Many young people view attending church as an irrelevance. They perceive Christianity as out of touch and of no value to their lives.

It’s heartbreaking that churches are invisible to so many, when they are such a powerful force for good. Far from being old-fashioned, their central message of love and tolerance is desperately needed by our broken society, now more than ever.

Since Sundays were deemed no longer “special”, most youngsters today engage in sport or shopping on this second day of the weekend and as such are completely detached from any religious experience. However, no matter your feelings of belief or disbelief in a higher being, it cannot be denied that in addition to being centres for worship, religious places also provide a vital refuge and support network, offering company and friendship for many lonely and isolated people.

Take St Mary’s Church in Ewell, as an example. A church has stood on this site since the thirteenth century and it continues to play an important role in the local neighbourhood every day. By providing a variety of gatherings open to all, from internal groups, such as the active & vibrant choir, to external clubs, like playgroups which offer exhausted parents a chance to re-energise, the church is still placed firmly at the centre of the parish; the very heart of the community.

I interviewed its vicar, Reverend Russell Dewhurst, about how he sees his church’s place in the village today and in the future.

In what ways does St Mary’s involve itself in village life?

RD: There are all sorts of ways St Mary’s does that. The most prominent and obvious is the village fair, because that attracts 2,000 people every year; it’s one of the big events in the village. But there are lots of ways that things happen less visibly. We let the hall facilities be used for a variety of groups, I do school assemblies and we try to help out with the traders at the Ewell Yule at Christmas. I also get invited to different events. I’ve been invited to be mayor’s chaplain later this year, for example. But I also think there are all sorts of ways I probably don’t know about, because I hope what we do in church inspires people to get involved in the local community. That’s putting into practice “loving your neighbour”, one of Jesus’ central teachings. So I hope that there are hundreds of things happening every week I’m not aware of, in which the church has had a role inspiring people.

How difficult is it to encourage people to become involved in what you offer in today’s secular world?

RD: Well that’s a very good question, because people don’t necessarily automatically think “I’ll just go to church”. I think we have three Unique Selling Points. The first of which is where we are – we’re in an historic church, in the centre of the village and we’re rooted in the community, which is something that can’t be contracted out to a multinational. Secondly, our musical tradition is a great draw. And thirdly, we really try to offer a lot of ministry for all ages from toddlers upwards. We don’t have as much as we’d like for teenagers, but that’s something we’re wanting to build on. We’re actually about to advertise for a Children & Families Worker, so we can add to what we already do as a church. We do a lot of publicity as well, to improve awareness of why coming to church is so attractive and how it enriches your life. Hopefully then people respond.

In what ways do you see the benefits of running groups or events?

RD: When we put on events in the community, from the fair to discussion groups, concerts, and so on, I think we are trying to share more widely what we have. That begins with our grounds, our building, the organ and the music. By sharing that with people, hopefully they pick up and want to share the Christian faith as well. Even if it’s just coming here for a concert of completely secular music, people are in a holy building, built to worship God, so it’s making them aware of what the presence of God means. We’re not doing these things in order to recruit, but everything that we do we want to make people know they’re welcome. If they then feel drawn and attracted by what’s going on and they think “actually, something like that could enrich my life” and they want to respond to that, I think that’s brilliant.

Do you think the church is used more as a support focus for local people now, rather than being a place of active worship?

RD: Well I think there’s a broad range of what both support and worship can mean, so worship is still at the centre of what we do. We rely hugely on both volunteers and people giving to support the church, and that comes primarily from the people who come to worship and so that’s at the centre of what the church does. Then there are activities – the concerts, toddler groups, a bereavement cafe, links with local schools and colleges, a Fun Day Wednesday and a host of other things that go on in the hall that don’t have worship as a part of them, but I would still see worship at the centre. We are a church and in worshipping and praying that God will guide us in what we do, that’s the foundation of it and I see the other things as springing from that.

What can a church like St Mary’s offer children, especially teenagers, who are so detached from religion?

RD: We’ve really identified that we do need to do more at the teenage level. Some teenagers are involved in our choir and music, but we do need to do more than that. Our monthly service called All In, is for children aged 7-11, and the older ones are ready for the next step. So I think it’s going to be the case of talking to them, and asking what sort of thing do they want? Is that going to be a discussion group talking about ethics, faith and science or is it something different? I think helping them to develop the next stage is a definite priority.

If you would like more information on what St Mary’s has to offer, visit their website at http://www.stmarysewell.com/