It is hoped that some twenty thousand people will return to church with a friend this weekend (Sunday 30 September 2007) as part of a major co-ordinated effort by the Church of England to pack the pews in around 2,000 participating churches.

The head of the World Council of Churches has lamented the decline of Christianity in the West, while also praising rapid growth of the faith in developing countries - reports Ecumeical News International (ENI).

Despite declining membership, five Dutch denominations have generated their best-ever result in their annual fundraising drive, which organisers say generates more money than any other campaign in the Netherlands - writes Andreas Havinga for Ecumenical News International (ENI).

Figures just released by the Church of England record that regular Sunday church attendance in 2005 fell by over two per cent.

The Church of England is launching a radical review of its finances after warnings from dioceses that they could face bankruptcy - despite the fact that churchgoers are becoming more generous.