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United Kingdom: The Reverend Nigel is worried about dwindling numbers of regular churchgoers and plans to bribe recalcitrant attendees with chocolate to get more bums on pews.
A Church of England bishop has adopted a non-traditional approach to tempt his disappearing flock to return to the fold: chocolate.
Some consider it a sin to indulge but the Church of England is holding up chocolate as a potential saviour for its diocese in Manchester, which has been threatened by falling attendances.
There are so few regular churchgoers that Reverend Nigel McCulloch fears the church itself is in danger of disappearing within two generations.
HisBack to Church Sundayinitiative will target the over-50s who used to attend but no longer do so.
They will be wooed with slick invitations and the promise of chocolate at the end of their first service.
The church is also considering a number of other incentives, with one involving the showing of comedy videos at next month's service to celebrate the Autumn harvest.
Bribery isn't a great idea for a permanent increase in attendence. I suspect that once the chocolate supply dries up, so will the attendance figures. The regular video screenings may be a better bet.
Church woos reluctant worshippers with chocolate - ABC News Online, 28th August 2004.
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Tracked on August 28, 2004 6:08 AM
Comments
1: Posted by: Feòrag | August 28, 2004 11:37 AM
I hope that's Fairtrade chocolate.
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