Paving the Way To Heaven With Goodie Bags!
I was more than a little amazed to hear that on Sunday some Anglican churches, in Greater Manchester, were trying to ‘bribe’ lapsed churchgoers through the doors with ‘goodie’ bags. Each contained, among other things, a bar of Fair Trade chocolate. The point, I believe, was to show that the church is not just about hymns and praying, but has an ethical attitude towards products produced by third world nations.
Being a fairly sceptical person, I cannot see that these goodie bags would drag the backsliders out of bed when the lure of a lie in, together with the Sunday papers, may have more appeal!
Slightly tongue in cheek; I wonder if churches might issue their congregation with supermarket style loyalty cards, which they swipe in a card reader at the church door every time they go to a service. The more times you attend, the more points you earn. Maximum church attendance, together with a few weekday meetings, may ensure a Christmas hamper!
It is doubtful that gimmicks will result in folk wishing to regain their lost spirituality. A message that is relevant to our 21st century lives might have more effect.
Researchers from Wolverhampton University are studying the campaign to gauge how effective it was. I await their report with interest!