Hope08 - a major opportunity for churches

'Word and deed missions' - as I have heard them called - are nothing new. Jesus wasn't exactly all mouth, after all. But they seem to be enjoying a renaissance. So many people are searching for meaning, yet are suspicious of those who claim to have found it. And frankly, so am I. When someone's words and actions don't quite seem to match, there's due cause for cynicism right there. But when I see someone living out their claims, I'm at least prepared to hear them out. Christians up and down the country are already living out the faith they profess - according to Churches Information for Mission, Christians are EIGHT times more likely to be voluntarily active in their communities. Hope 2008 provides a helpful banner under which much of the churches' work in the community can be done. Why bother? Well recent research has shown that many churches' social action programmes are missed opportunities - because there is a lack of clarity as to who was behind all the good work.

As part of its contribution to 'Hope' therefore, the Christian Enquiry Agency is encouraging participating churches to communicate more clearly:
a) who they are and
b) how people can contact them
as well as promoting the existence of the services this agency provides.

We are also producing Hope contact postcards with a freepost response to that churches can overprint to facilitate better contact and communication throughout 2008. Samples will appear here soon; watch this space...

What do you think?