Good News and Bad News in England

Churches in England got some good news and bad news this week.

The good news?

The British government granted them 10 million pounds in tax reimbursments for funds spend on building repairs. According to The Independent , the Church of England spends "£130 million a year on repairs to its 16,000 buildings."

The bad new?

The Church of England's on its way out . At least that's what Bishop of Manchester Nigel McCulloch thinks.

Church membership (all denominations) has reportedly dropped to 5.5 million. McCulluch told the London Times that church fights over homosexuality and secular regulations are killing the church. You can also find a summary in the Guardian.

He told the Times that:

"We will, unless there is a turn in the tide, be a church that gradually disappears from this land . . . It is almost as if the Devil is in this. It distracts people from what they are meant to be doing. Far too many of us are being forced into managing an institution rather than engaging with souls."