Affinity is a network of

conservative evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual expe ...

churches and Christian agencies throughout Britain and Ireland. It was founded in 1953 as the British Evangelical Council and in 1981 numbered over 2,000 churches.''Evangelicalism in modern Britain: a history from the 1730s to the 1980s''
David W. Bebbington, Psychology Press, 1989, p. 265. The organization stagnated in the 1980s following the death of

Martyn Lloyd-Jones David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899–1981) was a Welsh Protestant minister and medical doctor who was influential in the Calvinist wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminster ...

. The

rebranding Rebranding is a marketing strategy in which a new name, term, symbol, design, concept or combination thereof is created for an established brand with the intention of developing a new, differentiated identity in the minds of consumers, invest ...

and relaunch happened in 2004.J.P. Thackwa
Affinity
Bible League Trust Affinity provides networking and support to

churches in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. There are currently about 1300 church congregations linked to Affinity. The organisation's subtitle is "Church-centred Partnership for Bible-centred Christianity". The British Evangelical Council focussed, in reaction to the 1967

Keele University Keele University, officially known as the University of Keele, is a public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, Kee ...

conference, "to draw in churches predicated on Scriptural ecumenicity." It was opposed to the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

.Cleric Details British Religious Trends
March 22, 1974,

Bangor Daily News The ''Bangor Daily News'' is an American newspaper covering a large portion of central and eastern Maine, published six days per week in Bangor, Maine. The ''Bangor Daily News'' was founded on June 18, 1889; it merged with the ''Bangor Whig and ...

. Groups of churches linked to Affinity include the Apostolic Church, the

Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East) The Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East) (AGBC(SE)) is an association of churches in London and South East England. As of 2022 there are 65 member churches in the association. All the members of the association are independent Ba ...

, the Association of Grace Baptist Churches (East Anglia), the

Evangelical Movement of Wales The Evangelical Movement of Wales, formed in 1948, came to light as a counter move by reformed Christians to the liberal theology which was gaining influence into the Protestant denominations of Wales during the 20th century. The Movement is ...

, the

Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches The Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) is a network of 639 independent, evangelical churches mainly in the United Kingdom that preach an evangelical faith. History The FIEC was formed in 1922 under the name ''A Fellowship ...

, the Free Church of Scotland, the

Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) (Scottish Gaelic: An Eaglais Shaor Leantainneach) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination which was formed in January 2000. It claims to be the true continuation of the Free Church of Scotland, hence its ...

, the Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales and Ireland and the Evangelical Connexion of the Free Church of England.Corporate Partners
Affinity website Since 2016, its Director has been Graham Nicholls, who is also pastor of Christ Church

Haywards Heath Haywards Heath is a town in West Sussex, England, south of London, north of Brighton, south of Gatwick Airport and northeast of the county town, Chichester. Nearby towns include Burgess Hill to the southwest, Horsham to the northwest, Crawl ...

References

External links

* Evangelical parachurch organizations Christian organisations based in the United Kingdom 1953 establishments in the United Kingdom Christian organizations established in 1953 {{Christian-org-stub

See also

References

External links