Groundswell in evangelical Christianity, claims group
Increasing numbers of Irish people are converting to evangelical Christianity because of its relevance to everyday life, it was claimed today.
Research from the Evangelical Alliance Ireland (EAI) today estimated that the total congregations attending evangelical churches every week in Dublin was up to 13,000.
The Alliance said there were now 130 church communities in the Dublin area, of which only 37% existed in 1980, and 25% of which had started within the last decade.
Evangelical churches had a variety of affiliations, with the highest number aligned to the Pentecostal church, while others were members of Baptist, Church of Ireland, Presbyterian and Independent sects.
Congregations had grown to as high as 600 people in some churches in the centre of the city, while others in the suburbs were typically around 100, Sean Mullen, national director of EAI, said.
“We are committed to communicating a perspective on life that is viable and effective, and which can be applied to the complex issues facing Irish society today,” he said.
Speaking at the launch of a booklet which aims to dispel myths surrounding evangelism, Mr Mullen said the growth in popularity of the faith was down to its message.
“It’s a commitment to a message and a way of life as opposed to the commitment to the institution,”
“Evangelism is the idea of a radical commitment, of a lifestyle based on Jesus’s message, that it’s still possible to live that way.
“We get back to the message of Jesus, that’s the power of it,” he said.
The “Together We Believe” editor, Patrick Mitchel, said the booklet was not an attempt to create a new doctrine but to express what evangelists had in common, regardless of which church they were aligned to.
He said the central tenets of evangelism were a belief in the Bible, a desire to follow the teachings of Jesus, personal conversion and putting faith into action – for example by being involved in charities.
The Alliance said while evangelical Christians had certain doctrinal differences to Catholics, they were very close on moral issues and there were many areas in which the two could work together.
Mr Mullen said he did not believe there was any hostility to the Catholic Church within the evangelical movement.
According to the alliance, statistics show there are almost 700 million evangelicals worldwide, the majority of whom live in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
However the immigrant community in Ireland makes up only 22% of worshippers at evangelical services, the research found.
Former Catholic Daragh Kennedy, from Dublin, said evangelism had enabled him to see he could have “a real active faith in God”.
Helena Doran, a member of Swords Baptist Church where the attendance has swelled to 200 since it was founded 15 years ago, said her faith was about having a personal relationship with Jesus.
“Every decision I make, everything I do, I try to apply His principles to everything,” she said.
