The United Reformed Church: A Paradoxical Church at a Crossroads

In late 2021, the United Reformed Church approached Theos to conduct research into the life, identity, and flourishing of the URC.

The key objective of the proposed research was to provide a snapshot of the URC today, exploring its identity rooted in practice, what flourishing looks like, what resources exist or need to be sought, and what barriers there are to flourishing in the future.

The project was conceived as a partnership, reflecting Theos’ belief that the proposed research, while immediately relevant to the United Reformed Church itself and the ‘Church Life Review’ it was undertaking, would also be of wider interest and help nuance the picture of Christianity in the UK at a time of complex change in the religion and belief landscape.

The public conversation surrounding religion and society in the UK is often dominated by certain recurring themes, namely disagreement, secularisation, and polarisation. In contrast, this review considered the life of the church on the ground through a particular case study: the lived experience and practices of local URC congregations, including how these congregations interact with their communities, and how they are supported (or not) by the church structures of the URC.

The report is broken into three key sections:

Aspects of flourishing
Barriers to flourishing
Pathways to flourishing

The findings of the report highlight the contrasting nature of the URC with a top-heavy structure forged in a different era but with the vibrant activism of local congregations. It is a challenging report that explores the barriers to a flourishing church but ultimately shows the pathways to a successful one.

Download the full report:

The United Reformed Church: A Paradoxical Church at a Crossroads (PDF | 13mb)