Anthony Delaney is a retired policeman. Now aged 49, he grew up on a council estate in a rough part of Manchester and joined the Police Cadets at 16, which was "all about outdoor pursuits and the pursuit of girls".
Today,
Delaney is "above all" a Follower of Jesus: a self-proclaimed man of
the people who has successfully utilised his gruff voice and engaging, measured
manner to grow Manchester's Ivy Church – a community of Born Again Christians
now with more than 1,000 members meeting on a weekly basis – to more than four
times its size since he joined as leader five years ago. So significant today
is the congregation, that events are now held several times a week at venues
across the city, including Cineworld, a warehouse and even a pub.
When
the last census was taken in 2011, the number of Christians across the UK had
fallen to 33.2 million – that was 59 per cent of the usual resident population
at the time and a 12 per cent decrease from 37.2 million, 10 years earlier. The
most recent self-evaluating research from the Church of England, found in the
Church Growth Research Programme published in 2007, showed a sharp decline in
numbers, with just 2 per cent of attendees of CoE churches in the UK at last
count being between the ages of 18 and 24 – with a whopping 47 per cent aged 65
and over. In this context, the rise of the Born Agains in this largely white
suburb on the north bank of the River Mersey is all the more striking.
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