Time to Listen is a series of booklets that present current research messages for the Church today in an accessible way. It is intended to help ordinary churches understand the changes in the world around them.

Christian roots, contemporary spirituality, the first title in the series, looks at recent social trends and attitudes towards church, God and belief.

Drawing on current research, Lynda Barley addresses the question of how British society engages with church today and uncovers some surprising signs of encouragement. Her analysis shows that the Christian faith still has a place at the heart of the nation – on a personal and national level.

Combining analysis with real-life stories, she encourages the Church to take advantage of residual inherited faith in order to engage with the spiritual needs of those outside the Church.

Future titles in the series include Churchgoing today and Community value.

A sample section from Christian roots, contemporary spirituality is available to download as a PDF. To view this, please click on the downloads link below.

The Revd Lynda Barley is Head of Research and Statistics for the Church of England. An ex-Bank of England statistician and independent market and social researcher, she also teaches statistics for the Open University and at King’s College, London and has then years’ experience of parish ministry in south London and Devon.