Secular Lives, Sacred Hearts
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Secular Lives, Sacred Hearts contends that the traditional sociological account of secular Britain is misleading and that we should learn to think in terms of the nation being 'culturally Christian'. The church should therefore take seriously those occasions when ministry is sought - such as baptisms, weddings and funerals - and try to puzzle out what it is that people are seeking. Offering some clues based on small scale research done in his own parish, the author argues for a recovery of the idea of the local church as a parish church - concerned for all within its boundaries.
Alan Billings has been a parish priest in Leicester, Sheffield and Kendal and has taught religious studies at Lancaster University, Ripon College Cuddesdon, Oxford and Queen's College, Birmingham. He was Deputy Leader of Sheffield City Council when David Blunkett was leader. He served on the Community Cohesion Panel of the Home Office following the summer disturbances in 2001. He is a member of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales and the England Committee of the Big Lottery Fund, and a regular contributor to B.B.C. Radio 4's 'Thought for the Day'.