Renewing Our Hope - Church certainly isn't closed

And according to a survey commissioned by the Christian aid agency Tearfund, one in 20 has started praying during the crisis.

The findings certainly reinforce the evidence from across our own Diocese of an increase in the numbers of people who are joining us at online services and livestreams and taking advantage of our phone church and pastoral care.

Our Diocesan vision of Renewing Hope Pray Serve Grow has certainly struck a chord with communities in lockdown, and the tireless work of our ministry teams to provide worship and prayers for as many as possible is certainly being appreciated.

While our online presence has seen a huge growth in numbers, those who are not able to access social media haven't been forgotten either. More than 6,000 people phoned the national prayer hotline in its first 48 hours of operation and many of our churches are offering worship and pastoral support on the phone, alongside their online presence.

The survey of more than 2,000 people, commissioned by the Christian aid agency Tearfund and carried out last weekend, found that 1 in 3 young adults aged between 18 and 34 had watched or listened to an online or broadcast religious service, compared with 1 in 5 adults over the age of 55.

1 in 5 of those who have tuned into services in the past few weeks say they have never gone to church before.

The most frequent subjects of prayers since the lockdown have been family (53%), friends (34%), thanking God (24%), the person praying (28%), frontline services (27%), someone unwell with Covid-19 (20%), and other countries with Covid-19 (15%).