The Church should worry about shortage of people before shortage of priests, says England’s director of mission

Following the admission by the Bible Society that the data used in last year’s impactful The Quiet Revival report was faulty, the director of mission at the bishops’ conference of England and Wales has said the task of the Church remains the same regardless of data.

Speaking to Crux Now, Norbertine Abbot Hugh Allan said that last week’s announcement from the Bible Society makes no difference to his prognosis for the future of Christianity in England and Wales.

“The task of the Church remains the same whether the data says the numbers are going up, or the numbers are going down. We are still called to communicate the beauty and the joy of knowing Jesus Christ. This remains the same, whatever the data may tell us,” he said.

“Data and statistics can help, but we also need to be sensible about the challenges. For example, we constantly hear people talk about the shortage of priests; but we need to be more concerned about the shortage of people,” he added.

The Quiet Revival came out last April and caused a considerable stir in the UK after it said there was a renewal of Christianity in the country – particularly among the young.

One of the most eye-catching findings was that among 18-24 year-olds, monthly church attendance had risen from 4 percent in 2018 to 16 percent in 2024. Among adults, the report said church attendance had gone from 8 percent in 2018 to 12 percent in 2024.

However, last Thursday, March 26, Bible Society announced that the data was unreliable and withdrew the report after polling company YouGov, which carried out the survey, took full responsibility for the issue and apologized.

“We are therefore deeply disappointed that YouGov not only made an error but also that it only discovered this so recently. We are grateful that YouGov’s Chief Executive Officer, Stephan Shakespeare, has personally apologized,” Paul Williams, CEO of Bible Society, said.

Despite the fact that many were disappointed with the news, Allan was not discouraged and told Crux Now “despite the problems we face, we have reasons to be hopeful.”

The full interview is below.

Crux Now: What is your prognosis on the future of Christianity in England and Wales?

Abbot Hugh Allan: At the end of the gospel of St Matthew, in chapter 28, the Lord Jesus gives us the Great Commission to go out and make disciples of all nations, and he ends with really important words: “And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28.20).

In thinking about the future of Christianity in England and Wales, those words need to give us both comfort, but also courage. Everything is in the Lord’s hands. The fundamental truth of our Christian life is that our hope is not in something but in someone, Jesus Christ. That is the basis for everything.

We need to be awake to the signs of the times and the challenges faced by the Christian community in England and Wales, but never be down-hearted or fearful. Despite the problems we face, we have reasons to be hopeful. We have been truly blessed to have new life from Christian communities across the world. From Africa, from Asia, from South America, fellow Christians have come here and bought new life. In England and Wales, this is nothing new. The same was true before with the help of the Irish community.

So, my prognosis for the future? It is in the Lord’s hands.

Does the Bible Society’s announcement that the data used for the Quiet Revival report was faulty have any impact on your prognosis?

No, not at all. The task of the Church remains the same whether the data says the numbers are going up, or the numbers are going down. We are still called to communicate the beauty and the joy of knowing Jesus Christ. This remains the same, whatever the data may tell us. We have a gospel to proclaim, the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. This is our mission whether there is one person in church or one thousand.

Data and statistics can help, but we also need to be sensible about the challenges. For example, we constantly hear people talk about the shortage of priests; but we need to be more concerned about the shortage of people. For this, I do not think we need a new program or a new plan; instead, we each need a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ.

Despite the problem with the data, the Bible Society says it is still confident that “a quiet revival is going on” of Christianity in England and Wales. Do you agree?

From my own experience, I would agree. Just the experience of seeing many fresh faces coming to Mass and especially young people. My community serves a parish in South London, and our recent Palm Sunday saw the best numbers we have seen in a very long time. It is a real joy to see. Traveling around London, it is amazing how many people, again mostly young people, want to talk about their search, their own pilgrimage of life. They are reaching out to find God.

Now, this is not surprising – God made us and God made us to yearn for him. It is an instinct within all of us, but there has been a definite growth in people looking towards the Church in their own spiritual journey.

What do you believe would be causing people, particularly young people, to come to Catholicism?

Well, as I said, fundamentally, it is God! We are created in his image and likeness, and as St Augustine said, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” The promptings our hearts lead us to search for what is good and true, to search for that beauty which is ever ancient, ever new.

In coming to the Church, there is also a desire to cut through the noise and the chatter of the media-crazed world we live in. In an era marked so often by the tag “fake news,” there is a desire for something that is timeless and true.

I remember a few years ago now, a cardinal commented that he thought the Catholic church is two hundred years out of date. When I heard that I thought, no, he is wrong; the Church is – and should be – two thousand years out of date, or I should say, out of time. The timeless and beautiful truth of Jesus cuts across the shifting sands of what is popular, or the latest craze. As the Carthusians put it, the Cross stands whilst the world turns.

What are the specific skills that today’s new converts need to be equipped with to integrate their faith into their lives?

In my conversations with people as I travel around (I am one of those annoying people happy to talk on the bus or the train), it is interesting hear people talk about their search for truth and meaning in life, that they are aware of something greater than themselves, but they do not have the language to articulate what that is.

They are looking for God, but we have now at least two generations who have not been brought up with the language of faith. By that I mean that they do not have the words or the dialect to fully express what they are feeling. This comes from living in a society that does not really speak about faith and certainly does all it can to avoid speaking about God.

It means then that when converts are coming to the Church, they almost have to learn a whole new language to fully articulate and understand what it is their hearts are yearning for. So, this is a challenge for catechesis and for nourishing the gift of faith. We, as a Church, need to be aware of that in our preaching and teaching, but we also need to help new converts to enter deeper into the joy of faith, hope and love we experience in Jesus Christ and his church.

As director of mission at the bishops’ conference, what are the main challenges you anticipate over the coming years?

The main challenge is to trust God. Not to give way to the prophets of doom, but to keep going with God. The history of the church has always been a series of deaths and resurrections. We keep going with the Lord. It is important not to be downhearted.

Then the real challenge is to accept what it means to believe, and to say with an honest heart, “yes, Lord, I believe.” It is so tempting to think that the solution for the future of the Church in England and Wales will be found in yet another program, grand plan, or scheme. Yes, there are many challenges to face, but it begins with each of us saying yes Lord I believe.

We had an old priest in my community, now long gone to glory, who used to say you cannot hope to leave this world a better place; you can only hope to leave this world a better person. And that is how we make the world – and the Church – a better place.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.