Alpha pioneer Nicky Gumbel is as passionate as ever about seeing ordinary believers introduce others to the Christian faith, especially at a time when so many people are searching for meaning and purpose - and there are signs they are increasingly turning to the Church.
Speaking on the Evangelical 360° podcast with Brian Stiller, Gumbel shared his perspective on reports of a Quiet Revival in the UK. The phrase was coined by the Bible Society after it published research earlier this year suggesting an increasing openness to Christianity and growing church attendance among young men in particular.
Gumbel believes that there are signs of a "return" to Christianity. As an example, he said that the turnout to the previous week's Sunday service at his church, Holy Trinity Brompton, had far exceeded normal numbers.
"They had real problems at the 11:30 service because at this time of year, it wouldn't normally be completely full. But not only was the church completely full, but all the overflow rooms were completely full and they virtually had to close the building because they just couldn't get everybody in," he said.
Gumbel has heard similar stories not only from churches in the UK but in other countries too.
"Something is happening," he said.
Gumbel believes that people are growing increasingly dissatisfied with other religions and secular ideologies. He also pointed to the "total instability" of the modern world — from war in Gaza to economic anxiety and advances in AI. These have left many young people searching for stability and truth in things like money or what he calls “the false supernatural”.
He also noted how much culture has shifted from his generation, where most people knew at least one practising Christian in their family or friendship circle, to today's youth who mostly do not know any and whose parents are likely to be atheist or agnostic. They come to Alpha not really knowing anything about Christianity or Jesus.
"They've never really thought about who Jesus is," he said.
The remarkable thing that he has witnessed through Alpha, though, is that as they do the course, the evidence starts to speak for itself and the Sonship of Christ "is not a question anymore".
In the wide-ranging conversation with Stiller, he reflected on the Alpha movement’s humble beginnings and how it has grown into a worldwide tool for evangelism.
“Everybody is searching for three things — love, meaning and to belong,” he said.
“At some point people ask the question, ‘Is there more to life than this? What is the purpose?’ These kinds of questions are hard to explore and there really isn’t a place to do that. Alpha is a way to do that in a very low-key, unpressurised, non-judgemental atmosphere in a group of people exploring like you.”
Alpha started in 1977 as a short course for new Christians but shifted direction when Gumbel took over in 1990. After noticing that visitors with no church background were encountering Jesus through open discussion, he reshaped the course for seekers. Today, more than 35 million people worldwide have participated.
The formula is simple: a shared meal, a short talk or film, and open discussion guided by a “host” rather than a lecturer. Participants are invited to ask life’s biggest questions and tackle topics like forgiveness, prayer, faith and purpose — in an atmosphere of respect and curiosity.
“If you want to reach people outside of the church and particularly young people … about the good news of Jesus Christ, we find that Alpha is one way that works,” Gumbel said. “We don’t say you must do it, but if you do want to do it, we’ll run a conference or training so you can do it. Tens of thousands of churches use it now.”
Originally launched in the UK, Alpha has since spread across continents — from Asia to Denmark, South America and throughout Africa.
“It has gone viral,” he commented. “We now have a record 178 countries using it.”
Central to Alpha, he said, is the experience of the Holy Spirit and helping people to discover how much they are loved by God.
He explained: “The most important of the three things that all humans are searching for is love. We need to know that we’re loved, and the heart of the message of the Gospel and Alpha is love – that the Son of God loved me and gave Himself for me and if you had been the only person in the world, Jesus would’ve died for you. That’s how much you are loved and that’s the message we’re proclaiming.
“But it’s not enough to know it in your head, you have to experience it in your heart and that’s the work of the Holy Spirit …[it] pours the love of God into our hearts. On Alpha, we have a weekend on just the work of the Holy Spirit. That’s the moment of transformation.”
In people's search for meaning and the answer to life's big questions, Gumbel sees Alpha as offering genuine hope.
“The gospel is very good news and what we’re trying to do on Alpha is present it in a very good way,” he stated. “It’s presented in a very loving, caring way and personal way - one to one and friendship way … we connect with people through our vulnerabilities."
Despite cultural differences, Gumbel said he is continually amazed that Alpha works everywhere for different reasons.
“The gospel is the same — Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever,” he said, noting that Alpha’s reach now extends online. “We tried it during Covid — and the Holy Spirit is not confused by Zoom either. It reaches Harvard students and people in prisons at the same time.”
However, he said that it was important that churches present people with "full fat Christianity", not "decaffeinated Christianity".
In closing, Gumbel gave advice to the younger generation, reflecting on humility and service as the heart of Christian life.
“The greatest title you can have is 'servant of the Lord',” he shared. “All we can all do is say – ‘Lord, what do you want me to do? I’m here for you. I’ll do whatever You want me to do. I am your servant. You’re the boss. It’s all about You, Jesus.’"
He continued: “Start by serving the people around you – wife, friend, parents.
"The greatest act of service is introducing someone to Jesus. I’m so grateful for the people who helped me encounter Jesus. The greatest injustice is to have gone your whole life and never heard about Jesus.
“The big heroes aren’t going to be the people who are known, but those who quietly went along and just served Jesus.”
