Vincent Nichols launched his plans to turn 5,000 churches into "missionary parishes" at the conference, urging the parishes of England and Wales set up evangelisation teams to win souls for Jesus.

related articles
Standing ovation as Justin Welby and Vincent Nichols declare unity
Standing ovation as Justin Welby and Vincent Nichols declare unity

Standing ovation as Justin Welby and Vincent Nichols declare unity

Why the leader of Britain\'s Catholics thinks immigration is a good thing for Britain
Why the leader of Britain's Catholics thinks immigration is a good thing for Britain

Why the leader of Britain's Catholics thinks immigration is a good thing for Britain

Vincent Nichols plans to turn thousands of churches into \'missionary parishes\'
Vincent Nichols plans to turn thousands of churches into 'missionary parishes'

Vincent Nichols plans to turn thousands of churches into 'missionary parishes'

News
English Heritage accused of whitewashing Christianity from Easter
English Heritage accused of whitewashing Christianity from Easter

One visitor to an English Heritage site took exception to what he called the “whitewashing” of history.

US criticised for failing to bring up religious freedom in Iran talks
US criticised for failing to bring up religious freedom in Iran talks

The USA has failed to bring up religious freedom in its engagement with Iran

US missionary kidnapped at gunpoint is rescued unharmed
US missionary kidnapped at gunpoint is rescued unharmed

Five days after he was kidnapped by armed men from his church in Motherwell, South Africa, Tennessee missionary Josh Sullivan was rescued and “miraculously unharmed” following a “high-intensity shootout” that left three people dead.

Will Christian movies ever make an impact in the UK?
Will Christian movies ever make an impact in the UK?

More recently, I’ve enjoyed Christian movies Unsung Hero and Jesus Revolution on limited release in the UK, but it’s rare for such films to make the multiplex chains.