RECENT speculation about the future of the Church of England has been part of a wider questioning whether Christianity itself has a future. In a recent Spectator article, A. N. Wilson predicted that within 50 years the great cathedrals of Europe would be no more than “heritage” sites, their meaning incomprehensible to the crowds who visit them. It would not be a complete end, though. Fine worship and charismatic preaching would still be able to attract a faithful remnant; a small number of grand churches would probably remain viable, and a few of the most famous choirs could survive. But the culture as a whole would have moved on to the point at which Christianity was largely extinct.

There is an alternative view, which notes the conversion of some significant public figures in recent years and predicts a revival of belief. The historian Tom Holland and the secular Muslim Ayaan Ali Hirsi are examples of former atheists who have embraced Christian faith — partly out of a recognition that the best of Western culture is a product of Christian values, and partly out of despair at the erosion of Christian culture by secular materialism and its consequences for our well-being.

There are also occasional enquirers and converts from popular culture: Nick Cave, for example. We do not live well by bread alone, however well-packaged it might be.

The arguments put forward by Wilson and Holland are not as far apart as they might appear. Both assume that the decline of Christian faith in the West is inevitable, and that the faith will cling on in small pockets as a kind of elitist sport, while becoming inaccessible to most people. In the end, the conversion of a few public well-known faces will make little difference.

There are, of course, many parts of Africa and Asia where Christian faith continues to grow, and where believers manifest forms of faithfulness that do not necessarily coincide with Western liberalism. On the positive side, they may show us how to ward off the effects of secularism and how to survive in a hostile environment. But, they may also challenge our convictions about personal freedom and lifestyle in ways that many could find difficult. See the divergent views within the Anglican Communion on sexuality.

What appears to be threatened is the truce between Christian faith and the values of the European Enlightenment. This alliance, taken for granted by liberal-minded Christians, may be more enduring than we might have imagined.

One of the most haunting questions of the New Testament is that of Jesus: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” A good question for 2025.

The point is not whether Christian faith will survive: it almost certainly will. But it may be a faith that is very different from our current expectations.