Ness Wilson, the UK leader of the Pioneer network of churches describes this present time as a ‘slow revival increase with the gospel at its heart’ (Pioneer Conference, Southampton, March 2025). I agree.
We are seeing a steady flow of Christian converts,
especially among the 18 to 25 age group. And we are seeing a number of well
know names – celebrities and intellectuals – embracing a Christian faith.
Rory Stewart is a former diplomat and the former Tory MP who
challenged Boris Johnson for leadership of the Conservative Party. Today he is
a well-known writer and broadcaster, particularly recognised for the leading
political podcast The Rest Is Politics.
On the latest podcast he was asked about his nascent Christian
faith. This is what he said in precis:
My faith has a centrality and importance in my life far
bigger than anything else, when I allow it to. When I create the space for God,
it is the thing that matters most. It's the one thing that gives meaning to
life, and without it, it is difficult to construct meaning. [Christ’s social message]
is the purest, most challenging, noblest vision of what it could mean to be a
human. Nobody can listen to the message of [Christ] about what he said about
poverty, about the way he died, about the way he chose to give his life for
other people, the extremity of his commitment to loving other people, and not
feel that that is the central insight into what it means to live a meaningful
human life. There is a very deep mystery. God is far beyond me and [that’s] the
point about faith. I am very early on this whole journey and I'm very aware
that my younger self - I was a campaigning atheist - would listen to all this
and think that this was absolute nonsense. I have had moments of revelation
[but] we are very good at denying them and returning to the real world.
